ABC grad Abraham Toro (Longueuil, Que.), of the Nashville Sounds, has earned CBN minor league Player of the Week honours.

April 26, 2023

By George Farelli

Canadian Baseball Network

Abraham Toro was demoted by the Milwaukee Brewers on March 27.

With 262 games and 913 plate appearances the previous four years with the Houston Astros and the Seattle Mariners, this is not what INF Toro (Longueuil, Que.) had in mind when he and Jesse Winker were dealt from Seattle to the Brewers for 2B Kolten Wong and cash.

Yet, Toro did not head for the triple-A Nashville Sounds and hit B-17 on the juke box and listen to sad country songs. Neither did he hang his head after the Brewers decided to go with Mike Brosseau and Owen Miller as their back-up infielders.

No, the former Academie Baseball Canada infielder chosen in the fifth round of the 2016 draft by Houston Astros scout Bill Stevenson (Leaside, Ont.) from the Seminole State College Trojans began putting bat to ball.

This past week he led all Canucks in hits going 7-for-21 (.333) with six RBIs to earn Canadian Baseball Network minor league player of the Week honours for Week III.

How the week went for Toro as he

_ Batted fifth and played third, going 1-for-4 with an RBI in a 3-2 loss to the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp before 2,852 fans at 121 Financial Ballpark. Toro doubled to right in the eighth to narrow Jacksonville’s lead to one run.

_ Playing third and hitting fifth, went 1-for-5 with a pair of RBIs in a 10-9 loss to Jacksonville in 10 innings before 2,947 fans. Toro singled to left in the first inning to knock home a pair of runs.

_ Hitting fifth and playing third, he was 2-for-4 in a 3-1 win against Jacksonville in front of 5,025 fans. Toro singled to right in the seventh and singled to centre to set up the three-run, game-winning ninth.

_ Batting second and playing third, he was 2-for-4 driving in three runs as Nashville blanked Jacksonville 7-0 before 6,894. Toro doubled to left in the first, his sixth of the season, hit a two-run single on a ground ball to centre putting the Sounds up 2-0 and hit a scoring fly ball centre in the sixth for a 6-0 lead.

_ DHing and hitting second, he was 1-for-4 in a 3-2 loss to Jacksonville in front of 6,020 fans. He reached on an infield single in the eighth.

On the season, Toro is hitting .275 with six doubles and 12 RBIs.

Best Offensive Performances

Name Class Team AB R H HR RBI AVG

Abraham Toro AAA Nashville 21 2 7 - 6 .333

David McCabe A Augusta 18 2 5 1 2 .278

Bo Naylor AAA Columbus 22 2 6 - 3 .273

Liam Hicks A Hickory 11 1 3 1 4 .273

Owen Caisse AA Tennessee 11 1 3 - 2 .273

(Minimum 10 ABs)

Best Pitching

Name Class Team Games Wins Save ERA INN K WHIP

Noah Skirrow AAA Lehigh Valley 1 - - 0.00 4.1 4 1.460

Coming off an excellent showing with Team Canada at the recent WBC Classic, Skirrow is now making a nice adjustment to pitching at the Triple A level. This week in his third start for the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs in a 12-10 win over Worcester Red Sox, he pitched 4 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing three base hits while striking out four, but was not involved in the decision. His overall record with the Iron Pigs in three triple-A International League starts, now stands at 1-0 with a 2.77 ERA.

Name Class Team Games Win Save ERA INN K WHIP

Brock Dykxhoorn FGN Taiwan 1 1 - 0.00 6.0 4 0.670

Maintaining his usual level of consistency, Brock Dykxhoorn made another solid start this week with the league leading Uni President 7-Eleven Lions. In a win over Rakuten Monkeys he pitched six scoreless, giving up four base hits while striking out four Rakuten batters, to earn his second win of the season. His current record with the Lions in three CPBL starts, is now 2-1 with a 2.47 ERA.

Previous Players of the Week

Week I _ Edouard Julien (Ancienne-Lorette, Que.) triple-A St. Paul Saints (Twins)

Week II _ Cade Smith (Abbotsford, BC) double-A Akron RuberDucks (Guardians).

Week III _ Abraham Toro (Longuiel, Que.) triple-A Nashville Sounds (Brewers)