After a slow start, the Northwest Arkansas Naturals put together a strong week to pull within one game of .500 on the season. Now sitting at 7-8, the Naturals scored 27 runs while only allowing 19 through their six games. It was an offensive onslaught for the squad as four players (Shrum, Tresh, Valera, Wallace) tallied six hits. Cayden Wallace walloped four doubles, Dylan Shrum hit two home runs, and Peyton Wilson drove in six RBI. It was an eventful week for the hitters but the pitching managed to put on a show as well.
Mason Barnett and Tyson Guerrero both gave up zero runs in their starts. Luinder Avila and Tyson Guerrero both struck out eight and still trailed the 10 Ks tossed by Barnett in his start. Out of the pen, Beck Way gathered three saves and didn’t give up any runs in the process.
Something of note is the flexibility of this roster and its positioning. Peyton Wilson continues to see outfield time in centerfield alongside Javier Vaz, Gavin Cross, and Diego Hernandez. Vaz and Wilson have also ridden the infield carousel as well, moving around the middle with Leonel Valera.
Pitcher of the Week – Mason Barnett
Barnett shoved over five innings in his start this week. He struck out 10 batters with an opponent average of .125 and allowed just one run. His stuff was on as his fastball seemed to defy gravity, helping him generate whiffs at the plate. Barnett got through his outing in 77 pitches, throwing 59% of them for strikes.
He’s been on a roll through three starts with a 2.35 ERA. He’s accumulated 21 strikeouts in just 15.1 innings. He’s allowing less than one runner per inning with a WHIP down to .85 with only five of those baserunners coming via walk. Plenty of writers have taken notice and expect Barnett to continue his climb in the system. With numbers like these, I won’t be writing about him in Springdale for long.
Hitters of the Week – Dillan Shrum and Cayden Wallace
It is with great pleasure that I get to inform you that Dillan Shrum is hitting like a stud. In six starts he put up a slash of .273/.360/.591 and managed to do so by continuing to walk and hit for power. He hit two home runs this week, walked three times, and drove in five runs in the process. He’s building a great season so far, hitting .304/.389/.998 with three bombs and three doubles. Shrum has managed to continue his on-base dominance with seven walks in 13 games. At 26 he will look to push for a AAA roster soon.
Cayden Wallace made this decision so difficult that I was forced to choose two hitters. Wallace started the year off slow but turned things around this week with a line of .300/.417/.500. He didn’t do much to wow in the stat book except for four doubles and a great on-base percentage. What stands out to me is the maturation of his ability as a player to start slow and come out swinging the following week. He has more work to do but the number
Other Notable Storylines
Tyson Guerrero put together a great start on Saturday with eight strikeouts in 4.0 innings. He continues to dominate this season giving up zero earned runs through his first two starts (eight innings).
Beck Way threw three more outings, gathering two more saves along the way. He struck out five while walking zero and only allowing one hit. He’s looked great so far and has yet to give up a run with an opponent average of .138.
Shortstop Leonel Valera tallied a hit a third of the time this week with a line of .333/.368/.500. With a double and a triple each he knocked in three runs total. After a slow start offensively Valera looks to continue this success into next week.