Here is this week’s update to the Top 250 Prospect List. The signing deadline has passed, and surprisingly, all the 2011 draftees we listed signed pro contracts. I gave most of the HS draftees a jump because, needless to say, their value increases after officially signing a pro contract. It is worth mentioning—at this point—I think we’re valuing many of the “non-elite” first rounders a little bit low. As we go through the rankings in the off-season, we’ll probably end up valuing several players (i.e., Brandon Nimmo, CJ Cron, etc) higher than many of the struggling prospects. We’ll continue updating throughout the second half of the season, and as always, feedback is appreciated.
1. Bryce Harper—OF, Nationals
2. Mike Trout—OF, Angels
3. Matt Moore—P, Rays
4. Jeremy Hellickson—P, Rays
5. Julio Teheran—P, Braves
6. Freddie Freeman—1B, Braves
7. Michael Pineda—P, Mariners (-3)
8. Shelby Miller—P, Cardinals (-3)
The bad start is not a huge concern…decided Freeman should rank higher than Pineda/Miller/Hosmer.
9. Eric Hosmer—1B, Royals (-3)
Last night’s 3B was Hosmer’s first extra base hit since August 2.
10. Desmond Jennings—OF, Rays
11. Brett Lawrie—3B, Blue Jays (+1)
12. Dustin Ackley—2B, Mariners
13. Gerrit Cole—P, Pirates
14. Yu Darvish—P, Japan
15. Jurickson Profar—SS, Rangers (+1)
16. Anthony Rendon—3B, Nationals
17. Manny Machado—SS, Orioles (-3)
18. Dylan Bundy—P, Orioles
19. Jacob Turner—P, Tigers (-4)
20. Jesus Montero—C, Yankees (-4)
Another adjustment ranking placing Rendon/Profar ahead of Turner/Montero.
21. Tyler Skaggs—P, Diamondbacks (+1)
22. Devin Mesoraco—C, Reds
23. Trevor Bauer—P, Diamondbacks
24. Danny Hultzen—P, Mariners (+3)
25. Martin Perez—P, Rangers (-1)
26. Manny Banuelos—P, Yankees
27. Bubba Starling—OF, Royals (+2)
28. Jameson Taillon—P, Pirates (-0)
Hard player to grade…numbers are not great, but seems smart to be patient.
29. Drew Pomeranz—P, Rockies (+4)
30. Robbie Erlin—P, Padres
31. Aroldis Chapman—P, Reds (+3)
Before last night, Chapman had not surrendered an ER since July 15.
32. Carlos Martinez—P, Cardinals
33. Yonder Alonso—1B, Reds
34. Craig Kimbrel—P, Braves (+3)
Amazing Kimbrel has not surrendered an ER since June 11.
35. Miguel Sano—3B, Twins (+2)
36. Brandon Belt—1B/OF, Giants
37. Jason Kipnis—2B, Indians
38. Randall Delgado—P, Braves (+3)
39. Brett Jackson—OF, Cubs (+1)
Jackson’s recent numbers are impressive, but the rising k-rate is a moderate concern.
40. Mike Minor—P, Braves (+6)
41. Jordan Lyles—P, Astros (-13)
42. Domonic Brown—OF, Phillies (-15)
43. Arodys Vizcaino—P, Braves
44. Taijuan Walker—P, Mariners (+2)
Walker has surrendered just 1 ER his past three starts.
45. Jake Odorizzi—P, Royals (+1)
46. Jarrod Parker—P, Diamondbacks (+1)
47. Mike Moustakas— 3B, Royals (-5)
48. Travis D’Arnaud—C, Blue Jays (+1)
49. Leonys Martin—OF, Rangers
50. Jordan Walden—P, Angels
51. Lonnie Chisenhall—3B, Indians (-8)
52. Brandon Beachy—P, Braves
53. Wil Myers—OF, Royals (+3)
Impressive 8 game hitting streak…perhaps Myers is starting to come around.
54. Dee Gordon—SS, Dodgers
55. Matt Harvey—P, Mets
56. Dellin Betances—P, Yankees (+3)
Excellent AAA debut w/ 8 k’s and 0 BB’s.
57. Anthony Rizzo—1B, Padres (+1)
58. Zach Britton—P, Orioles (-7)
59. Hak-Ju Lee—SS, Rays (-1)
60. Nick Franklin—SS, Mariners (+3)
Franklin posted solid numbers in his first game back from the DL.
61. Zach Lee—P, Dodgers
62. Archie Bradley—P, Diamondbacks (+2)
63. Danny Duffy—P, Royals (-0)
64. Zach Wheeler—P, Mets
65. George Springer—OF, Astros (+3)
66. Jonathan Singleton—1B, Astros (+3)
Singleton’s HR last night continued 11 game hitting streak.
67. Jarred Cosart—P, Astros (+2)
68. Danny Espinosa—2B, Nationals
69. Zach Cox—3B, Cardinals
70. Nolan Arenado—3B, Rockies (+4)
71. Casey Kelly—P, Padres
72. Paul Goldschmidt—1B, Diamondbacks (+2)
Interesting start…hitting for power but Goldschmidt’s k rate is really high.
73. Deck McGuire—P, Blue Jays (-1)
74. Mike Montgomery—P, Royals
75. Yasmani Grandal—C, Reds (+1)
76. Taylor Jungmann—P, Brewers (+3)
77. AJ Cole—P, Nationals (+6)
78. Michael Choice—OF, Athletics (-6)
79. Joe Wieland—P, Padres
80. Gary Brown—OF, Giants (+6)
81. James Darnell—3B, Padres
82. Francisco Lindor—SS, Indians (+4)
83. Jose Altuve—2B, Astros (+4)
84. Brad Peacock—P, Nationals (+4)
Despite a few extra BB’s, Peacock posted an impressive one hit start Thursday night.
85. Oswaldo Arcia—OF, Twins
86. Garrett Richards—P, Angels (-2)
87. Sonny Gray—P, Athletics (+4)
88. Anthony Ranaudo—P, Red Sox (+1)
89. Nick Castellanos—3B, Tigers (+0)
Castellanos is tough to grade…would like to see higher power totals given the k:bb rate is not great.
90. Wilson Ramos— C, Nationals
91. Alexander Colome—P, Rays (+5)
Colome has posted terrific numbers this month, but the 0.90 ERA in August is helped by the .135 BABIP.
92. Wilin Rosario—C, Rockies (+0)
93. Aaron Hicks—OF, Twins (-5)
Struggling…Hicks always shows just enough to convince me being patient makes sense.
94. Alex Cobb—P, Rays
95. Trevor May—P, Phillies (+5)
96. Matt Barnes—P, Red Sox (+4)
97. Tyler Chatwood—P, Angels
98. Jake Marisnick—OF, Blue Jays (+1)
99. Liam Hendriks—P, Twins (-12)
Hendriks was shelled in his last two starts in AAA.
100. Yoennis Cespedes—OF, Cuba
101. Zach Stewart—P, White Sox
102. Trayvon Robinson—OF, Mariners (-15)
103. Jean Segura—2B, Angels
104. Vance Worley—P, Phillies (+5)
105. Billy Hamilton—2B/SS, Reds (+3)
Beyond the SB’s, one thing I like about Hamilton is he’s made slow improvements in terms of strikeouts, etc.
106. Jemile Weeks—2B, Athletics (-1)
107. Alex White—P, Rockies (+6)
108. Will Middlebrooks—3B, Red Sox (+6)
Middlebrooks’ ISO in July/August is .270…would like more BB’s but a great season overall.
109. Nathan Eovaldi—P, Dodgers (+20)
110. Jedd Gyorko—3B, Padres
111. Christian Yelich—OF, Marlins
112. Kyle Drabek—P, Blue Jays (-10)
Will hopefully improve, but the 48:52 k to bb rate in AAA is not encouraging.
113. Johnny Giavotella—2B, Royals
114. Drew Hutchison—P, Blue Jays (+7)
115. Keyvious Sampson—P, Padres (+8)
Looking game-to-game, Hutchinson and Sampson have both pitched even better when you consider their ERA’s would be insanely low minus 1 or 2 really bad starts.
116. Mark Trumbo—1B, Angels (+8)
117. Matt Dominguez—3B, Marlins
118. Allen Webster—P, Dodgers (-8)
119. Alexander Torres—P, Rays (+5)
120. Josh Reddick—OF, Red Sox (-13)
Reddick’s numbers are down the past few days…probably jumped him a little aggressively.
121. Bryce Brentz—OF, Red Sox (+5)
122. Joshua Bell—OF, Pirates (+69)
Signing is bad news for the ‘horns, but Bell is surefire top 100 prospect next year.
123. Kyle Gibson—P, Twins (-9)
124. Gary Sanchez—C, Yankees
125. Jed Bradley—P, Brewers (+4)
126. Chris Sale—P, White Sox (+25)
127. Chris Archer—P, Rays (+4)
Numbers keep improving…concern is the improvement is not connected to BB totals dropping.
128. James Paxton—P, Mariners (+13)
129. Fernando Salas—P, Cardinals
130. Cheslor Cuthbert—3B, Royals (-5)
Hitting .136 in August…solid prospect but were mid-year rankings partially due to him playing well at the right time?
131. Eric Thames—OF, Blue Jays (-2)
132. Henderson Alvarez—P, Blue Jays (+4)
133. Javier Baez—SS, Cubs (+10)
134. Zach Cozart—SS, Reds
135. Jonathan Schoop—2B, Orioles (+18)
Schoop has caught fire in August, hitting .382 w/ 4 HR’s.
136. Kaleb Cowart—3B, Angels
137. Tyrell Jenkins—P, Cardinals
138. Anthony Gose—OF, Blue Jays (+1)
139. Dayan Viciedo—OF, White Sox (-0)
Numbers have been down since July, but cannot demote him b/c I’m impressed by the improved plate discipline.
140. Starling Marte—OF, Pirates (+6)
141. Oscar Taveras—OF, Cardinals
142. Christian Colon—SS, Royals
143. Darwin Barney—2B, Cubs (+10)
144. Trey McNutt—P, Cubs (+3)
145. Eric Surkamp—P, Giants (+3)
146. Jeurys Familia—P, Mets (+14)
In his last two starts, Familia has surrendered 0 ER’s and 3 hits.
147. Ivan Nova—P, Yankees (+8)
148. JP Arencibia—C, Blue Jays (-8)
149. Derek Norris—C, Nationals (-3)
150. Chad Bettis—P, Rockies (+5)
151. Jerry Sands—OF, Dodgers (-10)
Sands has barely hit .200 since July…but the power #’s are solid and the low BA is partially bad luck.
152. Ben Revere—OF, Twins
153. Tim Wheeler—OF, Rockies
154. Grant Green—OF, Athletics (+1)
155. Tim Beckham—SS, Rays
156. Reymond Fuentes—OF, Padres (-7)
157. Kolten Wong—2B, Cardinals
158. Matt Szczur—OF, Cubs
159. Brody Colvin—P, Phillies (-19)
It’s a concern Colvin’s strikeout rates have really dropped this season.
160. Christian Friedrich—P, Rockies (-3)
161. Matthew Purke—P, Nationals (+40)
It’s good to see Purke signed…if healthy, his value should increase at least 20-30 more spots.
162. Wilmer Flores—SS, Mets
163. Chad James—P, Marlins (-12)
164. Aaron Crow—P, Royals (-20)
Not pitching terribly, but my concern is the BB totals have increased and he’s in the bullpen.
165. Juan Nicasio—P, Rockies
166. Reese Havens—2B, Mets (+8)
167. Jaff Decker—OF, Padres
168. Daniel Norris—P, Blue Jays (+40)
Despite not getting Beede, Toronto got a first round quality HS pitcher in Norris.
169. Luis Heredia—P, Pirates (+10)
170. Nestor Molina—P, Blue Jays (+55)
Molina has been dominant since the promotion to AA w/ 11 IP’s, 17 k’s, 1 BB, and 1 ER.
171. Chris Dwyer—P, Royals
172. Robbie Ross—P, Rangers
173. Michael Taylor—OF, Athletics (-14)
After a somewhat productive start to the month, Taylor went into an 0-19 slump.
174. Felix Doubront—P, Red Sox
175. Corey Spangenberg—2B, Padres (+25)
Spangenberg is showing July are not a concern by recording multiple hits in 5 of 6 games.
176. Guillermo Pimentel—OF, Mariners (-7)
177. Barrett Loux—P, Rangers (-10)
178. Simon Castro— P, Padres (+5)
179. Tyler Thornburg—P, Brewers (+12)
180. Hank Conger—C, Angels
181. Norichika Aoki—OF, Japan
182. Chris Carter—1B/OF, Athletics
183. Alex Meyer—P, Nationals (+10)
184. Juan Francisco—3B, Reds (+12)
Francisco has hit in 17/18 games since returning from the DL…like him at this value.
185. Rubby De La Rosa—P, Dodgers (-30)
186. Alfredo Despaigne—OF, Cuba
187. JD Martinez—OF, Astros (+15)
188. John Lamb—P, Royals
189. Tony Sanchez—C, Pirates (-20)
190. Brandon Nimmo—OF, Mets (+20)
Think you can argue we’re valuing Nimmo too low…high upside but pretty speculative.
191. Lance McCullers, Jr —P/INF, HS (Fla) (2012)
192. Kyle Parker—OF, Rockies
193. Adrian Salcedo—P, Twins (-20)
Salcedo has pitched well since moving to bullpen, but if the move is permanent, his fantasy value plummets.
194. Austin Romine— C, Yankees
195. Charlie Blackmon—OF, Rockies
196. Lucas Duda—OF, Mets (+4)
197. Wily Peralta—P, Brewers (+50)
Aggressive promotion, but Peralta has been great the entire second half…especially since the AAA promotion.
198. LJ Hoes—OF, Orioles
199. Neil Ramirez—P, Rangers (-7)
200. Jose Fernandez—P, Marlins (+14)
201. Carlos Perez—C, Blue Jays (-20)
Perez is in an 0-15 slump, the .135 BA in August is really discouraging since he looked better in July.
202. Dillon Gee—P, Mets (+16)
203. Jason Knapp—P, Indians
204. Enny Romero—P, Rays (+9)
0 ER’s and 20 k’s his last 10 IP’s…value will skyrocket if he becomes more consistent.
205. Taylor Guerrieri—P, Rays (+15)
206. Jose Iglesias—SS, Red Sox
207. Joe Benson—OF, Twins
208. Josh Sale—OF, Rays (-40)
Tough to read too much into rookie ball, but not thrilled Sale is hitting below .200.
209. Kenny Diekroeger—INF, Stanford Univ. (2012)
210. Josh Vitters—3B,
211. Tsuyoshi Nishioka—SS, Twins
212. David Holmberg—P, Diamondbacks (-5)
Holmberg’s numbers have been down since promotion to A+…partially caused by increasing BB totals.
213. Tyler Matzek—P, Rockies
214. Blake Swihart—C, Red Sox (+10)
215. Josh Collmenter—P, Diamondbacks
216. Jackie Bradley, Jr—OF, Red Sox
217. Drew Vettleson—OF, Rays
218. Mason Williams—OF, Yankees
219. Mikie Mahtook—OF, Rays (+4)
220. Jennry Mejia—P, Mets
221. Edward Salcedo—SS, Braves (-19)
222. Rymer Liriano—OF, Padres (+15)
223. Stetson Allie—P, Pirates
224. Hisashi Iwakuma—P, Japan
225. Brian Goodwin—OF, Nationals (+20)
High-upside OF prospect received $3 million from the Nationals.
226. Chris Marrero—1B, Nationals
227. Mark Appel—P, Stanford Univ. (2012)
228. Ryan Lavarnway—C, Red Sox (+10)
229. CJ Cron—1B, Angels
230. Yorman Rodriguez—OF, Reds (-10)
231. Noah Snydergaard—P, Blue Jays (+14)
232. Xander Boagerts—SS, Red Sox (new)
Young SS has posted impressive power numbers and signs point to his BA increasing.
233. Nomar Mazara—OF, Rangers
234. Ronald Torreyes—2B, Reds
235. Donavan Tate—OF, Padres
236. Yamaico Navarro—SS, Royals (-20)
237. Blake Tekotte—OF, Padres
238. Matthew Davidson—3B, Diamondbacks
239. Collin Cowgill—OF, Diamondbacks (-30)
.238 BA since the promotion is a concern considering it might be tough getting another shot.
240. Nick Williams—OF, HS (Tex) (2012)
241. Tyler Anderson—P, Rockies
242. Cody Buckel—P, Rangers
243. Joe Ross—P, Padres (new)
2011 first rounder received a $2.75 million bonus from the Padres.
244. Todd Frazier—OF, Reds
245. Francisco Martinez—3B, Mariners (-12)
246. Brandon Jacobs—OF, Red Sox
247. Ronald Guzman—OF, Rangers
248. Elier Hernandez—OF, Royals
249. Matt Adams—1B, Cardinals
250. Adeiny Hechavarria—SS, Blue Jays (new)
Only a few games, but worth mentioning Hech is posting great numbers since AAA promotion.
Removed: Delino DeShields—2B, Astros (#222), Tyson Ross—P, Athletics (#233), Nick Weglarz—OF, Indians (#234)
Also considered: Brad Boxberger (P, Reds), Ryan Brett (2B, Rays), Drake Britton (P, Red Sox), Adrian Cardenas (3B, Athletics), Adonis Cardona (P, Blue Jays), Phillips Castillo (SS, Mariners), Garin Cecchini (3B, Red Sox), Pat Corbin (P, Diamondbacks), Delino Deshields (2B, Astros), Alex Liddi (3B/SS, Mariners), Jake McGee (P, Rays), Brent Morel (3B, White Sox), Thomas Neal (OF, Giants), Kirk Nieuwenhuis (OF, Mets), Justin O’Conner (C, Rays), Ariel Ovando (OF, Astros), Chris Owings (SS, Diamondbacks), Joe Panik (SS, Giants), Esteilon Peguero (SS, Mariners), David Perez (P, Rangers), Edinson Rincon (3B, Padres), Tanner Scheppers (P, Rangers), Robert Stephenson (P, Reds), Alfredo Silverio (OF, Dodgers), Jake Thompson (P, Rays), Sebastian Valle (C, Phillies), Jonathan Villar (SS, Astros), Kyle Weiland (P, Red Sox).
Not a problem! We use a stats service called http://www.allstarstats.com. We used USA Stats for years, but then switched when they were bought.
It’s definitely an amazing league. It’s gotta be one of the oldest dynasty leagues around. It started about 20 years ago w/ a bunch of lawyers at a firm called Porter & Clements (now Porter & Hedges), even though the owners are pretty scattered now. I went to the draft w/ my dad when I was nine, and since they were short on teams, they gave me a team. The other owners helped me tons the first year, but I learned pretty quickly and have been hooked on dynasty leagues ever since.
It’s amazing how much these leagues have changed since then! The growth of the Internet has allowed much better information in real time, but the downside is there is a lot less direct interaction between owners (which is the fun part). Even though we still do live drafts, a lot of the trade negotiations are now done via email…direct trade negotiations were my favorite part. When I was really young, my mom used to always laugh about people sitting in their office negotiating trades w/ a ten year old.
hey Bradley, thanks for your excellent reply. That sounds like a really cool league you have going there. May I ask what site you use to have a data base with all these farm players in it?
This year I started playing in a 12 team Yahoo league with 30 keepers per team, so that is what I have been coming here for. My prospects are Harper, Rizzo, Pineda, Banuelos, & Duffy.
Thanks Andrew! I think keeping Scott Baker is a decent call depending on what is going on w/ his elbow. He’s posted solid numbers this year, and assuming he’s healthy, he should do well again next year. But instead of releasing Kipnis, I would go ahead and trade him to get help at another position.
Great article on Campos, MHZ. Sounds like a really intriguing player, and I was really unfamiliar w/ him. Went ahead and put him on the also considered list for this week and will start tracking him.
Surkamp could develop into a really solid pitcher for the Giants. Basically, the only thing keeping Surkamp from ranking as a top prospect is his velocity is a little bit lower. However, he’s had little trouble generating strikeouts this season, and assuming that continues in the major leagues, he can be really successful. On that trade, I would take Alex White ahead of Hank Conger at this point. Not totally sure though. Conger’s numbers were a little down this year, but it’s still too early to say he will not be productive.
Tough call on Duda versus Carp. Both players are getting the opportunity to play everyday and posting comparable numbers. Between the two, I would probably pick Duda. Even though it’s a small sample size, Carp’s BABIP is .385 and his strikeout rate is 28%. At this point, Duda is producing comparable numbers w/ a slightly better BABIP and strikeout rate. Very good conversation in the comment board on this Fangraphs post about Duda versus Carp…
http://www.fangraphs.com/fantasy/index.php/young-and-carp-waiver-wire/
Jason Kipnis – I think he overachieved during his stint with the Indians but he did hit over .300 at three of his four minor league stops with decent power for a 2B. But he is lacking steals for a middle infielder.
I need to pick one to keep next year between Kipnis, Daniel Murphy, and Scott Baker (ironically two other overachievers this year and all are on the DL right now – not great for my team).
I have Brandon Phillips at 2B for now and Segura on my roster of minor leaguers who I’ll keep, so 2B is not a need. I like Murphy’s multiple position eligibility, though starting pitching is a need for my team. I’m leaning towards Baker.
League is 12 teams, 25 major league, 15 minor league keepers per year.
(btw your list and discussions here are great and very helpful)
In August, Matzek is 3-1 with a 2.65 ERA to go along with 15 walks and 72 strikeouts over 57 innings.
Jose Campos, 19 year old pitcher for the Seattle Mariners in A-.
since July 31st start:
5 GS
34 IP
10 R(4 ER)
1.06 ERA
20 H
2 HR
40 K(10.6 K/9)
2 BB
Baseball Instinct just did a nice write-up on him with video from the 8/5 start.
http://baseballinstinct.com/2011/08/27/prospect-instinct-jose-campos-rhp-seattle-mariners/#more-13274
What are your thoughts on Eric Surkamp in a keeper league? His minor league stats are impressive!
Also, what do you think of Hank Conger for Alex White, who wins that deal?
thanks.
Between Lucas Duda and Mike Carp….who has edge in terms of production for next season? And by production I only care about avg/oba/slg….not rbi and runs.
Interesting mention on Edwin Carl. He was a non-drafted free agent from New Mexico, and in addition to the insane numbers, his fastball apparently gets up to 94-95 mph. For fantasy purposes, a concern is he’s pitching in the bullpen meaning he won’t offer much value unless he moves into the rotation or moves into the closer role. But for “real world” prospect purposes, those numbers definitely warrant some attention…especially if he can remain productive at more advanced levels.
I’ll definitely keep those mid-season reports going, Soxfan! Sorry I’ve been slow publishing those last two divisions. I completed a draft of the reports for the AL Central but I still need to proofread it. But I’ll publish the AL Central next Thursday, and hopefully, I’ll finish up the next week w/ the AL West.
You are right shortstop is looking a little thin right now, Ryne. At this point, most of the shortstops who profile as being able to produce really solid offense numbers (Profar, Machado, and possibly Franklin/Lindor) are still fairly young.
Agreed system depth is huge, Geo. I enjoy looking old BA prospect handbooks, and the biggest thing it’s reinforced is the importance of depth. A great example is the Dodgers, who were rated as having the top system about 4-5 years ago. The system’s top prospects were Joel Guzman and Andy LaRoche, but ironically, the #1 ranking turned out to be justified b/c many players rated further down the list (Matt Kemp, James Loney, etc) stepped up. Another great example is BA’s all time Top 100 list b/c—as an Astros fan—it’s amazing going down memory lane to see how my excitement about many of our elite prospects from the early 1990’s was not justified (Andujar Cedeno, Brian Hunter, etc, etc). But the Astros are a great case study on the importance of making efforts to acquire those top players, because ultimately, the cost of not making it a top priority to have an elite system is far greater than the losses incurred on players who do not work.
http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/rankings/top-100-prospects/2007/26983.html
I just don’t see any of those SS every becoming a top-10/15 option at SS in fantasy some day. No doubt they will be productive MLBers, but there are too many good offenseive options at SS to ever warrant starting a guy with an empty .270avg in my opinion. I’ll take the Peralta’s, Cabreras, etc. every day. Even my boy Elvis Andrus isn’t that great of a fantasy option, and I doubt any of those guys will ever sniff his MLB production.
I forgot to mention his name, sorry.
Its Edwin Carl, a righthander for the Royals.
Ok, this guy is 22(almost 23) in rookie ball but he was an undrafted free agent so Im not sure if he can be considered much of a prospect. It is his second year of proffesional ball and he has 19.36 K/9 and a 23.67 K/BB ratio. Match that with a 1.36 era and a 0.61 whip and this kid has to get promoted to a higher level next year.
Do you think he can gain prospect status?
hey what happened to the rest of the mid-season reports? they were looking great
Ryne, you make a good point about the SS prospects not becoming power “fantasy” players…but right now i am finding SS is the shallowest position for finding any prospects! Adeiny Hechavarria will never be a 20HR guy, but he may be able to improve your other stats in SB, R or average if his hitting keeps improving.
Drew Hutchison looked good in his AA debut…Nestor Molina is still dominating at AA. Noah Syndergaard and Justne Nicolino have continued their great starts from the NOR league.
I am really enjoying watching the Jays pitching prospects progress. Bradley, you were right in saying you can never have enough pitching prospects, because as some struggle a bit others are developing at a rapid pace. I was worried with too many pitching prospects some would be left behind a league.
Jays are in a great position for trade this offseason for needed positions! 2nd, LF and a closer are needed badly!
Good call on those shortstops, Ryne. I probably rated Iglesias too high coming into the season b/c–for fantasy purposes–it was fairly clear much of his value was tied up in his defensive skills. How to adjust the values for fantasy versus real baseball is a tough question. The key is to always look at the difference the pick provides over the next best player on the free agent list. With shortstops, the offensive potential will be lower. That being said, a player should not be given an aggressive ranking if there is little reason to think he can provide better production than another SS promoted to the major leagues you can get on the free agent list.
Even though their current numbers aren’t helping my argument, I still believe there’s a chance Iglesias/Hech will be more productive offensively than their current stats indicate (not huge numbers…but maybe $8 in fantasy)…just taking longer than expected. It’ll be harder to project that if there’s not a little more progress next season, but part of me thinks the skills are there for both players to improve.
Seager caught fire this week against Cleveland! He had a rough debut last month when he came up right at the beginning of Seattle’s losing steak. Don’t have any strong opinions. He was a solid college player at UNC, and despite the BABIP’s being pretty high, the strikeout rates are fairly manageable and he does a decent job getting on base.
Seager’s BABIP has been off the charts the last two years… .390 last year in A+, .350/.418/.397 in three levels this year. Is he a big time line-drive hitter or playing with the house money?
Yeah I wasn’t trying to put you down or anything, I just think that there are a lot of guys with much higher offensive upside and since this is a fantasy website, he’s really irrelevant to me. The same can be said with Iglesias and Gordon, really. I don’t see either of them ever becoming a real fantasy impact. I’m not saying you should remove them, but if this is a fantasy website that that has to come in to play.
Some other notes on guys I own and follow:
Brandon Jacobs has been a guy that scouts say that if he can put his tools together, he can become a great prospect. Power-speed guys that can hit in the .300s are a rare commodity. Same thing can be said with Rymer Liriano.
Syndergaard’s been promoted to A-ball and has a VERY projectible frame. I’d pair him with Buckel on your big-risers for next week.
Kyle Seager’s been perhaps the hottest hitter in baseball, and that’s nothing to overlook, ESPECIALLY since Seattle is where 3bmen used to go to die (beltre, figgins, etc.). He tore up AA and AAA this year and I think he has the D to stick at 3rd. He may not put up more than 15 homers but I see a lot of my boy Mike Young in his game. I really like him and think he should definitely be on this list and high up too. Thanks again for everything and GO RANGERS!
Partially agree w/ you. The ranking was based on Hech having a huge first 10 games following his promotion to AAA.
http://firstinning.com/players/Adeiny-Hechavarria-a
The streak was pretty unexpected, and thought it was interesting I had two owners ask for advice about trade offers they had received for him. But I’m 50/50 about how much to read into it considering it’s just a few games, and I actually told both owners now was not a bad time to sell (they both were getting top 250 value). If he reverts back, he’s not a player that I have too much trouble removing.