IL1 International League

International League names players of the week

May 1, 2006 - International League (IL1) News Release


The International League announced today that Charlotte outfielder Ryan Sweeney and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre pitcher Cole Hamels have been named the League's Batter and Pitcher-of-the-Week for the period from April 24-30. Both are the first on their respective clubs to win an IL weekly award in 2006.

Knights' outfielder RYAN SWEENEY has picked up where he left off in 2005 when he hit .298 in 113 games at Double-A Birmingham. In fact, he's matched that .298 average through his first 23 Triple-A contests. Over the past week, Sweeney hit safely in all six games he played in, including five multi-hit performances. He also scored ten runs to lead the IL over that period. His efforts are a big part of the reason Charlotte has won 11 of its last 12 games and sits atop the IL South with the best record in Triple-A Baseball (18-6). Sweeney, who is rated as having the best outfield arm in the White Sox system and the third best prospect overall by Baseball America, has played all three outfield positions for the Knights. Despite his defensive talents, this week it was his hitting that helped him become the IL Batter-of-the-Week. Each day from April 24-27, he collected two hits, going 8-14 with two doubles. His best effort may have come over the weekend in Buffalo. Saturday night Sweeney clubbed his first homer of the season, a solo shot to lead off the 5th on his way to a 3-RBI ballgame. Yesterday afternoon he followed it up by going 3-5 with a RBI and four runs scored in another Charlotte victory. It capped an amazing week for Sweeney in which he hit .522, scored 10 runs, and had a slugging percentage of .739.

21-year-old Ryan Sweeney was a 2nd round draft choice of the White Sox in 2003 out of Xavier High School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa where he was named the Louisville Slugger National Player of the Year. He has quickly advanced through the Chicago farm system, making it to Charlotte in just his third full season as a pro. He entered 2006 with a career .294 batting average with 10 HR and 122 RBI in 276 Minor League games.

The top prospect in Philadelphia's organization this year is LHP COLE HAMELS, and for anyone who saw his Triple-A debut Thursday afternoon in Norfolk, it's easy to see why. Hamels endured a difficult 2005 season, missing most of the year with a broken left hand and a stress fracture in his back. He began his 2006 campaign in Class-A Clearwater, going 1-1 with a 1.77 ERA in four starts before earning the call to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. His first Triple-A start came Thursday in Norfolk against the Tides. It didn't take Hamels long to establish himself; he struck out six straight batters between the 1st and 3rd innings, and later struck out five in a row between the 6th and 7th frames. When the dust settled, Hamels had collected 14 strikeouts, a Red Barons record for a left-handed pitcher, and just one shy of the club's all-time mark. His 7.0 scoreless innings earned Hamels his first Triple-A victory, a 5-0 win for the first place Red Barons. He allowed only three hits and did not walk a batter in the dominating performance. Despite the fact he started only one game, no IL pitcher had more than Hamel's 14 strikeouts over the last seven days. His 43 total strikeouts this season leads all of Minor League Baseball.

Hamels, 22, went 4-0 last year with a 2.31 ERA and 37 strikeouts in six starts between Clearwater and Double-A Reading. He pitched in just four games in 2004, missing most of the year with an enflamed elbow. The 6'3" lefthander was Philadelphia's first round draft selection in 2002, and has been ranked among the organization's top five prospects ever since.

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