The Minnesota Twins’ Double-A affiliate in New Britain, CT features a plethora of top prospects, including three of the best hitting prospects in the system. They were on full display during a late July series against the Philadelphia Phillies’ Double-A affiliate in Reading, PA.
Eddie Rosario, 2B
Top prospects for both the Philadelphia Phillies and Minnesota Twins collided in a late-July series in the Double-A Eastern League. In the July 28 matchup, the Phillies Double-A affiliate, from Reading, Pa., fielded the top two talents in the system, as well as a former top pitching prospect whose career is currently is in flux.
Jesse Biddle, LHP
It’s never easy to develop impact catchers. When FanGraphs rolled out the recent mid-season Top 50 prospects list there were only three catchers represented on the list: Travis d’Arnaud, Austin Hedges, and Gary Sanchez. Cleveland is an organization that has certainly struggled to develop big league catchers. The 40-man roster currently features three catchers and all three were developed by other organizations: Carlos Santana (Dodgers), Yan Gomes (Blue Jays), and Lou Marson (Phillies). The club’s Top 20 prospect list didn’t feature a catcher until the announcement was made that Tony Wolters — who ranked ninth on the list as a middle infielder — was being converted to catcher.
The move has caused the California native’s value to skyrocket. His above-average athleticism has allowed him to smoothly transition into his new position. A talent evaluator I spoke with recently said Wolters has a good chance to be an everyday catcher at the big league level. “Tony has embraced it completely and every coordinator, scout or coach that has seen him catch has been extremely impressed with how quickly he’s taken to the position and how natural it appears to be to Tony,” he said. “He has shown more than enough potential to remain there.”
The Miami Marlins organization made a bold move on Monday night when it was announced that outfield prospects Christian Yelich and Jake Marisnick were promoted from Double-A to the big league squad. In return, 2013 rookies Derek Dietrich, an infielder, and Marcell Ozuna, an outfielder, were returned to the minor leagues. Interestingly, Ozuna checks in with the highest WAR (1.9) of any Marlins hitter in 2013. On the recent Top 50 prospects list at FanGraphs, Yelich came in 12th overall, while Marisnick checked in at 46.
The Matt Garza sweepstakes finally ended on Monday, with the Texas Rangers emerging victorious in their long pursuit of the Chicago Cubs veteran hurler. In return for the 29-year-old right-hander, Chicago obtained three young players — third baseman Mike Olt, as well as pitchers Justin Grimm and C.J. Edwards — and one or two players to be named later (depending on who the first PTBNL is).
The Pittsburgh Pirates went high-risk-high-reward in this year‘s draft. Both of their first-round picks came via the high school ranks, as did their second-round selection. All three players have tremendous potential, but a boom-or-bust dynamic exists for almost any 18-year-old prospect.
JaCoby Jones — drafted in the third round out of LSU — is a 21-year-old with a boom-or-bust dynamic. Viewed as a potential first-rounder coming into the season, he has the raw tools to become a big-league regular. Inconsistent as a collegian, he could just as easily crash and burn.
The right-handed-hitter has plenty of speed and power, but his numbers haven’t matched his talent. He hit .338 as a freshman, but just .253 as a sophomore. This year he split the difference with a .294 mark. Jones won last summer’s Cape Cod League home run derby, but went deep only 14 times in three collegiate seasons.
His position is a question yet to be answered. Primarily a second baseman at LSU, he is playing shortstop and center field with the short-season Jamestown Jammers. Thirteen games into his professional career he is hitting .304/.333/.464. Read the rest of this entry »
The mid-season Top 50 prospects list is here as we celebrate the most exciting players at the minor league level. There is lots of room for debate and I’m excited to hear what others have to say about the players listed below. For a refresher, check out the pre-season Top 100 prospects list here.
When you’re a speedy 5-foot-6 second baseman with a line-drive stroke, Jose Altuve comps come with the territory. When you’re drafted by the Houston Astros, they are pretty much inevitable. The player in question is Tony Kemp.
A fifth-round pick this year out of Vanderbilt, the 21-year-old Kemp is looking to forge his own identity in pro ball. He did so as a collegian. The Nashville native was the 2013 Southeastern Conference Player of the Year and a first-team selection on Baseball America’s All-America team. In his junior season with the Commodores, he hit .388/.480/.496, with 32 stolen bases. In his first month with the short-season Tri-City Valley Cats, he is hitting .314.
Kemp — who differs from Altuve in that he swings from the left side –talked about his game a week after his debut. Read the rest of this entry »
| 11:47 |
: Lots going on in the world of prospects… get your questions in now and we’ll start in about 15 mins….
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| 11:59 |
Will the Cardinals keep Kolten Wong in the minors until he’s 26 as is their MO. Not sure what else he can do at AAA? |
| 12:00 |
: Wong has solid numbers at AAA but he’s playing in a very good hitter’s league… It’s not like he’s exactly setting the world on fire. He’s not better than the Cards other options… His best hope (like Adams) would be a trade…
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| 12:01 |
Who’s the favorite to sign Miguel Alberto Gonzalez? |
| 12:01 |
: Last I heard it was the Dodgers… Cubs could be a sleeper team.
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| 12:01 |
Mikael Franco, Real deal or is Keith Law, et al correct in that he’s overrated? |
The Toronto Blue Jays must decide within the next few weeks whether to make a final push for a playoff spot or focus on the future. While they are still reportedly evaluating potential additions for a second half run, the organization spent a large part of their minor league capital over the off-season, and will have to decide how much more they want to dip into that pool to make a run at a wild card spot.
The Jays began the 2012 season with one of the strongest minor league systems in Major League Baseball. After the trade deadline deals and winter flurries, though, the system fell to the middle of the pack. The depth helped to ensure there are still interesting players in the system but the majority of intriguing prospects are high-risk, high-reward guys that are in A-ball or Rookie ball. The big league club has already suffered from a lack of depth at the upper levels of the system by relying on players such Munenori Kawasaki (a solid backup but a stretch as a starting shortstop), Andy LaRoche, Chien-Ming Wang, Ramon Ortiz, Thad Weber, Mickey Storey, Justin Germano, Edgar Gonzalez, and the list goes on and on.
The Jays system has been depleted somewhat, but it isn’t barren. For interest’s sake, let’s look at some players still in the system that could be part of the team’s future, or could be used to make a short-term upgrade in pursuit of a 2013 playoff push.