Recapping Week 2 of the 2025 MiLB Season

It was an eventful last week across Minor League Baseball, the first full week for non-Triple-A teams during this 2025 season. Several high-end hitting prospects had big weeks across the MiLB spectrum. And on the pitching side of things, two 2024 first-round picks made their debuts, while a 2021 first-rounder made his first regular-season appearance in over two years.

Mayo stays hot

Orioles infielder Coby Mayo didn’t make Baltimore’s roster out of camp. However, the 23-year-old is humming along in Norfolk. Mayo batted .545 over the past week with two home runs and had a stretch in which he got on base in nine straight plate appearances.

Mayo is hitting a combined .245/.371/.490 (.861 OPS) with three home runs and seven extra-base hits thus far. The 23-year-old made his MLB debut last August but only picked up four hits in 46 plate appearances.

By the way, it wasn’t just Mayo performing well for Norfolk (AAA) this past week. Outfielder Dylan Beavers notched four hits and stole an International League-best five stolen bases this past week.

Hot hitters in the PCL

Jordan Lawlar is trying to force his way to Arizona. The former first-round pick batted .381 over his last five games with five extra-base hits (two home runs). However, Lawlar struck out 10 times over that span.

He wasn’t the only notable infielder to have a big week in the Pacific Coast League. Dodgers infielder Hyeseong Kim, the noted standout defender who didn’t make the team out of camp despite signing a significant MLB deal, belted three home runs this past week in Round Rock.

Kim, with Oklahoma City, is hitting .290/.362/.581 (.943 OPS) with 11 extra-base hits in 14 games.

Lastly, here is a look at some of the former Major Leaguers down in the Pacific Coast League.

Trey Mancini, in the Diamondbacks organization with Reno (AAA), had nine hits, including a home run, this past week. Mancini’s teammate Ildemaro Vargas also had nine hits, three of which were extra-base hits, for the Aces.

Dodgers outfielder Eddie Rosario had two doubles and two home runs over the last week for Oklahoma City (AAA).

Painter makes 2025 debut

For the first time since 2022, Andrew Painter threw a pitch in an official regular season game on April 11. Painter is currently rehabbing with Clearwater (A).

The results, on paper, weren’t great, as Painter gave up two runs over 1.2 IP. However, Painter threw 37 pitches and struck out three against Daytona of the Florida State League.

However, those results are secondary to how Painter looked. The right-hander hit 100 MPH six times with his four-seamer, as his velocity has held with where it was during the Arizona Fall League this past fall.

Hess & Yesavage make pro debuts

Not all 2024 first-rounders played during the opening weekend of the 2025 campaign. However, two notable pitchers made their professional debuts this past weekend: Yankees first-rounder Ben Hess & Blue Jays pitcher Trey Yesavage.

Hess, a strikeout machine at Alabama, made his first pro start with Hudson Valley (A+) and looked much like the pitcher Crimson Tide fans saw in 2024. The right-hander struck out nine over 4.2 IP on April 9.

As for Yesavage, the 21-year-old walked six over 3.2 IP in his initial outing on April 8. However, Yesavage didn’t allow an earned run and struck out four. His second start, on April 13, was calmer, as Yesavage struck out four over four and conceded just one run.

Yesavage’s velocity fluctuated over his first two starts, ranging from as low as 91 MPH to as high as 96 MPH.

Wetherholt continues to hit

Cardinals infielder JJ Wetherholt was one of the top college hitters over the course of his career. The 2023 NCAA Division I batting champion continues to get it done with Springfield, as he notched 10 hits over his last four games.

Wetherholt, though, only has a batting average of .313 despite that romp. Why? The 22-year-old went hitless in the first four games of the season, going a combined 0-14 in that stretch.

Other notable performers

• OF Roman Anthony (WOR/Boston): seven hits, .368 AVG over five games
• 3B Brett Harris (LV/Athletics: 10 hits, four extra-base hits over five games
• C Jimmy Crooks (MEM/St. Louis): three extra-base hits, eight RBI over four games
• C Luis Campusano (ELP/San Diego): .533 AVG, two home runs over four games
• INF Termarr Johnson (ALT/Pittsburgh): six hits, .450 OBP over four games
• INF Yohandy Morales (HBG/Washington): six hits, two home runs over four games
• INF Sal Stewart (CHA/Cincinnati): seven hits, four extra-base hits over five games
• SS Tommy Troy (AMA/DIamondbacks): 11 hits, four extra-base hits over five games
• OF Vance Honeycutt (ABD/Orioles): .500 AVG, three extra-base hits over five games
• OF Zyhir Hope (GL/Dodgers): .381 AVG, four extra-base hits over five games

The stats are from the past seven days.