We’ve reached the point of the season when prospect call-ups won’t expend their rookie status due to time spent on the roster. It’s still technically possible for such players to pass the plate appearance or innings pitched thresholds.
In any event, this marks an opportunity for teams to offer their young players time to acclimate in the Majors ahead of a Rookie of the Year bid in 2024. We saw similar with Corbin Carroll and Gunnar Henderson last season. Let’s cover a few such players along with others on the ascent.
Five Big Hype Prospects
Nolan Schanuel, 21, 1B, LAA (MLB)
14 PA, .250/.357/.250
Schanuel was summoned by a desperate Angels club to cover for the absence of C.J. Cron. The 2023 draftee has over twice as many walks as strikeouts in limited professional action. In a perfect world, he likely would have spent more time in the minors working on achieving higher-quality contact. There isn’t a spot on the Angels roster for both Cron and Schanuel. In other words, we can expect Schanuel to return to the minors if and when Cron recovers from his lower-back tightness. Until then, we’ll see if Schanuel can learn to complement his discipline and feel for contact with better lift and exit velocities.
Masyn Winn, 21, SS, STL (MLB)
(AAA) 498 PA, 18 HR, 17 SB, .288/.359/.474
A high-probability league-average shortstop with upside for more, Winn is now 11 plate appearances into his Major League career. The well-rounded shortstop makes up for a lack of carrying traits (besides his impressive throwing arm) with an equal lack of weaknesses. There’s only one knock against him: merely adequate exit velocities. Adequacy is hardly damning praise. For a 21-year-old to possess his skills and traits means he has countless ways to take the next step from acceptability to stardom. He could do it on defense, through feel for contact, burgeoning power, speed on the basepaths, or a little bit of everything.
Noelvi Marte, 21, 3B, CIN (MLB)
(AA/AAA) 389 PA, 11 HR, 18 SB, .281/.360/.460
Marte was one of the first prospects covered by this column last season. I noted a slight souring among evaluators who were beginning to see him as more of a core performer than a future star. His performance this season remains prime for disagreement. The surface level stats are good-not-great, and his peripherals are a mixed bag. He’s a tad prone to swinging strikes. Even so, he avoids strikeouts while showing plus discipline. He also produces exciting top-end exit velocities for a 21-year-old. Some scouts think he’s close to physically maxed out. Others see room for further growth.
Broad strokes, the outlook is similar to Winn albeit from a lesser defensive position. There are so many ways for Marte to find his way to star-caliber production. The floor resembles a Major League core performer.
Kyle Harrison, 22, SP, SFG (MLB)
(AAA) 65.2 IP, 14.39 K/9, 6.58 BB/9, 4.66 ERA
Harrison makes for one of the toughest evals in the minors. He has a feel for missing bats along with the repertoire of a high-ceilinged starting pitcher. He also happens to struggle with command and control. Of his 21 starts, Harrison reached five innings exactly once. He never faced 20 or more batters. The relief risk is ooey-gooey tangible, but the Giants have every incentive to give him more time in the rotation. Presently, Harrison is expected to join a unit consisting of Logan Webb and a handful of struggling veterans like Alex Cobb, Alex Wood, Sean Manaea, and Jakob Junis. The Giants will be playing bullpen games from here through the end of the season.
Ethan Salas, 17, C, SDP (AA)
(A/A+) 257 PA, 9 HR, 5 SB, .257/.335/.447
At the tender age of 17 years, 2 months, and 20 days, Salas finds himself in Double-A. This latest promotion is virtually unprecedented, made all the more so because Salas hit just .200/.243/.229 in 37 High-A plate appearances. It doesn’t require an active imagination to wonder what else is going on here. Perhaps the Padres Double-A affiliate has a desirable instructor or facilities. Maybe, like a baby bird, he imprinted on one of the other players the Padres promoted to Double-A yesterday. Could a long-term contract be in the offing?
In any event, Salas is now the youngest player to grace Double-A in recent memory. He’s considered a precocious receiver with the potential to become a quality hitter too.
Three More
Carson Williams, TBR (20): The Rays promoted Williams from High-A straight to Triple-A. The move allows for Junior Caminero’s (Double-A) development to remain unaffected. Williams is 1-for-13 with two walks and six strikeouts. He’s running a 22.2 percent swinging strike rate with poor exit velocities. Note the tiny sample.
Samuel Zavala, SDP (18): Though not quite on the Salas-track, Zavala earned a promotion to High-A yesterday after hitting .267/.420/.451 with 14 home runs and 20 steals in 459 Low-A plate appearances. He has issues adjusting to pitches in certain parts of the strike zone, especially up-and-away.
Paul Skenes, PIT (21): Earlier today, the Pirates announced Skenes would join the Double-A club, skipping High-A in the process. Whether this move is in preparation for a 2023 or 2024 debut, it won’t be long before we see Skenes grace a big league mound.
Did I miss a detail or nuance? DM me on Twitter @BaseballATeam to suggest corrections.
In my opinion, Skenes is going to be an Ace. It’s just a matter of time.
Lol, I’d venture it was the Pirates opinion too.
The NEW WAVE for the Friars. Their Scouts Keep Finding Gems.
Anyone else sick of hearing about the can’t-miss Padres future superstars?
A.J. Preller has been with the Padres for 9 years now. He had a rep as a very good farm system director with the Rangers before the Padres hired him. He’s been the darling of people that track MLB prospects, he seems to be in-line with the things the prospect journalists look for in a player.
In the 9 years he’s produced one so-called superstar – Fernando Tatis, Jr. – a player he traded for. Unfortunately Mr. Tatis, Jr. came with oodles of natural talent along with an incredibly low Baseball IQ and an out of control ego. That resulted in: 1) Him running himself into needless injuries doing his hot-dogging act, which have resulted in him new being regarded as an inconsistent above-average MLB position player that might not be worth the trouble – trying to stay out of Yasiel Puig territory; and 2) Exposing Mr. Preller’s organizational skills as a being a glorified farm director as none of the players he’s kept or traded have hit anything resembling star status for any length of time (many have become decent MLB players – almost all of whom were developed by other organizations).
Fact is that Mr.. Preller inherited Trea Turner in the Padres farm system, and foolishly traded him away for far less then he was worth…because no other GM in MLB at the time figured he would trade a prospect like that for so little – so no one other than Mike Rizzo even prepared a trade offer. And in spite of his current troubles, Mr. Turner has produce more than any Preller Padres prospect.
Not wishing young Mr. Salas bad fortune, but at the same time, I’ll “believe it when I see it”. Mr. Preller’s track record is mostly sizzle and little steak.
Well maybe they are not all elite but there have been some all stars (France, Clase, Bednar, etc.) and solid major league players (Quantrill, Naylor, Munoz, Efflin, etc.). Preller gets a bad rap for trading away talent but then there are others that say his prospects don’t do much. So which is it? If his prospects don’t develop, then it’s good he sells high by trading them for majors talent. But others are saying he trades away too much talent, then they don’t give him credit for developing them. I’d say it’s a bit more in the middle – sure, he got rid of Trea Turner 10 years ago but is that much different than the Dodgers trading Yordan Alvarez or the Pirates trading Glasnow. There is definitely risk when trading young talent.
@samuel I think it’s fair to believe it when you see it, but of course every player is different. Considering he just turned 17 (so we’re told 😉 ) and is already in AA, one has to think he is going to be a special talent. You have some valid points though i’m not sure it’s all on Preller. Considering the amount of money he has been allowed to spend during his tenure resulting in very limited success, I wonder how much longer he will be employed in SD. Zero 1st place and two 2nd place finishes.
It’d be hard to say that pads prospects haven’t been consistently overrated. The majority that have been developed didn’t finish the development out in San Diego. There’s been a ton of flops too considering all the spects he’s dealt over the years.
Salas’ promotion looks way too aggressive. I prefer to see guys master a level before getting bumped.
They certainly aren’t as bad as the Angels who are so desperate to be good now that they bump guys up after absolutely no time at all. That has to be one of the worst places to be drafted into at this point.
Some inconvenient facts. Of ALL top 100 prospects, less than 20% ever become a league average player and 3% ever become an All Star level player.
The Padres are running about average or a little above.
Baseball is a business. The Padres have 2 playoff appearances in the last 3 years, a sold out stadium nearly every night, and increased revenue even though the RSN that broadcasts them went belly up. Preller’s job is safe.
Bob Melvin? That’s a different story.
“Maybe, like a baby bird, he imprinted on one of the other players the Padres promoted to Double-A yesterday.”
Yes this was a sentence in the article. I hope I wasn’t the only one to say WTF.
You weren’t.
Even my dog tilted his head to the side.
Ruh-roh!
Minasian must be massaging himself with oil thinking how smart he is! The thing is the Angels’ prospect system still ranks 27-30th. partially because of him!
Minassian inherited a team in the bottom five of the minor league system and hasn’t improved it,so I wouldn’t necessarily say partially because of him. Give him another two years and I bet it’ll be better.
The Angels minor league system would rank higher if Minasian wasn’t forced to bring up his top talent due to injuries. Imagine if Neto, O’Hoppe, Silseth, Bachman, Joyce and Schnauel were still in AA or AAA.
I do wonder where the Angels’ farm system would rank if they didn’t rush up their top prospects (i.e., O’Hoppe, Neto, Schanuel, Bachman, Silseth). Would they be ranked 18-20?
That speaks to the depth he doesn’t have though. Pulling guys up after a few good weeks at a level. Skipping multiple levels and AAA entirely. Haven’t seen any other team promote guys in this way.
I feel like he’s been hamstrung from up top to get college guys, who are close, because they were so desperate to compete w/ Ohtani and Trout.
With 4 top 100 prospects, likely 12th to 14th.
The Angels have shown incredible depth. They trail only the Dodgers in # of players on the IL this season at 25 different players and total player days on the IL at 1624.
Basically they have turned over the entire roster due to injuries. Currently they have 17 players on the IL including 12 on the 60-day IL and 8 that are not expected to return in 2023. Not many teams have the depth to do that.
Thats the most impressive positive spin from a non-Angels fan I’ve ever read.. although its basically true in the sense the team’s best players are almost entirely on the IL, but the fact is that their depth isn’t really that great when you have players like Velazquez, Rengifo, Loup, Barria. Granted, Loup wasn’t supposed to be this bad.
To start the season the Angels depth was Drury, Urshela, Rengifo, and Thaiss, none of which were expected to start.
On the pitching side that was Barria, Silseth, Davidson, Lopez, Bachman, Rodriguez, and Joyce. None of which were expected to see a great amount of playing time.
A roster whose most expensive players are Mike Trout & Anthony Rendon. They haven’t been able to stay on a baseball field—no surprise they’re missing time. Depth was always needed. They tried to plug the lack of prospect depth with a bunch of vets this off-season. Didn’t work—surprise, surprise.
The angels did not and do not have upper minor league depth. Silseth and Barria were always going to take starts. This team rolls out a 6 man rotation. Injuries are inevitable. The plan at SS was a guy who has barely played any minor league baseball. He actually held his own.
They already added Bachman and Silseth to the roster last season. Way too early. They gave these guys no development time because they needed to plug the roster. Just did the same thing to Schanuel.
Team will miss the playoffs this year & they won’t be any better next after they say goodbye to Shohei. Hopefully they didn’t bust the development of more players by trying to fill their org holes to win now.
The Angels said from the start of the season that they were not going to have a 6 man rotation and with the exception of 2 long stretches of consecutive games they haven’t utilized a 6 man rotation. Go look at game logs.
Ohtani, Sandoval, Anderson, Detmers, Canning was the rotation to start the season. Silseth and Bachman started the season in the minors and were expected to stay there. Barria started the season in the pen.
The bullpen was Estevez, Herget, Moore, Loup, Tepera, Suarez, Quijada, Lopez,and Barria. That got blown all to hades with lack of performance by Herget, Loup and Tepera and a rash of injuries to Quijada, Suarez, and others.
Silseth made 7 emergency starts last season. He has pitched well this season. His 4.00 ERA and 113 ERA+ show he has been above average. It wasn’t too soon. Bachman was added to the 40 man this season with his first appearances in the majors in late May and he had a 3.18 ERA when he got hurt. Obviously not too soon to call him up.
On the position players side the Angels had redundancy across the board. Urshela, Rengifo, Lamb, and Drury were expected to be backups/utility players to start the season with Rendon, Neto, Fletcher, and Walsh the starters in the infield and Ward, Renfroe and Trout the starters in the OF. Moniak and Adell were in the minors as OF depth.
Stassi was expected to be the starting catcher with O’Hoppe backing him up coming into camp. Thaiss was held onto just in case. He was not supposed to make the majority of starts for the team. Wallach was minor league depth. No one thought he would make 58 starts.
The Angels will have $60 million coming off the books and 9 holes to fill including Ohtani. Absolutely no one, certainly not you, has any idea how their season will shape up in 2024 with that many holes to fill.
If I was an Angels fan I would say the best case scenario is is Moreno sells the team to Patrick Soon-Shiong early in the offseason.
They weren’t lying when they said Shanuel had twice as many walks as he does strikeouts… He has two walks and a strikeout…
Yup, and 21 walks with 10 strike outs in 73 ABs during his short minor league career.
Ask Jack Leiter how skipping A ball worked out
Because all prospects are the same…
I would be willing to bet that Cron will be out for the season and like O’Hoppe and Neto, Schanuel is anointed 1B of the future.
That would give them 3 first-basemen. Awfully crowded there, eh?
Who are those three 1B next season? Moose, Cron and Urshela are FA. Walsh is not on 40 man and may be done permanently. Drury would be the only other guy with time at 1B this season that is will still be on the team.
Or are you being sarcastic in response to Skip’s comment?
Minasian thinks everyone can play every position. So he puts Rengifo at short.
Does he have much choice right now? Would Velazquez be a better choice? Would better defense make up for a 100 point difference in OPS?
Yeah, Schanuel is here to stay for the remainder of the season. By the time, when or if, Cron does come back. The minor League season will be over, and they’ll have a few extra expanded roster spots in Sept..
Angels… in order to have a prospect you need to have a minor league system. In order to have a minor league system you must have an organization… The Angels are so lost, they actually believe they are in Los Angeles.
Not another, “but they don’t really play in the city of Los Angeles” comment.
Anaheim is part of the greater Los Angeles. LA and OC literally share the same market (i.e., same local TV, radio stations, newspapers, etc.) And the Angels actually originated in LA before moving to Anaheim, similar to how the Rams remained “LA Rams” even after moving to Anaheim for many years. The Angels have every right to use “LA” if they feel it helps the franchise in terms of marketability.
Personally, I prefer CA Angels, but I understand why they went back to being called LA Angels.
I prefer Anaheim Angels with the alteration, but I do get claiming LA for the marketability. Plus, now the team’s name is “The The Angels Angels of Anaheim,” which is highly enjoyable.
I have heard them referred to as the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in California of the United States on planet Earth in the Solar System in the Milky Way Galaxy, which makes me laugh.
@this one …
That’s literally the biggest fart I’ve ever heard. Word salad nonsense.
My favorite was a few years ago when the Angels game in Cleveland was snowed out, and since they weren’t scheduled to play each other again that year, instead of trying to make the game up later they just moved it to Milwaukee, since the Brewers were on the road and the stadium was available. So people said the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim were playing the Cleveland Indians of Milwaukee.
Red’s guy, let’s keep it simple. Don’t bring up a team’s name 5 years ago, with rights to it.
I’ve seen u, your better than that.
Salas at AA already is way too soon. Why the need to rush a guy that can’t hit over .200 in hi A? This is a head scratcher and a half.
I never got to see Gary Carter play at 18, but I did get to see Pudge play at 17 in the Sally League and Salas is a better player at that age.
We will see what happens, but there is no problem challenging him to see how he handles it.
Yea, if you can’t handle A ball! Shoot him up another level!
Its obvious you haven’t seen him play and I am guessing you also missed what he did in 220 PA in A ball. His handful of PA in High A are not indicative of his level of play.
Maybe before commenting, you should see him play. As I said, in my opinion he is better at this age than Ivan Rodriguez was when I saw Pudge at this age in the Sally league. Most industry write ups about him echo my opinion. That is high praise for Salas.
The Missions have 30 games left on their schedule. That will give the Padres a good idea of how far this kid can go in 2024.
I did get to see The Kid play in the minors. He was a man amongst boys in the Florida State League.
I have only seen a few 18 year old players that good. Have not seen Salas play in person. Only scouting reports. Can’t see him being as good as Carter
I thought I was old. In 1972 I was in 6th grade.
37 PA is virtually meaningless.
37 PA’s is meaningless—- but why call him up? Even if they were 37 great ABS—I wouldn’t be a fan. Let the guys develop.
Maybe there’s a specific set of coaches they want him to work with the remainder of the season.
Okay; so this week we have:
– 17 year old struggling in A+ bumped to AA
– non-legthened out SP promoted to AA
– 2023 draft pick promoted to Majors after 21 games.
– and prospect jumped past AA because he apparently can’t play on the same diamond as the guy he started the season at A+ with. What is going on?
Those last two are based on organizational needs. The Rays have to rapidly determine if Williams or Caminero can bail them out at SS. Both have to be playing SS and there’s reason to push Williams at Triple-A.
Skenes is pitching “relief.” They might open with him because that’s what he’s used to, but he’s not truly starting.
I really have no answers about Salas. My instinct would have been to leave him in Low-A this year and let him race through the system next season when it’s likelier he’s done growing. But they don’t pay me to make these decisions, and I’m sure there’s some kind of sensible explanation.
Skenes looks so good that it would be impossible for even the Pirates to screw him up. I am totally unfamiliar with what college pitchers do after being drafted, so I’m not sure if him pitching the 1-2 inning games is right or wrong. I read he only has about 20 innings left so it doesn’t hurt to get him the work. I just want him fresh next season pitching like a real starter, going 6+ innings and being ready to call up in a month or so. He’s thrown a lot of pitches in college games so he’s capable in the pros.
I would not put anything beyond the Pirates (lack of) capabilities, including messing up Skenes. I certainly hope not, because he has great stuff.
I think Skenes can be really good, if not great. But his lady friend is already amazing. 😉