Nady Has Turned Up the Power

The formidable heart of a California League batting order is about to become a little less fearsome.

Lake Elsinore’s designated hitter, Xavier Nady, a top prospect for the San Diego Padres who hits cleanup for their Class-A affiliate, should be promoted to triple-A Portland within the next two weeks.

The move has been anticipated. Nady was the California League’s most valuable player and the Padres’ minor league player of the year last season after hitting .302 with 26 home runs and 100 runs batted in. The 23-year-old slugger would have been promoted already had he not required off-season Tommy John surgery on his throwing arm, which has limited the left fielder to the role of designated hitter this season.

But remaining with Lake Elsinore has had its benefits. Nady has added significant pop to a lineup that also includes promising prospects Taggert Bozied and Jake Gautreau, who bat third and fifth. All three players were college All-Americans, and all three are expected to play in the majors.

“I don’t know if they’ll arrive at the same time, but there’s a very good chance they could either be in our infield or outfield soon,” San Diego General Manager Kevin Towers said. “All three guys, we’re looking at being major contributors when we move into our new ballpark in 2004.”

The trio has carried an otherwise anemic offense. The team batting average through Thursday was .240, second worst in the league. Bozied, a first baseman who was selected in the third round of last year’s amateur draft, was hitting .320 with eight home runs and 31 RBIs heading into the weekend series. Gautreau, a second baseman drafted last year in the first round, was hitting .313 and had put together a 19-game hitting streak. And Nady, a 2000 second-round pick, was hitting .279 and was second in the league with 12 home runs and fifth in the league with 32 RBIs.

Continued success will be crucial to the long-term prosperity of the Padres.

“Being a small-market team, we’re going to live and die by the players we draft and develop,” Towers said. “We need to have good drafts and develop players to stay competitive.”

The rising stars have grown close in their short time together at Lake Elsinore. Bozied has known Nady since they played for Team USA while they were still in college; Gautreau and Nady played together on Team USA the following year.

In other California League news:

* Lancaster Manager Steve Scarsone, who played with the Angels during spring training in 1998, has taken a leave of absence for “personal matters not involving baseball” for the rest of the season, according to a release issued Thursday by the club. Former Seattle Mariner manager Bill Plummer has assumed Scarsone’s duties.

* With his 13-game hitting streak on the line, High Desert left fielder Pete Zoccolillo stepped to the plate in the ninth inning Tuesday and slammed a three-run homer, giving the Mavericks an 8-7 victory over Lake Elsinore. Zoccolillo was second in the league with a .368 average through Thursday.

* San Jose right-handers Boof Bonser and R.D. Spiehs combined to pitch the league’s first no-hitter in three years May 5 in a 9-1 victory over Rancho Cucamonga. Bonser pitched the first six innings, Spiehs the final three. Bonser surrendered a run in the first inning after walking the leadoff batter, who later scored on a fielder’s choice.

* High Desert third baseman Daryl Clark became the third player this season to tie the league record of three home runs in a game when he hit two solo home runs and a grand slam May 6 in a 13-6 victory over Modesto.

Angels’ System

Hatuey Mendoza, a Dominican right-hander for double-A Arkansas, became the first Angel minor leaguer to throw a no-hitter in nearly five years Monday in a 3-0 victory over Texas League rival Tulsa. Mendoza, 23, retired the final 24 batters after issuing a leadoff walk in the second inning. Tulsa’s only other baserunner was hit by a pitch in the first inning. It was only the second start of the season for Mendoza, who had pitched out of the bullpen until left-hander Tony Milo was sidelined because of soreness in his pitching elbow. Mendoza is 1-1 with a 2.33 earned-run average and 10 strikeouts in 191/3 innings. The last Angel minor leaguer to throw a no-hitter was Ramon Ortiz, who shut down Quad City for Cedar Rapids on Aug. 7, 1997.

Salt Lake right-hander Mickey Callaway could tie the triple-A franchise record of eight consecutive wins today when the Stingers play in Callaway’s hometown of Memphis. Callaway, who turned 27 Monday, leads the Pacific Coast League with seven victories and is second in the league with a 1.47 ERA. Teammate Robb Quinlan, an outfielder, tied the franchise record Sunday with eight RBIs in a game against Edmonton.

Dodgers’ System

Even though he was hitting .352 with 11 home runs and 41 RBIs in 32 games for triple-A Las Vegas, catcher Todd Greene was released Wednesday by the Dodgers, who didn’t have much choice. They had to either promote him by May 15 or allow him to exercise a contract clause that permitted him to become a free agent. The Dodgers couldn’t promote him because there was no room on their roster, so Greene decided to pursue his career with another team. He signed with Texas on Thursday.

Brian Pilkington, the Dodgers’ top pick in last year’s draft, has gotten off to a solid start this season with Class-A South Georgia. Pilkington, taken in the second round with the 68th selection overall from Garden Grove Santiago High, is 3-1 with a 4.23 ERA and 31 strikeouts in 381/3 innings. Perhaps even more impressive, he has issued only five walks.

Around the Nation

Since getting shelled for eight hits and nine runs in his first start of the season, right-hander Kirk Saarloos, from double-A Round Rock, has been nothing less than masterful. The former Cal State Fullerton star has gone 5-0 with an 0.63 ERA since his rocky debut, working seven scoreless innings Wednesday in a 1-0, 11-inning loss to San Antonio.

Former USC right-hander Mark Prior, who last week made a stellar debut with triple-A Iowa, has not fared as well since. Friday, Prior lost to New Orleans, 5-1, giving up six hits and five runs--three earned--in four innings. He struck out four and walked two. In his second start, last Sunday, he gave up four hits, four walks and four runs--all unearned--while striking out 10 in 42/3 innings. Nonetheless, 43.8% of respondents to a poll on the team’s Web site said the Chicago Cubs should immediately promote him.