Daily notes on prospects from lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen. Read previous installments here.

Michael Paez, INF, New York NL (Profile)
Level: Low-A   Age: 22   Org Rank: NR   Top 100: NR
Line: 4-for-5, HR

Notes
Paez was the best prospect on Coastal Carolina’s 2016 College World Series championship team. He’s 5-foot-8 but has sneaky pull power to which he’s always been able to get in games despite high strikeout totals. He’s 22 and a college hitter at Low-A so his season .306/.404/.543 line needs to be taken with a large grain of salt, but he could be a big-league bench piece as a power-before-hit infielder who can play second and third base.

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Daily notes on prospects from lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen. Read previous installments here.

Bo Bichette, SS, Toronto (Profile)
Level: Low-A   Age: 19   Org Rank: 10   Top 100: NR
Line: 3-for-4, HR

Notes
Now at .381/.458/.619 on the year, the Bo Bichette I saw as an amateur looks like the outlier and not the one who was arguably the best prospect at some later showcases before the draft. While Bichette’s style of hitting violates Lansing noise ordinances, his feel for contact and hand-eye coordination are sublime and he has plus-plus bat speed. Bichette is also showing a measured two-strike approach. He’s making a case for top-100 consideration, even though he’s unlikely to stay at short.

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Daily notes on prospects from lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen. Read previous installments here.

Julian Merryweather, RHP, Cleveland (Profile)
Level: Triple-A   Age: 25   Org Rank: NR   Top 100: NR
Line: 8 IP, 4 H, 0 BB, 8 K

Notes
I left Merryweather off of Cleveland’s offseason list entirely because I had reports from scouts who thought he was succeeding as a 24-year-old in A-ball due to deception, a good changeup, and little else. Turns out that was foolish. Merryweather is 25 but he’s pitched his way to Columbus and he carved up one of the more talented lineups in the International League yesterday, garnering swings and misses with all three pitches. He’s deceptive, athletic, touched 95 several times, flashed a plus curveball and changeup, and despite some issues timing all the moving parts of his delivery, he threw lots of strikes. There are scouts who think he fits better in relief, but he has mid-rotation stuff.

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Daily notes on prospects from lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen. Read previous installments here.

Jahmai Jones, CF, Los Angeles (AL) (Profile)
Level: Low-A   Age: 19   Org Rank: 1   Top 100: 92
Line: 3-for-5, 2 2B

Notes
After a prolonged period of failure that resulted in a .167 batting average as May began, Jones has begun to hit as well he did on the complex each of the last two years. He has 11 multi-hit games in May and has raised his average to .250, possibly a sign that he has made some adjustments. Jones has had issues with covering the outer half of the plate this year and has struggled to lay off of or spoil breaking balls down and away from him.

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Daily notes on prospects from lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen. Read previous installments here.

Jose Marmolejos, 1B, Washington (Profile)
Level: Double-A   Age: 24   Org Rank: 19   Top 100: NR
Line: 3-for-4, HR, BB

Notes
Marmolejos returned from a non-throwing forearm strain that required a 60-day DL stint on the 12th, and he has a hit each day since then. He’s got terrific bat-to-ball skills and is a good defensive first baseman but is blocked, not only at the big-league level by a resurgent Ryan Zimmerman, but at Triple-A by veteran Clint Robinson. He probably lacks the power to play every day, but it looks like he’s going to hit enough to merit a bench spot.

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Daily notes on prospects from lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen. Read previous installments here.

Ryan Burr, RHP, Arizona (Profile)
Level: Low-A   Age: 22   Org Rank: NR   Top 100: NR
Line: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 BB, 1 R, 3 K

Notes
Burr was remarkably consistent at Arizona State, sitting 93-96 with an above average slider each time I saw him. After dealing with injuries last year, he’s back to missing bats, albeit at a lower level than one might like to see from a college prospect in his second full pro season. He has setup-man upside if everything is intact.

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Daily notes on prospects from lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen. Read previous installments here.

Anthony Gose, LHP, Detroit (Profile)
Level: Hi-A   Age: 26   Org Rank: NR   Top 100: NR
Line: 1 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 1 R, 1 K

Notes
Gose hasn’t technically been a prospect since 2012, but he’s attempting to stick the landing on a Reverse Ankiel and convert to the mound after nine pro seasons as an outfielder. Gose’s inability to hit at the big-league level has sparked whimsical discussion about a conversion because he’s very athletic, was up to 97 on the mound in high school, and had some breaking-ball feel. His fastball was hovering in the mid- to upper 90s during extended spring training as he got up to speed for affiliated ball.

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Daily notes on prospects from lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen. Read previous installments here.

Bryan Reynolds, OF, San Francisco (Profile)
Level: Hi-A   Age: 22   Org Rank: 3   Top 100: HM
Line: 5-for-6, 2B, 3B

Notes
After a hot start, Reynolds cooled off and was hitting a shade under .260 as Sunday’s action began. That’s somewhat concerning for a big-school college hitter in the Cal League. San Jose is one of the few pitcher-friendly (barely) parks in that league and Reynolds’ home/road splits are evocative of that: his OPS is .541 at home and a .913 on the road.

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Daily notes on prospects from lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen. Read previous installments here.

Walker Buehler, RHP, Los Angeles NL (Profile)
Level: Double-A   Age: 22   Org Rank: 5   Top 100: 74
Line: 3.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 9 K

Notes
Buehler made five dominant but abbreviated starts at High-A, never superseding the 65-pitch mark. He was then shut down for 10 days before earning a promotion to Double-A. He’s been sitting 95-99 all spring with a plus-plus, hammer curveball and a hard slider/cutter anywhere from 87-91. He’s very athletic, balanced, and always appears in control of his body despite the high-effort nature of his delivery. He throws all three pitches for strikes. He has the stuff and enough polish to pitch in the big leagues this year in a multi-inning bullpen role — and, if his usage and early-season inning management is any indication, the Dodgers seem to think so, too.

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Daily notes on prospects from lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen. Read previous installments here.

Jose De Leon, RHP, Tampa Bay (Profile)
Level: Hi-A   Age: 24   Org Rank: 3   Top 100: 44
Line: 5 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K

Notes
Yesterday, De Leon made his second start since coming off the disabled list with forearm soreness. He threw 69 pitches over five innings, an improvement from his inefficient 61-pitch, three-inning appearance on the 11th of May. De Leon also dealt with back tightness during the spring. A changeup/command artist, De Leon could help a Rays rotation currently delving into the bullpen for help due to Blake Snell’s growing pains, but the club has a glut of options on the 40-man and Brent Honeywell (who isn’t on it) is shoving at Triple-A.

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