The hitting began to surge in June as the Naturals improved their record during a hot streak. Pitching benefited from the added run support as the offense drove the bus for the squad. Dillan Shrum, Petyon Wilson, and Luca Tresh had big months but failed to out-hit the 26-year-old catcher taking home the honor this month. The pitching could have been more consistent except for a few guys who made statements. Mason Barnett showed signs of ending his slump on the mound alongside a slew of bullpen arms in Eric Carentola, Cruz Noriega, Beck Way, and Anthony Simonelli.
Pitcher of the Month
Luinder Avila was a common headliner in June for our weekly awards. His five starts showed off the upside that has him ranked in the organization’s top 30. With six earned runs in 28.0 innings, his 1.93 ERA led the rotation earning him three wins in five starts. Avila struck out 33 and walked 13 in June, allowing just 1.18 base runners per inning. Avila dropped his ERA on the season by almost an entire point in the month, highlighting his dominance on the mound. Even with a few extra walks, batters hit just .196 against him as he carved through lineups. Throughout five starts, Avila worked around hitters so well that he made it through the fifth inning in every start.
I mentioned back in February’s roster projection that Avila has the opportunity to surprise some people. He snuck onto the Top 30 list in the preseason with a three-pitch mix already in tow. It seemed that his biggest hold-up would be his approach on the mound. His ability to attack hitters with those three pitches effectively. He is walking far too many batters, with a 12.3 walk rate, but his strikeout rate of 22.5% is something to keep an eye on. Like many developing pitchers, if the walks can shift positively the overall numbers could start to jump off the page. Fans can only imagine what it will look like if those walks turn into strikeouts.
Hitter of the Month
Rodolfo Durán managed to blow away AA pitching in June with a slash of .304/.392/.536. A short stint in AAA wasn’t enough for anyone to overtake him in home runs as he tied the team lead with four in June. Alongside four doubles, Duran showed an impressive mix of power, on-base, and contact skills to accumulate a .928 OPS. Perhaps most impressive was Durán’s 18 RBI over just 17 games with the Naturals this month. His ISO (isolated power metric) was .232. If you’re unfamiliar with the stat, it measures a hitter’s power by telling you how often he hits for extra bases. Anything above .200 is great, anything above .250 is considered elite, so do with that what you will. Crash course aside, Durán was great and only continues to torture pitchers in AA because his path is blocked by Nola in Omaha.
His contributions to the system are fairly new, as he joins the organization this season. I expect the front office to have an eye on him to make some decisions about what chips they trade for league-ready talent. If a trade partner is more interested in a younger prospect than 33-year-old Austin Nola, Rodolfo Durán may be their first offer. With increased line drive numbers, a power surge to match, and a 133 wRC+ riding a career-high BABIP, he could be a decent addition to a group of young players that land the Royals a new corner outfielder.
