April 30, 2013

Minor League Update

Games of Monday, April 29

by Zach Mortimer

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Pitching Prospect of the Day: Henry Owens, LHP, Red Sox (High-A Salem): 5.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 8 K; long levers; fastball sits 92-94 with good life; struggled to command his 73-75 mph curveball, which flashed solid-average; good arm speed on a 77-79 mph with changeup that has excellent life and easy plus potential. Owens is still developing, but he caught my eye, and I really like his future; 26.0 IP, 15 H, 6 ER, 8 BB, 30 K in five starts.

Position Prospect of the Day: Christian Walker, 1B, Orioles (Low-A Delmarva): 3-3, 2B, HR, RBI; I will be seeing the former CWS star this week; potential plus hit tool; will need to provide enough power to profile at first base; .360/.440/.512 with 3 HR in 86 at-bats at Low-A.

Other notable prospect performances from April 29:

“The Good”

• Raul Alcantara, RHP, Athletics (Low-A Beloit): 6.1 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 8 K; plus fastball; potential solid-average slider; average changeup; improving command; 28.1 IP, 31 H, 10 ER, 4 BB, 17 K in five starts thus far.
• Stetson Allie, 1B, Pirates (Low-A West Virginia): 2-5, 2 HR, 2 R, 5 RBI, 3 K; plus-plus raw power; swing has a lot of length, which leads to a lot of swing and miss; will have to prove himself at higher levels before he will appear on prospect lists; 32-for-92 with 6 HR and 30 strikeouts thus far in Low-A.
• Jose Berrios, RHP, Twins (Low-A Cedar Rapids): 6.2 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 8 K; fastball works 92-94 and will touch even higher; curveball has plus potential and is a hard-breaker with depth; changeup has plus potential, but still needs to be developed.
• Yeiper Castillo, RHP, Cubs (High-A Daytona): 4.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 8 K; low 90s fastball; working to command more effectively; changeup with solid-average potential; inconsistent curveball; repeating High-A at 24; 14.0 IP, 11 H, 6 ER, 2 BB, 18 K in six appearances.
• Tyler Glasnow, RHP, Pirates (Low-A West Virginia): 5.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 7 K; can really spin the curveball, which has plus potential; fastball works 90-94 with good downhill plane; still developing his changeup; deceptive delivery; will need to show he can repeat his mechanics; 20.0 IP, 10 H, 4 ER, 13 BB, 23 K in five starts.
• Kyle Hendricks, RHP, Cubs (Double-A Tennessee): 6.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 8 K; command pitcher; three-pitch mix (fastball/curveball/changeup); will have to be on his game at all times; 26.0 IP, 22 H, 9 ER, 8 BB, 23 K in five starts.
• Jeff McVaney, OF, Tigers (High-A Lakeland): 3-5, 2B, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI; average bat speed; plus raw power; tough positional profile means he will have to prove himself at every level.
• Carlos Martinez, RHP, Cardinals (Double-A Springfield): 5.0 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K; Respectfully referred to as “Little Pedro” tonight by a scout; fastball works 95-plus and can touch 99 when he needs to, with good life to boot; curveball has plus potential; changeup could be plus plus; small frame; some believe he may be a frontline closer rather than a second or third starter.
• Francellis Montas, RHP, Red Sox (Low-A Greenville): 5.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 9 K; plus-plus fastball velocity; slider has solid-average potential; changeup still a work in progress; 21.0 IP, 23 H, 14 ER, 6 BB, 27 K in five starts.
• Tom Murphy, C, Rockies (Low-A Asheville): 2-3, 3B, HR, 2 R, RBI, K; plus power potential; solid-average hit tool potential; defense is still a work in progress; .408/.500/.588 with 6 HR in 49 at-bats this season.
• Jurickson Profar, SS, Rangers (Triple-A Round Rock): 2-4, 2 2B, 3 R, RBI, 2 BB; best all-around prospect in baseball; biding his time in Triple-A; five-tool potential shortstop.
• Neftali Soto, 3B, Reds (Triple-A Louisville): 4-4, 2B, HR, 2 RBI; solid-average power; fringe-average hit tool; below-average runner; fringy defender at third; big-league-reserve ceiling; .313/.353/.484 in 64 Triple-A at-bats.
• Bubba Starling, CF, Royals (Low-A Lexington): 2-4, HR, R, 2 RBI, K; plus raw power; plus-plus defensive profile; plus-plus runner; swing can get long; ultimate future depends on maturation of hit tool.
• Drew Steckenrider, RHP, Marlins (Low-A Greensboro): 5.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 8 K; dominating low minors with a monster fastball; secondary offerings are still a work in progress.

“The Bad”

• Austin Brice, RHP, Marlins (Low-A Greensboro): 3.0 IP, 10 H, 7 ER, 3 BB, 3 K; the struggle in Low-A continues for Brice; 20.2 IP, 21 H, 15 ER, 18 BB, 21 K in 5 starts.
• Trevor May, RHP, Twins (Double-A New Britian): 4.0 IP, 9 H, 8 ER, 3 BB, 1 K; May, acquired as main prospect in Ben Revere trade, usually has swing-and-miss stuff, but was knocked around last night.
• Tyler Skaggs, LHP, Diamondbacks (Triple-A Reno): 4.0 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 4 K; Skaggs is about ready to be done with the PCL.

“The Is This Serious”

• Courtney Hawkins, OF, White Sox (High-A Winston Salem): 1-4, HR, R, RBI, K; in 72 at-bats, Hawkins has 12 hits, seven homers, and 44 strikeouts.
• Yasiel Puig, OF, Dodgers (Double-A Chattanooga): 2-6, HR, R, 2 RBI, 2 K; well, in case anyone missed it, Puig showed off his newest tool—94 in a 50. 

Zach Mortimer is an author of Baseball Prospectus. 
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