Charlotte KnightsRecord 3-3 (last week), 16-17 (first half), 16-17 (overall)
Knights Players of the WeekOliver Dunn .417/.531/1.000, 24 at-bats
Korey Lee .350/.381/.700, 20 at-batsMario Camilletti .476/.542/.857, 21 at-batsRikuu Nishida .478/.625/.478, 3-for-3 stolen bases, 23 at-batsJacob Gonzalez .385/.500/.692, 26 at-batsLaMonte Wade Jr. .364/.500/.545, 22 at-batsRyan Galanie .400/.429/.750, 20 at-batsMichael Turner .286/.375/.643, 14 at-batsWilliam Bergolla Jr. Did not play (7-day IL from shin bruise)
Tyler Schweitzer 3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 BB, 5 KBen Peoples 3 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 2 BB, 5 KTanner McDougal 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 BB, 1 K (will be shut down for several weeks due to a flexor strain)Shane Smith 2 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 2 BB, 3 K (will miss a couple of weeks due to a right rotator cuff strain)Hagen Smith 7 IP, 4 ER, 2 H, 6 BB, 9 KJonathan Cannon 5 IP, 10 ER, 15 H, 1 BB, 3 KRiley Gowens 4 IP, 4 R (1 ER), 5 H, 2 BB, 1 KDavid Sandlin 4 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 0 BB, 4 KTyler Gilbert 3 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 BB, 2 K
The Knights split a high-scoring series against the Stripers (20-13) to remain one game under .500. The Knights offense was on another level, scoring 56 runs (9.33 per game), but the run prevention was subpar, as Charlotte allowed 42 (7.00 per game).
A ton of Charlotte hitters had an impressive series, which isn’t too surprising considering the offense scored 56. In fact, eight Knights had 14 or more at-bats with an OPS exceeding 1.000. While there were many standouts, third baseman Oliver Dunn, 28, stood out from the crowd. Dunn went 10-for-24 with three homers, a triple, three doubles, seven walks, and 11 RBIs. For good measure, Dunn added a stolen base in his only attempt. For Immaculate Grid fans, Dunn still works as an “Only One Team” (Milwaukee) player, but at this rate, soon that will no longer be the case.
2026 Charlotte Knights Players of the WeekKorey Lee (March 27-April 5)Oliver Dunn (April 6-12)Shane Smith (April 13-19)Jarred Kelenic (April 20-26)Oliver Dunn (April 27-May 3)
Birmingham BaronsRecord 4-2 (last week), 13-14 (first half), 13-14 (overall)
Barons Player of the WeekWilfred Veras .238/.304/.810, 21 at-bats
Samuel Zavala .174/.387/.217, 3-for-3 stolen bases, 23 at-batsJordan Sprinkle .364/.417/.636, 3-for-3 stolen bases, 18 at-batsBraden Montgomery .304/.448/.565, 23 at-bats (promoted to Charlotte on May 3)Adam Fogel .400/.538/1.100, 10 at-batsAlec Makarewicz .160/.250/.320, 25 at-batsAndy Weber .227/.370/.455, 22 at-bats
Shane Murphy 7 IP, 2 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 3 K (promoted to Charlotte on May 3)Lucas Gordon 6 IP, 3 ER, 2 H, 3 BB, 8 KChase Watkins 5 1/3 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 2 BB, 6 KJairo Iriarte 2 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 2 BB, 1 KConnor McCullough 7 IP, 3 ER, 7 H, 3 BB, 5 KNick Altermatt 2 2/3 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 0 BB, 4 K
The Barons dropped two of their first three against the first-place Lookouts (18-9) before their offense scored 30 in the final three games to take the series.
Outfielder Wilfred Veras, 23, only went 5-for-21, but those hits went a long way. Veras launched four homers and drove in seven to lead the team among players with more than 10 at-bats. Those were his first four homers of the season, and Veras raised his season OPS from .537 to .689. With this excellent series, Veras has started to turn his season around. If Veras can continue to launch the ball while finding other ways to reach base, he can be a major asset.
2026 Birmingham Barons Player of the WeekSamuel Zavala (April 6-12)Braden Montgomery (April 13-19)Alec Makarewicz (April 20-26)Wilfred Veras (April 27-May 3)
Winston-Salem DashRecord 2-4 (last week), 16-11 (first half), 16-11 (overall)
Dash Player of the WeekCaleb Bonemer .348/.516/.913, 22 at-bats
Anthony DePino .381/.517/.619, 21 at-batsRyan Burrowes .318/.348/.455, 22 at-batsBoston Smith .333/.500/.500, 18 at-batsColby Shelton .190/.414/.286, 21 at-batsEly Brown .211/.423/.316, 19 at-batsKaleb Freeman .222/.462/.556, nine at-bats
Seth Keener 5 1/3 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 3 BB, 5 KDylan Cumming 5 2/3 IP, 3 R (2 ER), 7 H, 1 BB, 4 KJustin Sinibaldi 4 IP, 4 ER, 6 H, 3 BB, 4 KJack Young 5 2/3 IP, 3 ER, 6 H, 2 BB, 5 KGabe Davis 4 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, 9 KFrankeli Arias 3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 BB, 1 K
The Dash had an uncharacteristically disappointing series, as they finally cooled off a bit by dropping four of six against the Grasshoppers (16-11).
What do you know? Once again, we are talking about how amazing Caleb Bonemer is. Surprisingly, Bonemer, 20, went two whole weeks without a Player of the Week award. Even during those weeks, though, the reason was that Colby Shelton shined slightly brighter, not because Bonemer was going through anything resembling a slump. At this point, I am not even sure if it is possible for Bonemer to have a bad week. In his last six games, Bonemer went 8-for-23 with four homers, a double, seven walks, and eight RBIs. Bonemer added a stolen base in his only attempt.
Last year, the star infielder had a huge breakout season during which he slashed .281/.401/.473, mostly in Kannapolis. Incredibly, Bonemer is slashing .289/.426/.722 at a higher level this season, as he is proving to be too much for High-A pitchers to deal with. I am running out of words for the second round pick of 2024, but Bonemer is miles ahead of schedule with his development, and I am not used to seeing this from White Sox prospects.
2026 Winston-Salem Dash Player of the WeekCaleb Bonemer (April 6-12)Colby Shelton (April 13-19)Colby Shelton (April 20-26)Caleb Bonemer(April 27-May 3)
Kannapolis Cannon BallersRecord 4-2 (last week), 10-17 (first half), 10-17 (overall)
Cannon Ballers Player of the WeekArxy Hernández .524/.545/.762, 21 at-bats
Abraham Núñez .125/.160/.250, 24 at-batsBilly Carlson .136/.240/.136, 22 at-batsStiven Flores .133/.278/.133, 16 at-batsJaden Fauske .316/.458/.526, 2-for-2 stolen bases, 19 at-batsJavier Mogollón .353/.389/.529, 2-for-2 stolen bases, 17 at-batsMatthew Boughton .381/.435/.571, 21 at-batsMarcelo Alcala .176/.364/.647, 17 at-bats
Riley Eikhoff 5 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 0 BB, 7 KMax Banks 6 IP, 1 R (0 ER), 7 H, 0 BB, 5 KTruman Pauley 6 1/3 IP, 7 ER, 8 H, 6 BB, 9 KJackson Nove 5 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 1 BB, 9 KCaedmon Parker 4 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 2 BB, 3 K
Kannapolis got back on track by winning four of six against the GreenJackets (14-13). The Cannon Ballers won back-to-back one-run games over the weekend to clinch the series.
First baseman Arxy Hernández, 22, went on a tear, finishing 11-for-21 with a homer, two doubles, a walk, and eight RBIs. Although the Cannon Ballers offense had a good week, scoring 34 runs (5.67 per game), Hernández comfortably led the team with a 1.307 OPS. Hernández got off to a slow start to the season, but he boosted his season OPS from .460 to .645 with this excellent performance. Well done to Hernández, who found all kinds of ways to reach base.
2026 Kannapolis Cannon Ballers Player of the WeekStiven Flores (April 6-12)Abraham Núñez (April 13-19)Javier Mogollón(April 20-26)Arxy Hernández(April 27-May 3)
