Sioux City Explorers infielder Abdiel Layer and Lincoln Saltdogs starter Greg Loukinen won the American Association’s Carbliss batter and pitcher of the week for the week ending 8/31, the league announced Monday.
Layer was the lead run producer in the league this week, driving in 11 in just five games while going 7-for-20 (.350) with a double and three home runs.
Layer’s biggest game came at the start of the week on Tuesday, when he went deep twice and drove in five in a dominant 16-5 win against Sioux Falls. The Explorers split that series 2-2 against the Canaries.
This is year two for Layer in the Association after playing in 69 games a year ago for the Milwaukee Milkmen. He was previously in the San Francisco Giants organization from 2018-2023.
On the pitching side, Loukinen put forth a dominant outing on Wednesday with seven shutout innings against Cleburne in what turned out to be a 1-0 win for the Saltdogs.
The left-hander had eight strikeouts to just two walks and allowed four hits in the outing.
It was the second straight strong start for Loukinen after he allowed two runs over 6.2 frames against Sioux City the week prior. He’s gone at least six innings in three straight starts.
Loukinen returned to the league this year after spending a short time with Lake Country back in 2022. He also spent time in the Frontier League.
Carbliss is the founding partner of the American Association.
