Former ABC LHP Miguel Cienfuegos (Laval, Que.) earned CBN POW for Week XIV.

July 13, 2023

By George Farelli

Canadian Baseball Network

The outlook for this season must have been very positive for Miguel Cienfuegos.

After all, he was coming off an excellent 2022 season with the Quebec Capitales, one in which he led his team to the IND Frontier League championship, and was subsequently named the League’s Pitcher of the Year.

As well, the Canadian Baseball Network named Cienfuegos (Laval, Que.) as winner of the Claude Pelletier award given annually to the top Canadian pitcher active in the independent or foreign ranks. His performance did not go unnoticed and in December he signed a minor league contract with the San Diego Padres. The 25-year-old was getting a well earned opportunity to advance his career within a big league organization.

To say there have been some bumps in the road since that point is to put it mildly, because as often happens, injuries have slowed down the pace of his progress. Since beginning of the season in April, he has spent significant time on the injured list, plus undergone two separate rehab stints, and this has resulted in him being limited to only eight game appearances heading into July.

The good news is that with the required patience and hard work, he now seems to have regained his health and has been re-activated by the Padres.

Last Friday, he pitched five innings to gain his first win of the season as the class-A Lake Elsinore Storm beat Visalia Rawhide 11-5 before 2,055 fans at Valley Strong Ballpark.

The outing earned Cienfuegos Canadian Baseball Network minor league Player of the Week for Week XIV.

First inning

Strike out swinging.

Single to centre.

Strike out swinging.

Strike out on strikes.

Second

Walk

Fly out to left.

Run-scoring double to left, hitter thrown out at third.

Line out to short

Third

Strike out on swinging.

Ground ball to third base.

Fourth

Double to right.

Single to right.

Run-scoring fly ball to left.

Single to right.

Strike out swinging.

Ground ball to shortstop

Fifth

Ground ball to short.

Ground ball to second.

Strike out swinging.

Highlight I: RHP Christian Young (Oakville, Ont.) _ was named to the IND American Association Mid Season - East Division All Star team scheduled for Franklin Field in Milwaukee July 18, 2023.

Highlight II: 3B Matt Lloyd (Calgary, Alta.) _ Named to the IND American Association Mid Season - West Division All Star team at Milwaukee July 18, 2023.

Best Offensive Performances

Name Class Team AB R H HR RBI AVG

Dylan O’Rae Rookie ACL Brewers 20 5 10 - 4 .500

Nathaniel Ochoa-Leyva Rookie FCL Nationals 12 2 5 - 2 .417

T.J. Schofield-Sam A Stockton 30 4 12 1 4 .400

Denzel Clarke AA Midland 26 8 10 2 9 .385

Owen Caissie AA Tennessee 28 4 10 2 4 .370

Dasan Brown A Vancouver 22 8 8 - 2 .364

David Calabrese A Rocket City 17 3 6 - 3 .353

Tristan Peters AA Montgomery 23 3 8 - 1 .348

Tyler Black AA Biloxi 16 3 5 - - .313

Andy Yerzy AA Chattanooga 13 4 4 2 9 .308

Trei Cruz AA Erie 20 6 6 - - .300

Archer Brookman A Lakeland 10 2 3 - 3 .300

Liam Hicks AA Frisco 10 3 3 - - .300

Riley Jepson IND Great Falls 21 8 11 - 2 .524

Tyler Wright IND Ottawa Titans 16 4 7 2 7 .438

Kole Cottam IND Spire City 19 2 8 2 7 .421

Mike Crouse IND Milwaukee 12 3 5 1 4 .417

Connor Panas IND Lincoln 20 5 7 - 2 .350

David Glaude IND Quebec 24 7 8 2 4 .333

Noah Myers IND Evansville 25 4 8 - 1 .320

Jake Sanford IND Sioux City 16 2 5 - 1 .313

(Minimum 10 ABs)

* * *

Best Pitching Performances

Name Class Team Games W ER ERA IP K WHIP

Miguel Cienfuegos A Lake Elsinore 1 1 2 3.60 5.0 7 1.200

This week on July 7 Cienfuegos made a very good start for Lake Elsinore in the Storm’s 11-5 win over Visalia Rawhide as he pitched five innings, gave up five base hits and two earned runs while striking out seven batters.

It was his first win of the season. His overall record for 2023 in nine pitching appearances is now 1-4 with a 4.00 ERA.

Name Class Team Games ER S ERA IP K WHIP

Jake Polancic IND Evansville 3 0 3 0.00 3.1 5 0.323

After a successful stint with Team Canada at the recent Pan American Games qualifier held in Argentina, Polancic continues to perform well in his role as closer with the Evansville Otters IND Frontier League. This week he made three relief appearances and earned a save each time. On July 7, in a 9-5 win over Windy City, he pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing zero hits, while striking out three batters to earn his sixth save of the year. On July 8, same opponent with same result, team wins 8-6 as he pitched one scoreless for his seventh save.

Finally on July 9, in a 7-4 win over Windy City, another one scoreless inning while striking out two, to secure his eighth save. His overall record with Evansville in 15 game appearances stands at 0-2, with eight saves and 1.62 ERA. His eight saves are the second best total for all closers in the IND Frontier League.

Name Class Team Games ER S ERA IP K WHIP

Adam Tulloch A Lynchburg 1 - - 0.00 4.0 8 1.250

Drafted and signed in 2022 by Cleveland Guardians, Tulloch (Toronto, Ont.), a 23-year-old, is having a solid second year as a relief pitcher with their Single A affiliate Lynchburg Hillcats, and his outing this week was another example of his excellent performance. On July 7, in a 2-1 win over Salem Red Sox he pitched four scoreless, allowing only two base hits striking out eight, but was not involved in the decision. This game improved his overall record in 18 Single A Carolina League appearances, to 3-2 with a 3.63 ERA and includes a total of 74 strikeouts in 53 2/3 innings pitched.

Previous Players of the Week

Week I _ Edouard Julien (Ancienne-Lorette, Que.) triple-A St. Paul Saints (Twins)

Week II _ Cade Smith (Abbotsford, BC) double-A Akron RuberDucks (Guardians).

Week III _ Abraham Toro (Longuiel, Que.) triple-A Nashville Sounds (Brewers)

Week IV _ Denzel Clarke (Pickering, Ont.) double-A Midland (A’s) and Trei Cruz (Toronto, Ont.) double-A Erie (Tigers)

Week V _ Wesley Moore (Surrey, BC) class-A Clearwater Threshers (Phillies).

Week VI _ Matt Coutney (Wetaskiwin, Alta.) class-A Inland Empire (Angels).

Week VII _ Damiano Palmegiani (Surrey, BC) double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Jays)

Week VIII _ Matt Coutney (Wetaskiwin, Alta.) class-A Inland Empire (Angels) annd David McCabe (Courtice, Ont.) and Augusta Greenjackets (Braves.)

Week IX _ Erik Sabrowski (Edmonton, Alta.) double-A Akron Rubber Ducks (Guardians)

Week X _ Mitch Bratt (Newmarket, Ont.) class-A Hickory Crawdads (Mets)

Week XI _ Jared Young (Prince George, BC) triple-A Iowa (Cubs).