May 20, 2016

Minor League Update

Games of Thursday, May 19th

by Mark Anderson

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Prospect of the Day:

J.D. Davis, 3B, Astros (Double-A Corpus Christi): 4-5, 3 R, 3 HR, 5 RBI.
With a poor defensive profile and swing-and-miss issues, it’s hard to see Davis profiling as much more than a second-division regular, but you can’t ignore the raw power. With the option of either Carlos Correa or Alex Bregman at third base long term, Davis is a bit of a luxury for the Astros. If he continues to mash like last night, though, the Astros may be able to move him to help a struggling big-league club.

Others of Note:

J.P. Crawford, SS, Phillies (Double-A Reading): 1-3, 2 R, HR, RBI, 2 BB. You can nitpick Crawford’s stat line, but he’s still incredibly talented and adjusting to Double-A competition. He’s going to be a star.

Gleyber Torres, SS, Cubs (High-A Myrtle Beach): 3-4, 2 2B, CS. Much has been made of Torres the last couple of years, and while his development has hit a couple of bumps recently, there’s still a lot to like, including the ability to drive the ball to the gaps.

Eloy Jimenez, OF, Cubs (Low-A South Bend): 2-4, 2 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI, K. Jimenez’s power has never been in question, but he’s starting to develop his hit tool, which allows him to bring that power into game situations more frequently.

Max Kepler, OF, Twins (Triple-A Rochester): 3-4, 2 R, 2B, 3B, HR, 3 RBI. You want to send me back to Triple-A for more development? How’s this for development? Kepler will be back up in Minnesota this summer and he should ultimately be a solid regular.

Ozzie Albies, SS, Braves (Triple-A Gwinnett): 2-5, 2B, 2 RBI. Albies is starting to adjust to Triple-A arms, and that’s just flat out scary considering he’s still a teenager. I couldn’t begin to predict when the Braves will bring him up, but I would wager it happens in the second half of the season.

Seby Zavala, C, White Sox (Low-A Kannapolis): 4-6, R, 3B, 3 RBI, K. A bat-first catcher, Zavala does just enough behind the plate to profile there in some capacity, in spite of a below-average arm. Zavala can control the strike zone, make contact, and find the gaps, and all of that means he could be an interesting backup catcher.

Gary Sanchez, C, Yankees (Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre): 3-5, 2 R, 2B, K. His major-league debut was short lived, but the new version of Sanchez just keeps on hitting at Triple-A. The bat’s going to give him a career, and that should really get underway in 2017 with a more substantial role in New York.

Joe Musgrove, RHP, Astros (Triple-A Fresno): 6 IP, 6 H, 2 R/ER, 0 BB, 7 K. Musgrove’s breakout campaign continued with a strong second start in the Pacific Coast League. A potential mid-rotation starter, I wouldn’t rule out some starts in Houston before all is said and done this season.

Jameson Taillon, RHP, Pirates (Triple-A Indianapolis): 6 IP, 5 H, 0 R/ER, 0 BB, 8 K. There seems to be some surprise at the quality of Taillon’s stuff and command since coming back. I think we’re seeing evidence that his injury may have been an issue long before he went under the knife, degrading his velocity and ability to locate. Taillon is really, really good.

Cody Bellinger, 1B, Dodgers (Double-A Tulsa): 4-4, 2 R, 2 2B, HR, 2 RBI, BB. Many scouts remained skeptical of Bellinger in spite of his 30 home runs in the California League last year, and we’re starting to see why. There’s real power here, but he has to make more good contact for it to matter.

Edwin Diaz, RHP, Mariners (Double-A Jackson): 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R/ER, 0 BB, K. I touched on Diaz’s move to the bullpen in last week’s Mailbag, and while it may seem unorthodox, he can help the Mariners this year that way, particularly if he continues showing improved raw stuff and results like this.

Alex Jackson, OF, Mariners (Low-A Clinton): 1-5, R, HR, RBI, K. Jackson’s 2016 debut showed off his raw power with a solo shot. There’s a lot of curiosity over the fact that he was stuck in extended spring training for so long, but as we’ve consistently discussed, players have varying developmental paths, and we will see how this works out for Jackson.

Hunter Dozier, 3B, Royals (Triple-A Omaha): 3-5, 3 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI, K. Dozier is going to be a quality big-league player with pop, just as he showed with two bombs last night.

Mark Anderson is an author of Baseball Prospectus. Follow @ProspectMark
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