At The Ballpark: Diamondbacks and Rockies Prospect Edition

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The final game of my Central Valley tour was at Recreation Park to watch the Lancaster JetHawks at the Visalia Rawhide. While my previous stops were ideal for catching video, I had a prime location for capturing great photos here. It was All American Saturday and the home team was dressed in patriotic uniforms.

Arizona Diamondbacks Prospect

On this Saturday night I was lucky enough to catch the Diamondbacks’ #29 prospect (MLB.com), Emilio Vargas starting for the Rawhide. While he didn’t appear as sharp as some of his previous starts, he still had a pretty solid outing. Unfortunately his team didn’t give him a lot of run support and the Rawhide ended up losing the game. Vargas has had a stellar year, even starting for the North Division in the Cal League All-Star Game, and based on his stats alone, I’m surprised he hasn’t moved up.

Emilio Vargas

	GS	W	L	ERA	IP	BB	SO	WHIP
Visalia 2018*	20	8	5	2.50	108.0	41	140	1.23

*Data through July 31

Colorado Rockies Prospects

For the JetHawks, I’ve had my eye on the corner infielders, Colton Welker (3B) and Tyler Nevin (1B). They’ve both been hot as of late and are responsible for the JetHawks’ surge that could land them a Second-Half Championship in the Cal League South Division.

Colton Welker was the Rockies 4^th round pick in 2016 out of Stoneman Douglas in Parkland, FL. He’s been on fire lately as evidenced by his 15-game hitting streak. Best known for his power-hitting bat, Welker plays a solid defense at third. If the Rockies are unable to resign Nolan Arenado after the 2019 season, Welker could supplant him at the hot corner.

Colton Welker

	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	AVG	OBP	SLG
Lancaster 2018*	94	374	61	118	11	63	.316	.369	.471

*Data through July 31

As someone who has not followed the Rockies’ prospects much, I didn’t realize that Tyler Nevin was Phil Nevin’s son. After following baseball for 30+ years, it’s great to see all the children of guys I grew up watching develop as prospects and major leaguers. Initially a third baseman, Nevin has spent most of his time playing at first base. Not only is the third base position occupied by Welker, but first base is actually a better fit for his skills. Nevin had a banner night on Friday, July 20^th at Stockton going 4-4 with a double, HR and four RBI. His 9-game hitting streak since that game was just snapped on July 31st.

Tyler Nevin

	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	AVG	OBP	SLG
Lancaster 2018*	70	268	38	84	9	42	.313	.362	.489

*Data through July 31

All photos – credit Gail Verderico, @1baseballchick on Twitter

Gail Verderico

Gail is Bay Area born and raised. She was conflicted on which side of the Bay to root for early on, but eventually sided with the A’s. Gail now lives in Southern California, loves all Southern California baseball, and enjoys travelling around the country watching as many baseball games as she can. Follow her on X @1baseball_gail and Instagram @baseball_gail.