CBN Player of the Week XIV: Demi Orimoloye

Ottawa Nepean Canadians alum Demi Orimoloye (Orleans, Ont.) went 10-for-22 for the Toronto Blue Jays’ double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats last week. It has earned him CBN Player of the Week honours. — Ottawa Nepean Canadians alum Demi Orimoloye (Orleans, Ont.) went 10-for-22 for the Toronto Blue Jays’ double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats last week, earning him CBN Player of the Week honours. Photo: Andrew Sylvia

August 13, 2021

By George Farelli

Canadian Baseball Network

Ottawa has been well-represented in our recent Player of the Week honours.

Last week, Chicago Cubs outfield prospect Jordan Nwogu, who was born in the nation’s capital, was recognized.

This week, it’s Demi Orimoloye, another outfielder who grew up in Orleans, Ont. and honed his skills with the Ottawa Nepean Canadians.

Like Nwogu, Orimoloye had a slow start to his 2021 season, entering play with the Toronto Blue Jays’ double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats on August 4 with a .204 batting average for the season. Over the next six games, however, he would go 10-for-22 (.455) to boost his average to .227.

For his efforts, he has earned him the Canadian Baseball Network’s minor league Player of the Week honours for Week 13.

Selected in the fourth round (115th overall) by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2015 MLB draft, Orimoloye spent parts of five seasons in the Brewers’ organization before he was dealt to the Blue Jays on August 31, 2018 in exchange for Curtis Granderson.

After batting .240 with 12 home runs in 113 games with class-A Advanced Dunedin in his first season in the Blue Jays’ organization, he was promoted to double-A to begin 2021.

Among his highlight performances from the past week were:

Aug. 4 - He went 1-for-2 with a double, a walk and a run in the Fisher Cats’ 12-1 loss to the Hartford Yard Goats.
August 5 - He went 3-for-4 with two doubles, a single and a run in the Cats’ 6-4 win over the Yard Goats.
August 8 - He went 3-for-4 with a solo home run, a double and a single in the Cats’ 10-5 loss to the Yard Goats.
August 10 - He went 2-for-4 with two singles and two RBIs in the Cats’ 6-5 win over the Harrisburg Senators.

Best Offensive Performances

Player / Class / TeamAB R H HR RBI AVG

Demi Orimoloye - AA New Hampshire 22 3 10 1 3 .455

Andy Yerzy - Hi A Hillsboro 18 2 7 1 5 .389

Kole Cottam - AA Northeast 16 1 6 - - .375

Otto Lopez - AAA Buffalo 22 11 8 - 4 .364

Jake Sanford - Hi A Hudson Valley 22 1 8 - 1 .364

Jordan Nwogu - Low A Myrtle Beach 23 3 8 - 2 .348

Owen Caissie - Rkie ACL Cubs 21 3 7 1 4 .333

Raphael Gladu - IND Equipe Quebec 25 6 12 1 4 .480

Mike Crouse - IND Chicago 16 5 7 - 4 .438

T.J. Bennett - IND Chicago 12 4 5 2 8 .417

Wes Darvill - IND Winnipeg 20 4 8 - 2 .400

Myles Miller - IND Boise 31 5 11 1 8 .355

David Glaude - IND Quebec 26 7 8 1 2 .308

*Minimum 10 at bats required

Best Pitching Performance - Week 14

Matt Brash RHP - Double-A Arkansas Travelers

APP IP H R ER BB K W-L SV WHIP WK ERA

1 6.0 2 - - 3 8 1-0 - 0.33 0.00

Matt Brash was promoted to the double-A Arkansas Travelers from the class-A Advanced Everett Aquasox in Week 11, and the 23-year-old native of Kingston, Ont., has justified the decision made by the Mariners. On Aug. 5, he made an excellent start in a 7-0 win over Northwest Arkansas Naturals, when he pitched six innings and gave up only two base hits and no runs, while striking out eight, to earn his first win at the double-A level. His record with the Travelers in four double-A appearances now stands at 1-1 with a 2.18 ERA.

His overall record including the stint with Everett includes 14 games, a 4-3 record with one save and a 2.35 ERA.

Player of the Week

Week I _ Noah Skirrow (Stoney Creek, Ont.) Jersey Shore BlueClaws (Phillies).

Week II _ Otto Lopez (Montreal, Que.) double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Jays) and Trevor Brigden (Toronto, Ont.) class-A Charleston River Dogs (Rays).

Week III _ Andrew Yerzy (Toronto, Ont.) class-A Hillsboro Hops/class-A Visailia Oaks (Diamondbacks)

Week IV _ Indigo Diaz (North Vancouver, BC) class-A Rome Braves (Braves)

Week V _ Edouard Julien (Ancienne-Lorette, Que.) class-A Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels (Twins).

Week VI _ RHP Logan Hofmann (Muenster, Sask.) class-A Bradenton Marauders (Pirates)

Week VII _ INF-OF Otto Lopez (Montreal, Que.) double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Jays).

Week VIII _ RHP Cade Smith (Abbotsford, BC) class-A Lynchburg Hillcats (Cleveland)

Week IX _ RHP Jordan Balazovic (Mississauga, Ont.) double-A Wichita Wind Surge (Twins)

Week X _ C Kole Cottam (Knoxville, Tenn.) class-A East Greenville (Red Sox)