June 2, 2016

Minor League Update

Games of Wednesday, June 1st

by Christopher Crawford

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Prospect of the Day:

Roman Quinn, OF, Philadelphia Phillies (Double-A Reading): 3-for-4, 2 R, 2 2B, HR, K.
Quinn led off the game with a homer, which is something he’s already done a couple of times this year. Power isn’t ever going to be a big part of his game, but it’s nice to see him drive the ball in the International League. He’s an easy 80 runner who can flat out go get it in center field, and he’s showing top-of-the-order skills. The Ben Revere comps are easy (and probably unfair), but there’s a lot to like about both his ceiling and floor, which is nice to say considering how far his stock tumbled just a couple years ago.

Others of Note:

Alex Reyes, RHP, St. Louis Cardinals (Triple-A Memphis): 6 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 11 K. Filthy. Just filthy.

Jaycob Brugman, OF, Oakland Athletics (Triple-A Nashville): 4-for-6, R, 2B, 3B. He’s posted an .844 OPS since his promotion to the PCL, and he’s shown average tools across the board in the process.

Joey Gallo, 3B, Texas Rangers (Triple-A Round Rock): 1-for-5, 2 R, 1 HR, 1 BB, 2 K. I’m going to start calling this statline “The Gallo.” It’s a compliment, I promise.

Tyler Glasnow, RHP, Pittsburgh Pirates (Triple-A Indianapolis): 5 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 4 BB, 3 K. I don’t know if it’s him or Taillon or someone else who gets the first shot. I just know that this guy is really, really good.

Jaime Schultz, RHP, Tampa Bay Rays (Triple-A Durham): 6 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 5 BB, 6 K. The five walks are problematic, but everything else is pretty darn good. I remain much higher than the industry on Schultz’s chances of becoming a major-league starter.

Jesse Winker, OF, Cincinnati Reds (Triple-A Louisville): 2-for-3, 2B, K. It seems like it’s been a while since we’ve talked about Winker. He’s doing fine. Not great, but fine.

Daniel Palka, OF, Minnesota Twins (Double-A New Brittain): 2-for-3, 2 HR, BB. Palka dotted a couple of homers this year. See it’s like polka dot but instead palka dot, hey where are you going?

Chih-Wei Hu, RHP, Rays (Double-A Montgomery): 5 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 3 K. Hu has been outstanding for most of 2016, and he’s flashed four above-average pitches and quality control in the process.

Mark Zagunis, OF, Chicago Cubs (Double-A Tennessee): 3-for-3, HR. If there’s such a thing as an “unheralded Cubs prospect,” it’s Zagunis, a converted catcher who has shown he has the offensive skills to justify the move to the outfield.

D.J. Peterson, 1B, Seattle Mariners (Double-A Jackson): 1-for-3, HR. It’s a super small sample, but over an 11-game hitting streak Peterson has hit .341/.396/.614. It’s a start.

Kean Wong, 2B, Rays (Double-A Montgomery): 3-for-4, R. Kolten’s younger bro has a solid approach at the plate, and he has enough strength to put the ball into the gaps.

Brandon Brennan, RHP, Chicago White Sox (High-A Winston-Salem): 9 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 7 K. We don’t see too many complete games around these parts. When Brennan is clicking, he shows a plus fastball, solid-average curve, and “good-enough” command.

Bobby Bradley, 1B, Cleveland (High-A Lynchburg): 2-for-3, 2 R, HR, BB. He’s going to strike out 180-200 times, but the power and on-base skills are worth it. I promise. Probably.

Andrew Stevenson, OF, Washington Nationals (High-A Potomac): 3-for-5, R, 2B. The Nationals’ second-round pick out of LSU last June, Stevenson is more advanced with the glove, but he’s shown a solid approach at the plate and a chance for a solid-average hit tool.

Tanner Scott, RHP, Baltimore Orioles (High-A Frederick): 2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 5 K. We don’t show relievers a ton of love, because they’re not real human beings. Scott is, though, and he throws really, really hard to prove it.

Mike Soroka, RHP, Atlanta Braves (Low-A Rome): 6 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 5 K. The Braves crushed last year’s draft. Crushed it. Soroka has been as impressive as any prep pitcher from that year’s class.

Jared Foster, OF, Los Angeles Angels (Low-A Burlington): 2-for-4, 2 HR. The Angels’ fifth-round pick is way too old for the level, but he has the tools to be a competent fourth outfielder.

Edmundo Sosa, SS, Cardinals (Low-A Peoria): 4-for-4, 2 R, HR, 2B. Sort of a so-so start for Sosa, but he’s still the best shortstop prospect in this system by a wide margin.

Jean Cosme, RHP, San Diego Padres (Low-A Fort Wayne): Cosme has one of the higher floors of any pitcher in the Padres system, thanks to an above-average fastball, two competent offspeed pitches, and the ability to locate with all three offerings.

Yeyson Yrizarri, SS, Texas Rangers (Low-A Hickory): 4-for-6, R, 2 2B, K. The tools here compete with those of any shortstop prospect in baseball. Can those tools translate in games more often? I’m not sure, but the talent is immense.

Christopher Crawford is an author of Baseball Prospectus. Follow @CVCrawfordBP
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