Mariners Farm Watch: Bannister picked as TNT’s player of the week

Hi-A Modesto right-hander Nathan Bannister followed up a strong title-clinching performance with an even better outing and is the TNT player of the week in the Mariners’ farm system for the period of June 20-26.

Bannister, 23, limited Stockton (Athletics) to one hit in seven shutout innings Sunday but settled for a no-decision. The Nuts struck late for a 3-1 victory.

The California League picked Bannister as its pitcher of the week.

In his previous start, Bannister held Inland Empire (Angels) to one run in six innings in an 11-1 victory that enabled Modesto to clinch the North Division first-half pennant.

The last two starts represent a turnaround for Bannister, who is 3-4 with a 5.74 ERA overall in 12 starts for Modesto. The Mariners selected him in the 28th round of the 2016 MLB Draft.

The rest of the TNT Top Five for June 20-26:

***Triple-A Tacoma outfielder Boog Powell is pushing for a recall to the big leagues after going 10-for-20 in five games. He is batting .356 (16-for-45) in 13 games since being optioned June 10 to the Rainiers.

***Modesto outfielder Braden Bishop continued his strong season by going 9-for-19 in four games. That boosted his average to .321 and his on-base percentage to .415 for 66 games.

***Modesto right-hander Nick Neidert could be poised for a promotion to Double-A Arkansas after another strong outing. He held Visalia (Diamondbacks) to one run in eight innings Monday while striking out seven and walking none. He is 6-3 with a 3.10 ERA in 15 starts.

***Tacoma outfielder Tyler O’Neill did most of his damage in one monster game in a 6-for-19 week over five games. He went 3-for-6 with two homers and seven RBIs on June 23 at Reno (Diamondbacks).

Bob Dutton: @TNT_Mariners

This story was originally published June 27, 2017 at 10:33 AM with the headline "Mariners Farm Watch: Bannister picked as TNT’s player of the week."