This will be a weekly series that will outline the prospect promotions from the previous week throughout the year. The minor league season has begun and we have seen more prospects starting to get the call. All stats are of July 8.
July 2
Taylor Jones, 1B/3B, HOU (preseason PL team rank: 2): Jones has shown big power and offensive ability in the minors but has not been able to figure out MLB pitching. At the big league level, Jones has career OPS under .500. There is a chance he is a Quad-A profile.
Luis Patiño, P, TB (preseason Pl team rank: 4): The 21-year-old is likely to exceed his prospect eligibility at some point this season. He’s been dominant in Triple-A and inconsistent at the big league level. There is still front-of-the-rotation potential here but given the way the Rays currently utilize him, Patiño likely won’t be a full-time starter until next year at the earliest. He was optioned the following day.
Zac Lowther, P, BAL (preseason PL team rank: 18): Lowther profiles as a backend starter or long reliever but has had a rough start to his career. In 6.1 innings, Lowther has allowed nine runs.
Anthony Castro, P, TOR (preseason PL team rank: 21): Castro is a relief-only arm that has shown good strikeout ability in 2021 but has also allowed 10 runs in 19 innings. Toronto has had an inconsistent bullpen at times in 2021 and Castro should be an option for the team throughout the season.
Jake Burger, 2B/3B. CHW (preseason PL team rank: 21): Burger has one of the most extensive injury histories in all of baseball. It’s a feel-good story that he’s made it to the bigs, but there is reason to believe he can be a contributor. He’s a former first-round pick that was raking in Triple-A before this promotion. The White Sox have had multiple injuries this year and Burger could become a lineup regular if he continues to hit.
Nick Allgeyer, P, TOR (preseason PL team rank: UR): Allgeyer tossed a perfect inning in his MLB debut. He is a relief-only arm.
July 3
Tres Barrera, P, WAS (preseason PL team rank: 22): Barrera has a limited offensive profile and has the look of a backup backstop.
Yadiel Hernández, OF, WAS (preseason PL team rank: 47): Hernández will soon look his rookie eligibility. He’s a 33-year-old so there isn’t a ton of upside here, but has destroyed Triple-A pitching in 2021.
José Mujica, P, COL (preseason PL team rank: UR): Mujica has been being used as a starter in Triple-A but the results have been rough. The right-hander has an ERA close to seven in nine starts. It’s tough to imagine those numbers playing in Coors.
Kyler Keller, P, PIT (preseason PL team rank: UR): Keller has bounced around the league the last few years and is now with the Pirates. He’s a relief-only low-leverage pitcher.
Andrew Wantz, P, LAA (preseason PL team rank: UR): There is a chance we are seeing a breakout from an under-the-radar arm here. Wantz posted a 2.10 ERA with 25 strikeouts and just six walks in 25.2 innings in Triple-A. He will work as a reliever for now.
Sam Moll, P, OAK (preseason PL team rank: UR): Moll has not made an MLB appearance since 2017 and has struggled at Triple-A. He’s a low-leverage arm.
July 4
Yennsy Diaz, P, NYM (preseason PL team rank: 28): Diaz is a relief-only arm that has been up and down throughout the year for the Mets. He has occasional command issues but comes with upper-90s velocity.
Edwin Uceta, P, LAD (preseason PL team rank: 29): Uceta has allowed 10 earned runs in 14.1 innings for the Dodgers and has an ERA close to five at Triple-A. He’s only 23-years-old and had a breakout 2019, so there is still plenty of reason to think he can turn it around.
Nick Mears, P, PIT (preseason PL team rank: 31): Mears is a relief-only arm with an ERA above six in Triple-A this season. Look for him in low-leverage roles.
Jordan Holloway, P, MIA (preseason PL team rank: 31): Holloway has been used as a starter and as a reliever in 2021. Through his first 20.2 innings, he has a 4.35 ERA and 19 strikeouts. In a full-time position, he profiles as a backend starter.
July 5
Eduardo Bazardo, P, BOS (preseason PL team rank: 27): Bazardo is a relief arm but he’s a good one. He has a career 2.65 ERA in the minors and limits free passes. He’s missed a chunk of the season due to injury, but he could find himself as a staple of the Red Sox bullpen going forward.
July 6
Stuart Fairchild, OF, ARI (preseason PL team rank: 13): Fairchild is a plus defender and has been steady with the bat in the minors with an OPS around .800 for his career. In 2021 he is having a career year at the plate with a .353/.405/.471 triple slash in his first 17 games. Despite Arizona’s struggles, the team is deep on the offensive end but could be trading some pieces soon that could allow Fairchild to see more consistent opportunities.
Rodolfo Castro, 2B, PIT (preseason PL team rank: 25): Castro has big-time power for a middle infielder. In 49 games at Triple-A, he’s belted 11 home runs while hitting .306. It remains to be seen if his aggressive approach will translate at the MLB level, but there aren’t many 22-year-old prospects that perform this well and are this under-the-radar.
Seby Zavala, C, CHW (preseason PL team rank: 29): Zavala has big power but strikeout concerns. With Yasmani Grandal expected to miss multiple weeks. he should see some playing time but will still likely be in a backup role.
Sergio Alcantara, INF, CHC (preseason PL team rank: 48): Alcantara is knocking on the door of exceeding prospect eligibility. He’s a glove-first utility man but has experienced a breakout at the plate in 2021, with a .940 at Triple-A. He has yet to figure out big-league pitching, though.
Jason Vosler, INF, SF (preseason PL team rank: UR): Vosler has held his own in 28 MLB games with a .738 OPS. He’s a 27-year-old prospect but he had a bit of a breakout in 2019 and has backed it up in 2021 with a .935 OPS in Triple-A. He’s worth monitoring in case he is a late-blooming breakout.
Garrett Cleavinger, P, LAD (preseason PL team rank: UR): Cleavinger has been between the majors and the minors multiple times this season. He’s a low-leverage relief arm, but has a sub-2 ERA in his first 14 innings and could see higher-leverage work if he continues at this rate.
Jake Reed, P, LAA (preseason PL team rank: UR): Reed is a 28-year-old relief-only arm. He’s struggled in the minors in 2021 and is a low-leverage depth piece.
July 7
Vidal Bruján, INF/OF, TB, (preseason PL team rank: 3): Bruján would be the top-ranked prospect in most organizations but Tampa Bay just happens to have maybe the deepest farm in baseball. Nonetheless, Bruján has established himself as one of the top prospects in all of baseball and a fantasy star in the making. The previous knock on Brujan was that he wasn’t able to hit for much power but that’s changed in 2021 as he’s belted nine home runs in 49 games at Triple-A. He slumped a bit in June but we are still looking at a player with easy 20/20 potential at the big league level with the possibility for much more. He was optioned on Thursday as a formality but should be back with the team today.
Cory Abbott, P, CHC (preseason PL team rank: 10): Abbott had a breakout 2019 but has not been able to back it up in 2021. In Triple-A, he’s posted a 5.88 ERA in 41.1 innings, though he has struck out 62. The Cubs have used him in relief so far.
Owen Miller, INF, CLE (preseason PL team rank: 20): Miller has been destroying Triple-A pitching to the tune of a .900 OPS. He has been up a few times for Cleveland but has been overwhelmed by big-league pitching. It’s far too early to label him a Quad-A player but he has struck out nearly half the time in limited MLB appearances.
Daniel Johnson, OF, CLE (preseason PL team rank: 21): Johnson put up big numbers across two levels in 2019 but is yet to really get going in 2021. At Triple-A he is hitting just .218, though he does have nine home runs in 49 games. He offers an intriguing combination of power and speed and could get his first extended look at the MLB level with Eddie Rosario on the IL.
Mitchell White, P, LAD (preseason PL team rank: 21): White was once a promising prospect as a starter but has looked more like a reliever in recent years. He’s appeared in 13 games out of the bullpen for the Dodgers and while he’s allowed 17 runs in 18.1 innings, only eight of them have been earned. There is still a chance he sees some starts at the big-league level but, even if he does, given his injury history he isn’t a safe bet to pitch deep into games.
Lars Nootbaar, OF, STL (preseason PL team rank: 48): Nootbaar has been tearing up Triple-A pitching in 2021 but he has struggled thus far against big-league arms, hitting just .160. Nootbaar’s calling card is his patience at the plate and he was a tad aggressive in his first MLB stint so maybe he will be more like his regular self in the box this time around.
July 8
Nick Neidert, P, MIA (preseason PL team rank: 15): Neidert is a former second-round pick. He’s allowed 15 earned runs in 24.1 career MLB innings, but he’s been lights out in Triple-A this season despite not racking up many strikeouts.
James Norwood, P, SD (preseason PL team rank: 25): The Padres acquired Norwood from the Cubs this April. He’s a relief-only arm with a history of walk issues at the big-league level.
Darien Nuñez, P, LAD (preseason PL team rank: UR): Nuñez is a 28-year-old relief-only arm. He’s been superb in Triple-A this season with a 2.79 ERA and 39 punchouts in 29.1 innings.
Ralph Garza, P, HOU (preseason PL team rank: UR): Garza is a relief-only arm with a career 3.69 ERA in the minors. He’s thrown eight shutout innings at Triple-A this season but has a 4.82 ERA in the majors.
Daniel Camarena, P, SD (preseason PL team rank: UR): Camarena is a relief-only arm. On Thursday, he belted a grand slam off Max Scherzer, which is not something many people can say. He’s a depth arm for San Diego.
Photo by Cliff Welch/Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Ethan Kaplan (@DJFreddie10 on Twitter and @EthanMKaplanImages on Instagram)