The big question about the West Tennessee DiamondJaxx going into this season was whether the hitters who absolutely raked in Class A ball last year for the High Desert Mavericks could do it against tougher competition at the Class AA level.
Thirty-one games into the season, the DiamondJaxx have the Southern League’s third-best team batting average (.272), third-best on-base percentage (.350) and second-best slugging percentage (.453).
But they’re also pitching well.
West Tennessee, 15-15 going into Tuesday’s game against Mobile, have a 3.95 team earned run average and have held opposing hitters to a .249 average.
Best of the bunch has been left-hander Mauricio Robles, a 20-year-old who had a 2.78 ERA last year for High Desert in that “hitter’s league.”
Robles is 3-1 with a 3.30 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP (walks and hits per inning), and hitters have averaged .192 off him in 30 innings over six starts. He has struck out 35.
The Southern League named Robles its pitcher of the week after he struck out 10 and beat Huntsville 4-1 on Saturday.
The Mariners acquired Robles last year from the Detroit Tigers in the Jarrod Washburn trade.
DiamondJaxx right-hander Michael Pineda is 2-0 with a 2.23 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP in six starts. He has 40 strikeouts in 321/3 innings.
Slugging outfielder Carlos Peguero had 11 home runs and 25 RBI going into Tuesday’s game and has a .354 average, .443 on-base percentage, .708 slugging percentage and a 1.151 OPS (on-base-plus-slugging percentage).
Dustin Ackley, last year’s second overall draft pick, was batting .192 with one homer and 10 RBI, and had made four errors in 24 games at second base.
Third baseman Alex Liddi, who shared the California League batting title last year, has rebounded from a slow start and was batting .295/.345/.495/.840. He had three homers, 23 RBI and eight doubles.
The DiamondJaxx, while playing .500 baseball, were only 4-11 on the road.
Elsewhere around the Mariners’ minor league system:
Class AAA Tacoma Rainiers
Matt Tuiasosopo has been playing outfield since being sent to Tacoma from the Mariners and is batting .321/.525/.357/.882. The Rainiers were 14-15 entering Tuesday and were getting solid pitching after a slow start. Left-hander Luke French is 4-0, 1.35 in six starts and lefty Chris Seddon 3-0, 3.30 in six games, five of them starts.
Veteran right-hander Brian Sweeney, who pitched for the Mariners early in his career and had played in Japan in recent years before coming back to the organization, was 1-0, 1.98 in six relief appearances. He had 18 strikeouts in 132/3 innings.
The Rainiers entered Tuesday’s game 14-15 and third in the Pacific Coast League Pacific North Division but only two games behind first-place Colorado Springs.
Class A High Desert Mavericks
Outfielder Johermyn Chavez’s home run in the 10th inning Monday night gave the Mavericks a sweep of their series at San Jose, the first time anyone has won all four games of a series at San Jose since 2004.
Third baseman Nate Tenbrink had hit safely in 17 of 21 games and was batting .393/.458/.624/1.082. Third baseman Edilio Colina was batting .338/.390/.459/.850 and second baseman Kyle Seager .306/.419/.407/.826.
Right-hander Kenn Kasparek was 2-1 with a 2.80 ERA and 1.19 WHIP and Jake Wild 3-0, 3.32 with 39 strikeouts in 38 innings. Stephen Penney had four saves in five opportunities.
The Mavericks were 1912 and led the California League South Division by a half game over Lake Elsinore.
Class A Clinton LumberKings
Shortstop Nick Franklin was batting .328 with five home runs and 18 RBI and was the only regular with a batting average better than .300. First baseman Dennis Raben led the team with seven homers and 16 RBI but had 38 strikeouts in 114 at-bats. He was batting .246.
Left-hander James Gilheeney is 1-3 with a 2.92 ERA and 38 strikeouts in 37 innings.
The LumberKings were 13-18 entering Tuesday’s doubleheader at Peoria.
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