Griffin, Hill Named Players of the Week

Each week, milb.com names a best hitter and pitcher from each minor league.

For the week ending on May 25, two former Valley Leaguers- Jon Griffin (Luray 2010) and Taylor Hill (Winchester 2008)- were named for their respective leagues.

So, first of all, Jon Griffin won the hitter of the week award in the Southern League on the power of a four home run game, and then he added, for good measure, a fifth home run in as many at-bats the next night. This is what Sam Dykstra wrote about Jon:

(.391/.517/1.174, 6 G, 9-for-23, 6 HR, 10 RBI, 7 R, 5 BB, 4 K)
Griffin had this wrapped up by Thursday. The BayBears first baseman/DH famously homered four times Wednesday, becoming the first player since fellow Player of the Week Javier Baez to achieve the feat in the Minors, and then went deep again in his first at-bat the following day, giving him long balls in five consecutive plate appearances. With 10 homers in 45 games this season, Griffin has already matched his 2013 total, which came in 103 contests between Mobile and Class A Advanced Visalia, and sits second in the Southern League in the category, trailing only Cubs phenom Kris Bryant, who has 14.

And Taylor Hill was named pitcher of the week in the International League. He’s been on fire lately: he’s only allowed 3 runs in his last 30 innings pitched. Overall, he’s 6-1, 1.63, with 8 walks and 47 strikeouts in 60 2/3 innings. Dykstra’s writeup:

(1-0, 0.00 ERA, 2 G, 1 GS, 11 IP, 11 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 2 HBP, 1 BB, 6 K)
You won’t find the 25-year-old right-hander on many prospect lists, but he’s been one of the more consistent pitchers in the Nationals system since the beginning of last season. He started last week with four scoreless innings Monday in relief of the rehabbing Ross Ohlendorf and tacked on seven more zeros Saturday, allowing five hits and no walks in that one. The former Vanderbilt hurler ranks third in the International League with a 1.63 ERA and second with a 0.96 WHIP across 60 2/3 innings, which also ranks second.

Congratulations to both Jon and Taylor!