Dominican Summer League Hitters (min 30 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Emil Morales	LAD	100	100
2	Rainiel Rodriguez	STL	93	95
3	Eduardo Beltre	MIN	84	91
4	Jesus Made	MIL	81	89
5	Jose Anderson	MIL	81	85
6	Juneiker Caceres	CLE	80	82
7	Edward Florentino	PIT	70	81
8	Luis Pena	MIL	77	81
9	Yolfran Castillo	TEX	71	80
10	Stiven Martinez	BAL	72	78
11	Elvin Garcia	BAL	67	77
12	Arnaldo Lantigua	LAD	62	76
13	Adriander Mejia	BAL	63	76
14	Juan Ortuno	MIL	69	76
15	Jirvin Morillo	CIN	68	75
16	Cesar Lugo	CHC	63	75
17	Estivel Morillo	CLE	73	75
18	Jaset Martinez	CIN	61	74
19	Queni Pineda	NYY	60	74
20	Sebastian Baquera	TEX	63	73

 

Dodgers shortstop Emil Morales regains the top spot by a large gap after a preposterous week where he hit five home runs and stole two bases. Morales now leads all DSL hitters with 12 homers through 167 plate appearances. He’s likely the consensus top prospect in the DSL, although Jesus Made (Brewers), or Eduardo Beltre (Twins) if you listened to our latest fantasy podcast, may take offense.

Morales’ teammate, Arnaldo Lantigua, is second in the DSL with 10 homers after hitting three this week. Lantigua now ranks 12th on our hitters list after ranking No. 24 last week. Lantigua signed for $700,000 as a physically mature corner outfielder out of the Dominican Republic in 2023. He had above-average power with average speed. Keep in mind he’s repeating the level and is already 18 years old.

In 2023, Lantigua’s 90th percentile exit velocity was 99.7 mph with a 106.7 mph max. This year he already has six balls in play that have been hit over 104 mph, with a maximum exit velocity of 109.4 mph. He also has been showing little problem catching up to high velocity in a small sample size. We don’t like to invest too heavily in 18-year-olds who are doing well in the DSL, but Lantigua is also showing average contact and average chase to supplement his plus exit velocities. Expect to see him stateside next year and to likely reach full-season ball.

Complex League Hitters (FINAL, min 25 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Franklin Arias	BOS	100	100
2	Robert Calaz	COL	100	98
3	Yeremi Cabrera	TEX	97	97
4	Eric Bitonti	MIL	94	96
5	Pablo Guerrero	TEX	93	93
6	Eduardo Quintero	LAD	84	89
7	Eduardo Tait	PHI	97	88
8	Yoeilin Cespedes	BOS	84	87
9	Javier Mogollon	CHW	86	85
10	Engelth Urena	NYY	77	84
11	Welbyn Francisca	CLE	85	84
12	Daiverson Gutierrez	NYM	79	83
13	Starlyn Caba	PHI	79	83
14	Edgleen Perez	NYY	74	82
15	Brailer Guerrero	TBR	76	81
16	Felnin Celesten	SEA	76	81
17	Braylin Morel	TEX	85	81
18	Miguel Rodriguez	BAL	74	80
19	Yolfran Castillo	TEX	76	80
20	Jhonny Severino	PIT	75	79
21	Aroon Escobar	PHI	72	79
22	Jeremy Rodriguez	NYM	84	79
23	Luis Merejo	CLE	73	78
24	Dameury Pena	MIN	78	78
25	Yasser Mercedes	MIN	73	78
26	Carlos Tavares	WSN	72	77
27	Demetrio Crisantes	ARI	66	75
28	Franyerber Montilla	DET	70	74
29	Antonis Macias	TEX	65	74
30	Alexander Albertus	LAD	68	73
31	Arjun Nimmala	TOR	73	73
32	John Gil	ATL	76	73
33	Abrahan Ramirez	NYY	65	73
34	Walker Jenkins	MIN	65	72
35	Andruw Musett	BOS	69	72

With the Complex League season over, we’ve extended out the list to display the Top 35.

Complex League Pitchers (FINAL, min 12 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Trevor Harrison	TBR	95	100
2	Yordy Herrera	STL	100	100
3	Christian Zazueta	LAD	89	93
4	Samuel Sanchez	LAD	94	93
5	Sean Linan	LAD	92	92
6	Ovis Portes	BOS	86	92
7	Hayden Robinson	MIL	95	91
8	Joseph Yabbour	NYM	84	91
9	Keyner Benitez	MIA	100	91
10	Jefferson Jean	OAK	89	91
11	Juan Valera	BOS	87	89
12	Jacob Bresnahan	CLE	94	89
13	Rafael Gonzalez	HOU	84	89
14	Adrian Herrera	CIN	84	88
15	Johan Simon	TOR	81	88
16	Jogly Garcia	CLE	84	88
17	Alix Hernandez	SFG	86	88
18	Sandy Ozuna	COL	92	86
19	Luis Morellis	CIN	89	85
20	Jesus Carrera	HOU	86	85
21	Hyun-Seok Jang	LAD	83	85
22	Keythel Key	LAA	80	84
23	Zander Mueth	PIT	78	84
24	Jordarlin Mendoza	NYY	78	84
25	Nelfy Ynfante	STL	91	84

 

Low-A Hitters (min 25 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Franklin Arias	BOS	97	100
2	Leodalis De Vries	SDP	100	98
3	Colt Emerson	SEA	88	92
4	Michael Arroyo	SEA	88	89
5	Aidan Smith	SEA	85	87
6	Kevin McGonigle	DET	84	86
7	Eduardo Tait	PHI	93	86
8	Blake Mitchell	KCR	81	84
9	Starlyn Caba	PHI	81	83
10	Zyhir Hope	LAD	77	82
11	Jaison Chourio	CLE	81	82
12	Demetrio Crisantes	ARI	76	82
13	Axiel Plaz	PIT	87	81
14	Jonny Farmelo	SEA	78	81
15	Lazaro Montes	SEA	92	81
16	Arjun Nimmala	TOR	84	80
17	Walker Jenkins	MIN	77	80
18	Josue De Paula	LAD	75	80
19	Jeral Perez	LAD	76	78
20	Yasser Mercedes	MIN	73	75
21	Alfredo Duno	CIN	77	75
22	Jesus Baez	NYM	77	74
23	Max Clark	DET	77	74
24	Ralphy Velazquez	CLE	75	74
25	Cooper Pratt	MIL	73	73

Although Phillies SS Starlyn Caba has a 24 wRC+ through 33 Low-A plate appearances, he has seven steals without being caught. We’ve previously raved about his elite defense from the shortstop position. If he can steal 25-to-30 bases per season, he has set a very high fantasy floor.

Caba’s teammate, C Eduardo Tait, has already blasted three home runs through 28 plate appearances for Clearwater. Tait hit six homers at the Complex at 17 years old and is one of RoboScout’s favorite breakouts of 2024. Only two months older than Leodalis de Vries (Padres), Tait has actually produced a higher 90th percentile exit velocity (103.8 mph vs 102.2 mph) and maximum exit velocity (112.2 mph vs. 106.9 mph) than the Padres prospect. Of course, the quality of the pitching they have faced this season is literally a minor league level apart.

Tait needs to continue developing defensively. He has an above-average arm, but other parts of his game behind the plate need refinement. If he can, he may enter 2025 as a preseason top-50 fantasy prospect who projects for 25+ homers a year.

Arjun Nimmala (Blue Jays) has continued to wield a hot bat since returning to Low-A Dunedin on June 27. He has smashed nine home runs over that time and now sits 16th on the Low-A hitters list. Although he has clearly rediscovered the potential 30-home run power that the Blue Jays envisioned when they drafted him in the first round in 2023, he does still have some swing-and-miss in his game, with a 68% contact rate on the season. Even in his hot streak during this second go-around in Low-A, Nimmala has a 32% strikeout rate. He has a better-than-league-average chase rate to go along with his plus barrel rate and plus expected wOBA on contact. There is still a long road ahead for the 18-year old. The fact that he has made adjustments after his initial struggles bodes well for his future.

JJ Wetherholt (Cardinals) has made 19 plate appearances in Low-A Palm Beach, and despite no home runs or stolen bases yet, he does have a 170 wRC+ with more walks than strikeouts. So far, it’s an encouraging debut for the No. 7 pick in the 2024 draft.

Low-A Pitchers (min 12 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Matt Wilkinson	CLE	100	100
2	Jonah Tong	NYM	91	95
3	Quinn Mathews	STL	86	95
4	Alejandro Rosario	TEX	85	93
5	Didier Fuentes	ATL	84	92
6	Jarlin Susana	WSN	81	92
7	Travis Sykora	WSN	88	92
8	Santiago Suarez	TBR	80	91
9	Grant Taylor	CHW	77	89
10	Trevor Harrison	TBR	82	88
11	Eliazar Dishmey	MIA	75	87
12	Yujanyer Herrera	MIL	84	84
13	Sean Linan	LAD	83	82
14	Thomas White	MIA	72	82
15	Kohl Drake	TEX	82	82
16	George Klassen	LAA	81	82
17	Gary Gill Hill	TBR	81	82
18	Jace Kaminska	COL	77	81
19	Welinton Herrera	COL	70	79
20	Ovis Portes	BOS	70	79
21	Bishop Letson	MIL	69	79
22	Mavis Graves	PHI	85	79
23	Jose Gonzalez	TEX	72	79
24	Adam Serwinowski	CIN	67	79
25	Noble Meyer	MIA	68	78

Braves righty Didier Fuentes struck out 16 while walking just two over nine innings in a pair of starts since the all-star break. I won’t mention the eight earned runs he allowed during that time. Instead, RoboScout is far more interested in the 35% strikeout rate and 5% walk rate over his last five starts.

As we’ve mentioned before, the 19-year-old (he doesn’t turn 20 until next June) has a solid fastball/slider mix. It’s fronted by his super-flat, low-slot 93 mph four-seam fastball that has over six-and-a-half feet of extension. He’ll likely need to develop his split changeup, which he throws 7% of the time, to stick in the rotation. The teenager has added 2 mph to his average slider velocity compared to last year and has seen his fastball max out at 96 mph this year compared to 94.3 in 2023. He has shown he can make significant gains to his arsenal. Fuentes is a fascinating and underrated arm in the Braves organization.

Rays 18-year-old righty Trevor Harrison has struck out 31% of batters over his first 17 innings for Low-A Charleston. That’s the second-highest mark of the 11 pitchers with 12+ innings in Low-A in their age-18 season, behind only Alex Clemmey (Nationals by way of the Guardians) who struck out 33% in 69 innings. Although Harrison does have a 10% walk rate, that is the fourth-lowest rate for the same pitching cohort. With a 94 mph fastball that has touched 98 mph, an 84 mph bullet slider, a changeup with nine mph velocity separation and 10 inches of vertical separation, and even an 88 mph cutter, the former high school teammate of Aidan Miller (Phillies) shows a midrotation starter’s arsenal.

Nationals righty Travis Sykora has climbed into the top seven. Sykora has a 45% strikeout rate over his last 32 innings. That’s the highest rate of punchies by any Low-A pitcher with at least 20 innings. Over that time, the 20-year-old has a sub-1.00 WHIP and a sub-2.00 ERA, along with a scintillating 22% swinging strike rate. His walk rate during that time is hovering right at 10% but even though a double-digit walk rate is a little higher than we would want, the 95 mph fastball from big extension, fronting an 83 mph slider and split changeup that both get over 50% whiffs, is a clear midrotation arsenal. Sykora is a solid top-125 fantasy prospect.

High-A Hitters (min 25 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Michael Arroyo	SEA	100	100
2	Luke Adams	MIL	99	100
3	Luke Keaschall	MIN	93	96
4	Kevin McGonigle	DET	95	96
5	Sebastian Walcott	TEX	99	95
6	Xavier Isaac	TBR	91	92
7	Sal Stewart	CIN	85	90
8	Lazaro Montes	SEA	98	90
9	Josue De Paula	LAD	83	89
10	Carter Jensen	KCR	86	88
11	Jesus Baez	NYM	86	86
12	Max Clark	DET	87	85
13	Alex Freeland	LAD	77	84
14	Jhostynxon Garcia	BOS	78	83
15	Brayden Taylor	TBR	80	82
16	Bryce Eldridge	SFG	78	81
17	William Bergolla	CHW	80	81
18	Henry Bolte	OAK	76	80
19	Angel Genao	CLE	76	80
20	Mike Boeve	MIL	72	80
21	Samuel Zavala	CHW	78	80
22	Cam Collier	CIN	81	80
23	Cooper Ingle	CLE	72	79
24	Jefferson Rojas	CHC	75	78
25	C.J. Kayfus	CLE	70	77

Josue De Paula (Dodgers) has had a reasonably quiet 2024 season. Yet he sits in the top 10 of the High-A list as a teenager with a 125 wRC+, two home runs and four stolen bases over 98 plate appearances. With better than league-average swing decisions, contact and quality of contact—all the more impressive because he will stay a teenager until next May—the only knock against the sweet-swinging lefthander is that his defense may ultimately relegate him to a DH-only profile. Still, with the potential for a 60-hit, 60-power profile, he should be a no-doubt fantasy contributor.

Rockies 3B Kyle Karros hasn’t ranked on the High-A list yet, but he has performed quite well recently. Since June 14, Karros has put up a 180 wRC+ with nine home runs and seven stolen bases. The 2023 fifth-round pick has played a solid third base all season and has a solidly average contact rate, chase rate, and barrel rate, though he is far more effective against fastballs than against secondaries. Note that High-A Spokane boosts homers for righthanded batters by nearly 47%. RoboScout accounts for this already, but make sure you are doing the internal math when looking at the back of his baseball card.

No. 1 pick Travis Bazzana has a 183 wRC+ with a home run and a steal through 17 plate appearances for High-A Lake County. On the face of it, his 41% strikeout rate is puzzling. Keep in mind that he has a 7% swinging strike rate, which is indicative of his extremely passive approach to start his professional debut. It’s something to watch as he accrues a larger sample size.

Kevin McGonigle (Tigers) hit his first High-A home run this week and has maintained a sub-3% strikeout rate over his first 39 plate appearances for West Michigan. With his near-90% contact rate on the season, it is clear that the infielder has one of the better hit tools in the minor leagues. Subsequently, RoboScout projects him for a .280/.360 batting average and on-base percentage in the major leagues with around 15 home runs and 15 stolen bases. He’s a top-15 prospect per RoboScout.

High-A Pitchers (min 12 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Noah Schultz	CHW	90	100
2	Quinn Mathews	STL	92	99
3	Luis Perales	BOS	88	98
4	Alejandro Rosario	TEX	92	97
5	Matt Wilkinson	CLE	100	97
6	Owen Murphy	ATL	90	97
7	Jarlin Susana	WSN	88	97
8	Chase Dollander	COL	88	97
9	Zebby Matthews	MIN	83	92
10	Jonah Tong	NYM	90	91
11	George Klassen	PHI	83	90
12	K.C. Hunt	MIL	90	88
13	Kohl Drake	TEX	92	88
14	Brett Wichrowski	MIL	80	87
15	Thomas White	MIA	80	87
16	Sean Sullivan	COL	93	87
17	Alessandro Ercolani	PIT	74	85
18	Winston Santos	TEX	76	84
19	Jaden Hamm	DET	84	83
20	Jedixson Paez	BOS	92	82
21	Brandyn Garcia	SEA	71	81
22	Owen Wild	TBR	77	80
23	Austin Peterson	CLE	79	80
24	Ethan Pecko	HOU	79	80
25	Lazaro Estrada	TOR	69	80

Nationals righty Jarlin Susana has been lights out in his first four starts for High-A Wilmington. Susana has 26 strikeouts to just three walks while going at least five innings in each start. We can’t undersell his improvements: in 56 innings in Low-A, he had a 12% walk rate and in the 20 innings he has pitched in High-A, his walk rate is under 4%! When you average 100 mph with nearly six and a half feet of extension and an 89 mph slider, you barely need to use your changeup—even if it has nearly 18 inches of armside fade.

His 57% groundball rate in High-A only adds to his floor, especially after eliciting the second-highest Low-A mark among pitchers with at least 50 innings. Susana was a popular sleeper in 2023. His lack of command prevented him from meeting that potential and seemed to all but assure his destiny as a reliever. This season, with his vastly improved command—at least recently—he might be changing that narrative. Worst case, he should be a successful major league closer.

Congratulations to Sean Sullivan (Rockies) on his promotion to Double-A Hartford on the heels of his 39% strikeout rate and sub-5% walk rate over his last four starts.

Double-A Hitters (min 25 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Emmanuel Rodriguez	MIN	100	100
2	Agustin Ramirez	NYY	89	89
3	Luke Keaschall	MIN	86	89
4	Moises Ballesteros	CHC	88	87
5	Roman Anthony	BOS	86	86
6	Carter Jensen	KCR	86	85
7	Matthew Lugo	BOS	80	84
8	Ryan Clifford	NYM	81	80
9	Cole Young	SEA	81	80
10	Deyvison De Los Santos	ARI	83	80
11	Hao-Yu Lee	DET	79	79
12	Kristian Campbell	BOS	73	79
13	Alex Freeland	LAD	72	79
14	Edgar Quero	CHW	76	78
15	Samuel Basallo	BAL	86	77
16	C.J. Kayfus	CLE	74	77
17	Matt Shaw	CHC	75	76
18	Carson Williams	TBR	77	76
19	Henry Bolte	OAK	75	76
20	Colby Thomas	OAK	71	75
21	Dalton Rushing	LAD	67	74
22	Jacob Wilson	OAK	67	74
23	Tyler Locklear	SEA	66	72
24	Jimmy Crooks	STL	66	71
25	Nick Cimillo	PIT	63	71

Royals C Carter Jensen continues to mash since his Double-A promotion, hitting two homers in his first seven games. We have written about Jensen before and he ranks in the High-A top 10 as well. RoboScout likes his average-to-above average contact rate and chase rate, and his plus barrel rate and 90th percentile exit velocity. The 20-year-old’s 16 steals this season are the biggest surprise. I don’t expect him to steal more than 10 bases in the major leagues, but with an above-average bat and 20-ish home runs, it won’t be necessary in order to be productive in fantasy.

Although he is potentially behind Blake Mitchell (Royals) on the catching depth chart, Jensen is two levels ahead of him, giving him a potential head start on establishing himself in the major leagues before Mitchell creates any potential roster controversy (of the good variety). One thing to note is that Jensen has caught 30% of High-A base runners trying to steal against him this year while Mitchell has only thrown out 13% of would-be base stealers in Low-A. On the other side of the coin, Freddy Fermin has thrown out 56% of stolen base attempts in 2024, good enough for highest in the major leagues. Luckily, RoboScout is not needed to help resolve this catching situation for Kansas City.

Prior to the season, Matt Shaw (Cubs) was an extremely popular name in redraft leagues. After all, we already know about him in dynasty leagues. But eyebrows were first raised when the Cubs made a preseason trade for Michael Busch. Shaw was expected to be a fantasy contributor but has instead remained at Double-A all season. He finished May with an OPS below .750. Over the last six, weeks however, Shaw has been one of the hottest hitters in the minors, let alone in Double-A, and has climbed into the top 20.

Shaw finished June with a .901 OPS and posted a 1.061 OPS in July. Over his last 123 plate appearances, he has eight home runs and stolen eight bases, showing the type of production we expected coming into the season. On the season, the likely third baseman has put up a 77% contact rate, down from the 84% mark he had in his brief 2023, and his max exit velocity still has not attained the 112 mph mark that he achieved in 2023. Still, with another three home runs this week, it’s merely a matter of time before he finds himself in Triple-A Iowa.

Double-A Pitchers (min 12 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Zebby Matthews	MIN	100	100
2	Noah Schultz	CHW	98	100
3	Logan Henderson	MIL	98	94
4	Bubba Chandler	PIT	90	93
5	Tink Hence	STL	98	89
6	Braxton Ashcraft	PIT	91	87
7	Thomas Harrington	PIT	90	87
8	Brandon Sproat	NYM	89	85
9	Troy Melton	DET	84	84
10	Quinn Mathews	STL	84	84
11	Ben Casparius	LAD	81	83
12	Blade Tidwell	NYM	79	82
13	Ben Shields	NYY	85	82
14	Chandler Champlain	KCR	95	82
15	Jacob Misiorowski	MIL	77	82
16	Jackson Jobe	DET	77	81
17	Caden Dana	LAA	85	80
18	Winston Santos	TEX	79	80
19	Spencer Schwellenbach	ATL	84	80
20	Carson Palmquist	COL	83	79
21	Zach Penrod	BOS	87	79
22	Kyle McGowin	CHC	82	79
23	Shane Smith	MIL	85	78
24	Yilber Diaz	ARI	83	78
25	Brandon Young	BAL	89	78

Brandon Sproat’s Friday night performance was the big story this week. The Mets righty struck out 13 batters, including 11th in a row. The outing jumped him from No. 25 to inside the top 10 of the Double-A list and earned him a promotion to Triple-A Syracuse. On the season, the 23-year-old righthander has put his 96 mph four-seam fastball, 86 mph slider, and changeup to good use, leading to a sub-1.00 WHIP and sub-3.00 on all ERA indicators. Sproat, along with Nolan McLean, Jonah Tong, and Blade Tidwell, has the Mets future rotation sitting in a nice spot for the next five years.

Drue Hackenberg (Braves) was a popular add in dynasty leagues last week. That makes a lot of sense when you realize he has struck out 22 batters and only walked one over his last 12 innings. If you add his previous three starts to those two, yes he has a 35% strikeout rate, but he also has an 11% walk rate. Under the hood, Hackenberg primarily throws his curveball, which has a foot of sweep and generates over 40% whiffs, followed by two fastballs that sit 92 to 94 mph and a changeup. Interestingly, Hackenberg elicited a 98th percentile 61% groundball rate in 59.1 High-A innings. In 29 Double-A innings, though, he has a 34% groundball rate. In our Top 30 write-up we compared him to Bryce Elder with a better fastball. RoboScout agrees and projects him as a back-of-the-rotation starter.

It’s worth noting that Jackson Jobe (Tigers) last year had a walk rate under 3% over 68 innings. This year in Double-A, he has a 14.5% walk rate over 42 innings. The WHIP is still only 1.11 on account of the hellacious stuff. Interestingly, although he increased his fastball velocity (97.1 mph compared to 96.5 in 2023) and has topped out at 100 mph compared to 98 last year, his slider now averages 82 mph compared to 85 mph in 2023. He has added four inches of sweep (17 vs. 13 in 2023). The trade-off in sweep compared to velocity is essentially even from a stuff perspective, but it’s puzzling nonetheless. Jobe’s strikeout and walk rates are eerily similar to Brewers RHP Jacob Misiorowski. Will we start to see more bullpen risk concerns for Jobe?

Triple-A Hitters (min 25 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	James Wood	WSN	100	100
2	Jackson Holliday	BAL	93	92
3	Coby Mayo	BAL	88	91
4	Kyle Manzardo	CLE	83	88
5	Adrian Del Castillo	ARI	79	86
6	Miguel Vargas	CHW	78	86
7	Jose Fermin	STL	75	84
8	Andy Pages	LAD	74	82
9	Chase Meidroth	BOS	74	81
10	Elehuris Montero	COL	73	81
11	Jacob Wilson	OAK	70	78
12	Dillon Dingler	DET	69	78
13	Shay Whitcomb	HOU	76	77
14	Angel Martinez	CLE	75	76
15	Moises Ballesteros	CHC	74	76
16	Agustin Ramirez	MIA	73	76
17	Deyvison De Los Santos	MIA	82	76
18	Javier Sanoja	MIA	75	75
19	Matthew Lugo	LAA	68	75
20	Henry Davis	PIT	72	74
21	Joey Loperfido	HOU	65	73
22	Niko Kavadas	LAA	63	73
23	Jonatan Clase	TOR	69	73
24	Jerar Encarnacion	SFG	66	72
25	Edgar Quero	CHW	69	72

Congratulations to Dillon Dingler (Tigers) for his major league callup one day after appearing in these pages. Of course, two Orioles were also summoned to the big leagues: Jackson Holliday for the second time and Coby Mayo.

Giants outfielder Jerar Encarnacion is another interesting callup. He has 10 homers in his last 146 plate appearances dating back to June 14. The 26-year old has always had above-average bat speed, and has a 90th percentile exit velocity above 108 mph. In 2023, his contact rate was 58%, far below league average and worse than the 66% rate he had in 2022. In 2024, though, his contact rate is essentially league-average for Triple-A. When paired with his xwOBAcon that is essentially equivalent to Deyvison De Los Santos (Marlins via the Diamondbacks) and an OPS that is essentially the same as James Wood (Nationals). It’s quite possible that Encarnacion might be a source of power in redraft leagues this year.

Triple-A Pitchers (min 15 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Paul Skenes	PIT	100	100
2	Christian Scott	NYM	91	91
3	Zebby Matthews	MIN	87	88
4	David Festa	MIN	89	80
5	Will Warren	NYY	80	80
6	Chayce McDermott	BAL	81	79
7	Tylor Megill	NYM	81	78
8	Jack Leiter	TEX	75	77
9	Carson Spiers	CIN	76	77
10	Tobias Myers	MIL	74	76
11	Chad Patrick	MIL	77	75
12	Louie Varland	MIN	79	75
13	Yilber Diaz	ARI	79	74
14	Cade Povich	BAL	85	74
15	Elieser Hernandez	LAD	74	74
16	Braxton Ashcraft	PIT	76	74
17	Robert Gasser	MIL	71	73
18	Blake Snell	SFG	74	72
19	AJ Smith-Shawver	ATL	74	72
20	Alek Manoah	TOR	76	72
21	Slade Cecconi	ARI	78	71
22	Quinn Priester	PIT	84	71
23	Cristian Mena	ARI	80	71
24	Reid Detmers	LAA	85	70
25	Matt Manning	DET	68	70

Congratulations to Will Warren (Yankees) for earning his major league debut after we spoke about him last week.

Now that Zebby Matthews (Twins) has accrued 14 innings in Triple-A, he finds himself leapfrogging organizational mate David Festa (Twins) and sitting third on the list. He also hasn’t walked anyone in Triple-A yet.

Happy bidding!

Dominican Summer League Hitters (min 30 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Rainiel Rodriguez	STL	100	100
2	Eduardo Beltre	MIN	94	98
3	Jesus Made	MIL	91	96
4	Emil Morales	LAD	93	96
5	Jose Anderson	MIL	92	92
6	Edward Florentino	PIT	84	91
7	Luis Pena	MIL	84	89
8	Yolfran Castillo	TEX	79	87
9	Elvin Garcia	BAL	76	85
10	Juneiker Caceres	CLE	88	84
11	Stiven Martinez	BAL	81	83
12	Juan Ortuno	MIL	78	83
13	Estivel Morillo	CLE	84	82
14	Jaset Martinez	CIN	71	81
15	Jirvin Morillo	CIN	74	81
16	Adriander Mejia	BAL	64	78
17	Cesar Lugo	CHC	67	78
18	Jesus Alexander	SFG	65	77
19	Jordan Sanchez	BAL	67	77
20	Justin Gonzales	BOS	71	77

 

Paulino Santana (Rangers) won the DSL All-Star Game MVP last week. This should come as no surprise to readers, as Ben Badler long identified him as one of the prized January international signees. RoboScout hasn’t been too enamored with the 17-year-old’s overall results this season, however, because of an uninspiring lack of in-game power so far. With no home runs and a slugging percentage below .350—and a maximum exit velocity just over 102 mph—Santana seems to be focusing on a contact-oriented approach and excellent swing decisions. With plus speed and solid defense, Santana has other ways to positively impact a game while he works on increasing his strength.

After making it into the top 5 last week, catcher Rainiel Rodriguez (Cardinals) finds himself at the top of the table after hitting another two bombs last week, bringing his season total to nine to lead the league.

Complex League Hitters (min 50 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Franklin Arias	BOS	100	100
2	Robert Calaz	COL	100	98
3	Yeremi Cabrera	TEX	97	97
4	Eric Bitonti	MIL	94	95
5	Pablo Guerrero	TEX	94	91
6	Eduardo Tait	PHI	98	89
7	Eduardo Quintero	LAD	84	87
8	Yoeilin Cespedes	BOS	83	85
9	Javier Mogollon	CHW	85	82
10	Starlyn Caba	PHI	78	82
11	Welbyn Francisca	CLE	84	81
12	Engelth Urena	NYY	74	81
13	Edgleen Perez	NYY	73	80
14	Yolfran Castillo	TEX	76	80
15	Brailer Guerrero	TBR	75	79
16	Daiverson Gutierrez	NYM	78	79
17	Felnin Celesten	SEA	75	79
18	Braylin Morel	TEX	84	78
19	Dameury Pena	MIN	77	77
20	Miguel Rodriguez	BAL	73	77
21	Aroon Escobar	PHI	69	76
22	Jhonny Severino	PIT	73	76
23	Yasser Mercedes	MIN	70	76
24	Jeremy Rodriguez	NYM	85	75
25	Luis Merejo	CLE	72	75

Recently promoted from the DSL, Rangers SS Yolfran Castillo cracks the top 20 now that he qualifies for the list. Ben Badler raved about the Venezuelan’s contact skills earlier this season. The 17-year-old was quickly brought stateside and has produced a wRC+ just below league average, which is impressive considering his age. There’s not much power—he currently sports a .017 ISO at the Complex—but he does have an xwOBAcon that was better than league average and actually only .020 lower than Brewers DSL breakout Luis Pena. He’s probably too green to be moved to full-season ball after the ACL Rangers’ current postseason run ends, but even still, the Rangers have to be happy with what they saw from their $600,000 signing. Castillo should be rostered in leagues with 400 prospects or more.

Mets C Daiverson Gutierrez is another player who is finishing stateside after starting in the DSL. The 18-year-old signed with New York for nearly $2 million in 2023 and now enters the top 20 after putting up a 170 wRC+ with two home runs over 54 plate appearances. Yet another talented Venezuelan catching signing, scouts believe Gutierrez can develop into above-average game power. His 108 mph max exit velocity seems to support that. He’s not there yet, but he’s showing above-average swing decisions and contact for his age and level, striking out at only a 7% clip at the Complex. As you know, there are a lot of great catching prospects in the minor leagues right now. He’s not there now, but Gutierrez is off to a solid start.

Complex League Pitchers (min 12 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Trevor Harrison	TBR	95	100
2	Yordy Herrera	STL	100	100
3	Christian Zazueta	LAD	89	93
4	Samuel Sanchez	LAD	94	93
5	Sean Linan	LAD	92	92
6	Ovis Portes	BOS	86	92
7	Hayden Robinson	MIL	95	91
8	Joseph Yabbour	NYM	84	91
9	Keyner Benitez	MIA	100	91
10	Jefferson Jean	OAK	89	91
11	Juan Valera	BOS	87	89
12	Jacob Bresnahan	CLE	94	89
13	Rafael Gonzalez	HOU	84	89
14	Adrian Herrera	CIN	84	88
15	Johan Simon	TOR	81	88
16	Jogly Garcia	CLE	84	88
17	Alix Hernandez	SFG	86	88
18	Sandy Ozuna	COL	92	86
19	Luis Morellis	CIN	89	85
20	Jesus Carrera	HOU	86	85
21	Hyun-Seok Jang	LAD	83	85
22	Keythel Key	LAA	80	84
23	Zander Mueth	PIT	78	84
24	Jordarlin Mendoza	NYY	78	84
25	Nelfy Ynfante	STL	91	84

The Guardians finally promoted LHP Jacob Bresnahan to Low-A Lynchburg after he registered a 34% strikeout rate, a 1.04 WHIP and 2.54 ERA over 46 innings. The 19-year-old doesn’t have overpowering stuff, nor does it come from a particularly deceptive slot. Bresnahan has a 92 mph four-seam fastball, 83 mph slider and a changeup that gets over 40% whiffs. But the Guardians are one of baseball’s best pitching development organizations and the southpaw has age on his side, just turning 19 a month ago. Look for his velocity to likely end up in the mid 90s.

Angels righty Keythel Key brings his intriguing arsenal to the top 25 for the first time this year. The 20-year-old Venezuelan has a 29% strikeout rate and a 48% groundball rate—both well above-average marks for the level—but the pitch metrics really catch RoboScout’s eye. Key averages 95 mph on his fastball and touches 99 with a high-spin breaking ball that gets about a foot of sweep, plus a developing changeup. His interesting stuff could potentially work in the back of a rotation with further development. He’s an interesting name to watchlist.

Low-A Hitters (min 50 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Leodalis De Vries	SDP	100	100
2	Colt Emerson	SEA	82	91
3	Michael Arroyo	SEA	83	91
4	Aidan Smith	SEA	80	88
5	Kevin McGonigle	DET	78	87
6	Lazaro Montes	SEA	88	87
7	Blake Mitchell	KCR	75	86
8	Axiel Plaz	PIT	82	86
9	Walker Jenkins	MIN	71	84
10	Jonny Farmelo	SEA	71	82
11	Jaison Chourio	CLE	72	82
12	Demetrio Crisantes	ARI	67	81
13	Josue De Paula	LAD	66	81
14	Jeral Perez	LAD	67	79
15	Zyhir Hope	LAD	60	77
16	Ralphy Velazquez	CLE	68	77
17	Jesus Baez	NYM	69	76
18	Alfredo Duno	CIN	67	75
19	Max Clark	DET	69	74
20	Logan Wagner	LAD	58	74
21	Yophery Rodriguez	MIL	73	73
22	Arjun Nimmala	TOR	67	73
23	Rosman Verdugo	SDP	65	72
24	Cooper Pratt	MIL	63	72
25	Angel Genao	CLE	59	72

Maintaining his absolutely breakneck pace, Leodalis De Vries (Padres) remains No. 1 after knocking three more home runs and stealing another base last week. Again, we can’t overstate what he’s doing as the youngest hitter in full-season ball. De Vries’ .901 OPS since June 3 would be the highest season mark by a 17-year old in Low-A since 2006 with a minimum of 100 plate appearances. His full-season 119 wRC+ is just behind the 122 wRC+ that org-mate Ethan Salas put up at the same age last year to much fanfare. It’s still a short sample, but RoboScout has seen enough: De Vries is a top-10 fantasy prospect.

Speaking of RoboScout favorites, Franklin Arias (Red Sox) has already hit two home runs with a preposterous 379 wRC+ in his first three games for Low-A Salem including seven RBIs. The 18-year old shortstop is on one of the more torrid streaks observed in the minors this year and is a top 25 fantasy prospect per RoboScout, especially when you consider that his 181 wRC+ in the Complex League is the highest since 2006 among 18-year-olds with at least 200 plate appearances. Just for context, Junior Caminero (Rays) had a 147 wRC+ in 2022 over 154 plate appearances before being promoted to Low-A. Arias checks all the boxes this year: Power, speed and good shortstop defense.

Low-A Pitchers (min 15 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Matt Wilkinson	CLE	100	100
2	Jonah Tong	NYM	91	95
3	Quinn Mathews	STL	85	94
4	Alejandro Rosario	TEX	84	93
5	Jarlin Susana	WSN	80	92
6	Santiago Suarez	TBR	79	90
7	Didier Fuentes	ATL	81	90
8	Grant Taylor	CHW	77	89
9	George Klassen	PHI	78	88
10	Travis Sykora	WSN	82	87
11	Eliazar Dishmey	MIA	73	86
12	Yujanyer Herrera	MIL	83	85
13	Sean Linan	LAD	84	84
14	Kohl Drake	TEX	82	82
15	Thomas White	MIA	72	82
16	Ovis Portes	BOS	70	81
17	Mavis Graves	PHI	85	80
18	Welinton Herrera	COL	69	79
19	Gary Gill Hill	TBR	78	79
20	Jace Kaminska	COL	74	79
21	Isaiah Lowe	SDP	67	79
22	Noble Meyer	MIA	67	78
23	Jackson Nezuh	HOU	66	77
24	Jose Gonzalez	TEX	70	77
25	Alimber Santa	HOU	66	77

It took 65 innings of a 1.20 WHIP, a 3.15 ERA and a strikeout-minus-walk rate of 27%, but 20-year old LHP Mavis Graves (Phillies) finally gets some ink spilt in these pages. Although he’s been deserving for some time, Graves was overshadowed in Clearwater by the louder stuff of teammate George Klassen—the newest member of the Los Angeles Angels.

Still, the 2022 sixth-rounder—with a name more like a Southern Gothic singer/songwriter than southpaw—throws a 91 mph four-seamer from a high slot and big extension. Graves also has a slider and changeup that both get over 50% whiffs. The stuff is solid enough, even if it isn’t overwhelming from a modern pitch design standpoint, and his surface stats portend a peak projection in the same cluster as Grant Taylor (White Sox), Kohl Drake (Rangers) and Yujanyer Herrera (Rockies by way of the Brewers). Graves is probably already rostered in your leagues given his solid results. If he isn’t, the big 6-foot-6 lefthander is definitely viable in leagues that roster 300 prospects.

High-A Hitters (min 50 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Michael Arroyo	SEA	97	100
2	Luke Keaschall	MIN	93	98
3	Luke Adams	MIL	92	97
4	Sebastian Walcott	TEX	99	95
5	Lazaro Montes	SEA	100	95
6	Sal Stewart	CIN	85	92
7	Xavier Isaac	TBR	90	92
8	Carter Jensen	KCR	86	91
9	Josue De Paula	LAD	80	88
10	Alex Freeland	LAD	77	86
11	Samuel Zavala	CHW	82	86
12	Brayden Taylor	TBR	80	84
13	Mike Boeve	MIL	72	82
14	William Bergolla	PHI	81	82
15	Henry Bolte	OAK	76	82
16	Cooper Ingle	CLE	73	82
17	Cutter Coffey	BOS	77	81
18	C.J. Kayfus	CLE	70	80
19	Jhostynxon Garcia	BOS	70	79
20	Charles McAdoo	PIT	70	79
21	Yohendrick Pinango	CHC	72	79
22	Ricardo Olivar	MIN	69	78
23	Bryce Eldridge	SFG	71	77
24	Jefferson Rojas	CHC	71	77
25	Kristian Campbell	BOS	65	77

Josue De Paula (Dodgers) qualifies for the High-A list for the first time this season and immediately slots into the top 10 with a 153 wRC+, two home runs and four stolen bases over 71 plate appearances. With better than league average swing decisions, contact and quality of contact—all the more impressive because he will be a teenager until next May—the only knock against the sweet-swinging left hander is the fact that his defense may ultimately relegate him to a DH-only profile. Still, with the potential for a 60-hit, 60-power profile, he should be a no-doubt fantasy contributor.

High-A Pitchers (min 15 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Noah Schultz	CHW	89	100
2	Quinn Mathews	STL	92	98
3	Matt Wilkinson	CLE	100	98
4	Luis Perales	BOS	87	98
5	Owen Murphy	ATL	90	97
6	Chase Dollander	COL	87	97
7	Alejandro Rosario	TEX	89	95
8	Zebby Matthews	MIN	82	92
9	George Klassen	PHI	80	88
10	Jonah Tong	NYM	87	88
11	K.C. Hunt	MIL	89	88
12	Kohl Drake	TEX	90	87
13	Thomas White	MIA	78	85
14	Alessandro Ercolani	PIT	74	85
15	Sean Sullivan	COL	89	84
16	Winston Santos	TEX	75	83
17	Jedixson Paez	BOS	92	83
18	Jaden Hamm	DET	84	83
19	Moises Chace	BAL	70	81
20	Brandyn Garcia	SEA	70	81
21	Austin Peterson	CLE	78	80
22	Edgar Portes	BAL	69	79
23	Lazaro Estrada	TOR	68	79
24	Ethan Pecko	HOU	78	79
25	Nolan McLean	NYM	68	79

Now that he qualifies for the list, Alejandro Rosario (Rangers) appears as the seventh pitcher in High-A with a 38% strikeout rate over 18.2 innings. The breakout righthander comes at hitters with a flat 97 mph four-seam fastball while his slider and changeup both get over 45% whiffs. RoboScout sees him as a midrotation starter with a potential for more. 

Double-A Hitters (min 50 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Emmanuel Rodriguez	MIN	100	100
2	Agustin Ramirez	NYY	89	90
3	Luke Keaschall	MIN	86	89
4	Moises Ballesteros	CHC	88	87
5	Matthew Lugo	BOS	80	84
6	Ryan Clifford	NYM	84	84
7	Cole Young	SEA	82	82
8	Roman Anthony	BOS	78	80
9	Deyvison De Los Santos	ARI	82	80
10	Kristian Campbell	BOS	73	79
11	Carson Williams	TBR	79	79
12	Hao-Yu Lee	DET	78	79
13	Alex Freeland	LAD	72	78
14	Edgar Quero	CHW	76	78
15	C.J. Kayfus	CLE	73	78
16	Henry Bolte	OAK	75	76
17	Colby Thomas	OAK	70	74
18	Jacob Wilson	OAK	67	74
19	Samuel Basallo	BAL	83	74
20	Charles McAdoo	PIT	69	74
21	Marcelo Mayer	BOS	70	73
22	Tyler Locklear	SEA	66	73
23	Harry Ford	SEA	70	71
24	Dalton Rushing	LAD	62	71
25	Alejandro Osuna	TEX	67	71

Kristian Campbell (Red Sox) continues his ascent and enters the High-A top 10. His 206 wRC+ at Double-A is the highest among hitters with at least 100 plate appearances. Jacob Wilson (Athletics) had a 224 wRC+ but that was only over 93 plate appearances. As a result, Campbell has a fantasy peak projection that is not too dissimilar from Emmanuel Rodriguez (Twins). With excellent swing decisions, contact quality and better-than-average contact, Campbell is an easy top-50 fantasy prospect. With his underlying metrics, he feels like he is on the verge of going on a home run tear at any moment.

Last year, RoboScout was a fan of Javier Vaz (Royals) on account of his gifted bat-to-ball skills Lack of power was the main concern. His ISO still remains below .130 in 2024 and he only has six home runs in 338 plate appearances at Double-A. Interestingly, though, most of his power outburst has come in the last six weeks.

Since June 3, over 123 plate appearances Vaz has hit five of his six home runs to go along eight steals. That 146 wRC+ during this time, where his swinging strike rate has been lower than 4%, suggests a peak more akin to a 20/20 bat than a 12/12 bat. Keep a close eye on this one, as his defense, contact and speed gives him a high floor. If he is even a 15-home run bat, then he is a likely Top 100 fantasy prospect. Note though that neither his 90th percentile exit velocity, maximum exit velocity, xwOBAcon, or barrel rate has taken any meaningful step forward from his 2023 marks. This might just be a hot streak.

Double-A Pitchers (min 15 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Zebby Matthews	MIN	100	100
2	Noah Schultz	CHW	98	100
3	Logan Henderson	MIL	97	92
4	Bubba Chandler	PIT	87	89
5	Braxton Ashcraft	PIT	90	87
6	Thomas Harrington	PIT	90	86
7	Tink Hence	STL	94	86
8	Jackson Jobe	DET	82	85
9	Ben Shields	NYY	87	84
10	Peter Van Loon	BAL	85	83
11	Jacob Misiorowski	MIL	79	83
12	Ben Casparius	LAD	80	82
13	Chandler Champlain	KCR	95	82
14	Blade Tidwell	NYM	79	81
15	Quinn Mathews	STL	82	81
16	Caden Dana	LAA	84	79
17	Carson Palmquist	COL	83	79
18	Austin Peterson	CLE	85	79
19	Troy Melton	DET	78	79
20	Zach Penrod	BOS	87	79
21	Kyle McGowin	CHC	82	78
22	Andrew Morris	MIN	86	78
23	Yilber Diaz	ARI	83	78
24	Brandon Young	BAL	89	78
25	Brandon Sproat	NYM	80	77

Brewers righthander Logan Henderson continues to be the biggest surprise on the Double-A rankings. Henderson is now up to third place, ahead of the Pittsburgh trio of Bubba Chandler, Braxton Ashcraft and Thomas Harrington. Although he has only thrown 34 innings this season, he has generated a 29.1% strikeout-minus-walk rate. That’s good enough for the fourth-highest mark in Double-A among starting pitchers who have thrown a minimum of 20 innings. On June 30, I described his 2024 arsenal—an ultra-flat 93 mph four-seamer, a changeup that had a called or swinging strike rate of 47% and an 84 mph bullet slider—and he has since utilized it to generate 25 strikeouts and a paltry three walks in 18 innings. RoboScout considers him extremely underrated.

Caden Dana (Angels) is a Top 100 Prospect and moved up six spots to himself inside the Double-A top 20. In his two Double-A starts since appearing in the Futures Game, Dana has thrown a complete game and struck out 18 while only walking one over a total of 14 innings. A physical righthander with a predominantly four-pitch mix, Dana pitch regularly in the Angels’ rotation starting in 2025.

Triple-A Hitters (min 50 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	James Wood	WSN	100	100
2	Jackson Holliday	BAL	95	94
3	Coby Mayo	BAL	88	92
4	Miguel Vargas	LAD	79	86
5	Kyle Manzardo	CLE	79	85
6	Jose Fermin	STL	76	85
7	Andy Pages	LAD	74	82
8	Adrian Del Castillo	ARI	72	81
9	Agustin Ramirez	NYY	75	79
10	Jacob Wilson	OAK	70	78
11	Moises Ballesteros	CHC	75	77
12	Angel Martinez	CLE	75	76
13	Niko Kavadas	BOS	66	76
14	Dillon Dingler	DET	69	76
15	Jonatan Clase	SEA	72	75
16	Matthew Lugo	BOS	67	74
17	Jordan Beck	COL	65	75
18	Shay Whitcomb	HOU	72	74
19	Luis Matos	SFG	65	74
20	Joey Loperfido	HOU	65	74
21	Chase Meidroth	BOS	65	73
22	Jace Jung	DET	70	73
23	Deyvison De Los Santos	ARI	78	72
24	Jhonkensy Noel	CLE	79	72
25	Orelvis Martinez	TOR	71	72

With five home runs in his last 19 plate appearances, there is no doubt that Dillon Dingler (Tigers) should make this upcoming week’s Hot Sheet. On the season the 25-year-old catcher now has 17 home runs and a wRC+ of 136 and enters top 15 after never previously gracing the list. That projects to be an above-average hitter with 20+ home runs in the major leagues, yet funnily enough he only ranks as the No. 4 catcher in Triple-A with those peak projections. Dingler is still behind Adrian Del Castillo (Diamondbacks), Agustin Ramirez (Marlins by way of Yankees) and Moises Ballesteros (Cubs). What I’m getting at is that the catching position will be solid in fantasy for the next decade.

Another former RoboScout friend, Buddy Kennedy—now of the Phillies—has hit three doubles and two home runs over his last four games and has a 190 wRC+ over his last 165 plate appearances. He has always been a hit-over-power minor leaguer, but the Phillies appear to have unlocked something since acquiring him from the Tigers. Kennedy’s .295 ISO with Triple-A Lehigh Valley is the highest of his minor league career at any level. It’s even higher than his 17-homer season in Double-A in 2021. Alec Bohm and Bryson Stott block Kennedy on the Phillies’ depth chart, but RoboScout is happy to see that the 25-year-old rejuvenated since joining the Phillies organization.

Triple-A Pitchers (min 15 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Paul Skenes	PIT	100	100
2	Christian Scott	NYM	91	92
3	David Festa	MIN	88	81
4	Will Warren	NYY	79	81
5	Jack Leiter	TEX	77	80
6	Tylor Megill	NYM	80	79
7	Chayce McDermott	BAL	77	77
8	Carson Spiers	CIN	75	77
9	Tobias Myers	MIL	73	77
10	Yilber Diaz	ARI	79	76
11	Cade Povich	BAL	84	75
12	Chad Patrick	MIL	75	75
13	Elieser Hernandez	LAD	73	75
14	Braxton Ashcraft	PIT	75	75
15	Louie Varland	MIN	75	73
16	Alek Manoah	TOR	75	73
17	Quinn Priester	PIT	83	72
18	Slade Cecconi	ARI	77	72
19	Cristian Mena	ARI	79	72
20	AJ Smith-Shawver	ATL	70	71
21	Albert Suarez	BAL	74	71
22	Matt Manning	DET	67	70
23	Reid Detmers	LAA	83	70
24	Osvaldo Bido	OAK	70	68
25	Josh Winckowski	BOS	68	68

We mentioned a few weeks ago that Will Warren (Yankees) was doing his best to turn his season around after a forgettable early going. And now the 25-year-old has pushed himself into the top five. Although the 1.40 WHIP and 6.11 ERA doesn’t look particularly compelling, his xFIP is actually 3.93 with a 27% strikeout rate and his high ranking is quite representative of the fact that Triple-A pitching after Paul Skenes (Pirates) and Christian Scott (Mets) isn’t particularly intimidating, contributing to the perception that the jump for Triple-A hitters to the major leagues seems higher than ever.

Still, Warren’s 25% strikeout-minus-walk rate since June 3 is the fourth-highest by a starting pitcher. Considering he has averaged over five innings per start during that time, it’s quite probable the Yankees will call him up this season. Expect him to make a difference in redraft leagues, where he’s one of the last non-injury pitchers to have that potential.

Happy bidding!

Dominican Summer League Hitters (min 30 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Emil Morales	LAD	100	100
2	Edward Florentino	PIT	95	98
3	Jesus Made	MIL	94	98
4	Jose Anderson	MIL	99	96
5	Rainiel Rodriguez	STL	94	95
6	Luis Pena	MIL	90	92
7	Eduardo Beltre	MIN	86	92
8	Yolfran Castillo	TEX	83	88
9	Juan Ortuno	MIL	85	87
10	Elvin Garcia	BAL	79	86
11	Jaset Martinez	CIN	77	85
12	Estivel Morillo	CLE	89	85
13	Adriander Mejia	BAL	75	85
14	Juneiker Caceres	CLE	88	84
15	Jirvin Morillo	CIN	78	84
16	Stiven Martinez	BAL	82	83
17	Rafael Flores	TOR	68	80
18	Justin Gonzales	BOS	76	80
19	Jesus Alexander	SFG	68	79
20	Gabriel Rodriguez	CLE	75	78

 

Emil Morales (Dodgers) is now the top-ranked DSL hitter with a 178 wRC+ along with seven homers and seven steals through 127 plate appearances. His contact rate is still below average, but it’s outweighed by his contact quality, which is pretty much the best in the league. He has the highest barrel rate of any DSL hitter with at least 70 plate appearances, ranking just ahead of Eduardo Beltre (Twins). Morales has the eighth-highest expected wOBA on contact.

Cardinals catcher Rainiel Rodriguez has one of the higher xWOBAcons. The DSL all-star ranks fifth on RoboScout’s list. The 17-year old Dominican backstop also has seven home runs, showing his plus game power. Rodriguez’s maximum exit velocity of 108 mph is already higher than max exit velos for well-regarded players such as C.J. Kayfus (Guardians), Michael Arroyo (Mariners), and Colt Emerson (Mariners). The raw power is already present albeit against inferior pitching. Rodriguez does show a bit more chase than league average but has an average contact rate so far in his 107 plate appearances. His defense lags behind the bat, but he does have a strong arm.

Considering their place on the defensive spectrum, Morales, Jesus Made (Brewers), Luis Pena (Brewers), and Eduardo Beltre (Twins) look like the class of the DSL. Consider all four top 200 fantasy prospects.

 

Complex League Hitters (min 60 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Franklin Arias	BOS	98	100
2	Yeremi Cabrera	TEX	99	99
3	Robert Calaz	COL	100	99
4	Eric Bitonti	MIL	90	93
5	Eduardo Tait	PHI	98	91
6	Pablo Guerrero	TEX	88	88
7	Eduardo Quintero	LAD	82	87
8	Yoeilin Cespedes	BOS	83	86
9	Starlyn Caba	PHI	81	85
10	Javier Mogollon	CHW	86	84
11	Edgleen Perez	NYY	73	82
12	Engelth Urena	NYY	73	81
13	Brailer Guerrero	TBR	75	80
14	Welbyn Francisca	CLE	81	80
15	Felnin Celesten	SEA	74	79
16	Braylin Morel	TEX	84	79
17	Miguel Rodriguez	BAL	73	78
18	Dameury Pena	MIN	77	78
19	Aroon Escobar	PHI	69	77
20	Jhonny Severino	PIT	73	77
21	Yasser Mercedes	MIN	70	77
22	Luis Merejo	CLE	71	76
23	Jeremy Rodriguez	NYM	83	75
24	Carlos Tavares	WSN	69	73
25	Demetrio Crisantes	ARI	62	73

With a huge week where he smashed two home runs and stole nine(!) bases, Franklin Arias (Red Sox) now finds himself at the top of the Complex League Hitters list. RoboScout has liked Arias for a while–without even knowing that he is playing above-average defense at shortstop–because also under the hood, he is making discriminate swing decisions, making contact at a near 80% rate, and making solid quality of contact with an xwOBAcon higher even than that of org mate Roman Anthony (Red Sox). He’s one of my favorite breakouts this year and a Top 75 fantasy prospect with 20/20 potential and good bat-to-ball skills.

Converted Yankees catcher Engelth Urena is flying up the charts on account of his 185 wRC+ since June 3. An outfielder earlier in his career, Urena’s defense hasn’t quite caught up to the bat, although he lost significant development time from a broken hand and a knee injury the past two years. In 2024, however, the 19-year old Dominican has shown plus swing decisions and a plus contact rate all season with his quality of contact steadily improving as the season has worn on, showing 25+ home run power. Although the bat is solid, his fantasy value will likely hinge on whether he can stick at catcher because the profile is not quite in the vicinity of other first base or left field prospects.

Braves shortstop John Gil is another interesting name outside the top 25. He is showing an excellent blend of power and speed while playing  solid defense. Gil has really turned it on over the last six weeks, hitting all of three of his home runs and stealing 18 of his 26 bases over his last 122 plate appearances. Although the 18-year old is showing elite swing decisions, with average to above-average contact, the quality of contact lags the hit tool even though he has raised his 90th percentile exit velocity to 102.5 mph, 3 mph higher than in 2023. He’s an exciting but raw fantasy prospect who should be seeing full-season ball shortly. Put him on your watch list.

Complex League Pitchers (min 12 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Yordy Herrera	STL	100	100
2	Trevor Harrison	TBR	93	98
3	Christian Zazueta	LAD	87	91
4	Samuel Sanchez	LAD	92	91
5	Sean Linan	LAD	90	90
6	Ovis Portes	BOS	84	90
7	Hayden Robinson	MIL	93	89
8	Joseph Yabbour	NYM	82	89
9	Keyner Benitez	MIA	98	89
10	Jefferson Jean	OAK	86	88
11	Juan Valera	BOS	85	87
12	Jacob Bresnahan	CLE	92	87
13	Johan Simon	TOR	79	86
14	Jogly Garcia	CLE	82	86
15	Alix Hernandez	SFG	84	86
16	Adrian Herrera	CIN	81	85
17	Jesus Carrera	HOU	85	84
18	Sandy Ozuna	COL	89	84
19	Zander Mueth	PIT	77	83
20	Rafael Gonzalez	HOU	79	83
21	Nelfy Ynfante	STL	90	82
22	Jordarlin Mendoza	NYY	76	82
23	Luis Reyes	CHW	84	82
24	Luis Morellis	CIN	85	82
25	Enniel Cortez	MIL	85	81

Jefferson Jean (Athletics) enters the top 10 this week with a 41% strikeout rate—the second-highest mark for anyone averaging more than two innings per appearance. The bad news is that it comes with a 16.7% walk rate so he obviously needs to work on the control. The arsenal though is quite solid as the 19-year old righthander has a 95-97 mph fastball with over a foot of armside run, an 83 mph slider with two-plane break, and a show-me changeup that he needs to work on. If he can harness the command, he can jump up rankings.

Low-A Hitters (min 60 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Leodalis De Vries	SDP	100	100
2	Michael Arroyo	SEA	92	98
3	Axiel Plaz	PIT	97	97
4	Colt Emerson	SEA	87	95
5	Aidan Smith	SEA	89	95
6	Lazaro Montes	SEA	98	94
7	Blake Mitchell	KCR	84	93
8	Kevin McGonigle	DET	83	90
9	Jonny Farmelo	SEA	78	88
10	Demetrio Crisantes	ARI	75	87
11	Josue De Paula	LAD	73	86
12	Jeral Perez	LAD	75	85
13	Ralphy Velazquez	CLE	77	83
14	Jaison Chourio	CLE	74	83
15	Walker Jenkins	MIN	70	82
16	Zyhir Hope	LAD	67	81
17	Jesus Baez	NYM	76	81
18	Alfredo Duno	CIN	74	81
19	George Wolkow	CHW	81	80
20	Rosman Verdugo	SDP	73	78
21	Arjun Nimmala	TOR	74	78
22	Logan Wagner	LAD	63	78
23	Yophery Rodriguez	MIL	78	77
24	Angel Genao	CLE	65	76
25	Bryce Eldridge	SFG	66	76

We have a new top hitter in Low-A. Preseason favorite Leodalis De Vries (Padres) has been on a tear with six home runs, eight stolen bases and a 120 wRC+ since June 3 as the youngest hitter in the league. De Vries has a xwOBAcon over .400 with league-average contact and chase rates. No wonder RoboScout is infatuated.

If you’re interested in power, look no further than White Sox outfielder George Wolkow. He has eight home runs since his promotion to full-season ball on June 4. The 6-foot-7 behemoth generates otherworldly power at 18 years old, evidenced by the 43.5% strikeout rate, but it comes at a cost. Under the hood, it might be even worse than the surface stats, as he has a sub-50% contact rate and a chase rate that is a standard deviation worse than league average. Right now, the immensity of the power supersedes the flaws in the profile–but the track record associated with this type of swing-and-miss is not great. Since 2006, essentially only Bobby Dalbec at age 22 in 2017 and Domingo Santana at age 17 in 2010 had strikeout rates near this level in Low-A–and they still struck out at “only” a 37% rate–and made it to the major leagues.

Low-A Pitchers (min 15 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Matt Wilkinson	CLE	100	100
2	Jonah Tong	NYM	91	95
3	Quinn Mathews	STL	85	94
4	Alejandro Rosario	TEX	84	93
5	Jarlin Susana	WSN	80	92
6	Santiago Suarez	TBR	79	90
7	Didier Fuentes	ATL	81	90
8	Grant Taylor	CHW	77	89
9	George Klassen	PHI	78	88
10	Travis Sykora	WSN	82	87
11	Eliazar Dishmey	MIA	73	86
12	Yujanyer Herrera	MIL	83	85
13	Sean Linan	LAD	84	84
14	Kohl Drake	TEX	82	82
15	Thomas White	MIA	72	82
16	Ovis Portes	BOS	70	81
17	Mavis Graves	PHI	85	80
18	Welinton Herrera	COL	69	79
19	Gary Gill Hill	TBR	78	79
20	Jace Kaminska	COL	74	79
21	Isaiah Lowe	SDP	67	79
22	Noble Meyer	MIA	67	78
23	Jackson Nezuh	HOU	66	77
24	Jose Gonzalez	TEX	70	77
25	Alimber Santa	HOU	66	77

Since June 1, the highest swinging strike rate of starting pitchers in Low-A are Travis Sykora (Nationals), Tommy Vail (White Sox)–a 25 year old lefthander–and Jojo Ingrassia (Red Sox). Ingrassia, a 21-year old lefthander, has a 40% strikeout rate and the second highest swinging strike rate at the level behind only Jonah Tong (Mets) who is of course at High-A Brooklyn now.

Under the hood, Ingrassia has above-average extension from a low three-quarter slot, allowing his 93 mph four-seam fastball to play up and contributing to both his 83 mph slider and his above average-to-plus split finger to each generate whiff rates over 50%. He probably needs to clean up the mechanics as his release heights have a four-inch variance, which advanced hitters will probably pick up on, but for now, the 14th-round selection out of Cal-State Fullerton in 2023 has been showing all the traits of a potential midrotation starter. Note the Red Sox just placed him on the injured list with elbow inflammation. He’s a deep league watchlist candidate until we learn more about the injury.

Since we’re on the topic of lefties for Low-A Salem with a low release slot and big extension, Noah Dean (Red Sox) and his five-pitch mix grades out with even better stuff than Ingrassia. Since June 3, both pitchers have strikeout rates over 39% and ground ball rates over 52%, but Dean has a 10% walk rate (compared to Ingrassia’s 7%) and is also two years older, slightly diminishing his peak projection. If the fifth-round draft pick of 2022 out of Old Dominion can get the walk rate into the single digits, he has a chance to be a back of the rotation starter, or, failing that, should be an effective weapon out of the bullpen.

High-A Hitters (min 60 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Michael Arroyo	SEA	96	100
2	Luke Keaschall	MIN	90	97
3	Lazaro Montes	SEA	100	95
4	Luke Adams	MIL	88	94
5	Sal Stewart	CIN	83	91
6	Xavier Isaac	TBR	87	90
7	Carter Jensen	KCR	84	89
8	Sebastian Walcott	TEX	88	87
9	Alex Freeland	LAD	75	85
10	Samuel Zavala	CHW	80	84
11	Brayden Taylor	TBR	77	82
12	William Bergolla	PHI	79	81
13	Henry Bolte	OAK	74	80
14	Ricardo Olivar	MIN	69	79
15	Cooper Ingle	CLE	69	79
16	Cutter Coffey	BOS	73	79
17	C.J. Kayfus	CLE	68	78
18	Jhostynxon Garcia	BOS	68	78
19	Charles McAdoo	PIT	68	78
20	Jefferson Rojas	CHC	71	78
21	Yohendrick Pinango	CHC	70	77
22	Angel Genao	CLE	69	76
23	Kristian Campbell	BOS	63	76
24	Jesus Rodriguez	NYY	67	75
25	Cam Collier	CIN	74	75

Since June 3, only Jhostynxon Garcia (Red Sox) and Nick Cimillo (Pirates) have hit more home runs than Allan Castro‘s (Red Sox) nine. Castro, a 21-year old outfielder signed out of the Dominican Republic, has taken a step forward in actualizing his game power, raising his 90th percentile exit velocity from 103.4 mph to just under 106 mph in 2024.

He always had good raw power–he had a 115 maximum exit velocity in 2023 and has registered a 111 mph this year–and coupled with his league average or better contact rate and chase rates, he finds himself just outside the top 25 after putting up the ninth-highest wRC+ in Low-A since June 3 for hitters with more than 100 plate appearances. RoboScout sees him as a slightly below-average hitter in the major leagues but capable of 20 to 25 home run seasons–though if he is only a fourth outfielder, he might never get the playing time to reach that ceiling.

Luke Adams (Brewers) has quietly put up an excellent year at High-A with nine home runs, 21 stolen bases and a 154 wRC+ over 312 plate appearances as a just-turned 20-year old. Playing mostly third base–but likely having to move across the diamond to first base–Adams has shown excellent on-base ability with better-than-league-average contact and chase rates and an excellent 106 mph 90th percentile exit velocity. Unfortunately, he hasn’t optimized his launch angles. Adams has the league’s 91st percentile for exit velocity, but his barrel rate and xwOBAcon are barely league average. Still, on account of his surface stats, RoboScout sees his peak MLB projection to be similar to Luke Keaschall (Twins)— with fairly similar underlying metrics as well. Purely from the data, he is a solid top 50 to 75 fantasy prospect.

High-A Pitchers (min 15 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Noah Schultz	CHW	87	100
2	Matt Wilkinson	CLE	100	100
3	Quinn Mathews	STL	90	98
4	Luis Perales	BOS	85	98
5	Owen Murphy	ATL	88	97
6	Chase Dollander	COL	86	97
7	Zebby Matthews	MIN	80	92
8	K.C. Hunt	MIL	89	90
9	George Klassen	PHI	79	88
10	Jonah Tong	NYM	85	88
11	Kohl Drake	TEX	87	86
12	Thomas White	MIA	76	85
13	Jedixson Paez	BOS	92	84
14	Jaden Hamm	DET	83	84
15	Winston Santos	TEX	73	83
16	Alessandro Ercolani	PIT	69	82
17	Moises Chace	BAL	68	81
18	Brandyn Garcia	SEA	69	81
19	Edgar Portes	BAL	68	80
20	Sean Sullivan	COL	84	80
21	Austin Peterson	CLE	76	79
22	Lazaro Estrada	TOR	66	79
23	Nolan McLean	NYM	66	79
24	Ben Shields	NYY	72	78
25	Owen Wild	TBR	73	78

There has been very little movement in the High-A ranks since last week so instead I’ll mention again how Jedixson Paez (Red Sox) is proving to be a difficult evaluation for RoboScout. On the surface, there has not been a hotter pitcher since June 1. Paez has a 42% strikeout rate and a 4% walk rate over his six starts during that time, averaging nearly five innings per outing. The 38% strikeout minus walk rate is nearly 6% more than the starting pitcher with the second highest mark: Ben Shields (Yankees) with a 33% mark.

The difficulty is that similar to Matt Wilkinson (Guardians) and Yu-Min Lin (Diamondback), the surface stats are excellent but the arsenal doesn’t wow. However, what he lacks in arm speed—his fastballs sit 90 to 92 mph and his slider is 81 mph—he makes up for with big horizontal movement paired with well above average extension. He has an extremely fun pitching profile–and, from the data, a top 150 fantasy prospect in RoboScout’s opinion.

Double-A Hitters (min 60 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Emmanuel Rodriguez	MIN	100	100
2	Agustin Ramirez	NYY	89	90
3	Luke Keaschall	MIN	85	89
4	Moises Ballesteros	CHC	88	88
5	Ryan Clifford	NYM	85	85
6	Matthew Lugo	BOS	79	84
7	Carson Williams	TBR	83	82
8	Cole Young	SEA	81	81
9	Deyvison De Los Santos	ARI	82	80
10	Roman Anthony	BOS	77	80
11	Alex Freeland	LAD	74	80
12	Hao-Yu Lee	DET	79	80
13	C.J. Kayfus	CLE	75	79
14	Kristian Campbell	BOS	72	79
15	Edgar Quero	CHW	75	78
16	Jacob Wilson	OAK	67	75
17	Marcelo Mayer	BOS	71	75
18	Colby Thomas	OAK	70	75
19	Charles McAdoo	PIT	70	74
20	Samuel Basallo	BAL	80	73
21	Tyler Locklear	SEA	66	73
22	Harry Ford	SEA	70	72
23	James Triantos	CHC	70	71
24	Alejandro Osuna	TEX	65	70
25	Kahlil Watson	CLE	66	68

Will you look at that? Kahlil Watson (Guardians) cracks the top 25 at Double-A for the first time all season as he attempts to rehabilitate his prospect pedigree. On the season, the 21-year old has 13 home runs and 10 stolen bases with a 108 wRC+. He has done most of his damage over the last six weeks with seven homers in his last 103 plate appearances. His power is unquestioned—he has a 104.7 mph 90th percentile exit velocity—but there have always been concerns with the swing-and-miss. He is sporting a 30% strikeout rate with a 69% contact rate, which places him in the same contact vs 90thEV cluster as Ryan Clifford (Mets), Carson Williams (Rays) and Joe Mack (Marlins). If you like their prospect profile–though with slightly lower defensive value–he is a shorter step down to them than you would have thought, even a month ago.

Double-A Pitchers (min 15 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Noah Schultz	CHW	100	100
2	Zebby Matthews	MIN	97	97
3	Bubba Chandler	PIT	87	89
4	Jackson Jobe	DET	85	88
5	Logan Henderson	MIL	90	86
6	Braxton Ashcraft	PIT	87	84
7	Jacob Misiorowski	MIL	80	84
8	Tink Hence	STL	92	83
9	Thomas Harrington	PIT	83	80
10	Quinn Mathews	STL	80	80
11	Chandler Champlain	KCR	92	79
12	Ben Casparius	LAD	77	79
13	Blade Tidwell	NYM	75	79
14	Austin Peterson	CLE	83	78
15	Carson Palmquist	COL	81	78
16	Troy Melton	DET	75	77
17	Nolan McLean	NYM	73	77
18	Emiliano Teodo	TEX	78	77
19	Zach Penrod	BOS	84	76
20	Yilber Diaz	ARI	80	76
21	Kyle McGowin	CHC	78	76
22	Caden Dana	LAA	79	75
23	Brandon Young	BAL	85	75
24	Mason Adams	CHW	84	74
25	Tyler Stuart	NYM	75	74

Last year, Alex Pham (Orioles) put himself on the map with a solid 13.3 K/9 at High-A Aberdeen and earning the promotion to Double-A Bowie where he pitched 60 innings with a strikeout minus walk rate of 16%. Repeating the level in 2024, he has a strikeout minus walk rate of 20%. He has really dominated over the last six weeks with a 26% mark.

His four-seam fastball sat 91.9 mph topping out at 93 mph with a 20 inches of IVB last year. This year, he’s getting even more ride at 21 inches–the fifth-highest induced vertical break in full-season ball–while now sitting 92.4 mph and topping out at 96 mph. He threw both a slider and a cutter last year–in addition to a curveball with heavy downward action–but this year he is leaning much more on the cutter which sits 86 mph and generates over 40% whiffs. Don’t be fooled by the superficial 5.38 ERA – his xFIP on the season is 3.42, which is lower than Hayden Birdsong (Giants) who was called up to San Francisco earlier this year. All in all, it’s a back of the rotation mix. He should begin accumulating innings for Triple-A Norfolk by August if he isn’t packaged in a trade the next few days.

Noah Schultz (White Sox) looked human at the Futures Game and RoboScout is wondering if fatigue is beginning to set in, as the lefthander has only struck out 23% of batters in his last five starts after having a 38% rate in High-A. On June 3rd, his slider sat 82.8 mph with 13.1 inches of glove-side run with a spin rate of 2895 rpm. Since then, his slider has sat 82.5 mph with 11.7 inches of horizontal run—nearly fewer 1.5 inches—with a spin rate around 185 rpm lower and released from a height that is one inch lower. Hopefully this is not portending an issue—and is something to watch for over the next few weeks. RoboScout has digital digits crossed on behalf of the second highest ranked minor league pitcher for 2024, behind only Paul Skenes.

Triple-A Hitters (min 60 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	James Wood	WSN	100	100
2	Jackson Holliday	BAL	98	97
3	Coby Mayo	BAL	89	94
4	Jose Fermin	STL	81	89
5	Kyle Manzardo	CLE	80	86
6	Miguel Vargas	LAD	78	86
7	Andy Pages	LAD	74	82
8	Adrian Del Castillo	ARI	73	82
9	Agustin Ramirez	NYY	78	82
10	Jacob Wilson	OAK	70	79
11	Moises Ballesteros	CHC	76	78
12	Matthew Lugo	BOS	70	77
13	Niko Kavadas	BOS	65	76
14	Deyvison De Los Santos	ARI	80	76
15	Angel Martinez	CLE	75	75
16	Luis Matos	SFG	66	75
17	Jonatan Clase	SEA	71	75
18	Shay Whitcomb	HOU	73	75
19	Jordan Beck	COL	64	75
20	Chase Meidroth	BOS	66	74
21	Jace Jung	DET	70	73
22	Joey Loperfido	HOU	64	73
23	Orelvis Martinez	TOR	70	72
24	Heliot Ramos	SFG	62	72
25	Johnathan Rodriguez	CLE	64	72

Although his brief 40 plate appearance major league debut didn’t go as planned–with a 63 wRC+ with no home runs–Johnathan Rodriguez (Guardians) has once again mashed since returning to Triple-A, with a 157 wRC+ and nine home runs in his 120 plate appearances since returning to Columbus. The slugger makes good swing decisions and has tremendous bat speed, projecting as a 25 home run bat in the major leagues. If you like his org mate and prospect “doppelbanger” Jhonkensy Noel, you should probably like Rodriguez just as much—even accounting for the fact that Noel is two years younger—because of the fact that he chases significantly less out of the zone than Noel.

Triple-A Pitchers (min 15 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Paul Skenes	PIT	100	100
2	Christian Scott	NYM	91	92
3	David Festa	MIN	88	81
4	Jack Leiter	TEX	76	79
5	Tylor Megill	NYM	80	79
6	Chayce McDermott	BAL	77	78
7	Will Warren	NYY	75	77
8	Carson Spiers	CIN	75	77
9	Cade Povich	BAL	86	77
10	Tobias Myers	MIL	73	77
11	Slade Cecconi	ARI	82	76
12	Yilber Diaz	ARI	79	76
13	Chad Patrick	MIL	76	76
14	Elieser Hernandez	LAD	73	75
15	Braxton Ashcraft	PIT	75	75
16	Alek Manoah	TOR	75	73
17	Quinn Priester	PIT	84	72
18	Cristian Mena	ARI	79	72
19	Louie Varland	MIN	72	71
20	Albert Suarez	BAL	75	71
21	Reid Detmers	LAA	84	71
22	Matt Manning	DET	67	71
23	AJ Smith-Shawver	ATL	69	70
24	Jake Woodford	PIT	72	69
25	Josh Winckowski	BOS	68	68

For fantasy managers who are desperate for starting pitching in redraft or in their dynasty league this year–Allan Winans (Braves) has been pitching quite well since June 1 with 42 strikeouts and only four walks in his last 41.1 innings. His 22.8% strikeout minus walk rate over that span is the seventh-highest among starting pitchers, behind such names as Shane Baz (Rays), Jeffrey Springs (Rays), David Festa (Twins), and Will Warren (Yankees). The stuff is still below-average, but the craftiness of his changeup-forward approach – his cambio gets whiffs and chases at a greater than 40% rate–might provide some reasonably cheap fantasy value if he returns to the Atlanta rotation, for example, to “control” Reynaldo Lopez’s workload through the dog days of summer.

Happy bidding!

Dominican Summer League Hitters (min 25 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Juneiker Caceres	CLE	99	100
2	Jesus Made	MIL	92	96
3	Jose Anderson	MIL	100	93
4	Eduardo Beltre	MIN	83	91
5	Elvin Garcia	BAL	82	90
6	Luis Pena	MIL	86	89
7	Gabriel Rodriguez	CLE	86	89
8	Yolfran Castillo	TEX	84	88
9	Jirvin Morillo	CIN	81	87
10	Edward Florentino	PIT	75	85
11	Jaset Martinez	CIN	76	84
12	Justin Gonzales	BOS	72	84
13	Emil Morales	LAD	85	83
14	Adriander Mejia	BAL	71	83
15	Queni Pineda	NYY	70	82
16	Jhonayker Ugarte	KCR	77	81
17	Diorland Zambrano	CIN	66	80
18	Yeiferth Castillo	CLE	63	78
19	Rafael Flores	TOR	66	78
20	Euri Rosa	LAD	71	78

In a reversal of “AI is coming for our jobs”, Ben Badler delivered his latest article of players in the DSL generating buzz, essentially rendering RoboScout irrelevant this week. If you haven’t read it, do yourself a favor. 

Elvin Garcia (Orioles) has entered into the top tier of targets. Although his performance is already sufficient to have him in the conversation of dynasty targets, when you add in that he plays a solid shortstop with a high baseball IQ and athleticism, he becomes a must-bid. Garcia also has a plus contact rate, plus chase rate and a preternatural knack for barreling all pitch types. This includes five barrels against breaking pitches. This is not clear when merely scouting the statline, but RoboScout folds it into the grade.

Congratulations also to Yolfran Castillo (Rangers). He was brought stateside and is now in the Complex League. 

Complex League Hitters (min 55 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Yeremi Cabrera	TEX	100	100
2	Eduardo Tait	PHI	93	99
3	Robert Calaz	COL	92	99
4	Eric Bitonti	MIL	84	97
5	Eduardo Quintero	LAD	81	94
6	Franklin Arias	BOS	78	91
7	Edgleen Perez	NYY	75	91
8	Starlyn Caba	PHI	78	91
9	Yoeilin Cespedes	BOS	81	91
10	Dameury Pena	MIN	77	87
11	Jhonny Severino	PIT	73	87
12	Brailer Guerrero	TBR	73	86
13	Luis Parababire	ATL	72	86
14	Welbyn Francisca	CLE	71	85
15	Andruw Musett	BOS	67	84
16	Felnin Celesten	SEA	72	84
17	Miguel Rodriguez	BAL	69	83
18	Pablo Guerrero	TEX	85	82
19	Joshua Liranzo	BAL	72	82
20	Aroon Escobar	PHI	67	81
21	Carlos Tavares	WSN	68	81
22	Franyerber Montilla	DET	67	80
23	Jeremy Rodriguez	NYM	77	78
24	Abrahan Ramirez	NYY	64	78
25	Alexander Albertus	LAD	63	78

After missing the first bit of the season, Joshua Liranzo (Orioles) has only recently debuted stateside and only now has qualified for the Complex Level hitting list, debuting in the Top 20. Considering he has already hit two balls over 105 mph in his first week of playing—and is one of the youngest hitters in the Complex League—RoboScout is extremely excited, and that’s without even knowing that he is the younger brother of Thayron Liranzo (Dodgers). Although a growth spurt has pushed him off shortstop, the younger Liranzo’s patient approach, solid bat-to-ball skills, and potential for high end exit velocities should be more than enough to play at a corner. The biggest concern right now is Liranzo’s average launch angle is currently negative, something already evident in the 51% groundball rate, but despite that he still has put up a league average barrel rate. It’s been fewer than 60 plate appearances but RoboScout is extremely excited about the young Oriole infielder’s ceiling – probably making him a Top 250 fantasy prospect already.

In 2022, the Brewers signed Jhonny Severino (Pirates) for $1.25 million but traded him to the Pirates for Carlos Santana a year ago. The report on Severino was that he had a fair bit of chase, but his average contact rate and above average exit velocities should be viable even if he moved off shortstop to the hot corner. So far in 2024, he has improved his contact rate by 7%, essentially raising it from average to plus, and improved his swing decisions from a 35 grade to a 45. Not only has he demonstrated that he has a strong underlying foundation, over his last 130 plate appearances he has a 146 wRC+, with a league leading nine home runs over that time, and seven stolen bases. He will no doubt be pushed to a corner. To my surprise, RoboScout projects him to have the second most home runs at peak of any hitter in the Complex Leagues behind only Yeremi Cabrera (Rangers).

Complex League Pitchers (min 12 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Trevor Harrison	TBR	95	100
2	Samuel Sanchez	LAD	96	96
3	Jacob Bresnahan	CLE	100	95
4	Christian Zazueta	LAD	89	94
5	Sean Linan	LAD	92	93
6	Ovis Portes	BOS	86	92
7	Hayden Robinson	MIL	95	92
8	Keyner Benitez	MIA	100	91
9	Joseph Yabbour	NYM	84	91
10	Rafael Gonzalez	HOU	86	91
11	Alix Hernandez	SFG	86	89
12	Nelfy Ynfante	STL	93	89
13	Yeferson Vargas	BOS	82	88
14	Adrian Herrera	CIN	82	87
15	Jesus Palacios	BAL	86	87
16	Jogly Garcia	CLE	82	87
17	Sandy Ozuna	COL	90	86
18	Luis Arestigueta	ATL	81	85
19	Adam Bates	BOS	79	85
20	Jesus Carrera	HOU	82	84
21	Juan Nunez	HOU	77	84
22	Jordarlin Mendoza	NYY	78	84
23	Zander Mueth	PIT	76	83
24	Jeremy Pilon	TBR	88	83
25	Luis Gonzalez	PHI	89	83

Moving up to just outside the top 15 is Sandy Ozuna (Rockies), an 18-year-old righthander with a 94 mph four seam fastball, an 83 mph bullet slider that gets above average whiffs and chases, and a show-me changeup. In 2023 in the DSL, Ozuna had a 14% walk rate, demonstrating his lack of command, however so far in his 22 innings at the complex, the 6-foot-3-inch has a 7% walk rate to go along with his 30% strikeout rate. The fastball, despite the velocity, doesn’t have the shape of modern four seamers but he has topped out at 97 mph and won’t turn 19 until next May, suggesting it will still be an effective pitch even if it remains a dead-zone shape.

Low-A Hitters (min 55 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Lazaro Montes	SEA	100	100
2	Colt Emerson	SEA	89	98
3	Michael Arroyo	SEA	94	98
4	Kevin McGonigle	DET	85	97
5	Blake Mitchell	KCR	86	96
6	Jonny Farmelo	SEA	79	91
7	Axiel Plaz	PIT	90	89
8	Ralphy Velazquez	CLE	79	89
9	Demetrio Crisantes	ARI	73	88
10	Josue De Paula	LAD	73	88
11	Aidan Smith	SEA	83	88
12	Jaison Chourio	CLE	74	87
13	Jesus Baez	NYM	76	87
14	Jeral Perez	LAD	74	86
15	Max Clark	DET	73	85
16	Leodalis De Vries	SDP	96	85
17	Walker Jenkins	MIN	68	84
18	Zyhir Hope	LAD	67	84
19	Angel Genao	CLE	66	81
20	Josue Briceno	DET	65	80
21	Logan Wagner	LAD	63	80
22	Aron Estrada	BAL	74	79
23	Yophery Rodriguez	MIL	74	79
24	Jordan Viars	PHI	69	78
25	Cooper Pratt	MIL	67	78

Over the last month, we’ve discussed Leandro Arias and Thomas Sosa (Orioles) as some noteworthy Low-A Delmarva hitters —but the hitter who has filled up the stat sheet the most in the last six weeks is their teammate Aron Estrada who has put up a 170 wRC+ with eight home runs and 14 stolen bases. With his poor chase rate, he doesn’t walk—getting a bit dinged in OBP leagues—and might get exploited as he progresses up the levels, but RoboScout projects him to be a league-average hitter with 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases at peak in the major leagues, without being a defensive liability. The statcast data slightly lags the surface stats, but RoboScout views him as a Top 200 fantasy prospect.

Before the season, Geoff identified Jancel Villarroel (Astros) as a prospect with outstanding exit velocities for his age as the then 18-year-old had a 102.8 mph 90th percentile exit velocity with a 108 mph maximum exit velocity. Well, in 2024, the still-teenager has seen his 90th percentile exit velocity rise to 106 mph, having hit already nine tracked balls over 105 mph, setting a new personal high maximum exit velocity of 111 mph in the process. Last week, I mentioned how the Astros target an archetype of hitter of plus or better exit velocities with contact and chase rates average or even slightly lower than average, and Villarroel definitely falls within that taxonomy. Although he is not quite in the Top 30 for the level—and has yet to hit a home run in full season ball—RoboScout has the teenager watch-listed, and will be particularly excited to see his power play in the cozy confines of High-A Asheville.

Low-A Pitchers (min 15 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Matt Wilkinson	CLE	100	100
2	Jonah Tong	NYM	91	95
3	Quinn Mathews	STL	85	94
4	Alejandro Rosario	TEX	84	93
5	Jarlin Susana	WSN	80	91
6	Santiago Suarez	TBR	79	90
7	Grant Taylor	CHW	76	89
8	Didier Fuentes	ATL	80	89
9	George Klassen	PHI	78	88
10	Eliazar Dishmey	MIA	73	86
11	Travis Sykora	WSN	81	85
12	Yujanyer Herrera	MIL	83	84
13	Sean Linan	LAD	85	84
14	Thomas White	MIA	71	81
15	Kohl Drake	TEX	81	81
16	Mavis Graves	PHI	86	81
17	Christian Zazueta	LAD	74	80
18	Gary Gill Hill	TBR	80	80
19	Welinton Herrera	COL	69	80
20	Ovis Portes	BOS	70	80
21	Tyler Gough	SEA	64	78
22	Adam Serwinowski	CIN	65	78
23	Noble Meyer	MIA	66	78
24	Alimber Santa	HOU	66	77
25	Isaiah Lowe	SDP	67	77

Last week we talked about the recent “heater” that Jarlin Susana (Nationals) was on and he got promptly promoted to High-A Wilmington where he can continue to hurl his triple-digit heat.

Another Nationals pitcher ascending the rankings is Travis Sykora who has struck out 38% of batters in his last seven starts while putting up the third-highest swinging strike rate in Low-A during that span. Sykora has a mid 90s four seam fastball, an 83 mph bullet slider that gets above average whiffs for the level, and an above average changeup. The command was the concern coming into the season but Sykora has kept the walk rate below 9% all season, never walking more than three in any game, with RoboScout giving him a good shot at becoming a mid-rotation starter.

Two pitchers who we mentioned in these pages when they were at the Complex League have now qualified for the Low-A rankings and both Ovis Portes (Red Sox) and Christian Zazueta (Dodgers) both find themselves in the Top 20. Despite the poor surface stats so far in full season ball, RoboScout still currently projects them to be back-of-the-rotation starters.

High-A Hitters (min 50 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Luke Keaschall	MIN	97	100
2	Xavier Isaac	TBR	97	95
3	Luke Adams	MIL	92	95
4	Sal Stewart	CIN	88	92
5	Carter Jensen	KCR	89	92
6	Samuel Zavala	CHW	89	92
7	Sebastian Walcott	TEX	100	90
8	Alex Freeland	LAD	81	87
9	William Bergolla	PHI	87	85
10	Brayden Taylor	TBR	83	84
11	Ricardo Olivar	MIN	77	83
12	Yohendrick Pinango	CHC	76	83
13	Angel Genao	CLE	76	81
14	Cutter Coffey	BOS	85	81
15	Jefferson Rojas	CHC	75	81
16	Cam Collier	CIN	81	81
17	Jadher Areinamo	MIL	83	80
18	Henry Bolte	OAK	80	79
19	Jesus Rodriguez	NYY	72	79
20	Charles McAdoo	PIT	73	79
21	C.J. Kayfus	CLE	73	78
22	Cooper Ingle	CLE	71	78
23	Leonardo Bernal	STL	76	77
24	Hector Rodriguez	CIN	70	77
25	Kristian Campbell	BOS	68	77

Jadher Areinamo (Brewers) had some early buzz in 2023 as a name to watch as a 19 year old in Low-A who finished second for the Carolina League batting title. Although this year’s statcast data is very similar to that which he generated last year, the 20-year-old middle infielder is currently on a tear, hitting six of his season’s seven home runs over the last six weeks. With his 27 stolen bases on the season—and his above average defense—Areinamo is showing potential to actualize as a utility infielder who could put up a solid power/speed blend but with slightly below average on base percentages.

In 2023, Cooper Ingle (Guardians) was taken in the fourth round, ultimately signing for $400,000. In his first full season as a professional, the High-A Lake County catcher has a 171 wRC+ with six home runs. With his league average swing decisions and plus contact rate, Ingle is a prototypical Guardian hitting prospect where thump is less of a priority than precocious bat-to-ball ability. Ingle has been particularly productive in the last six weeks, with five of his six home runs coming in his last 134 plate appearances, where he has also put up a scorching 201 wRC+, the second-highest mark by anyone with at least 80 plate appearances over that span.

High-A Pitchers (min 15 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Noah Schultz	CHW	88	100
2	Matt Wilkinson	CLE	100	100
3	Quinn Mathews	STL	90	98
4	Luis Perales	BOS	85	98
5	Owen Murphy	ATL	88	97
6	Chase Dollander	COL	84	95
7	Zebby Matthews	MIN	80	91
8	K.C. Hunt	MIL	87	88
9	George Klassen	PHI	78	88
10	Jonah Tong	NYM	84	87
11	Jaden Hamm	DET	84	86
12	Thomas White	MIA	76	85
13	Jedixson Paez	BOS	89	83
14	Winston Santos	TEX	73	83
15	Alessandro Ercolani	PIT	69	82
16	Brandyn Garcia	SEA	69	82
17	Edgar Portes	BAL	70	81
18	Sean Sullivan	COL	85	81
19	Lazaro Estrada	TOR	67	80
20	Ben Shields	NYY	72	79
21	Nolan McLean	NYM	66	78
22	Austin Peterson	CLE	76	78
23	Yujanyer Herrera	MIL	77	78
24	Jake Bloss	HOU	67	77
25	Jean Cabrera	PHI	72	77

The hottest pitcher in High-A over the last six weeks—and who is just outside the Top 15 on the season—is Brandyn Garcia (Mariners).  The 24-year-old southpaw predominantly throws a 94 mph two-seamer which has over a foot and a half of horizontal run—consequently eliciting weak contact and a ton of groundballs—and a plus 85 mph slider that generates plus whiffs and chases. He also throws a changeup but it needs refinement as he gets promoted to the upper levels. For now, the 11th-round draft pick from 2023 doesn’t seem to need a third pitch—but it will remain to be seen whether he will be able to convince RoboScout that he can transcend his destiny as a likely bullpen arm or spot starter, without one.

On May 19, Lucas Braun (Braves) had a 1.45 WHIP and a 6.35 ERA with an uncompelling strikeout minus rate of 15%. Since then, the 22-year right hander has made six starts across 36 innings, striking out 31% of batters while only walking 4% with a 1.08 WHIP and 2.75 ERA. In 2023 his fastball topped out at 94 mph but this year he’s registered velocities as high as 96 mph, playing up even further with his extension, while still maintaining his trademark control, to wit: his four-seam fastball, slider, and curveball each have a plus CSW% for that pitch-type. The 11th^–round 2023 draft pick has turned his season around after a slow start, going deep into games, looking more and more like a solid back-of-the-rotation starter with a chance for more if he can continue to develop even more velocity.

Congratulations to Jean Cabrera (Phillies) who checks in at No. 25 only to be promptly promoted to Double-A Reading where he can deploy his East/West three-pitch mix of a 94 mph fastball, 82 mph sweeper and effective changeup.

Double-A Hitters (min 55 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Emmanuel Rodriguez	MIN	100	100
2	Agustin Ramirez	NYY	88	91
3	Moises Ballesteros	CHC	88	90
4	Luke Keaschall	MIN	82	87
5	Roman Anthony	BOS	79	85
6	Carson Williams	TBR	87	84
7	Samuel Basallo	BAL	84	84
8	Hao-Yu Lee	DET	81	84
9	Matthew Lugo	BOS	79	83
10	Cole Young	SEA	81	83
11	Alex Freeland	LAD	75	81
12	James Triantos	CHC	73	80
13	Edgar Quero	CHW	75	79
14	Kristian Campbell	BOS	71	78
15	Ryan Clifford	NYM	79	77
16	Colby Thomas	OAK	70	75
17	C.J. Kayfus	CLE	72	75
18	Charles McAdoo	PIT	70	75
19	Jacob Wilson	OAK	67	75
20	Deyvison De Los Santos	ARI	83	74
21	Harry Ford	SEA	71	73
22	Marcelo Mayer	BOS	68	73
23	Tyler Locklear	SEA	66	72
24	Yohendrick Pinango	CHC	61	71
25	Dalton Rushing	LAD	59	70

Coming into 2024, we had Matt Shaw (Cubs) to be a power/speed blend, likely ending up at third base, but also potentially manning the hot corner for the parent club at some point during the season. Unfortunately, the 13th overall pick in the 2023 draft came out of the gate slowly, potentially putting in jeopardy the chance for him to debut in the major leagues this year. Well, in the last six weeks, the 22 year old has raked with a 154 wRC+, knocking seven bombs and stealing ten bases over his last 141 plate appearances, reinforcing RoboScout’s projection of a better-than-league average bat and potential for 20/20 seasons. There are still some flaws in his game – his defense has not been great in 2024 – and his exit velocities have not been as high as his numbers in 2023 would have predicted. Still, it’s been a solid season for the Cubs future infielder and he is currently just off the list at No. 27.

Congratulations to Edgar Quero (White Sox) who was promoted last week to Triple-A Charlotte. Regular readers of this space know that RoboScout is a big fan of the switch-hitting catcher, and projects him to be an above average bat with above average in-game power. In fantasy, that’s a boon for the catching position, and Quero is easily ranked in the Top 50 for fantasy accordingly.

In 2022, Rainer Nunez (Blue Jays) raised some eyebrows when he had a 140 wRC+ as a 21 year old. Unfortunately, he was unable to follow through on that promise, by being 30% worse than the average Double-A hitter. In 2024, Rainer’s bat has mounted a comeback: improving his 90^th percentile exit velocity from 105 mph to 109 mph – the eighth-highest mark in Double-A, paired with a better contact rate than Roman Anthony (Red Sox), Agustin Ramirez (Yankees) and Zach Dezenzo (Astros). He does have a fair bit of chase in his profile, and there’s little defensive value, but it’s been a nice recent bounce back with the bat for the Blue Jay first baseman.

Double-A Pitchers (min 15 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Noah Schultz	CHW	100	100
2	Zebby Matthews	MIN	98	97
3	Logan Henderson	MIL	93	89
4	Bubba Chandler	PIT	86	89
5	Braxton Ashcraft	PIT	87	84
6	Tink Hence	STL	91	84
7	Jackson Jobe	DET	79	83
8	Jacob Misiorowski	MIL	76	81
9	Chandler Champlain	KCR	92	81
10	Nolan McLean	NYM	76	79
11	Ben Casparius	LAD	76	79
12	Blade Tidwell	NYM	74	78
13	Thomas Harrington	PIT	77	77
14	Carson Palmquist	COL	78	77
15	Zach Penrod	BOS	83	76
16	Emiliano Teodo	TEX	78	76
17	Brandon Young	BAL	85	76
18	Yilber Diaz	ARI	80	76
19	Andrew Morris	MIN	82	75
20	Kyle McGowin	CHC	77	75
21	Troy Melton	DET	72	75
22	Justin Jarvis	NYM	74	75
23	Brandon Sproat	NYM	76	74
24	Justin Wrobleski	LAD	72	74
25	Mason Adams	CHW	83	74

In 85 innings in High-A, Austin Peterson (Guardians) has walked batters at a microscopic 1.9% rate. Although he has been in the back end of the High-A Top 25, RoboScout hasn’t been too enthused because of the fact that he is a bit older at 24-years old and his 91 mph doesn’t light up the internal “stuff” model. This attitude, however, is what led to Matt Wilkinson (Guardians) being initially dismissed this season and Zebby Matthews (Twins) himself was a victim to this robotic snobbism last year. Speaking of Zebby, since being promoted to Double-A Akron, Peterson has followed in Matthews’ footsteps by refusing to issue a free pass in his first 13 innings of work. It would behoove RoboScout to adjust his priors and concede that the ninth-round pick from the 2022 draft may not throw flames, but his ability to command his above average slider, curveball and change up are pointing to another Guardian pitching development success story – and what looks like a back-of-the-rotation innings eater.

Another pitcher who has eschewed walks in the summer, is Justin Jarvis (Mets) who has only allowed 3% of batters over his last 31 innings to reach base by way of a base on balls. With a 30% strikeout rate over that span, it seems that hitters have had trouble with his fastball/cutter mix – which, together, make up over 83% of the pitches he’s thrown. It’s a starter’s mix and he has shown good pitchability – but it might not be enough to get him much further than the back of a rotation.

Triple-A Hitters (min 55 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	James Wood	WSN	100	100
2	Coby Mayo	BAL	90	92
3	Jose Fermin	STL	87	92
4	Jackson Holliday	BAL	94	91
5	Kyle Manzardo	CLE	85	90
6	Agustin Ramirez	NYY	81	85
7	Miguel Vargas	LAD	78	83
8	Moises Ballesteros	CHC	76	79
9	Adrian Del Castillo	ARI	72	79
10	Andy Pages	LAD	74	78
11	Javier Sanoja	MIA	73	78
12	Angel Martinez	CLE	75	77
13	Jacob Wilson	OAK	70	77
14	Matthew Lugo	BOS	70	75
15	Tyler Black	MIL	70	75
16	Jonatan Clase	SEA	73	75
17	Luis Matos	SFG	66	75
18	Chase Meidroth	BOS	68	75
19	Heston Kjerstad	BAL	69	74
20	Shay Whitcomb	HOU	76	72
21	Johnathan Rodriguez	CLE	65	72
22	Parker Meadows	DET	67	71
23	Heliot Ramos	SFG	62	71
24	Jhonkensy Noel	CLE	78	71
25	Jordan Beck	COL	64	71

With Orlando Arcia struggling with a sub-60 wRC+, it wouldn’t surprise RoboScout if Nacho Alvarez Jr. (Braves) called up to the parent club. In fewer than 100 plate appearances, the 21 year old has five home runs, three stolen bases and has put up a 162 wRC+. RoboScout loves the swing decisions and contact rate for someone so young and projects 15 to 20 home runs and 10 to 15 stolen bases at peak. He is not only fantasy relevant in re-draft leagues – but sure to be a highly-sought-after commodity in dynasty leagues this off-season.

Triple-A Pitchers (min 15 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Paul Skenes	PIT	100	100
2	Christian Scott	NYM	91	92
3	David Festa	MIN	91	84
4	Will Warren	NYY	78	80
5	Jack Leiter	TEX	76	79
6	Chayce McDermott	BAL	79	79
7	Cade Povich	BAL	88	79
8	Carson Spiers	CIN	75	77
9	Tobias Myers	MIL	73	77
10	Slade Cecconi	ARI	82	76
11	Yilber Diaz	ARI	80	76
12	Chad Patrick	MIL	75	75
13	Elieser Hernandez	LAD	73	75
14	Braxton Ashcraft	PIT	75	75
15	Matt Manning	DET	72	74
16	Alek Manoah	TOR	75	73
17	Cristian Mena	ARI	80	72
18	Quinn Priester	PIT	84	72
19	Reid Detmers	LAA	86	71
20	Albert Suarez	BAL	75	71
21	Brandon Young	BAL	78	71
22	Louie Varland	MIN	71	70
23	AJ Smith-Shawver	ATL	69	70
24	Jake Woodford	PIT	71	68
25	Osvaldo Bido	OAK	71	68

Throughout the season, he has been a mainstay in the back of the Triple-A pitcher rankings, but Cristian Mena (Diamondbacks) made his major league debut last week before being immediately returned to Reno. The season numbers don’t wow you – 24% strikeout rate and a 10% walk rate with a 1.49 WHIP and 4.90 ERA over 92 innings – but there are a number of things that need to be acknowledged. First of all, he’s only 21 years old. Secondly, Reno is a hitter’s park where runs are created at an 8% higher rate than at other Pacific Coast League parks, leading to inflated surface stats. Thirdly, over his last 37 innings, Mena has been his most effective, striking out 26% of the batters he’s faced while walking fewer than 9%. That 17% strikeout minus walk rate would be the highest mark for a Triple-A Diamondbacks pitcher who is 22 years old or younger since Trevor Bauer and Patrick Corbin both achieved it in 2012. When you consider that Slade Cecconi in 2023 had a 16% strikeout minus walk rate in 2023 but was three years older than Mena is, it shouldn’t surprise you that RoboScout believes Mena to be a mid-rotation starter with a sub 4.00 ERA in his peak years.

After striking out 11 batters in five innings on Saturday, Will Warren (Yankees) skyrockets up the Triple-A rankings to No. 4, more a testament to the volatility inherent to the relative talent level of pitchers at the level. We talked a few weeks ago about the changes to Warren’s slider shape and how there were some hints that he had begun to rebound from his poor start to the season. It definitely seems like he is reclaiming his high pedigree status that he had coming into 2024.

Happy bidding!