Daily Prospect Notes: 5/2

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

Jared Oliva, CF, University of Arizona (Profile)
Level: NCAA (Pac-12)   Age: 21   
Line: 5-for-7, 2 2B, 2 R

Notes
Oliva is a redshirt junior who went undrafted last year, as scouts considered him to be quite raw and inconsistent despite impressive physical tools. But Oliva didn’t play much on a loaded high-school team that included Rays 2016 seventh rounder J.D. Busfield and this student profile of Oliva alludes to a sub-optimal relationship with his high-school coach.

He’s broken out a bit this spring, still suffering the occasional instinctive lapse but less often than last year while hitting a healthy .351/.411/.557. Oliva runs well enough to have a chance to stay in center field and has above-average raw power, although scouts are mixed about how much he’s going to hit. As a redshirt junior slated to graduate soon, he’s an easier sign than most prospects with this kind of power/speed combination and represents an interesting underslot opportunity in a draft class severely lacking college bats.

Thomas Pannone, LHP, Cleveland (Profile)
Level: Hi-A   Age: 23   Org Rank: NR   Top 100: NR
Line: 7 IP, 3 H, 0 BB, 8 K

Notes
Pannone was the subject of one of David Laurila’s recent interviews and has now allowed just 10 hits and seven walks in 27.2 innings this year while striking out 39. He’s throwing a bit harder this year, mostly 88-91, and working his fastball up and curveball down effectively. At 23, it’s prudent to be skeptical of performance in Single-A, but if Pannone gets promoted and continues to throw well at Double-A, it will be time to re-evaluate.

Jake Cronenworth, SS, Tampa Bay (Profile)
Level: Hi-A   Age: 23   Org Rank: HM   Top 100: NR
Line: Extended 25 game hit streak

Notes
Cronenworth has a hit in every game so far this year and his hit streak is now up to 25 games. He was profiled in this space two weeks ago, and I wrote more about Cronenworth than any other player in the honorable mention section of a prospect list. His BABIP is up around .500 this season.

Gleyber Torres, SS, New York AL (Profile)
Level: Double-A   Age: 20   Org Rank: 1   Top 100: 7
Line: 3-for-5, 2B

Notes
After missing a week and a half with shoulder inflammation, Torres is back and has eight hits in his last three games, including the three run-rocket below. Torres has as many extra-base hits in the last three days as he had during the rest of April, and he’s yet to strike out since returning from injury.

Alex Winkelman, LHP, Houston (Profile)
Level: Hi-A   Age: 23   Org Rank: NR   Top 100: NR
Line: 5 IP, 2 H, 0 BB, 5 K

Notes
Winkelman was shelled in his last start, surrendering five runs and exiting in the first, but has otherwise been terrific this year. He has a plus slider, a low-90s fastball, and has a 25% career strikeout rate — although he had issues with walks in 2016. He’s thrown strikes this seasons, posting a 3.6% walk rate against a career mark nearly triple that figure.





Eric Longenhagen is from Catasauqua, PA and currently lives in Tempe, AZ. He spent four years working for the Phillies Triple-A affiliate, two with Baseball Info Solutions and two contributing to prospect coverage at ESPN.com. Previous work can also be found at Sports On Earth, CrashburnAlley and Prospect Insider.

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John S
6 years ago

Eric – When, if ever, should I start paying attention to Joey Lucchesi?