Kind of a quiet week on the farm for the Dodgers affiliates. The Loons went 4-1, but the other three affiliates didn’t play .500 ball.

The pitching seemed to lack this week more than the offense, but there have been some impressive early-season performances thus far.

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Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes (2-5)

Player Of The Week

Scott Van Slyke – 1B

.435/.517/.957/1.474, 3 HR, 6 RBI, 3 2B, 7 R, 5 BB, 4 K

Van Slyke is on fire to start the season. Not only is he hitting the cover off the ball, he’s walking, too. He’s slimmed down and it appears to be helping him. He’s a late-bloomer for sure, but this is ridiculous — in a good way.

Pitcher Of The Week

Matt Magill – RHP

5 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 7 K

Magill’s first start wasn’t great, but his second start was much better. He has the skill set to pitch in the Pacific Coast League, especially with his ability to get the strikeout. It’ll be interesting to see how Magill fares in the extreme hitter’s league this season.

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Double-A Chattanooga Lookouts (2-4)

Player Of The Week

Yasiel Puig – OF

.304/.333/.609/.942, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 2 2B, 1 3B, 1 BB, 5 K

Puig wasn’t as good as last week, but he still was able to smack four extra-base hits while trying to help the mediocre-thus-far Lookouts’ offense. Joc Pederson was a close second.

Pitcher Of The Week

Zach Lee – RHP

7 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 HR, 1 BB (Intentional), 7 K

Lee pitched like the Dodgers’ best pitching prospect this week, as he spun a gem against the Tennessee Smokies. He’s off to a fast start this season, and could re-establish his prospect status (even though he didn’t do a whole lot to hurt it in 2012) with a strong performance in Double-A.

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High-A Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (3-4)

Player Of The Week

Scott Wingo – 2B

.400/.571/.467/1.038, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 5 R, 4 BB, 3 K, 2 HBP

Wingo is an on-base machine, or at least he was this week. He gets pushed to the bottom of the lineup thanks to Darnell Sweeney and Noel Cuevas, but it’s nice to have that on-base ability to turn the lineup over.

Pitcher Of The Week

Pedro Baez – RHP

2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K

Kind of a rough week for Quakes’ pitching. Ross Stripling pitched relatively well, but still gave up three runs in five innings. Baez is not the Quakes’ closer right now, but he could be by mid-season, due to either promotions or performance.

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Low-A Great Lakes Loons (4-1)

Player Of The Week

Paul Hoenecke – 3B

.476/.500/1.262/1.762, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 3 2B, 7 R, 1 BB, 3 K

Hoenecke has been the Loons’ best hitter by far. He’s providing the middle-of-the-order presence Great Lakes’ terrible offense needs. Corey Seager has struggled (statistically), and the team isn’t getting much offense from anyone else.

Pitcher Of The Week

Ralston Cash – RHP

6 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K

Despite giving up six runs in his first start, none of them were earned. That explains the 0.93 ERA and 4.09 FIP this season, but still, he’s striking batters out (15 in 9 2/3 innings). This is a big year for the former second-rounder.

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Dustin Nosler is the founder of the site Feelin’ Kinda Blue. He also co-hosts the weekly podcast Dugout Blues. Follow him on Twitter @FeelinKindaBlue or like his site on Facebook.

The Albuquerque Isotopes and Chattanooga Lookouts had the best week in the Dodgers minor league system, both winning five games this week. The ‘Topes scored the most runs this week with 54, while the Great Lakes Loons gave up the fewest with 24.

The Arizona League Dodgers, a team that had been rolling, had one game in which it gave up 20 runs. The lowlight of the week for sure.

With the trade deadline fast approaching, some of these guys could be making their last appearances on this list.

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Albuquerque Isotopes (5-2)

Runs Scored: 54
Runs Allowed: 40

Player Of The Week

Josh Fields – 3B

Fields has been one of the Pacific Coast League‘s hottest hitters, and that continued this week: 10-for-23 (.435) with two home runs, four doubles, nine RBI, nine runs scored, and four walks. Fields is up to .345/.411/.525 on the season, and if the Dodgers don’t find an upgrade at third base he might actually get a shot at the hot corner. This was his third award in four weeks and his fourth overall.

Pitcher Of The Week

Stephen Fife – RHP

Fife had the best week of any Isotopes pitcher despite making his MLB debut this week (6 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 1 K). He had an even better outing for Albuquerque after he was optioned: 7 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 12 K. It was his best outing of the season and there might be some hope for him as a swingman in the majors. This is Fife’s third award of the season.

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Chattanooga Lookouts (5-1)

Runs Scored: 37
Runs Allowed: 28

Player Of The Week

Rafael Ynoa – 2B

Believe it or not, this is Ynoa’s third award of the season. He went 11-for-23 (.478) with a double, four RBI, two walks, and a stolen base. He’s raised his season triple slash to .305/.375/.366. He has decent on-base skills but zero power.

Pitcher Of The Week

Allen Webster – RHP

The man who could be traded for Ryan Dempster, Webster had himself quite an outing on Friday: 6 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 10 K. He’s showing why he’s one of the Dodgers top prospects after a terribly slow start to the season. He’s getting better and stronger as the season goes on and he should only be traded for an impact player — definitely not a rental like Dempster.

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Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (2-5)

Runs Scored: 17
Runs Allowed: 34

Player Of The Week

Scott Wingo – 2B

Wingo had himself quite a week for the Quakes: 10-for-24 (.417) with three doubles and four runs scored. He has a good eye, drawing 41 walks in 84 games, and plays a decent second base. This is his third honor this season. He needs to finish the season strong to get on the prospect radar.

Pitcher Of The Week

Andres Santiago – RHP

Santiago is on fire, capturing his third straight award and fourth on the season by having another good outing: 7 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 8 K. His ERA is high (4.48), but his peripherals continue to improve (1.19 WHIP, 7.7 H/9, 10.3 K/9, 3.46 K/BB, 3.05 FIP). He’s the Quakes best pitcher right now.

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Great Lakes Loons (4-2)

Runs Scored: 29
Runs Allowed: 24

Player Of The Week

O’Koyea Dickson – 1B/DH

Dickson has been noticeably absent from this list for more than a month because of a horrifically bad slump to start the second half. However, it seems he might be back on track after going 8-for-25 (.320) with a home run, two doubles, seven RBI, and three runs scored. He still owns a respectable .842 OPS in the Midwest League. I’d still like to see him promoted to Rancho Cucamonga.

Pitcher Of The Week

Gustavo Gomez – RHP

Gomez makes his first appearance on this list, which is a little surprising. He had a solid outing on Saturday: 5 2/3 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 9 K. The 21-year-old has struggled a lot with the Loons, posting a 5.92 ERA and a .291 BAA. It’d be nice to see him finish the season on a strong note.

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Ogden Raptors (2-4)

Runs Scored: 28
Runs Allowed: 37

Player Of The Week

Pat Stover – OF

The Dodgers 40th-round pick this year, Stover could end up being a steal. Oh, and he had a solid week for the Raptors: 6-for-17 (.353) with a home run, three RBI, two runs, and two walks. He owns a .375/.452/.438 triple slash in his first 21 professional games.

Pitcher Of The Week

Matt Laney – LHP

Laney, who began the season with Great Lakes, had the best week of any Raptor pitcher: 6 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K. He’s actually pitched worse since going to Ogden.

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Arizona League Dodgers (1-4)

Runs Scored: 17
Runs Allowed: 39

Player Of The Week

Jesmuel Valentin – SS

The Dodgers 2012 second-round pick makes his first appearance on this list by going 4-for-13 (.308) with a home run, three RBI, four runs scored, and three walks. Valentin got off to a slow start but is up to a decent .253/.366/.400 triple slash in his debut season. He’s scored 19 runs and has 19 hits.

Pitcher Of The Week

Lindsey Caughel – RHP

The Dodgers 2012 23rd-round pick had the best week of the bunch, which isn’t saying much: 4 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 5 K. He had a decent game, but no one else had a week worth noting for the team.

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Dominican Summer League Dodgers (3-3)

Runs Scored: 32
Runs Allowed: 28

Player Of The Week

Melvin Santana – 2B

Santana has taken over as the team’s best player by earning his third consecutive POTW award. Santana went 6-for-16 (.375) with a double, four runs scored, and three stolen bases. He owns a .313/.387/.507 line with 38 runs scored.

Pitcher Of The Week

Wander Beras – LHP

Beras, like Santana, earns his third consecutive POTW award for the DSL Dodgers by having another fantastic outing: 6 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 10 K. He’s struck out 73 hitters in 56 1/3 innings, but he’s 23 years old at the lowest level of the minors.

The Lookouts were the best team of the week in the Dodgers farm system, going 5-1 while allowing just 19 runs in those six games. Outfielder Blake Smith was also named league player of the week. The Quakes and Loons both scored the most runs this week at 34.

The Isotopes were carried by two of the three players acquired in the Trayvon Robinson deal from last July in Tim Federowicz and Stephen Fife. However, the roster has been ravaged by the Dodgers due to an abnormal number of injuries on the big league roster.

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Albuquerque Isotopes (1-5)

Runs Scored: 27
Runs Allowed: 43

Player Of The Week

Tim Federowicz – C

Federowicz wins this award for the second time in four weeks, going 7-for-21 (.333) with a home run, four doubles, and eight RBI. He’s not showing the desired offensive ability from a prospect in the Pacific Coast League, but Federowicz has never been known for his bat. He’s at .286/.342/.466 with three home runs, 24 RBI, and 13 doubles.

Pitcher Of The Week

Stephen Fife – RHP

This one is pretty much by default, as no one with the Isotopes really dominated on the hill. Fife had a decent week: 13 IP, 12 H, 6 R, 5 ER, 6 BB, and 6 K. He’s starting to settle down after a horrific start to the season. Still, his 5.32 ERA, 1.71 WHIP, and .305 batting average against aren’t exactly stats to brag about.

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Chattanooga Lookouts (5-1)

Runs Scored: 33
Runs Allowed: 19

Player Of The Week

Blake Smith – OF

Unlike the choices for Albuquerque, this one was a no-brainer. Smith was named the Southern League Player Of The Week, so he naturally wins this week’s award (his second overall). Smith went 8-for-18 (.444) with two home runs, two doubles, a triple, and 11 RBI.

Smith has struggled in Double-A so far, posting a .255/.335/.453 line with a 27.7 strikeout percentage. However, he’s shown some on-base ability (9.7 percent walk rate) and some pop (.453 slugging). He just needs to focus on making more contact.

Pitcher Of The Week

Nate Eovaldi – RHP

Eovaldi had his best week of the season, going 2-0 with a 0.75 ERA, six hits allowed, one run, and six strikeouts. The only hiccup came with his seven walks allowed. Still, he seems to be getting back on track after the Dodgers messed with his routine a month ago.

He’s 2-2 with a 3.18 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, .250 BAA, 7.9 H/9, 0.5 HR/9, 3.4 BB/9, and a 7.1 K/9. It’ll be nice when he’s in Los Angeles for good.

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Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (4-3)

Runs Scored: 34
Runs Allowed: 32

Player Of The Week

Scott Wingo – 2B

Wingo takes his second POTW award by going 8-for-21 (.381) with a double, five RBI, two runs scored, seven walks (against two strikeouts), and a stolen base. The 23-year-old has a .265/.387/.353 line with the Quakes and has hit all over the lineup (leadoff, second, third, eighth, ninth). With the rate Dodger infielders are dropping, he could reach Los Angeles before too long (I’m only half-joking).

Pitcher Of The Week

Eric Eadington – LHP

Eadington was a recently called up from Great Lakes and struggled in his second outing (1 1/3 IP, 4 runs). However, he was nearly flawless this week: 3 1/3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K, 1 save. The big lefty has a ridiculous 34:4 K:BB rate between Rancho and Great Lakes and seems to be getting acclimated to California League hitters and the environment.

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Great Lakes Loons (3-4)

Runs Scored: 34
Runs Allowed: 32

Player Of The Week

O’Koyea Dickson – 1B/DH

Dickson earns his second consecutive POTW award by going 8-for-23 (.348) with a home run, five RBI, four runs scored, and three walks. Dickson is performing quite well to start his season, posting a .377/.460/.642 line in his first 15 games.

If he’s still hitting this well (or close to it) in early June, it should be good enough for a promotion to Rancho Cucamonga.

Pitcher Of The Week

Joel Lima – RHP

It wasn’t the best of weeks for the Loons pitching staff, but Lima did some good work out of the bullpen: 2 G, 5 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K. Lima has pitched just three games for the Loons, but the 23-year-old has been solid in his first 8 2/3 innings of work: 1.07 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, and a .241 BAA.

Scott Wingo bats against the Visalia Rawhide on April 20th at the Epicenter in Rancho Cucamonga.

Overall, it was a decent week for the minor league affiliates of the Dodgers.

The AAA Isotopes checked in the best record and the best offensive performer, but the A+ Quakes had the best pitcher, just edging out the AA Lookouts.

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Albuquerque Isotopes (6-1)

Runs Scored: 55
Runs Allowed: 40

Player Of The Week

Alex Castellanos – 2B/OF

Castellanos continued his torrid start, going 11-for-25 (.440) with four home runs, eight RBI, nine runs scored, a double, two triples, four walks, and three stolen bases. If he keeps this up, he’s going to force the Dodgers to give him a shot in the majors. His line through 17 games is as follows: .371/.483/.757, four home runs, seven doubles, four triples, seven stolen bases, 18 runs scored, and 12 walks.

Pitcher Of The Week

Cole St. Clair – LHP

St. Clair threw five innings of scoreless relief for the ‘Topes this week. He struck out four, walked three, gave up two hits, and, most importantly, zero runs. With the Dodgers lefty-deficient in the majors, St. Clair could get a look sooner rather than later.

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Chattanooga Lookouts (3-4)

Runs Scored: 35
Runs Allowed: 31

Player Of The Week

Blake Smith – OF

Smith got off to an absolutely miserable start (3-for-27), but he finished this week 9-for-23 (.391) with a home run, a double, four RBI, eight runs scored, and three walks. He seems to be finally hitting his stride and still profiles as one of the best Dodger power prospects in the minors.

Pitcher Of The Week

Shawn Tolleson – RHP

Tolleson threw just 3 2/3 innings this week, but he struck out seven batters while allowing three hits. The performance dropped his career ERA to 0.95 in 106 1/3 innings.

With a low-90s fastball, wipeout cutter, and solid slider, Tolleson isn’t long for the Lookouts and should be among the first relievers called to Los Angeles when the team needs a bullpen arm.

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Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (3-4)

Runs Scored: 31
Runs Allowed: 30

Player Of The Week

Scott Wingo – 2B

Wingo only played in four games this week, but he played well. He went 5-for-13 (.385) with two triples, three runs scored, four walks, zero strikeouts, and three stolen bases.

The 2011 11th-round pick started off his season with a bang, and I was in person on Friday night to see his two triples, which were legit. As Jared Massey of LA Dugout described, he has long strides for being a shorter player (5’11″). Also, he made a nice pivot at second base.

Pitcher Of The Week

Chris Reed – LHP

Reed threw 13 innings in the week, seven of which he did Sunday in his best outing as a professional. He allowed four hits, zero runs, zero walks, and struck out eight. It was a masterful performance by the big lefty and it could be something for him to build on. He had a case of the walks on April 16th against San Jose (five), but still managed to throw six innings of three-run ball.

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Great Lakes Loons (4-3)

Runs Scored: 26
Runs Allowed: 24

Player Of The Week

James Baldwin – OF

Baldwin, who started the season 1-for-30, caught fire a bit this week, going 6-for-22 (.273) with four runs scored and four stolen bases. He’s still striking out too much (35.2 percent), but he’s showing just a little improvement at the plate.

Pitcher Of The Week

Jarret Martin – LHP

Martin was downright masterful at times for the Loons. One of the guys acquired in the Dana Eveland deal, Martin struck out 17 batters in 12 1/3 innings this week, posting a 0.73 ERA while allowing just four walks. Command is Martin’s biggest bugaboo, but it looks like he’s destined for a promotion before too long.

Dominican Summer League Dodgers: Pitchers
Dominican Summer League Dodgers: Hitters
Arizona League Dodgers: Pitchers
Arizona League Dodgers: Hitters
Ogden Raptors: Pitchers

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Continuing my off-season recap of the Los Angeles Dodgers minor league affiliates, I will be moving on to the hitters of the Ogden Raptors.

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I’ll be picking the prospects for the 2012 Prospective Prospect Profiles list from these reviews, so it might be worth reading. Or not.

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Joc Pederson – OF – 19

Joc Pederson Statistics

2010 11th round draft pick Joc Pederson destroyed the Pioneer League in 2011, it’s as simple as that. He put up a .353/.429/.568/.997 line (.792 OPS=Average) in 310 plate appearances, striking out 17.4% of the time, while walking at a 11.6% clip, both clearly better than the league average.

He has solid plate discipline, makes consistent content, and should be able to play good defense in the corners. Perhaps most impressive is his flash of immediate power out of high school, even if it was the Pioneer League.

He struggled a bit in A-ball to take some shine off his 2011, but he was one of the youngest players in that league, so giving him a pass for now isn’t hard. He’ll end up in A-ball again to begin 2012 and I’m excited to see how he fares.

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James Baldwin – OF – 19

James Baldwin Statistics

A fourth round draft pick in 2010 and son of a former MLB pitcher, James Baldwin flashes tools but still lacks refinement.

His .250/.348/.480/.828 line is solid, especially for a raw player, but striking out 32.6% of the time is just unacceptable. He doesn’t walk a lot to compensate for it either (7.8%), so it’s obvious that plate discipline and consistent contact will be his main issues going forward.

Baldwin’s athleticism, speed, and arm are generally unquestionable. Furthermore, he has power projection, which stacks even more potential onto a player who projects in center field. With that said, it’s hard to get around that strikeout rate, especially in Rookie-ball. My main concerns are that I don’t think he has particularly quick hands and his swing is lengthy enough where it’s not in the hitting zone for long. He has closed his stance off a bit since high school in an effort to shorten his stroke, and I think it has helped simplify his timing, but the swing itself still has the same path to it.

Given the Dodgers history with pushing raw players (Dee Gordon), I expect Baldwin to be in A-ball in 2012.

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O’Koyea Dickson – 1B – 21

O’Koyea Dickson Statistics

Taken in the 12th round of the 2011 draft, O’Koyea Dickson set the Pioneer League on fire in his professional debut. He put up a .333/.402/.603/1.005 line, which is impressive regardless of where it was done.

He hit at home (.979), on the road (1.044), against lefties (.999), and righties (1.007). Perhaps most noteworthy is that his strikeout rate was above average (20.5%) despite his power stroke. Dickson’s walk rate could use work though (8.8%), as it’s solid, but it’ll need to inflate as he moves levels.

Dickson has a quiet approach at the plate without much movement or complexities, and his swing is generally short and efficient. When he gets the ball in his zone, he squares up well, but can elongate his swing against tough pitches at the edges of the strike zone. I really like his hands and I think there’s a chance that he could develop into a good prospect. I would be remissed if I didn’t mention his short stature for the position though, which could ultimately handcuff him.

I’d like to see how he performs in A-ball before getting too excited, as he’s limited to first base defensively, and the offensive bar for that position is quite high. Still, you couldn’t ask him to do much more at the level he was put at.

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Scott Schebler – OF – 20

Scott Schebler Statistics

A 26th round pick in 2010, Scott Schebler was supposed to be able to hit, and that he did in his first extended season as a professional.

Schebler hit 13 homers en route to putting up a .285/.324/.529/.853 line for 2011. Of course, the problem is obvious, as he walked 4.1% of the time (13) but struck out in a frightening 30.8% of plate appearances (97).

I’m not all that optimistic going forward, mainly because he’ll need to do a ton better than that to play a corner.

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Noel Cuevas – OF – 19

Noel Cuevas Statistics

Sent to the California League to begin 2011, the 2010 21st round draft pick struggled immensely before being sent down to the Pioneer League.

Noel Cuevas played much better after the demotion, posting a .285/.326/.488/.814 line, both demonstrating that he can hit and why he struggled against better competition. The 20.2 K% is solid, but the 5.2 BB% is the problem area.

He’s not a refined product, so I’m unsure why they pushed him so quickly, as he’s one of the many that needs extra time to develop.

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Scott Wingo – 2B – 22

Scott Wingo Statistics

The 11th round 2011 draft pick out of South Carolina had an impressive professional debut that begs the question of where he’ll end up in 2012.

His line of .275/.464/.459/.922 showed the extent to which he overmatched Pioneer League pitchers, carrying a 19.9 K% and a 18.5 BB%.

For the coming year, whether he starts in the Midwest League or California League should tell us what the Dodgers think of his tools.

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Pratt Maynard – C – 21

Pratt Maynard Statistics

Drafted in the third round of the 2011 draft because he could hit, Pratt Maynard did none of that in 2011. He put up a line of .239/.346/.341/.687 in 104 plate appearances and never looked comfortable.

It wasn’t bad luck either, as his BABIP wasn’t so far removed from the league average that it could explain away his issues, at least not so much as his 67.7% ground ball rate would. On the positive side, he controlled the plate reasonably well, posting a 23.1 K% and a 12.5 BB%, but as far as actually hitting the ball, he didn’t do it.

It’s certainly not enough to condemn him, but it’s not the start you want in a hitter friendly league from your third round, bat first college catcher. As a mediocre defensive receiver, he’ll need to improve in both aspects at this point.

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Justin Boudreaux – SS – 21

Justin Boudreaux Statistics

Posting a .265/.400/.442/.842 line, Justin Boudreaux flashed plate discipline and pop, but didn’t make a significant impression considering he was a three year starter in college (Southeastern Louisiana).

He controls the strike zone well and makes consistent enough contact, but it’s his speed that has allowed him to excel thus far, stealing 16 bases without being caught. Defensively, he’s a tad error prone, but that can be cleaned up with time and he has the tools to stick at shortstop.

Boudreaux will have to be pushed to A-ball in 2012 if he’s going to be a relevant prospect.

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Jan Vazquez – C – 20

Jan Vazquez Statistics

To be totally honest, it’s starting to look like Jan Vazquez is becoming yet another example of why you don’t draft catch-and-throw backstops who have to be taught how to hit.

A sixth round selection in 2009, Vazquez is still in Rookie-ball sharing time with other catchers after three years as a professional. On the positive side, he’s getting better (OPS=.558/.648/.674 CS%=22/23/32). On the negative side, those still aren’t even average numbers and the scouting reports aren’t exactly glowing.

He might struggle to become even organizational depth if he doesn’t take a step forward in 2012.