Daily Prospect Notes: 7/3

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

Jorge Mateo, SS/CF, New York AL (Profile)
Level: Double-A Age: 22   Org Rank:  6 Top 100: 91
Line: 4-for-10, 2 3B, HR

Notes
As the dominoes fell following Gleyber Torres‘ injury, Mateo landed in Trenton. He split time between shortstop and center field down at High-A and the Yankees have the option to continue working him at both spots at Double-A with utility prospect Thairo Estrada on the roster. He struggled to do everything on the offensive end but steal bases in Tampa, failing to do damage anywhere but to his pull side. He’s off to a terrific start in Trenton, though, tallying five walks and three triples in just six games.

DJ Peters, OF, Los Angeles NL (Profile)
Level: Hi-A   Age: 21   Org Rank: 18   Top 100: NR
Line: 3-for-4, 3 HR, BB

Notes
Peters is a rare physical specimen who draws body comps to Jayson Werth at 6-foot-6, 225 pounds, with plus speed underway and flowing curls. He also has plus raw power, to which he’s able to get in games despite the exact kind of swing and miss you would expect from a hitter this size. Scouts generally agree that Peters will eventually get too big to retain his current range in center field but some think he’ll be able to stay there long enough to spend his first few big-league seasons there. Others think he’ll have filled out by the time he hits enough to reach the majors.

Kyle Lewis, OF, Seattle (Profile)
Level: Rookie   Age: 21   Org Rank: 1   Top 100: 38
Line: 2-for-4, HR, BB

Notes
Scouts who have seen Lewis working back from a second knee injury say his superlative raw power is intact but also say he looks physically rusty and appears to be doing things gingerly.

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Notes from the back fields
Giants first-rounder Heliot Ramos put his physical tools on display Saturday night, hitting a home run about 430 feet to left field and throwing a frozen rope from the warning track in left center to the cutoff man in shallow left. It led to an out at third base. One could argue he has three plus tools right now in the power, arm, and speed. He fell to the latter third of the first round because scouts considered his bat and baseball acumen to be raw. But he’s hitting early on in AZL play. Here’s that home run:

Giants righty Camilo Dovall has become one of the more fascinating arms in Arizona. His fastball sits anywhere between 88-97 with varying amounts of cut, and at times, he rips off 95 mph cutters that have upwards of 2700 rpms, seemingly by accident. He also flashes a plus slider but it’s wildly inconsistent, as is his command.

Oakland OF Lazaro Armenteros continues to hit lasers each time I see him. His bat path bothered scouts during spring training (and it still does) but he’s timing everything so well right now that it doesn’t matter, and I spoke with someone who has a 70 on the bat speed. He’s seeing time in both outfield corners, but likely belongs in left field.

A’s second-rounder Nick Allen made his pro debut on Saturday, replacing SS Yerdel Vargas towards the end of Saturday’s game. Allen and Vargas are both talented defensive prospects, with Vargas flashing unteachable range and athleticism while frustrating scouts at other times. Allen showed his plus arm and on some relays in from the outfield and mature field awareness but hasn’t had the opportunity to do anything spectacular just yet. At the plate he looks understandably rusty.





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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giantsprospectsmember
6 years ago

Thanks for the report Eric. FYI, Doval has one ‘l’ in his last name, not two.