Some prospect notes for a Monday morning:
Dylan Bundy, RHP:Baltimore Orioles pitching prospect Dylan Bundy returned to the mound yesterday in his first regular season start since completing his rehabilitation from Tommy John surgery. It went very well indeed: five innings for the Aberdeen Ironbirds in the New York-Penn League, five hits, one run, zero walks, six strikeouts. He was clocked between 90 and 93 MPH, a few MPH below his pre-injury standard, but his command was intact and his breaking stuff reportedly looked excellent. At this point it is now a matter of building his stamina back up. It will be interesting to see what happens with his velocity, but so far it looks like the procedure was a success.
Rafael Montero, RHP: New York Mets pitching prospect Rafael Montero threw just five pitches for Triple-A Las Vegas on Saturday before being removed due to a strained oblique muscle. So far he remains on the active roster and has not been placed on the disabled list, but there's no public word on a timetable for his return. Oblique injuries can take a few weeks to clear up, so unless it was just a very minor tweak I'd have to assume that a roster move will be made eventually. Montero has a 3.75 ERA in 50 innings for Vegas with a 49/24 K/BB. He made four starts for the big league Mets earlier this spring but unless the injury clears up quickly it may be some time before he gets another shot.
Anderson Placido, LHP: Arizona Diamondbacks prospect Anderson Placido dominated in his first start of 2014, pitching 5.1 shutout innings for the Hillsboro Hops in the Northwest League, allowing three hits and one walk against Everett, fanning 12. Placido is a 6-0, 190 pound lefty who was originally signed by the Cleveland Indians in 2012 but was released after one year. Arizona picked him up and he was effective in the Dominican Summer League last year (2.59 ERA, 83/23 K/BB in 66 innings) before making four spotty starts for Missoula in the Pioneer League (5.00 ERA, 17/8 K/BB in 18 innings, 21 hits). I don't have a scouting report on him at this time but we'll track him and see if he continues to stand out.