Feature Photo: Yusniel Diaz, OF, Dodgers
Minor League Roulette
It’s draftee debut season! As organizations wrap up the signing process for the members of their respective 2017 MLB Draft classes, assignments have followed, and this year’s picks are beginning to get their feet wet in professional baseball. This week at Minor League Roulette, Emily takes a look at several draftees coming out strong in their professional debuts, and over on Jared’s side of the table, he reviews the excellent start to the 2017 season for the Tigers’ 2016 first-round pick, Matt Manning, and a few New York prospects you should know. Oh, and did we mention Tim Tebow is moving up the ladder?
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Players Who Stood Out for Emily
Kyle Tucker, RF, Astros (Double-A Corpus Christi, Texas League)
Ht/Wt: 6’4” / 190 lbs. B/T: L/R Age (as of April 1st, 2017): 20y, 2m
Season Stats: .280/.358/.545 78 H, 19 2B, 15 HRs, 59 RBIs
After taking Florida outfielder Preston Tucker (LF, Astros) in the seventh round in 2012, the Astros decided to keep it in the family three years later when they snagged his younger brother Kyle as their top selection in 2015 (#5 overall). Slow and steady describes the climb through the Astros’ system for Tucker. He is getting his first look at the Double-A level after a May 30 promotion to the Hooks. The 6-foot-4, 20-year-old has a smooth stroke at the plate that is generating power and over-the-fence pop, with Tucker posting a .250+ ISO between his time spent in High A and Double-A so far this season. Over the last seven games with Corpus Christi, Tucker has blasted four home runs and a pair of doubles to go along with 11 RBIs. Tucker’s strikeout percentage has risen from 23.8% in 2016 to 27% against more advanced arms, but his power and run production has continued to impress, and the strikeouts should subside as he acclimates to the Texas League.
Yusniel Diaz, OF, Dodgers (High A Rancho Cucamonga, California League)
Ht/Wt: 6’1” / 195 lbs. B/T: R/R Age (as of April 1st, 2017): 20y, 5m
Season Stats: .293/.358/.452 76 H, 14 2B, 7 HRs, 35 RBIs
After bouncing on-and-off the disabled list over a four-month stretch in 2016, Diaz is finally hitting his stride this season, and his production is speaking for itself with the Quakes. Diaz signed with the Dodgers as an international free agent in November 2015, and after his abbreviated season with the Quakes last year in which he slashed .272/.333/.418 over 82 games, he is repeating his tour of the Cal League – this time healthy. Over his last seven games with the Quakes, Diaz is hitting and hitting a lot, collecting 16 hits (including a pair of four-hit games and three games that included a pair of doubles) and nine RBIs. Diaz’s strikeout percentage has hung steady in the 21% range consistently over the past three seasons though he’s also drawing his share of walks to keep the OBP (career .340) manageable. In the field, Diaz has five errors in just 58 games played this year across all three outfield positions, but he’ll need more polish with the glove to hold down center field at the higher levels. As the bat matures, Diaz should still become a viable outfield option for the Dodgers.
Riley Adams, C, Blue Jays (Short-Season A Vancouver, Northwest League)
Ht/Wt: 6’4” / 225 lbs. B/T: R/R Age (as of April 1st, 2017): 20 y, 9m
Season Stats: .381/.435/.714 6 H, 4 2B, 1 HR, 5 RBIs
After putting up a career .305/.411/.504 slash line over three seasons as a backstop with San Diego, Adams is diving in headfirst into his first professional season as the Blue Jays’ third-round pick in the 2017 MLB draft. Big-framed for a catcher, Adams has been praised for his arm strength and athleticism. After launching 13 home runs over 54 games earlier in the year for San Diego, Adams needed only three games with Short-Season Vancouver before the 21-year-old had recorded his first home run as a pro. Over his six-game debut with the Canadians, Adams hit safely in five games, going 8-for-21, including a home run, four doubles and five RBIs. You can check out more on Adams here, from 2080s Melissa Lockard.
Here’s a Player to Watch
Pavin Smith, 1B, Diamondbacks (Short-Season A Hillsboro, Northwest League)
Ht/Wt: 6’2” / 210 lbs. B/T: L/L Age (as of April 1st, 2017): 21y, 1m
Season Stats: .313/.353/.375 5 H, 1 2B, 1 RBI
After three seasons of hitting .300-plus in the ACC for the Virginia Cavaliers, Smith made the jump to the Diamondbacks’ system as their first-round selection (#7 overall) in the 2017 MLB Draft. Drawing comparisons to the likes of Eric Hosmer (1B., Royals), Smith slashed .342/.427/.570 with 13 home runs this year for the Cavaliers, almost doubling his combined home run totals from his freshman and sophomore seasons. Over his four-game introduction to Short-Season A Hillsboro, Smith has yet to flash signs of his 60-grade power at the plate, with a double among four singles over his first 16 at-bats for the Hops. Smith’s pitch recognition abilities (only 12 strikeouts in 228 at-bats for UVA) should emerge more as the season continues. Smith holds solid value defensively as a first baseman, where he has shown good instincts and smooth hands, and with solid arm strength in the profile as well as athleticism, he’ll probably be seeing some games in the outfield as he develops.
Players Who Stood Out to Jared
Justus Sheffield, LHP, Yankees (Double-A Trenton, Eastern League)
Ht/Wt: 5’11” / 200 lbs. B/T: L/L Age (as of April 1st, 2017): 20y, 11m
Season Stats: 75 1/3 IP, 73 H, 64 SO, 25 BB, 2.99 ERA
Sheffield was a part of the trade that sent Andrew Miller (LHP, Indians) to Cleveland last July, and the southpaw is giving New Yorkers cause to feel good about the move. In his two most recent starts, Sheffield struck out eight in six innings against the Hartford Yard Goats on June 13, and then gave up just three hits over seven innings against the Erie SeaWolves on June 18. The 5’11’’ Sheffield might be short on stature, but he pitches with big stuff. His fastball comes in generally in the low 90s, and tails down-and-in against left-handed batters. He backs up the fastball with a reliable mid-80s slider and an average changeup. Sheffield struggles with command, at times, and can become rather hittable when he is working from behind in the count, but his mechanics are clean and he repeats his delivery well, so his location should see improvement as he develops. Read more about Sheffield in our 2017 Yankees Organization Review.
Peter Alonso, 1B, Mets (High A St. Lucie, Florida State League)
Ht/Wt: 6’3” / 225 lbs. B/T: R/R Age (as of April 1st, 2017): 22 y, 4m
Season Stats: .234/.291/.449 25 H, 8 2B, 5 HRs, 20 RBIs
Prior to the Florida State League All-Star break, the 2017 season had been a rough one for Alonso. Hitting .167 on June 14, Alonso, the New York Mets’ second-round pick in 2016, has come out of the break a different hitter. Since June 19, Alonso is riding a seven-game hit streak that includes three multi-hit games, elevating his average to .234. He has hit three home runs in the past week and is looking more like the hitter who tore up the Short-Season A New York-Penn League with a .321/.382/.587 slash line in 30 games last year. Alonso is built like the prototypical first baseman and plays plus defense, and he hits with natural power that comes from the lift he generates with his swing.
Heath Fillmyer, RHP, Athletics (Double-A Midland, Texas League)
Ht/Wt: 6’1” / 180 lbs. B/T: R/R Age (as of April 1st, 2017): 22 y, 11m
Season Stats: 72 1/3 IP, 76 H, 31 BB, 49 SO, 3.24 ERA
After a rough three-inning start on June 7 in which FIllmyer gave up six hits and four runs, the right-hander has put together a string of three solid starts for Double-A Midland. Most recently, Fillmyer went 7 1/3 innings against San Antonio on June 23, giving up only three hits and striking out seven. Oakland took Fillmyer in the fifth round of the 2014 MLB Draft, and while he is prone to the occasional rough outing, Fillmyer has also shown that he offset the rough outings with some dazzling ones. 2080’s Dave DeFreitas highlighted Fillmyer last May, noting that he had an above-average fastball that can hit the middle 90s, and a changeup that still needed development. Fillmyer was an infielder until his final year of junior college, and he has made significant strides with his mechanics and his command over the past two seasons. Read more about Fillmyer in our 2017 Athletics Organization Review.
Here’s a Player to Watch
Matt Manning, RHP, Tigers (Short-Season A Connecticut, New York-Penn League)
Ht/Wt: 6’6” / 190 lbs. B/T: R/R Age (as of April 1st, 2017): 19 y, 4m
Season Stats: 9 1/3 IP, 6 H, 3 BB, 14 SO, 0.00 ERA
Manning, the Tigers’ first pick (#9 overall) in the 2016 MLB Draft, made his 2017 debut with the Short-Season A Tigers on June 20, pitching into the fifth inning while striking out nine and not allowing a run, and followed that up with five innings of three-hit-ball on June 25. Manning threw a quiet-but-successful 29 1/3 innings of Rookie level Gulf Coast League last year after signing out of Sheldon High School (Sacramento, CA), including 46 strikeouts. The tall right-hander throws a heavy fastball from a 3/4’s arm slot that gives his pitches downward plane. His fastball comes in around the middle 90s consistently, and he pairs that with an average 11-to-5 curveball with late break that sits in the upper 70s that shows potential, as well as a developing changeup. Given his raw potential on the mound and his athleticism, Manning is an interesting prospect to watch. Though his development path will probably be a slow-moving affair given that he hadn’t focused on pitching exclusively until his junior year of high school, the Tigers have to like what they see early in the season. Read more about Manning in our 2017 Tigers Organization Review.
Key Minor League Transactions
- Diamondbacks pitching prospect and right-hander Jon Duplantier, who was highlighted in an April Minor League Roulette column and in 2080’s 2017 D-Backs Organization Review, was promoted on June 22 to the High A Visalia Rawhide in the California League, after sporting a 1.24 ERA in 72 2/3 innings with the Class A Kane County Cougars, holding batters to a .183 average, and sporting a tidy 1.56 GO:AO ratio.
- Tim Tebow (OF, Mets) is on the move. After slashing a pedestrian-at-best .220/.311/.336 with Class A Columbia, Tebow was promoted to High A Saint Lucie on Sunday for reasons that could be the subject of plenty of debate. The 29-year-old outfielder had 14 doubles, three home runs and 23 RBIs, along with a lofty 28.2% strikeout rate in the South Atlantic League prior to the promotion.
- Once touted as one of the Tigers’ most valued prospects, and even making his MLB debut when rosters expanded last year, outfielder and power bat Steven Moya hasn’t been able to lock in at the Triple-A level this season, slashing .166/.222/.344 with just seven home runs and 15 RBIs over 151 at-bats, and an ugly 38% strikeout rate. The Tigers demoted the 6-foot-7 outfielder back to Double-A Erie this past week to help work the kinks out.
Notes of Interest
- Yankees’ relief prospect and right-hander Andrew Schwaab proposed to his girlfriend before the Florida State League All-Star Game, and then proceeded to pitch his team out of two bases loaded jams in the fourth and fifth innings on the way to the North Division’s 5-2 win.
- Cubs outfield prospect Eloy Jimenez shattered a light during the High A Carolina League home run derby, making plenty of highlight reels and prompting the necessary parallels to Roy Hobbs in The Natural.
- Three minor league teams are making changes in 2019. The San Antonio Missions are changing their affiliation from the Double-A Texas League to the Triple-A Pacific Coast League, taking the place of the Colorado Springs Sky Sox in the PCL. The Texas League will add a new franchise in Amarillo, Texas. The Sky Sox franchise was sold to the owners of the Short-Season A Helena Brewers, who will operate their Pioneer League squad in Colorado Springs instead of Helena.
- Brewers outfielder Monte Harrison (Class A Wisconsin) homered twice in the Midwest League All-Star game, driving in three runs en route to the West All-Stars taking a 5-2 victory over the East.
What We’re Reading
- Peter Gammons writes about changes in the MLB draft in the past five years, and the process teams go through to evaluate and select the best talent.
- ESPN’s Marly Rivera led multiple contributing writers in releasing an exceptional feature titled, “The Beisbol Experience”. Spanning interviews with 50 players over the course of a year, the collection focuses on the Latin influence in the major league community, all from from the player’s perspective.
