Catchers Severino and Kieboom coming along well at the plate

The Mesa Solar Sox stand at 10-8-1 and in second place in the East Division of the Arizona Fall League. Catcher Pedro Severino continues to excel at the plate, batting .280 through seven games. He had a 4-for-5 game on Oct. 22 at Scottsdale, and has a triple, three RBIs, one walk and one run. Severino hit .247 for the high Single-A Potomac Nationals and was a South Atlantic League All-Star in 2013. His defensive skills are ahead of his bat, as is the case with most young catchers. But to see him swing the bat so well facing stiffer competition in the AFL is a great sign that he is advancing and improving each day. The 21-year-old surged at the plate with each passing month this season. In May, he hit .183 with an OPS of .519. In June, that went up to a .226 batting average and a .713 OPS. In July, he connected for a .315 average and an .844 OPS. Then in August, his batting average was .319 with an .854 OPS. Severino hit .308 after the All-Star break and .199 prior to the break. He struck out 33 times before the break and only 24 times after the All-Star respite. He is on track for the Nationals to move him to Double-A Harrisburg and a likely spot on the 40-man roster. Severino's Mesa teammate and fellow catcher Spencer Kieboom has also stepped up his game after recovering from right ulnar collateral ligament surgery in 2013. Kieboom, who already has a quality arm and is a plus defender, hit .309 with nine homers and 61 RBIs in 87 games for the Suns. The 23-year-old Clemson product is batting a whopping .400 in six AFL games. He has two doubles, one homer, six RBIs and a 1.090 OPS. His next step is likely Potomac. Rare to see a pair of catchers from the same organization play in the AFL, but Kieboom and Severino have demonstrated it is once again one of the strengths of the Nationals system.