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Mariners name Adam Jones Minor League Player of the Year; Chris Tillman named Pitcher of the Year
11/28/2007 7:23 PM ET
Seattle Mariners Director of Player Development Greg Hunter announced today the Mariners Minor League Most Valuable Players.

Tacoma Rainiers outfielder Adam Jones was named Player of the Year while right-hander Chris Tillman was named Pitcher of the Year.

Jones, 22, hit .314 (132x420) with 75 runs scored, 27 doubles, 25 home runs and 84 RBI in 101 games with Triple-A Tacoma. He was the starting centerfield in the Triple-A All-Star game, received Pacific Coast League Player of the Week, June 11-17 and was named to the Topps Triple-A All-Star team. Jones led all Mariners farmhands in average, while finishing tied for first in home runs and tied for third in RBI. Jones was promoted to Seattle on Aug. 3, hitting .246 (16x65) with 16 runs scored, five extra-base hits and four RBI in 41 games. On Aug. 9 at Baltimore he set a career-high with three hits, while his four runs scored tied the Mariners single-game mark by a rookie. Jones, who was the Mariners first round selection in the 2003 June Draft, was also named Seattle Mariners Minor League Player of the Year in 2005.

Tillman, 19, split the season between Single-A Wisconsin and Single-A High Desert, going 7-11 with 4.84 ERA in a combined 28 starts. In 135.2 innings, he struck out 139 batters, allowed 100 runs, 73 earned, and kept his opponents average to .259 (138x533). Tillman made eight starts with Wisconsin before being promoted to High Desert on May 23. He led the Mavericks with 105 strikeouts, while tying the team-high with six wins. On Aug. 29, he set a career-high and tied a Mavericks' team record with 13 strikeouts in 6.0 innings, becoming the first pitcher in team history to record that many strikeouts at home as part of a Mavs 2-1 win vs. Rancho Cucamonga. He joined Brad Penny, who accomplished the feat twice in 1998, and Dickie Brown as the only players in Maverick history with 13 strikeouts in a single game. Tillman finished the season strong going 4-1 with a 2.54 ERA in his final seven starts, while recording four quality starts. He was the Mariners second round selection in the 2006 June Draft.

A Most Valuable Player and Pitcher were named at every level of the Minor League system. Here's a look at the full list:

Most Valuable Players and Pitchers
LevelTeam PlayerPitcher
AAATacoma OF Adam Jones LH Robert Rohrbaugh
AA West TennesseeOF Charlton Jimerson RH Joe Woerman
AHigh DesertC Adam Moore RH Roman Martinez
AWisconsin OF Carlos Peguero RH Kyle Parker
Short-AEverett OF Gregory Halman LH Edward Paredes
RookiePeoriaOF Daniel Carroll RH Jake Wild
Dominican OF Joel MendezRH Michael Pineda
Venezuelan OF Jose Rivero LH Jose Jimenez

PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Adam Jones (Tacoma and Seattle)

PITCHER OF THE YEAR: Chris Tillman (Wisconsin and High Desert)

This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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