The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

D’Shawn Knowles has opened September with a productive stretch at the plate while Lucius Fox Jr hit his first home run at the AAA level to highlight the weekend for Bahamian players in Minor League Baseball.

Knowles started at shortstop and finished 4-5 with high five RBI and a solo home run in his Inland Empire 66ers’ 7-5 win over the Modesto Nuts on Saturday at John Thurman Field in Modesto, California. He set a new season high for hits, RBI and total bases in Low-A baseball.

Knowles’ fifth home run of the season came in the ninth inning against Nuts reliever Juan Mercedes to help his team withstand a late Modesto rally.

Through five games in September, the Los Angeles Angels’ No.8 prospect is hitting .304 with seven hits, three runs, two doubles, six RBI and two stolen bases.

On the season, the 20-year-old outfielder is hitting .224 with 79 hits, five home-runs, 21 doubles, five triples, 48 RBI and 58 runs.

In the 2019 season Knowles spent time with the Orem Owlz and was named to the Pioneer League’s All-Star Game roster for their midseason matchup against the Class A Short Season Northwest League.

In 64 games, he hit .241 with a .310 OBP, .698 OPS with 61 hits, 11 doubles, four triples, six home runs, 28 RBI and five stolen bases.

Fox hit his first AAA home-run, in his Omaha Storm Chasers’ 5-3 loss to the Toledo Mud Hens, September 2 at Werner Park in Papillion, Nebraska.

Fox, who played second base and hit leadoff, tied the game in the bottom of the first inning with his solo shot that sent a 3-1 pitch from Pedro Payano down the left-field line.

Omaha (61-47) now trails Toledo (62-46) in Midwest Division standings after they won six of the last seven games in the head to head matchup.

Earlier in the season, Fox became the eighth Bahamian to join a Major League Baseball roster for the regular season. His brief call up lasted just a single game when the Kansas City Royals announced his promotion on July 30, hours ahead of a 6-4 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays in Toronto, Canada. Fox did not make his official debut on the field in the contest and the following day, he was optioned back down to the Storm Chasers.

On the season with the Storm Chasers, Fox , the 24-year old infielder and No.26 prospect in the Royals pipeline, is hitting .200 with a .317 OBP, .599 OPS, 32 hits, two home-runs, 14 RBI, 24 runs scored and 14 stolen bases.

At lower levels of rookie baseball, other Bahamian players have also entered September with hit streaks

Ian Lewis, the Miami Marlins No.29 ranked prospect in its pipeline, continues to produce for the club in the Florida Complex League (FCL) and extended his hit streak to five games.

The 18-year-old Lewis tripled in the FCL Marlins’ 6-1 win over the FCL Cardinals on September 4.

Dating back to August 30, Lewis is on a five game hit streak and for the month is hitting .333 with five hits, eight total bases, three RBI, and three stolen bases, slugging .533 with a .375 OBP.

In his first pro baseball season, Lewis is hitting .287, with a .837 OPS, 39 hits - including nine doubles, five triples, three home runs, 27 RBI, 23 runs, and eight stolen bases.

In the Dominican Summer League, Adari Grant extended his hit streak to six games in his DSL Cardinals Blue’s 5-4 loss to the DSL Mets yesterday. The 17-year-old shortstop went 2-4 with a triple and scored one run.

Since August 27, Grant has had multiple hits in three of six games and is hitting .500 through September thus far.

He has averages of .232 with a .691 OPS on the season with 22 hits, one home run, six RBI, and seven stolen bases.

Kristin Munroe went 1-2 and scored a run in his DSL Angels’ 4-0 win over the DSL Twins yesterday. The 17-year-old infielder, now the No. 26 prospect in the Los Angeles Angels’ organisation, is on a four game hit streak in September, hitting .417.

Munroe, who signed in May and received his first minor league assignment in June is hitting .222 with a .649 OPS, .364 OBP, two doubles, one triple, seven RBI, 13 runs scored, and eight stolen bases.

Also in the DSL, Everette Cooper had his first multiple hit game of his career for the DSL Astros. The 18-year-old outfielder went 2-3 with an RBI and scored a run in a 9-8 loss to the DSL Athletics.