The offensive bar in left is at roughly the same level as third base and if we project Vargas to be able to play a neutral left field (hes below average right now but looks better than he ever has at third), it actually buoys his overall profile because his third base defense was pulling it down. When he can get the barrel out there, though, hes a threat to do extra-base damage the other way because of his bat speed. In the three years since the trade, Mead has become one of the more dangerous hitters in the minor leagues and as soon as he becomes a suitable defender, he should provide a well-rounded offensive threat in the middle of Tampa Bays order. Unless hed throwing on the run, he just sort of lollipops the ball over to first. Casas went to the Dominican Winter League to be part of Liceys prospect-studded lineup (Elly De La Cruz, Ronny Mauricio, and a few others were also on that roster at the start of the LIDOM season), but a knee injury ended that jaunt after just three games. Zavala was the youngest player to reach an affiliate in 2022, joining Low-A Lake Elsinore just a couple weeks after his 18th birthday. To say he looks like a steal is a drastic understatement at this point, as he is one of the most exciting young hitters in the minors, with elite power potential and superlative on-paper performance at Double-A throughout 2022, all while he was still not old enough to have a beer. If youre looking for the prospect most likely to hit 40 home runs in a season down the line, this is your player. Because hes still so young, the chances are better that Marte can course correct in this area, and theres recent precedent for that path in Julio Rodrguez, who became sleeker and faster to stay in center field. Here are the bonus pools for the 2023 international signing period, according to MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez: Because they paid competitive balance tax in 2021, the Dodgers forfeited $1 million in bonus pool money to sign Freddie Freeman. But if Eder does have to move to the bullpen, there might be another gear of velocity in the tank, which gives him the out of being a premium reliever with two plus-plus pitches.
Hes begun to solve the former problem by occasionally catching on one knee with one leg splayed out, la Carlos Ruiz, which allows him to be lower to the ground and present low pitches moving back toward the zone. The son of two-time Pro Bowl tight end Eric Green, Elijah became Draft Famous during his junior year, homering a couple of times in high school tournaments held in big league parks and looking much toolsier than all but a couple of the prospects who were a year older than him. WebProspects List Graduates MLB Draft International Players 2023 Fantasy Rankings Past Seasonal International Players Prospects List Graduates MLB Draft International He also throws a changeup and a slider, both of which show promise, though neither was featured much in his 2022 mix. Despite some of the length and violence in Millers delivery, hes demonstrated that he can sustain elite velocity deep into each start, throw strikes, and (so far) keep his arm healthy, as his only career IL stint was for an oblique strain. In a vacuum, though, he has a shot to have four plus pitches and an inning-eaters frame. In that case, were talking about a rock solid everyday player in the Mark Canha mold, and in fact Vargas career has tracked in a similar fashion, especially as we stand on the precipice of a likely position change. He returned three months later and labored through a rocky September with Norfolk, during which he struggled with walks. His split/changeup (it only has about 1,300 rpm of spin, definitely in split territory) has plus sinking action, but the direction of its lateral movement is highly variable. The New York Yankees like going after five-tool players in the past international signing periods and this year is no exception. Theres still mid-rotation potential here, its just not as in focus as it seemed to be a year ago. His lefty swing is more powerful while his righty cut is more contact-oriented. Players like Senga, Fujinami, and Yoshida will be a separate article. There are some hurdles in Nnajis way. The contact is a close second for Guerrero as he has quick bat speed and a disciplined approach in his at-bats. After reading about Duno I believe he could be similar to a Mike Zunino type with the good defense teams love and big power but questionable hit tool concerns. Orioles | DC. Frelicks style of hitting should enable doubles (and some triples) pop, but there isnt likely to be any kind of over-the-fence power here, so little that one could argue Frelick belongs south of the 50 FV tier even if he were a lock to stay in center field. He sometimes struggles with arm accuracy from third base and has sub-par range at second, but his footwork, hands, and actions keep him afloat at each spot. Yorkes 2021 pro debut was a rousing success, as he hit .325/.412/.516 across two A-ball levels as a teenager. When the Double-A season came to a close, Soderstrom was promoted again to close out Stocktons Triple-A season. Over the last year, Prez has added about 30 pounds, experienced a two-tick fastball velocity bump, and incorporated a second, harder breaking ball that has become his primary non-fastball weapon. The contact skills could be the biggest area to improve as the Duno can get out of sync leading to swing and miss. He had a somewhat rocky first full season in pro ball, running a FIP near 5.00 across 18 starts with Lakeland before finishing up with three fair outings at Western Michigan. His changeup is only fair right now, and his command still comes and goes, and even though he didnt walk nearly as many hitters in 2021 as he did in college, there was still relief risk here even before his elbow blew out. 4. His hands work with natural lift, but Busch keeps their path short and on time, and he can move the barrel all over the zone. Short levers enable Frelick to turn on inner-third fastballs and let him spray or spoil pitches that travel deep into the hitting zone, making him very tough to strike out. And Chourio has that kind of power. Caba has plus fielding ability with a solid arm and above-average speed. He might end up becoming the player the industry hoped Francisco Meja would become. After that it seemed like Ramirez was asked to try to demonstrate better plate discipline. It makes sense that there has been some second base experimentation here over the last few years, as Ramos range and actions make it plausible that he could eventually fit there, and Colson Montgomerys third base projection might force the issue. Gutierrez is an advanced hitter with good plate recognition and raw plus power resulting in solid offensive production. Ethan Salas, C, VenezuelaThe top player in the class is one of the best catching prospects in recent history. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. He didnt throw a ton of strikes and the visual quality of his stuff was closer to average overall than plus or better, which is how it looked in high school. 1 Keith Law Jan 30, 2023 550 Welcome to this years ranking of the top 100 prospects in baseball. His slider often has curt, unspectacular-looking movement, but Bradleys command of it and the way he sets it up with well-located fastballs make it a dominant pitch. He also dealt with an eye condition that would later require surgery to strengthen the collagen fibers within his cornea, surgery he had in 2020 while he also reworked his mechanics. He tends to throw his two breaking balls (his curveballs shape pairs especially nicely with his fastball) in the zone, often early in counts, and then use the fastball as a finishing pitch. The son of 15-year pro Lou Collier, Cam was among the most physical prospects in the 2022 draft even though he reclassified from the 23 group and was one of his class youngest at just over 17-and-a-half on draft day. Thats a 31% K% and 8% BB% across twice as many innings as the year before, when Miller was being built back up from the shortened 2020 season. His fastball has sufficient action that it still plays at 92-93, and it pairs nicely with his curveball, which is a traditional power pitchers yakker in the upper 70s. Wood has a real chance to both hit and hit for gargantuan power, and while his swing isnt geared for consistent lift at this point, he has the raw strength to do damage anyway. And lvarez wants to show you his power. For one, he struck out in a third of his A-ball plate appearances, and the track record for hitters who K that much at such a low level is not very good. There are still visual and underlying statistical indications that Naylor is going to end up with a below-average hit tool (his swing is so uphill that hell almost certainly be vulnerable to whiffs in the strike zone), but he has very impressive bat speed and power (especially for a catcher) that is weaponized by his selective approach, which targets the up-and-in quadrant of the zone. For now, his ability to bend and get deep into his legs, as well as his lateral agility and range, is pretty amazing for a player his size. The potential for a 20-20 contributor should have any dynasty manager excited on whats to come for Mayea. Over the course of two years worth of showcase play tracked by Synergy Sports, amounting to roughly 250 swings on tape, Jones never pulled a ball to the left of the left-center field gap, and all but about a dozen of his airborne balls in play were to right field. After a blazing-hot end to the 2021 minor league season and a dominant Fall League performance, White rode a lot of hype into last season. For many scouts, the top international prospect this year is Ethan Salas, a 16-year-old catcher from Venezuela who is also the brother of Jose Salas, a shortstop in the Marlins' system. This was in part due to a notable adjustment to his pitch mix. He has a polished first step, actions, and internal clock, and enough arm strength for the left side of the infield. From the right side of the plate, Bonilla hits the ball with authority showing a power-over-hit profile. Traded from Cleveland along with Phil Maton for Myles Straw, Diaz slugged his way from Corpus Christi to Sugar Land in 2022, and is now the best hitting catcher on Houstons 40-man roster. Veen rotates with rare ferocity and his broad-shouldered, 6-foot-4 frame leaves room for immense strength as he matures. Berry turned down seven figures coming out of high school and went to Arizona, where he raked as a freshman DH for a Wildcats team that made a deep postseason run. Quants and front office analyst types are more bearish, citing issues with Priesters fastball playability. That isnt consistent with his career performance: Jungs 2021 chase rate, per Synergy, was just 24%, and that exploded to 37% in 2022. Every aspect of his offense is plus except for his raw power, but Manzardos precise feel for the barrel and tendency to hunt pitches he can drive (or spoil ones he cant until he gets something hittable) should enable his game power to play above his batting practice raw. Even though hes still eons from the big leagues, the Cubs were compelled to put Alcantara on their 40-man roster during the offseason to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft. The floor here is XL Freddy Galvis with worse defense, but there will be some peak seasons where more of the power plays and he produces like a star. Though hes mostly started so far and has three nasty pitches, Millers delivery is very violent and his injury history suggests he may only have so many bullets, so we expect Oakland will put him on the big league roster in fairly short order, perhaps in a relief role. He had a successful foray into full-season ball, slashing .273/.360/.451 with 15 homers and 14 steals while with Low-A Myrtle Beach. Youve probably seen big league hitters use a toe tap, or heard broadcasters use that phrase. Malcolm Cazalon (2001, 6-6, G/F, Mega Mozzart) is automatically eligible. At the plate, the athletic Salas has a good feel for the strike zone and shows the ability to hit the ball to all fields. He projects to be a top-of-the-rotation pitcher as his fastball sits between 94-97 and has emerging secondary pitches, including a slider, changeup and curveball. However, Priester makes up for it with his preferred secondaries a huge, arcing curveball that Priester has had forever, and a more recently developed mid-80s slider both of which have garnered swing-and-miss rates well above the big league average. Healthy House has huge power. He can protect the rim and has good defensive instincts- but he loses focus. The progress Williams made at ECU amid these issues (some of which date back to high school) was remarkable. Youll also notice that there is a Future Value outcome distribution graph for each prospect on the list. Montgomery raked his way to Double-A, where he spent the last couple weeks of his first full pro season as part of Project Birmingham, a de facto instructs and evaluation period for Chicagos best mid- and upper-level prospects. PCA is one of the best defensive center fielders in the sport and a swing change unlocked dormant power in 2022. Teams can not entice players by offering to put them on the 40-man roster. 70), meanwhile, is also 30 numerical places, but the difference in talent is relatively small. Hes set up to throw about 135 innings in 2023 (assuming a typical 20-inning increase) and, if his annual pattern of promotion is any indication, hell be given his first big league opportunity late this year (and push for a playoff roster spot), then compete for an Opening Day rotation job in 2024. Jameson reached the majors in 2022 and is ready for prime time. Because Carroll runs such deep counts, his strikeout rates have been higher than one might expect given his reputation as a plus contact hitter.