Prospect Notes

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Re: Prospect Notes

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Tucupita Marcano, IF, San Diego Padres (Low-A Fort Wayne)

I’m beginning to think we could run a second weekly Ten Pack article just for Padres prospects — there is always another one worth writing about. Marcano will wrap up the 2019 season as a 19-year-old and checks in at an even 6-foot and 170 pounds. The numbers he has put up in his first hack at full-season baseball haven’t been as loud as his short-season statistics, but the skill set is still there. There is plenty of room on his frame for good weight — at present, he’s wiry with noticeably thin arms. It doesn’t take long to recognize his baseball acumen — in my look he made several smart plays on the bases and in the field; once tricking a runner into staying on second base following an errant throw from the outfield by holding a tag on him.

Marcano is a plus athlete and looks the part regardless of what he’s doing on the diamond. He’s a heady player in the field, on the bases, and at the plate. It’s tough to find a more advanced approach at the plate from a 19-year-old Midwest Leaguer. He has great bat-to-ball skills and the best two-strike approach you’ll find this side of Juan Soto. It’s a 6 hit tool and that will be what carries him from an offensive standpoint. He has a relatively flat bat path that is going to produce a lot of contact and keep his strikeout totals low. I don’t see much power in his future, and a 4 would be the biggest number I’d consider. He’s not an elite defender, but should be above average. Marcano’s mannerisms in the field remind me a lot of Andrelton Simmons. The majors are a long way off, but I see Marcano as a slight upgrade (albeit with a similar skillset) over Luis Urias down the road. – Keith Rader
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17. Brayan Rocchio, SS, Indians
Team: Short-season Mahoning Valley (New York-Penn)
Age: 18
Why He's Here: .364/.391/.682 (8-for-22), 4 R, 1 1B, 2 HR, 5 RBIs, 0 BB, 4 SO, 3-for-4 SB

The Scoop: Rocchio drew bullish scouting reports from scouts last year and again this spring, though he got off to a slow start once the New York-Penn League started. That's behind him now, with Rocchio hitting .313/.382/.475 this month, showing a short stroke with excellent bat-to-ball skills from both sides of the plate and all-around baseball savvy well beyond his years. (BB)
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18. Patrick Sandoval, LHP, Salt Lake (Angels)
Age: 22. B-T: L-L. HT: 6-3. WT: 190. Drafted: HS—Mission Viejo, Calif., 2015 (11/Astros).

Sandoval moved up from Double-A in May and got beat up pitching in difficult conditions at Salt Lake. The underlying performance was more promising, and the Angels called him up Aug. 5.

Sandoval’s fastball ticked up this year to sit 93 mph and touched 96 mph. His plus changeup gives him an out-pitch, and his curveball and slider both showed average. Aggressive and competitive, Sandoval is hard on himself and occasionally loses his composure, which in turn results in below-average control.

Sandoval has the stuff and build of a back-of-the-rotation starter. Evaluators expect him to get there as he matures.

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20. Ronald Bolaños, RHP, Padres
Age: 23. B-T: R-R. Ht.: 6-3. Wt.: 220. Signed: Cuba, 2016.

Bolaños started strong in the California League before moving to the Texas League on June 4. He tied for sixth in the TL in strikeouts from the time he joined until his major league debut on Sept. 3.

Armed with a heavy, mid-90s fastball, Bolaños can touch 98 mph while manipulating the pitch to either cut or sink at its lower velocities. His fastball ranged from the upper 80s to the upper 90s, keeping batters wildly off-balance.

"It seemed like he rarely threw two fastballs the same,” one Texas League evaluator said. "He can sink it, cut it, (or) throw a straight four-seam right past you. It’s hard when he can throw 88-98 (mph) and you don’t know what the ball is going to do.”

Bolaños complements his fastball with a mid-70s curveball, low- to mid-80s slider and mid-80s changeup that are all at least average. He has a lot of moving parts in his delivery, especially from the windup, which contributes to his fringe-average control and may force him to a relief role.

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19. Shawn Dubin, RHP, Fayetteville (Astros)
Age: 24. B-T: R-R. Ht.: 6-1. Wt.: 154. Drafted: Georgetown (Ky.), 2018 (13th round)

Dubin transferred to NAIA Georgetown (Ky.) after his previous school, Division I Buffalo, dropped its baseball program following his junior year. The Astros took a flyer on him as a senior sign and gave him a $1,000 signing bonus.

Carolina League hitters batted just .196 off Dubin, who didn’t allow a run over 18 innings in his final three regular-season starts. In his first playoff start, he held Down East to one run in six innings to help the Woodpeckers reach the league championship series against Wilmington.

Dubin’s stuff plays more like that of a first-round pick than a player who entered the year as a relative unknown.

"He’s 95-98 with a hammer,” Fayetteville manager Nate Shaver said. "He’s electric and super-twitchy with a lot of feel. He has a wipeout slider, too.”

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6. Vidal Brujan, 2B, Rays
Team: Salt River
Age: 21
Why He’s Here: .324/.361/.676 (11-for-34), 4 R, 2 2B, 2 3B, 2 HR, 5 RBIs, 2 BB, 6 SO

The Scoop: Brujan has a chance to be one of the AFL’s most exciting players over the course of the six-week season. He makes plenty of contact and uses elite speed to cause havoc on the bases. In the first week and change, that’s exactly what he’s done. He’s one of just two players who have doubled, tripled and homered. There are questions as to whether his speed will play better in the outfield or whether it makes more sense to keep him at second base, but he should cause havoc either way.

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Vidal Brujan, SS, Rays. Brujan had two hits from the leadoff spot for Salt River. The infielder had a base knock and a triple while driving in two runs. He has both the arm and foot speed to play up the middle long term. Brujan has six extra-base hits in 34 at-bats thus far.
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10. Xavier Edwards, 2B, Lake Elsinore (Padres)
Age: 20. B-T: B-R. Ht.: 5-10. Wt.: 175. Drafted: HS—Coconut Creek, Fla., 2018 (1 supp).

The diminutive Edwards moved up to Lake Elsinore on July 10 and quickly established he wouldn’t be physically overmatched. His .301 average ranked ninth in the league from the time he joined, with his knack for putting the barrel on the ball drawing rave reviews.

Edwards is slash-and-dash hitter who lines the ball into open spaces and lets his plus speed work. His size and swing don’t portend home run power, but his speed helps generate plenty of doubles and triples, not to mention stolen bases.

"He has a little bit of thump in there,” Inland Empire manager Ryan Barba said. "Nothing home run-wise, but just the ability to put bat to ball and square things up and get to the gaps was impressive.”

Edwards proved a reliable defender with a good first step and sure hands. His fringy arm is best suited for second base.


16. Ronald Bolanos, RHP, Lake Elsinore (Padres)
Age: 23. B-T: R-R. HT: 6-3. WT: 220. Signed: Cuba, 2016

Scouts liked Bolaños last year even though he struggled to a 5.11 ERA at Lake Elsinore, and he rewarded their optimism this season. Bolaños spent the first two months back in the Cal League, moved to Double-A and June and jumped straight into the Padres' rotation in September. His 2.85 ERA and .193 opponent average ranked third among Cal League starters when he was promoted.

The Cuban flamethrower brings electric stuff with a 94-96 mph fastball that touches 98 mph with ride up in the zone. His tilting slider flashes plus at 83-85 mph, and he slows hitters down with a looping 72-75 mph curveball. He also has a low- to mid-80s changeup. Bolanos’ concentration occasionally lapses and he’ll start innings at lower velocities, but when things get tough he finds his best.

Bolanos’ fastball command and control of his secondaries need work and may eventually move him to relief. His big arm will play regardless.


19. Oliver Ortega, RHP, Inland Empire (Angels)
Age: 22. B-T: R-R. HT: 6-0. WT: 165. Signed: Dominican Republic, 2015.

Ortega emerged from obscurity to become one of the Cal League’s most dominant pitchers this season. Among starters, he ranked third in both opponent average (.198) and strikeout percentage (30.8 percent) behind only MacKenzie Gore and Luis Patiño.

Ortega’s fastball sat 93-96 mph as a starter and 95-98 mph as a reliever. He backed it up with a big, late-breaking, power knuckle-curveball at 81-84 mph he could land for strikes in any count. Ortega pitched aggressively with those two high-octane offerings and also flashed an average changeup and developing power slider.

"He was one of the most respected pitchers in the league in my opinion,” Rancho Cucamonga manager Mark Kertenian said. "He goes right at it, he attacks hitters, and he does it with an even-keeled tempo and rhythm to him. He doesn’t mess around.”

Ortega’s effortful delivery and below-average control make him a future reliever for most evaluators, but potentially an impact one.


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15. Vidal Brujan, 2B, Charlotte (Rays)
Age: 21. B-T: S-R. Ht.: 5-9. Wt.: 155. Signed: Dominican Republic, 2014.

The Rays have put together the best farm system in the game, and within that system is a wealth of middle infield talent. Brujan gets overshadowed somewhat by Wander Franco, but he’s an extremely talented player in his own right. His best tool is 80-grade speed, which he uses on the basepaths and in the field.

His athleticism allows him to switch back and forth between shortstop and second base and might give him a chance as a center fielder if the situation avails itself. Brujan is also a switch-hitter adept at making plenty of contact, though he has proved to be a much better hitter from the left side. He has little to no power and doesn’t project to hit for any either.

The best utilization of his tools will be as a slash-and-burn player at the top or bottom of a lineup who creates havoc on the bases and provides value in the field as well.

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5. Brayan Rocchio, SS/2B, Mahoning Valley (Indians)
Age: 18. B-T: B-R. Ht.: 5-10. Wt.: 150. Signed: Venezuela, 2017.

At 18 years old, Rocchio was one of the youngest players in the league and showed the ability to play a quality shortstop. While young, he showed feel for the game and was one of the tougher hitters in the NYPL to strike out, fanning just under 14 percent of the time.

"It was the best defense at shortstop I’ve seen this season, no question”, a rival manager said.

Rocchio has both feel and average arm strength, which will help him stay up the middle. Offensively, he has a sound swing that is geared for contact over power. Over time, evaluators believe he will learn to drive pitches with more authority.

Rocchio has a long way to go, but his elite defense and contact-oriented bat make him one of Cleveland’s most exciting prospects.



9. Ethan Hankins, RHP, Mahoning Valley (Indians)
Age: 19. B-T: R-R. HT: 6-6. WT: 200. Drafted: HS—Cumming, Ga., 2018 (1st supp).

Hankins made just nine appearances with Mahoning Valley, but was so thoroughly dominant that he earned a promotion to low Class A Lake County. While he didn’t eclipse five innings in any one start, he was unscored upon in five of his nine outings.

Hankins’ fastball stuck out the most to managers around the league. He throws the pitch in the mid-90s with good life and is able to command it for strikes. He can spin a solid slider with some sweeping action to get swings and misses, while also featuring a curveball with sizable break. Hankins also throws a firm changeup but made strides as the season went along.

Hankins is still raw, but executives point to his sheer strength and plus arm speed as positives. His physicality and big arm should help him further develop his secondary offerings.



10. Leonardo Rodriguez, RHP, Aberdeen (Orioles)
Age: 21. B-T: R-R. Ht.: 6-7. Wt.: 215. Signed: Dominican Republic, 2016.

In a league that was more position player heavy, Rodriguez stood out on the mound. He ranked among the league leaders in ERA (2.65), strikeouts (80), innings (71.1) and WHIP (1.01). It was the first season of his young career in which he struck out more than one batter per inning.

It’s tough to miss the 6-foot-7, 215-pound Rodriguez, who has the type of body that is built for innings. His fastball can touch into the mid-90s and has natural angle on it because of his height.

Managers were impressed with Rodriguez’s feel for how to pitch to hitters and work off his heater. His breaking ball is a true offspeed pitch that flashes above-average at times and a changeup that is rather straight and is his third pitch.

Rodriguez’s frame, arm strength and feel for pitching create plenty to dream on as he heads towards full season ball.



18. Aldo Ramirez, RHP, Lowell (Red Sox)
Age: 18. B-T: R-R. HT: 6-0. WT: 180. Signed: Mexico, 2018.

Ramirez turned 18 just before the season started and already has an advanced feel for how to pitch to hitters. He opened some eyes in the Dominican Summer League the year prior, posting a tiny 0.39 ERA through 23 innings after leaving the Rieleros de Aguascalientes of the Mexican League and signing with Boston.

The righthander works with a three-pitch mix with a sound delivery. He throws two different fastballs, a four-seamer and two-seamer, with the ability to dial it up to 95 mph. His best secondary offering is his curveball, which has 12-to-6 movement with sharp action down in the zone. Ramirez can throw his changeup for strikes with arm side fade and sink, though the pitch doesn't offer much separation from his heater.

His command is advanced for his age, and his arsenal should allow him to continue to develop as a back-end starter.


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6. Andrick Nava, C, Phillies
Age: 17. B-T: B-R. HT: 5-11. WT: 175. Signed: Venezuela, 2018.

After signing with the Phillies last year for $400,000, Nava immediately performed well at Dominican instructional league. He kept raking in extended spring training, to the point where he forced an assignment to the GCL for his pro debut.

Nava responded by ranking sixth in the league in batting average, showing an advanced offensive skill set for his age. Nava uses his hands well from both sides of the plate. He has innate barrel control to make contact at a high rate, squares up breaking pitches and has an all-fields approach. Nava didn’t show much more than occasional doubles power during games, and while he has a hit-over-power profile, he can drive the ball over the fence in BP, so his game power should tick up.

Nava made some strides defensively this year, but he will need more work to stick behind the plate. He has a funky throwing stroke with an average arm.



12. Jairo Lopez, RHP, Astros
Age: 18. B-T: R-R. HT: 5-11. WT: 170. Signed: Venezuela, 2017.

The Astros went over their international bonus pool in the 2016-17 signing period, so they couldn't sign players for more than $300,000 the following two years. One of the players they gave that $300,000 maximum bonus to was Lopez, who pitched well this year in his U.S. debut, both in the GCL and after a promotion to the short-season New York-Penn League in late July.

Lopez has a smaller, compact build for a pitcher with a sound delivery that he repeats well. That helps him command his fastball well, with the pitch sitting in the low to mid-90s with late riding life to miss bats when he elevates. He also generates swings and misses with his tight-spinning curveball and slider, with his breaking stuff more advanced than his changeup.

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