Logan Allen keeps on dealing for the Missions. Photo Credit: Grant Wickes.

Offense was almost non-existent Monday night, as El Paso, San Antonio, and Fort Wayne were shut out. The Dust Devils put up a nice offensive attack but lost in Boise. The AZL teams had their respective games suspended, due to weather.

Oklahoma City Dodgers 2 – Chihuahuas 0

Key Statistics: C Francisco Mejia, 1-for-3, BB; RF Franmil Reyes, 1-for-4; 3B Diego Goris, 1-for-3; RHP Colin Rea, 5 IP, 2 H, 2 BB, 10 K; RHP Erik Johnson (L, 0-2) 1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, BB.

Prospect Watch: El Paso could never get any offense going, managing just five singles in the loss. … Catcher Francisco Mejia singled and walked, making him the only El Paso player to reach base more than once. The new acquisition is off to a nice .333/.409/.389 start in his first 21 plate appearances. … RHP Colin Rea had his best start of the year, pitching five shutout innings. Rea, 28, had an ERA over seven with the Chihuahuas coming into the game. The former big leaguer struck out a season-high 10 batters. He has allowed a .312 average across two leagues during his coming back from Tommy John surgery this year, but his strikeout rate has been solid. If he can put a few good starts together, he should enter the rotation conversation in San Diego in September.

Corpus Christi 3 – Missions 0

Key Statistics: CF Buddy Reed, 1-for-4; DH Nick Schulz, 1-for-3; LHP Logan Allen (L, 10-5) 6 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, BB, 4 K; RHP Miguel Diaz, 2 IP, 4 H, ER.

Prospect Watch: The Missions managed just two hits and lost their second straight to fall a game-and-a-half behind Corpus Christi. … Outfielder Buddy Reed singled in four at-bats. Reed, is off to a slow start but there is actually room for optimism. Despite the .167/.246/.204 slash line in 54 at-bats, Reed has increased his walks, slightly reduced his strikeouts and has had awful luck with balls in play. His improved plate discipline has carried into a more difficult assignment and his numbers should improve. … Lefty Logan Allen turned in another great start, pitching six innings of two-run ball. Allen has arguably been the best pitcher in the system all year and has a 2.08 ERA in the season’s second half. Opposing hitters are batting just .199 against the southpaw. Allen has walked just six batters over his last 43.1 innings. If you missed our interview with Allen last week, it’s a good look at how the 21-year-old has developed this year.

The Storm had the night off. They start a seven game road trip Tuesday.

Bowling Green 1 – TinCaps 0

Key Statistics: CF Jeisson Rosario, 1-for-4; DH Luis Almanzar, 1-for-2; LHP Ben Sheckler (L, 1-3) 5 IP, 3 H, ER, BB, 3 K; RHP Dylan Coleman, IP, H.

Prospect Watch: Another game, another shutout in the system, as the TinCaps also managed just two hits. … LHP Ben Sheckler turned in a solid start but took the loss. The big lefty allowed just three hits and an earned run over a season-high five innings in his second start since replacing Mason Thompson in the rotation. The 2016 eighth-rounder has been lights out after a rough April and his versatility and size are very reminiscent of Jerry Keel. … Fourth-rounder Dylan Coleman turned in a scoreless outing. The righty out of Missouri State has allowed just one earned run in 8.2 innings with Fort Wayne this season. He continues to throw every four-to-five days to develop a professional pitching routine while managing his workload after a long college season this spring.

Boise Hawks 11 – Dust Devils 10

Key Statistics: LF Grant Little, 2-for-5, R, RBI; SS Owen Miller, 2-for-4, 2 R, 2 2B, BB; 2B Olivier Basabe, 2-for-4, R, RBI, BB; C Blake Hunt, 3-for-5, 2 R, 3 RBI; 1B Luis Asuncion, 2-for-5, 2B, HR (4), 2 RBI; RHP Cole Bellinger (L, 1-4) 2 IP, 9 H, 8 ER, K; RHP Korey Anderson, 2 IP, 3 K.

Prospect Watch: Hey, some offense! The Dust Devils fell behind 5-0 in the first inning and, despite a late charge, their comeback effort fell short. The team plated three in the ninth and got the tying run to third base with no outs, but couldn’t cash it in. … Catcher Blake Hunt had three hits and drove in three in the loss. Hunt has had a weird offensive performance for Tri-City in 2018. The Santa Ana native has a .376 on-base percentage that’s eighth in the league, but is only slugging .295. While Gesa Stadium is a terrible place for hitters, he has an even more anemic .284 mark on the road. … First baseman Luis Asuncion homered and doubled in the Dust Devils’ loss. The big man from Santo Domingo   has been on fire as of late, and has a nine-game hitting streak going. While Asuncion hasn’t walked much, he does have power and could get a chance in full-season ball before the season is over. … After missing a couple of weeks with a minor injury, Ramon Perez got back on the mound with two scoreless frames. He should be back in the rotation the next time through. … Owen Miller had his sixth multi-hit game in his last eight.

The AZL teams had their games suspended, due to dust storms across the Valley. Ryan Weathers pitched two scoreless innings, striking out one before the games were shut down. Kyle Lloyd also got in one inning of work as he continues his rehab assignment.

Posted by David Jay

David has written for MadFriars since 2005, has published articles in Baseball America, written a monthly column for FoxSports San Diego and appeared on numerous radio programs and podcasts. He may be best known on the island of Guam for his photos of Trae Santos that appeared in the Pacific Daily News.

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