Devils Top 100 Prospects(Midseason-AL Central)

[mission27]

On 4/1/2018 at 12:23 AM, devils1854 said:

70.Colton Welker||3B||Colorado
69.Nick Gordon||SS||Minnesota
68.Justus Sheffield||LHP||NY Yankees
67.Michael Chavis||3B||Boston
66.Brandon Marsh||OF||LA Angels
65.Cristian Pache||OF||Atlanta
64.Dylan Cease||RHP||Chi Sox
63.Alex Verdugo||OF||LA Dodgers
62.Corbin Burnes||RHP||Milwaukee
61.Harrison Bader||OF||St Louis

• Welker has a very advanced approach for a 20 year old, and I think he is going to grow even more into his body, and will be a nice power threat once he makes the majors
• Coming out of HS, Marsh was thought of as very toolsy but also raw. He looked the part in his first season in professional ball last year.
• This time last year, Ronald Acuna was the breakout candidate for the Braves. This year its Cristian Pache. He already has elite speed, defense, and arm. If the power comes, like many believe, he will skyrocket up lists.

Do you think Sheffield is a starter (at his height)?  

[devils1854]

50.Jon Duplantier||RHP||Arizona
49.Luis Robert||OF||Chi Sox
48.Leody Taveras||OF||Texas
47.Chance Adams||RHP||NY Yankees
46.Willie Calhoun||OF||Texas
45.Heliot Ramos||OF||San Francisco
44.Miguel Andujar||3B||NY Yankees
43.Fernando Romero||RHP||Minnesota
42.Luis Garcia||SS||Washington
41.Luiz Gohara||LHP||Atlanta

• Duplantier has injury problems, but he was able to throw 130+ innings last year. If he can continue to stay healthy, he has the potential to be a high end three, or a low two in a rotation with three MLB ready pitches.
• I dont think Ramos has the body to stick in center, and he needs to learn better patience behind the plate. You can get excited about ever other aspect of his game. He wont be 19 until the end of this season, but he already shows the ability to hit the ball out to all fields, and

[devils1854]

2 hours ago, mission27 said:

Do you think Sheffield is a starter (at his height)?  

I honestly dont know. Height is a little bit of a concern, but Im more worried about his durability. Has not shown the ability to go deep into games so far, and he still really hasnt developed a third pitch. There is a lot to like though. Two very good pitches in his fastball and slider, and he has a easy, repeatable delivery, and to me thats the difference between a small guy being able to start or having to come out of the pen.

Jury is still out really.

[deltarich87]

With the news that the Angels are moving Jahmai Jones to 2B, would that make him crack your top 100 list? That profile looks a lot more enticing at the keystone than at a likely corner OF spot

[devils1854]

22 minutes ago, deltarich87 said:

With the news that the Angels are moving Jahmai Jones to 2B, would that make him crack your top 100 list? That profile looks a lot more enticing at the keystone than at a likely corner OF spot

Still no. Nowhere near as good of a prospect as Kingery and Urias, and I have them on the back end of the 100. He needs to show that his breakout in A+ wasnt just a product of the very hitter friendly Cal League.

[pollino14]

You seem to be a lot higher on Chance Adams than most other prospect evaluators, why is that?

[devils1854]

3 hours ago, pollino14 said:

You seem to be a lot higher on Chance Adams than most other prospect evaluators, why is that?

I honestly could have Adams higher. I like him that much. Easy, compact delivery that has some deception in it. Two pitches that could be considered plus already. Ive only got minor concerns with him. He needs to locate offspeed pitches better, and either his change or curveball needs to get a little better for him to have three above average major league pitches.

I think he is a 10+ year starter in MLB. Maybe not a superstar, but I could see him have a career similar to someone like John Lackey. 

[pollino14]

34 minutes ago, devils1854 said:

I honestly could have Adams higher. I like him that much. Easy, compact delivery that has some deception in it. Two pitches that could be considered plus already. Ive only got minor concerns with him. He needs to locate offspeed pitches better, and either his change or curveball needs to get a little better for him to have three above average major league pitches.

I think he is a 10+ year starter in MLB. Maybe not a superstar, but I could see him have a career similar to someone like John Lackey. 

I’d be happy with a John Lackey career. Hope you’re right. Seems like the Yanks were shopping him more than other guys.

[redsoxsuck05]

7 hours ago, pollino14 said:

I’d be happy with a John Lackey career. Hope you’re right. Seems like the Yanks were shopping him more than other guys.

The reason that people are down on Adams is because his stuff ticked down last year. He's also not great against lefties and gives up flyballs

[devils1854]

40.Chance Sisco||C||Baltimore
39.Monte Harrison||OF||Miami
38.Carter Kieboom||SS||Washington
37.Anthony Alford||OF||Toronto
36.Michael Kopech||RHP||Chi Sox
35.Estevan Florial||OF||NY Yankees
34.Mike Soroka||RHP||Atlanta
33.Adrian Morejon||LHP||San Diego
32.Joey Wentz||LHP||Atlanta
31.JP Crawford||SS||Philadelphia

• Michael Kopech might have the best fastball in all of the minor leagues, and because of that and a above average slider, he has dominated the minors since he was drafted. The problem is that he lacks control, and he does not have a useable third pitch. Looks like he is destined to be a high leverage reliever in the future.
• Wentz is the best pitching prospect in Atlanta's system, and he started showing it in 2017. He already has two plus pitches in his fastball and curveball, a developing changeup, and excellent command for his age and level. Wentz also still has the size and room to fill out even more, which could lead to a few more ticks on the fastball.
• For a short time, I soured on Crawford. He was abismal at the plate for his first year and a half in AAA, but he was able to turn it around. His defense is his true calling card, and he has gold glove ability at short. You add in that he has shown a good eye at the plate, and you have a very valuable player, even if he is only a little below average hitting the ball.

[THE DUKE]

Good calls on Vientos and Wentz.  I was high on both coming out of their draft and thought both showed real promise last year.

Tyler Stephenson was murdering balls in spring training, it seems like the projected power is about to show up in a big way.  If he stays healthy (which has been his biggest issue since being drafted), he's going to shoot up lists this year.  May never be a plus defensive catcher, but he looked solid there last year and has a plus arm.  His power and plate discipline will play anywhere though, might be athletic enough to handle RF if the bat moves too fast to wait on the catcher defense to mature.

[BillsGuy82]

Soroka and Wentz over Kopech is questionable. Doesn't Soroka project as a 3/4 starter ?

Alford is where I expected him 

[devils1854]

5 minutes ago, BillsGuy82 said:

Soroka and Wentz over Kopech is questionable. Doesn't Soroka project as a 3/4 starter ?

Alford is where I expected him 

If I think Kopech is a high leverage reliever then wouldnt my placement of him be too high?

[BillsGuy82]

5 minutes ago, devils1854 said:

If I think Kopech is a high leverage reliever then wouldnt my placement of him be too high?

I'd have Kopech higher on list and ahead of Wentz and Soroka

[THE DUKE]

I agree with his placememt of Kopech.  Control matters quite a bit, and Kopech's is shaky at best.  Robert Stephenson has the best stuff of any Reds prospect over the last 5 years, but he's getting passed by Tyler Mahle, Luis Castillo, Sal Romano, and Amir Garrett because his control stinks more often than not.  Stephenson has shown a plus fastball, curveball, slider, and splitter at times, but he hasn't been able to locate his fastball consistently in years now.  He's scuttling in his last option year while Mahle just dominated the Cubs.