Canadian Baseball Network Minor League Player of the Week: Charles Leblanc

Former Pitt Panther INF Charles Leblanc (Laval, Que.) had the best week by a Canuck or anyone else …

April 13, 2022

By George Farelli

Canadian Baseball Network

If a hitter has more hits than the number of outs he made in a single week, it’s definitely a good week.

With a bat in his hand Charles Leblanc (Laval, Que.) former Pitt University Panther, was more than impressive with the triple-A Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, a Miami Marlins affiliate, in the International League. He was so impressive he earned Canadian Baseball Network Player of the Week.

He is one of three Canucks wearing the Jump Shrimp logo along with former Ontario Blue Jay RP Zach Pop (Brampton, Ont.) and ex-Toronto Met C J.D. Osborne (Whitby, Ont.).

How the week that was went for Leblanc as he went 7-for-13 (with a .538 average ... seven hits while making six outs). The former Texas Rangers fourth-round pick had an OPS of 1.779 as he took top honors of the 47 Canadians getting paid to play. He went to the Marlins organization in the Rule V draft …

_ Played third base, batted ninth and went 2-for-3 with a solo homer in a 6-5 loss to the Worchester Red Sox before an opening night crowd of 5,907 at 121 Financial Ballpark in Jacksonville.

Leblanc struck out in the third inning, went deep on a 2-2 pitch to right in the fifth -- cutting the Red Sox lead to 5-3 -- doubled to left in the seventh and worked a walk in the ninth representing the tying run. Three pitches later and the game was over.

_ Batting ninth and playing third he was 1-for-4 in a 7-6 loss to Worchester before 2,604 fans.

Leblanc struck out in the third, flew out in the fourth flied out in the fourth, homered to left-centre on a 2-2 pitch to break a 5-5 tie in the sixth, and flew out to right in the ninth.

Pop pitched 1 1/3 innings allowing an unearned run on three hits and a walk.

_ Didn’t play in an 8-4 win against Worchester.

_ Didn’t play in an 8-4 loss to Worchester.

RP Pop worked 1 2/3 innings allowing an unearned run on two hits and two walks. Osborne pinch hit in the ninth and popped in the ninth.

_ Playing second base and hitting seventh, he was 2-for-2 in a 5-1 loss to the Red Sox before 7,374

Leblanc walked in the second, singled to centre in the fourth, doubled to right in the sixth and walked in the eighth.

_ Had a pair of hits, batting seventh and playing third, in a 9-4 loss to Worchester in front of 5,120 fans.

Leblanc struck out in the second, reached on an infield single in the fifth, hit a line-drive single to left, knocking in a run, and struck out in the eighth.

So he finished the week with two homers, three RBIs and according to the Minor League network, his .538 average led all players who were active in the minor leagues during week one.

On the pitching side, Trevor Brigden (North York, Ont.) of the Montgomery Biscuits, Tampa Bay’s affiliate in double A Southern League, also enjoyed a very successful first week. He made two relief appearances, and in the process, earned his first win of 2022. He fanned six in four scoreless innings.

Week I was a short one since the fact most players had the opportunity to only play in two or three games so our minimum standard of 10 at-bats was scratched since it was met by only a few batters.