Dwight Smith Jr. and Matt Boyd were picked five times apiece by the Minor League Crew during three-star selections in April.
Congratulations go out to Dwight Smith Jr. and Matt Boyd as they captured the Batter's Box MInor League Player and Pitcher of the Month awards for April. The honours are based on the Minor League Crew's Three Stars selections.
Dwight Smith Jr. and Matt Boyd were picked five times apiece by the Minor League Crew during three-star selections in April.
Players receive 5 points for a first star selection, 3 points for second star and 1 point for third. Dwight Smith Jr. has the clubhouse lead with 19 points after garnering 3 first-star selections along with a second and a third. Matt Boyd led all hurlers with 17 points after earning a pair of first stars and second stars along with one third. That put him six points ahead of fellow pitchers Marcus Stroman and seven ahead of Kendall Graveman. Those four were the only ones to crack the 10 point barrier. Outfielder Dalton Pompey rounds out the top five with 9 points. A total of 39 different players were picked for three star honours.
The 21 year-old Smith is off to a torrid start with the bat, hitting .330 with an OPS of .869 with Dunedin and ended the month on an eight-game hitting streak. The 5'11" lefthander hitter from Peachtree City, Georgia has stepped up his game with runners on base and in scoring position, compiling OPS marks of .928 and .916 respectively. After struggling in his first pro season with Bluefield and Vancouver, Smith bounced back with a .284/.365./.388 season in Lansing in 2013. The 53rd overall pick in the 2011 amateur draft has also shown off his baserunning skills, stealing four bases in five attempts after going 25-for-30 in that department with the Lugnuts last year.
Boyd's domination of the Florida State League has led to a promotion to New Hampshire. This comes after Boyd used his four-pitch mix to dominate Clearwater in his last start by striking out 12 hitters and throwing a two-hitter over eight frames. The 23 year-old lefthander from Mercer Island, Washington has hung up a lot of goose eggs on the scoreboard, permitting just one run in 31 innings spanning five starts in April. That translated to an earned run average of 29 cents and a record of 4-0 to go along with a K-BB total of 37-5 and an opponents batting average of .167. Those totals helped him earn a pair of FSL Pitcher of the Week awards. The 6-3 hurler was a sixth round pick in the 2013 draft from Oregon State. Boyd got his feet wet with Laning last year with a 0.64 ERA over 14 innings but that shot up to 5.40 over 10 frames with Dunedin. Still, he had a 23-4 K-BB mark with the Lugnuts and D-Jays combined.
Congratulations again to our award winners. Let's see who steps up their game in May.
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