NEW YORK -- The MLB Draft League announced that Trenton’s Kolby Johnson and State College’s Ty Pohlmann were named Hitter and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, for the period of Aug. 21 through Aug. 27.
Johnson, 23, earned Hitter of the Week honors after batting .619 (13-for-21) with three doubles, six RBIs and seven runs scored. The center fielder led all MLB Draft League hitters during the period in average, hits (tied), total bases (tied-16), doubles, OBP (.692) and OPS (1.454). He also finished second in runs scored, stolen bases (5) and slugging (.762).
Johnson hit safely in five of six games for the Thunder, recording three multi-hit performances including a pair of four-hit games. After going a combined 1-for-4 with two walks and a stolen base during the first two games of Trenton’s series at West Virginia, Johnson reached base five times in the series finale, finishing 4-for-4 with a double, walk and three runs scored. He notched four hits again against Mahoning Valley on Aug. 26, going 4-for-5 with two doubles, two runs scored and four RBIs, and was 3-for-5 with a walk, two runs scored, two RBIs and two steals vs. the Scrappers to close out the week.
The Pearland, Texas product leads the MLB Draft League in batting average (.390), total bases (85) and slugging (.625) through 37 games with Trenton. He also ranks second in hits (53), doubles (tied-11), home runs (tied-5) and OBP (.471), and is third in runs scored (35). Johnson set numerous career-high marks this spring as a Central Arkansas senior, batting .293 (61-for-208) with 11 home runs, 10 doubles and 44 RBIs. In five seasons with the Bears, Johnson produced a .280/.372/.402 slash line with 143 runs scored and 98 RBIs in 215 games, making 196 starts. He totaled 15 home runs, 35 doubles and six triples.
Pohlmann, 23, garnered Pitcher of the Week honors after he went 1-0 with one save and a 0.00 ERA in three relief appearances for State College. The right-hander struck out six over five hitless innings, allowing an unearned run on two walks. He led all Draft League pitchers in ERA (tied) and BAA (.000), and ranked second in WHIP (0.40) during the period.
Pohlmann (3-1) completed more than one inning in each of his three appearances for the Spikes. He won against Williamsport on Aug. 23 after working two innings with two strikeouts and completed 1.2 hitless frames against the Crosscutters the next day. On Sunday, Pohlmann struck out three of the four batters he faced over 1.1 innings against Frederick to record the save.
After posting an 11.74 ERA across eight relief appearances in July, Pohlmann has a 1.29 ERA in nine outings this month. The Chandler, Ariz., product tallied 16 strikeouts while allowing six hits in 14.0 innings during that stretch, posting a 1.07 WHIP and .128 BAA. Overall, Pohlmann has pitched to a 4.98 ERA across 17 relief appearances this season, striking out 28 batters in 21.2 innings. Pohlmann was 3-1 with three saves in 17 appearances for Northwest Nazarene this spring. He registered a 1.27 ERA over 35.1 innings, striking out 59 (15.0 K/9).
For more information about the MLB Draft League, visit mlbdraftleague.com or follow @mlbdraftleague & @draftleaguedata on Twitter, and @mlbdraftleague on Instagram.
