Chin Lung Hu punched a line drive double down the first base line and later won the Larry Doby MVP Award during yesterday's Futures Game. While the 5'9 Hu isn't going to become a major power threat any time soon, he has demonstrated considerable improvement:

What other players might be demonstrating within-season improvement in power production?

The minor league is nearly two-thirds complete, so here are a dozen minor league players 24 years of age or younger with the greatest improvement in isolated power (slugging percentage - batting average) from the first to second third of the season:

                    Isolated Power
Name              First Second Third
Robert Andino     .078  .213   
Scott Moore       .138  .268
Mat Gamel         .070  .258
Jon Still         .177  .313
Eric Young        .046  .210
Matthew Joyce     .121  .256
Carlos Gonzalez   .110  .262
Miguel Abreu      .108  .246
Ryan Rohlinger    .112  .265
Cesar Suarez      .094  .225
Jermaine Mitchell .043  .175
Juan Miranda      .140  .314

Remember, what looks like a developmental trend could simply be the result of a streak or two. That said, there are some interesting players here who are worth watching closely over the remainder of the season.

The Athletics' Jermaine Mitchell, a fifth-round pick from the 2006 draft, was gaining traction as a potential breakout prospect this year before struggling in the first month of the season. Mitchell continues to hit an above-average proportion of ground balls, but the ball is traveling when he lifts it. Three of his four home runs occurred in the month of June.

Diamondbacks outfielder prospect Carlos Gonzalez' OBP continues to hover around .300, but last year's big power numbers are starting to look like less of a California League-induced fluke.

We recently discussed Mat Gamel's status as a prospect. His hitting streak has ended, but he has been launching doubles at a prolific rate.

Eric Young showed flashes of power at his hitter-friendly home park last year and looked like nothing more than a singles hitter during the early part of the 2007 season. That has all changed - Young has collected 8 extra-base hits over the past week.