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Giants Promote Kyle Harrison

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August 22: The Giants have now made this official, selecting Harrison and reinstating righty Ryan Walker from the paternity list. To open active roster spots, right-hander Sean Hjelle and outfielder Heliot Ramos were optioned. To open a 40-man spot for Harrison, infielder Mark Mathias was transferred to the 60-day injured list. Mathias was placed on the injured list a week ago due to a right shoulder strain. He’ll now be ineligible to return until 60 days from August 14, which rules him out until the middle of October. Barring a lengthy postseason run by the Giants, it seems his season is over.

August 20, 3:58 pm: Giants manager Gabe Kapler confirmed to reporters, including Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, that Harrison was poised to be promoted. He’ll start the Giants’ game against the Phillies in Philadelphia on Tuesday.

10:14 am: The Giants are calling up top pitching prospect Kyle Harrison, FanSided’s Robert Murray reports (via X).  Earlier today, the Athletic’s Andrew Baggarly wrote that San Francisco was “strongly considering” promoting Harrison during an upcoming series with the Phillies, and Murray says that Harrison is being aimed to start Tuesday’s game.  San Francisco will need to make another transaction before then to create a 40-man roster spot for the left-hander.

The promotion makes for a nice late birthday gift for Harrison, who turned 22 on August 12.  It is quite possible that the southpaw would have already made his MLB debut if it wasn’t for a hamstring strain that put him on the injured list for almost all of July, but after pitching in three Triple-A games since his return from the minor league IL, Harrison has been deemed ready for his first taste of the Show.

It doesn’t seem as though Harrison will be taking on a full-fledged starter role, as Baggarly notes that Harrison might work in more of a piggyback capacity on Tuesday, perhaps not throwing more than 3-4 innings.  Harrison has had a limited workload for much of the minor league season, as he has topped the 80-pitch threshold only three times and has only once thrown as many as five innings in a single outing.

With this in mind, Harrison looks to become the latest member of a patchwork Giants rotation that has recently featured only two regular starters.  Beyond Logan Webb and Alex Cobb, a group led by Jakob Junis, Alex Wood, Sean Manaea, and Ross Stripling have made limited starts, piggyback outings, or have worked as bulk pitchers behind an opener.  This collection took a hit yesterday when Stripling was placed on the 15-day IL due to a back strain, and Sean Hjelle was recalled from Triple-A to work as a long reliever or bulk pitcher.

It’s not an ideal situation for a team fighting for a wild card berth, so there will be a bit of a bigger spotlight than usual on Harrison as he becomes a big leaguer.  However, Harrison has dealt with plenty of hype as his prospect stock has risen over the last few years, since being selected by the Giants in the third round of the 2020 draft.  In recent midseason updates to their prospect rankings, MLB Pipeline listed Harrison as the 20th-best prospect in the sport, while Baseball America slotted him 35th on their latest listing.

There’s no secret about Harrison’s biggest weak point, as he has a hefty 16.3% walk rate over 67 2/3 innings with Triple-A Sacramento this year.  This shaky control (and pitching in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League) has contributed to Harrison’s 4.52 ERA, though he also has a tremendous 35.6% strikeout rate.

Both Pipeline and BA give Harrison a 70-grade for his fastball and a 60-grade for his slider, and he also has a good changeup that is still improving.  Two plus pitches and the possibility of a third has created plenty of buzz about Harrison as a possible front-of-the-rotation starter, though the big question is naturally whether or not Harrison can improve his control and command.  As Pipeline’s scouting report puts it, Harrison is “still learning to harness his enhanced stuff, though his ability to miss bats in the strike zone with all three of his offerings means that he doesn’t need to locate them with precision.”

However the Giants opt to manage Harrison’s workload among the rest of the pitchers, it seems likely that the club will limit him to less than 50 innings in the regular season, so he can retain his rookie eligibility for 2024.  As per the rules of the Prospect Promotion Incentive, the Giants can receive a bonus pick in the 2025 draft if Harrison earns a full year of MLB service time in 2024, and he either wins the NL Rookie of the Year award or has a top-three finish in NL Cy Young voting during any of his pre-arbitration seasons.  Harrison must be ranked as a top-100 prospect by at least two of MLB Pipeline, Baseball America, or ESPN.com in their pre-2024 lists to fully qualify as a PPI-eligible player, thought that seems like a foregone conclusion.

Beyond the 50-inning threshold, pitchers also have to have less than 46 days on a Major League roster to retain rookie eligibility.  That date on the 2023 league calendar passed last week, so it isn’t surprising that Harrison and other notable prospects like the Reds’ Noelvi Marte, the Cardinals’ Masyn Winn, and the Angels’ Nolan Schanuel have all been called up within the last few days alone.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Yankees To Promote Everson Pereira, Oswald Peraza

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The Yankees are promoting outfield prospect Everson Pereira before tomorrow’s series opener against the Nationals, reports Jack Curry of the YES Network (Twitter link). Infielder Oswald Peraza is also being recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, according to Curry. Both players are already on the 40-man roster, so New York will only need to make corresponding active roster transactions.

Pereira, 22, is headed to the majors for the first time. A native of Venezuela, he was one of the better prospects in the 2017-18 international signing class. While he didn’t have particularly flashy tools, he landed a $1.5MM bonus based on his advanced offensive ability and the chance to stick in center field. He has lived up to that billing by producing at every minor league stop, typically against older competition.

Early-career injuries and the pandemic cancelation of the 2020 minor league campaign meant Pereira didn’t reach full season ball until 2021. He played well enough there for the Yankees to add him to the 40-man roster at year’s end to ensure another club didn’t take him as a developmental flier in the Rule 5 draft. He spent most of last season in High-A, earning a brief look late in the year with Double-A Somerset.

Optioned back to Somerset to open 2023, Pereira hit .291/.362/.545 in 46 games. The Yankees bumped him to Scranton in early July and he’s responded with a .312/.386/.551 showing through 35 contests. Between the top two minor league levels, he has a .300/.373/.548 line over 343 plate appearances. He has connected on 18 home runs and stolen 11 bases in 13 attempts.

Despite the lofty batting average, Pereira hasn’t been an elite contact hitter. He’s gone down on strikes at a lofty 28.6% clip on the season. Pereira has hit for power and walked at a solid 9.3% rate to post strong numbers overall, though prospect evaluators have expressed concern about the swing-and-miss in his game.

Pereira has split his defensive work almost evenly between the three outfield spots. Scouting reports peg him as a viable if unexceptional center fielder. The Yankees figure to break him in at left field alongside Aaron Judge and Harrison Bader. They’ve given most of their left field work of late to Jake Bauers. The left-handed hitter had started his Yankee tenure well but has fallen into a .178/.247/.370 funk while striking out over 43% of the time since the All-Star Break.

Peraza has been on and off the MLB roster on a few occasions. A highly-regarded prospect in his own right, he’s hitting .268/.357/.479 in 63 Triple-A contests on the year. Peraza has scuffled in scattershot MLB time this season but had an impressive 18-game debut in 2022.

The impressive upper minors numbers for each player gets them a look on a free-falling New York club. The Yankees have dropped eight straight and sit at 60-64 after being swept by the Red Sox over the weekend. They’re 26-40 since the start of June and almost certainly going to miss the postseason for the first time in seven years.

Perhaps the promotions of Pereira and Peraza can inject some life into a struggling offense, but their calls seem more about evaluating the 2024 roster. They’re each highly-regarded young players who could plausibly play regular roles next season. Brendan Kuty of the Athletic tweets that both are expected to be everyday players for the stretch run. New York has had no stability in left field all season. Bader and Isiah Kiner-Falefa (who has taken over as the primary third baseman) are impending free agents.

Pereira and Peraza each appear on the back half of Baseball America’s recent Top 100 prospects update. Kiley McDaniel of ESPN included Pereira as an honorable mention behind his own Top 50 refresh. While Peraza will exceed rookie eligibility at season’s end, Pereira will remain rookie eligible so long as he takes fewer than 130 MLB at-bats. As with a number of other recent prospect promotions, that could be a meaningful distinction.

Teams that carry a prospect who appears on two of three Top 100 lists at Baseball America, ESPN and MLB Pipeline for a full service year during their rookie seasons can receive a bonus draft choice under the Prospect Promotion Incentive. Pereira isn’t necessarily a lock to meet that prospect standard but certainly has a chance to qualify, particularly if he plays well down the stretch. If he does and the Yankees carry him on next year’s Opening Day roster, he could earn them an extra draft choice with a Rookie of the Year win or top-three finish in MVP balloting during his pre-arbitration seasons.

Tigers To Promote Parker Meadows

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The Tigers announced this evening that they are planning to recall outfielder Parker Meadows from Triple-A tomorrow. The 23-year-old outfielder’s first appearance will be his major league debut. Since Meadows in on the 40-man roster already, a corresponding move will only be necessary to make room for him on the active roster.

Meadows, the brother of fellow Tiger Austin Meadows, was selected by Detroit out of high school in the second round of the 2018 draft. Meadows had something of a breakout season last year that saw him promoted from High-A to Double-A after just 14 games. From there, Meadows would go on to slash an impressive .275/.354/.466 in 113 games with a solid 10.6% walk rate and a strikeout rate of just 18.4%. That strong season left Meadows as one of the club’s better prospects entering the 2023 season, with Fangraphs considering him Detroit’s sixth-best prospect while MLB.com’s midseason ranking places him tenth in the Tigers’ system.

That discrepancy, of course, can partially be explained by the additions of Max Clark and Kevin McGonigle, both of whom were drafted by the Tigers last month. In addition to that, however, Meadows simply hasn’t replicated his impressive season last year at the Triple-A level in 2023, posting a more pedestrian slash line of .256/.337/.474 in 517 trips to the plate this year. While Meadows’ walk rate has actually ticked up to 11% and he’s hitting for more power with a .218 ISO in 2023, his reduced strikeout rate from last year has ticked back up to 23.8%, not far off from his 24.7% career average. The additional punchouts leave Meadows with a wRC+ of 97 that’s a bit below league average.

Despite something of a step back with the bat this year, there’s still reason for optimism regarding his impact on the Tigers. If Meadows can provide the late-season spark that youngster Kerry Carpenter provided in 2022 (126 wRC+ in 113 at-bats last year), the club would have a solid trio of young outfielders headed into the 2024 campaign next season between Meadows, Carpenter, and Riley Greene. Even if Meadows doesn’t reach those same heights, he seems certain to provide quality defense and baserunning as a speedy center fielder who has swiped 19 bags at Triple-A this year in 21 attempts.

Going forward, Meadows seems likely to cut into the playing time of Akil Baddoo in the outfield as the 24-year-old has struggled to a .221/.311/.370 slash line this season with a wRC+ of just 89. Matt Vierling, Zach McKinstry, and Nick Maton have gotten reps in the outfield as well, though each of that trio has primarily played the infield for the Tigers this season.

Reds Promote Noelvi Marte

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The Reds called up infield prospect Noelvi Marte today, with the corresponding move of Kevin Newman placed on the 10-day injured list due to an oblique strain. Marte is already on Cincinnati’s 40-man roster but he will be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game. Robert Murray of Fansided was the first to report that Marte was on his way to the Show.

Marte, now 21, was a high-profile international signing of the Mariners. That club gave him a signing bonus of $1.55MM in 2018 and he quickly came to be regarded as one of the top prospects in their system. A strong professional debut in 2019 got him into top 100 territory, with Baseball America ranking him #92 in the league going into 2020.

With the pandemic wiping out the minor leagues in 2020, Marte and all other prospects missed a year of game action. But he got back on track with a solid showing in 2021, his first full professional season. He hit .273/.366/.459 between Single-A and High-A for a wRC+ of 118 while also stealing 24 bases. Going into 2022, he was considered the 18th-best prospect in the league by Baseball America, with FanGraphs having him in the #13 slot.

He came to the Reds midway through 2022 as part of the Luis Castillo trade, one of four young players that Cincinnati added to their system in that deal. Between the two organizations, he hit .279/.371/.458 at the High-A level for a wRC+ of 131. Despite those strong numbers, his prospect stock faded a bit. Baseball America dropped him to #63 overall going into 2023, noting that opposing pitchers were starting to realize they could exploit his weakness on breaking balls. He also started to move from shortstop to third base, diminishing his future value somewhat. FanGraphs expressed similar concerns in bumping him down to #91.

This year, he started at Double-A, hitting .281/.356/.464 at that level, swiping 10 bags in 50 games. He’s also hit .280/.365/.455 in 39 Triple-A games while racking up another eight steals. With the heightened offensive environment of the International League this year, that Triple-A line translates to a 105 wRC+, above-average but only slightly. Baseball America currently ranks him 52nd overall with FanGraphs at #71.

Regardless of the recent fluctuations in the evaluations from prospect watchers, this is yet another exciting young player promoted by the Reds in what is shaping up to be a remarkable season in that department. Given their recent struggles, few observers picked them to be competitive coming into the year. But they have been continually promoting one prospect after another, with Matt McLain, Elly De La Cruz, Christian Encarnacion-Strand and Andrew Abbott all promoted for their debuts this year. Those players have joined other youngsters who had previously made it to the big leagues, such as Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo, Spencer Steer and many more.

That youth movement has shot the Reds into the postseason picture, as they are currently tied with the Marlins for the final Wild Card spot with about six weeks left on the schedule. Now they will add Marte into the mix and hope that he can add further fuel to the fire for the final playoff push. How he fits into the puzzle remains to be seen, as he’s primarily played shortstop and third base this year. De La Cruz will likely stick at short but Marte could perhaps take some time at the hot corner. Steer has been getting the bulk of playing time there lately but has also played some left field and could perhaps slot in there more often, taking playing time from Stuart Fairchild.

The timing of the promotion is worth noting, as Marte will likely retain rookie status going into 2024. Position players are considered rookies as long as they start a season with less than 130 at-bats and fewer than 46 days on a big league roster. There are now 44 days left until the end of the regular season, meaning Marte will still be a rookie next year as long as he falls shy of 130 at-bats.

That’s a significant distinction under the current collective bargaining agreement, as the Prospect Promotion Incentive can provide extra draft picks for clubs as a way to disincentive service time manipulation. A position player who had appeared on at least two Top 100 lists at BA, ESPN and MLB Pipeline the preceding offseason can earn his club a bonus draft choice if a) the team carries them on the MLB roster for a full service year and b) the player wins Rookie of the Year or finishes top three in MVP voting during his pre-arbitration seasons. It’s surely not a coincidence that Masyn Winn of the Cardinals and Nolan Schanuel of the Angels were both promoted as soon as they could have been while still having the ability to net their club an extra draft pick next year, with Marte now a third notable prospect promoted in recent days.

But that will be a concern for the future. In the interim, it’s yet another domino of the Reds’ incredible youth movement tipped over as they try to surge into the playoffs. With Marte joining the other young players on the roster, while pitchers like Greene and Lodolo are coming back from injuries, the fans in Cincinnati could be in for an exciting few weeks as well as a future that looks increasingly bright.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Angels Promote Nolan Schanuel

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In rather stunning news, the Angels are promoting first baseman Nolan Schanuel to the Majors less than six weeks after selecting him with the No. 11 overall pick in the 2023 draft, reports Peter Gammons. It’s a rare and extremely aggressive promotion as the Halos, whose all-in push at the deadline has yielded underwhelming results thus far, try to bolster the lineup and keep their dwindling playoff hopes alive in Shohei Ohtani’s final season of club control. Schanuel has played in 21 minor league games (topping out at the Double-A level) and batted a combined .370/.510/.493 with 21 walks and just 10 strikeouts in 96 plate appearances. His promotion is now official.

Schanuel, 21, was regarded as the most MLB-ready bat in the draft, although a promotion to the big leagues in mid-August shatters even the most aggressive timetables pundits might’ve put on his potential ascension. The 6’4″ first baseman posted borderline farcical numbers at Florida Atlantic University, batting .386/.516/.698 in his college career — including a preposterous .447/.615/.868 slash in 289 plate appearances this past season. Schanuel’s bat-to-ball skills were unparalleled in this year’s draft class; he struck out in just seven percent of his college plate appearances and drew 71 walks against 14 strikeouts in 2023 (24.6% walk rate, 4.8% strikeout rate).

Impressive as Schanuel’s college and minor league numbers are, it’s still a move lacking in recent precedent. The White Sox fast-tracked lefty Garrett Crochet to the Majors in Sept. 2020, just months after drafting him, but that was in part due to the lack of a minor league season. Even that aggressive promotion came after Crochet had roughly three months to work with the team’s player development staff at their alternate training site. Looking even further back, right-hander Mike Leake skipped the minor leagues entirely after being selected with the No. 8 overall pick in 2009, though his debut came on Opening Day the following season. Baseball America’s J.J. Cooper tweets that among position players, Schanuel’s promotion just 40 days after being drafted is the fastest rise to the Majors since Toronto’s Brian Milner back in 1978. Milner, promoted to the Majors just 17 days after being drafted, played in only two Major League games.

The Angels have made a habit of being quite aggressive in fast-tracking their prospects in recent years. Shortstop Zach Neto debuted earlier this season less than one year after going in the first round of the 2022 draft. Last year’s second-round pick, Ben Joyce, has already debuted as well. Lefty Reid Detmers, selected 10th overall in 2020, made his debut on Aug. 1, 2021. Righty Chase Silseth was an 11th round pick in 2021 and in the Majors by May of 2022. None of those quite match this level of aggression, but the Angels’ ultra-aggressive trajectory with Schanuel is on-brand for the organization.

The timing of today’s promotion likely isn’t coincidental. Today marks the first day that prospects can be promoted to the Majors and fall just shy of the requisite service to exhaust their rookie eligibility. So long as Schanuel (or anyone else promoted today) accrues fewer than 131 at-bats down the stretch, they’ll retain their rookie eligibility for the 2024 season. With the new prospect promotion incentives in the collective bargaining agreement, that’s a key status for teams to preserve; a top-100 prospect who wins Rookie of the Year can garner his team an additional pick in the following season’s draft.

Ultimately, the amount of control the Angels have over Schanuel will depend on multiple factors. Today’s promotion doesn’t necessarily cost them a year of club control, as he could well have earned a full year in 2024 anyhow. As it stands, he’s controllable through at least the 2029 season, although that path to free agency could be pushed back if Schanuel struggles in the big leagues and is eventually optioned back to the minors. For now, however, he’ll get the opportunity to show that his polished bat is ready for the challenges he’ll encounter at the game’s top level, while the Angels will take this opportunity to further demonstrate their commitment to fielding a competitive club to Ohtani as he nears free agency.

Cardinals Select Masyn Winn

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The Cardinals announced they’ve selected the contract of top shortstop prospect Masyn Winn. In a corresponding move, St. Louis is placing center fielder Lars Nootbaar on the 10-day injured list with a lower abdominal contusion, tweets John Denton of MLB.com. The Cardinals already had two vacancies on the 40-man roster.

Winn was St. Louis’ second-round pick out of a Texas high school three years ago. The canceled minor league season kept him from playing in a professional game until 2021. Winn has rapidly climbed the minor league ladder, spending most of last season in Double-A at age 20. He stole 28 bases while hitting .258/.349/.432 in 86 games against generally older competition, cementing himself as one of the sport’s top prospects heading into last winter.

The Cards assigned Winn to Triple-A Memphis this year. He has spent the entire season there, posting a .283/.356/.465 batting line in 494 plate appearances. The slash stats are aided by an offense-heavy Triple-A environment. Of the 107 International League hitters with 300+ trips to the plate, Winn ranks 57th in on-base percentage and 43rd in slugging.

That production is partially weighed down by a very slow start to the year. Winn hit only .223/.287/.321 in April but has an OPS of .763 or better in every subsequent month. The right-handed hitter has feasted on southpaws, hitting .353/.425/.639 with the platoon advantage. His production against same-handed pitching is more modest — .258/.331/.401 — but that’s a small concern for a 21-year-old hitter at the top minor league level.

Winn has shown advanced contact skills, drawing walks at a decent 8.9% clip while striking out in only 16.8% of his plate appearances. He has connected on 17 home runs, 15 doubles and seven triples and gone 17-19 in stolen base attempts.

In addition to those promising offensive traits, Winn has a chance to be an impact middle infield defender. Prospect evaluators credit him with elite arm strength and the athleticism to stick at shortstop. While the Cards gave him 25 starts at the keystone in Memphis to broaden his flexibility, Winn has logged more than 2300 professional innings at shortstop.

Given the well-rounded profile and his upper minors success despite being so young, Winn is unanimously regarded as one of the top minor league talents. Baseball America ranked him the game’s #30 prospect on their recent update; Kiley McDaniel of ESPN slotted him 16th on his own refresh of the sport’s top prospects earlier in the week. Evaluators peg Winn’s power potential as solid-average while praising the rest of his profile.

The 5’11” infielder is generally viewed as the Cards’ potential long-term starting shortstop. St. Louis dealt Paul DeJong to the Blue Jays at the deadline. Tommy Edman has been the primary shortstop of late but is capable of moving around the diamond. Nootbaar will be out of action for at least the next week and a half after fouling a ball off his groin last night, while second baseman Nolan Gorman hit the 10-day IL this afternoon because of a lower back strain. Edman can cover the keystone or center field while the Cards give Winn regular run at shortstop over the season’s final six-plus weeks.

Along with the injuries to Nootbaar and Gorman, the calendar itself opened a path to Winn’s promotion. Players enter a season with rookie eligibility so long as they’ve spent fewer than 46 days on an MLB active roster and tallied 130 or fewer big league at-bats. Beginning Friday, there’ll be 45 days left in the regular season. Assuming the Cards limit his playing time to keep him from topping 130 at-bats, he’ll retain his rookie eligibility into 2024.

Before 2022, a player’s rookie status wouldn’t matter much to clubs in timing their promotions. The Prospect Promotion Incentive in the ’22 collective bargaining agreement now makes that a factor in some cases. A position player who had appeared on at least two Top 100 lists at BA, ESPN and MLB Pipeline the preceding offseason can earn his club a bonus draft choice if a) the team carries them on the MLB roster for a full service year and b) the player wins Rookie of the Year or finishes top three in MVP voting during his pre-arbitration seasons.

Winn will certainly meet the prospect criteria next winter. Whether the Cardinals carry him on the MLB roster for all of 2024 and if he plays well enough to merit award consideration can’t yet be known. By waiting until August 18 to bring him up, however, the Cardinals are keeping that possibility open (again assuming Winn stays under 131 at-bats through season’s end).

If he’s in the majors through year’s end, Winn will conclude this season with 45 days of service. He won’t be eligible for arbitration until after the 2026 campaign at the earliest and is controllable through at least 2029. Future assignments to the minors could push that trajectory back further.

The more immediate focus for both Winn and the club will be on his initial exposure to big league pitching. He’ll have a month and a half to try to stake an early claim to the shortstop job heading into 2024. St. Louis has Edman, Gorman and Brendan Donovan (who’s out for the season after undergoing elbow surgery) also in the middle infield mix. If Winn puts a strong foot forward over the coming weeks, perhaps that’d increase the front office’s willingness to part with a middle infielder in an offseason trade as they look for ways to overhaul three-fifths of their rotation.

Katie Woo of the Athletic first reported Winn’s promotion.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Rays To Promote Curtis Mead

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The Rays are planning to call up top infield prospect Curtis Mead for his Major League debut today, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. He’ll take the roster spot that was vacated when ace Shane McClanahan was placed on the injured list yesterday. Mead is already on Tampa Bay’s 40-man roster.

Mead, 22, came to the Rays in what originally looked like a minor swap with the Phillies but could end proving impactful for both clubs. Tampa Bay sent lefty Cristopher Sanchez to Philadelphia back in November of 2019, and while he’s has reached the Majors and contributed quite nicely this season (2.66 ERA in nine starts), Mead is widely regarded as one of the game’s most advanced hitting prospects. He checks in at No. 31 on MLB.com’s ranking of the sport’s top 100 prospects and also checks in at No. 67 over at Baseball America and No. 20 at FanGraphs. The Australian-born infielder has spent time at third base, second base and first base throughout his time in the minors, with many scouting reports on him pegging him as a long-term second baseman due to questions about his arm strength at third base.

There’s little questioning Mead’s hit tool, however. He’s punched out in just 12.8% of his plate appearances at Triple-A and just 15.7% of his minor league plate appearances overall. He’s hitting .291/.379/.453 this season, albeit with just three home runs on the year. He’s tacked on 16 doubles and a pair of triples as well, and his impressive 12.8% walk rate couples with that high-end hit tool to drive that strong on-base percentage.

Despite the meager power output in 2023, scouts still give Mead anywhere from above-average (55) to plus (60) raw power on the 20-80 scale. He missed the second half of the 2022 season with an elbow strain and he also missed time earlier this year after being plunked on the wrist. It’s quite possible those injuries have tamped down his power somewhat this year; he swatted 13 home runs in 331 plate appearances last season before hitting the injured list.

FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen calls Mead “one of the more dangerous hitters in the minor leagues,” touting his simple swing, his all-fields power and a rapidly improving approach at the plate that makes him a more complete hitter. Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com credit him with a hefty 65-grade hit tool on the 20-80 scale and peg him for an eventual 20 to 25 home runs on an annual basis. Baseball America is even higher on the offensive profile, tabbing him with a 70 hit tool and projecting 25-plus homers per year. All three outlets raise concerns about his throwing strength and his eventual position, but there’s a strong consensus that Mead’s bat will make him a productive everyday player regardless.

As with just about any Rays prospect, Mead’s exact role with the big league team probably will be difficult to peg. Tampa Bay has Yandy Diaz at first base, Brandon Lowe at second base and Isaac Paredes enjoying a breakout season at third base. There are certainly at-bats to be had at designated hitter, where the team has used a rotating cast of characters — Harold Ramirez chief among them. Manager Kevin Cash will probably work Mead into the mix at various positions for the time being, while Mead’s ongoing defensive development will determine where he lands on the diamond in the long-term.

As things currently stand, Mead can be controlled all the way through the 2029 season and won’t be arbitration-eligible until after the 2027 campaign, although future optional assignments can alter those timetables.

Giants To Promote Marco Luciano

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The Giants are planning promote top infield prospect Marco Luciano prior to tonight’s game against the A’s, per Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area. Luciano is already on the 40-man roster, so a corresponding move will only be needed to add him to the club’s active roster.

Luciano, 21, has long been considered one of the game’s top prospects. He was a consensus top-20 prospect in the sport as recently as last year, and is currently considered a consensus top-50 prospect across most services. Scouts are enamored with Luciano’s power potential and bat speed, but have long questioned his hit tool due to an elevated strikeout rate throughout his minor league career. While Luciano’s defense previously raised questions regarding his ability to stick in the infield long-term, with many projecting a move to the outfield in his future, a strong 2023 campaign on that side of the ball has largely alleviated those concerns, indicating he should at least be able to stick at third base if not his native position of shortstop.

Luciano has struggled to stay on the field in recent years due to back troubles, missing ten weeks in 2022 due to the issue and another month this year. When healthy, however, he’s produced at the plate with a .263/.339/.549 slash line with a 121 wRC+ in 57 games at the High-A level last season and a Double-A slash line of .228/.339/.450, good for a wRC+ of 114 in 56 games this year. Luciano’s strikeout rate rose more than 7 points this season, nearly reaching 30% at Double-A, though the youngster managed to mostly make up for the additional whiffs with a massive 14.9% walk rate.

Luciano’s performance at Double-A recently earned him a promotion to the Triple-A level, where he’s slashed an excellent .292/.370/.625 that’s good for a wRC+ of 130 even in the inflated offensive environment of the Pacific Coast League. The Giants, who have struggled to a 9-11 record in July and just snapped a six-game losing streak last night, seemingly view Luciano as a potential spark who can help cover for the injured Thairo Estrada and Brandon Crawford up the middle, roles that currently fall to struggling youngsters Casey Schmitt and Brett Wisely.

Brewers Promote Sal Frelick

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2:04PM: The Brewers officially announced the selection of Frelick’s contract.  Tapia was designated for assignment in the corresponding move, potentially ending the outfielder’s tenure in Milwaukee after a little over a month.  Tapia quickly caught on with the Brewers after being released by the Red Sox, and hit .173/.267/.288 over 61 PA in a Milwaukee uniform.

12:50PM: The Brewers are promoting top outfield prospect Sal Frelick, according to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (Twitter link).  Frelick’s first game with Milwaukee will mark the 23-year-old’s big league debut.

It was a little over two years ago that the Brewers selected Frelick with the 15th overall pick of the 2021 draft, so it has been a pretty quick road to the majors for the Boston College product.  In fact, it is quite possible Frelick might’ve been on Milwaukee’s roster even earlier if he didn’t have to undergo thumb surgery in April, and he missed a little under two months while recovering.

This notable injury might explain Frelick’s underwhelming numbers with Triple-A Nashville this season.  After hitting .365/.435/.508 over 215 at Triple-A in 2022, there was some speculation that Frelick might make the Brewers’ roster in Spring Training.  However, he was optioned to the minors for more seasoning, and hasn’t really gotten on track, hitting .247/.333/.342 over 183 PA.  Frelick has been hitting better over the last week, and despite this small sample size, the Brewers brass has apparently seen enough to believe that Frelick is ready for the Show.

Of course, the shaky state of Milwaukee’s outfield has also left the club looking for any answers it can find.  Left fielder Christian Yelich is enjoying a tremendous season, but center field and right field have been revolving doors.  Joey Wiemer, Tyrone Taylor, Blake Perkins, Raimel Tapia, Jesse Winker, Owen Miller, and the injured Brian Anderson and Garrett Mitchell have all gotten varying degrees of playing time without anyone providing particularly much offense.  It remains to be seen exactly how long of a look Frelick might get in his first taste of the big leagues, but there’s plenty of opportunity for him to quickly carve out a niche for himself if he hits well.

Even despite his injury-shortened 2023 campaign, midseason prospect rankings are still quite high on Frelick’s potential.  MLB Pipeline rates Frelick 17th on their list, with Baseball America (30th) and the Athletic’s Keith Law (31st) not far behind.  All outlets give him a 70-grade for speed, and Frelick has stolen 44 bases from 58 chances over his minor league career.  Pipeline and BA also give Frelick a 70-grade for his hitting ability, praising his approach at the plate and his excellent knack for drawing walks.  Frelick’s power is still a question mark, and Pipeline is a little questionable about Frelick’s ability to stick in center field even if Baseball America and Law are both more bullish.  Law writes that Frelick is “at least a 60 defender in center,” and uses Brett Gardner as a possible comp for Frelick at the MLB level.

Reds Promote Christian Encarnacion-Strand, Place Kevin Newman On IL

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July 17: Cincinnati has formally announced the move; Encarnacion-Strand’s contract has been selected from Louisville, which fills the team’s 40-man roster. In a corresponding 26-man roster move, infielder Kevin Newman was placed on the 10-day injured list due to gastritis.

July 16: The Reds are calling up another of their top prospects, as FanSided’s Robert Murray (via Twitter) reports that Christian Encarnacion-Strand is on his way to the majors.  The club may have to make multiple corresponding moves before Monday’s game, as Encarnacion-Strand isn’t yet on the 40-man roster.

A fourth-round pick for the Twins in the 2021 draft, “CES” has done nothing but mash since beginning his pro career, as he has a whopping .322/.386/.604 slash line and 56 homers over 946 career plate appearances in the minors.  This includes hitting .331/.405/.637 with 20 home runs over 316 PA at Triple-A Louisville this year, leaving no doubt that the 23-year-old is ready for a bigger challenge.

It seems quite likely that the Reds would’ve called Encarnacion-Strand up earlier if it wasn’t for the fact that the team is already overloaded with quality prospects.  The additions of star rookies Elly De La Cruz and Matt McLain have helped spark the Reds back into contention for the NL Central, while Spencer Steer (who made his MLB debut in 2022) has also been a huge contributor.

With the likes of Jake Fraley, Will Benson, and TJ Friedl also producing, the Reds find themselves with an interesting decision to make with Encarnacion-Strand’s position.  CES has played almost all of his career as a corner infielder, with only a pair of games in the corner outfield spots.  But, De La Cruz has been mostly playing third base since his promotion, and longtime star Joey Votto is still in the regular first base/DH mix since his return from the 60-day injured list.  It’s say to predict Encarnacion-Strand as the eventual successor to Votto, but the veteran has been on fire at the plate.

It’s the proverbial “good problem to have” for manager David Bell and Cincinnati’s front office, and it could be the issue may solve itself in the form of an injury or a slump.  Or, the Reds might simply rotate everyone through the lineup and make copious use of pinch-hitting opportunities or late-game substitutions in order to keep everyone (Votto in particular) fresh.  With the deadline approaching, it also isn’t out of the question that the Reds could create space by trading one of their young prospects in a headline deal for a controllable, frontline starting pitcher.  At the very least, it seems like Cincinnati will look to move veterans like Kevin Newman or Nick Senzel, whose playing time has been drastically reduced by the youth movement.

Encarnacion-Strand has made such a rapid rise up the minor league ladder that none of Baseball America, Baseball Prospectus, MLB Pipeline, or The Athletic’s Keith Law had the infielder on their preseason top-100 lists.  He currently checks in 83rd on BA’s ranking and 88th on Pipeline’s ranking, with both outlets praising his natural power and his arm strength.  Questions about CES’ contact hitting seem to have been addressed in his Triple-A season, as his 10.4% walk rate is easily the highest of his three pro seasons, and he has also reduced his strikeout rate to 21.8%.  A slightly more patient version of Encarnacion-Strand is a scary concept for pitchers, given his power and ability to hit to the opposite field.

Cincinnati brought Encarnacion-Strand and Steer into the organization less than a year ago, acquired along with southpaw prospect Steve Hajjar in the trade that sent Tyler Mahle to the Twins at the deadline.  Since the Reds flipped Hajjar to the Guardians as the player to be named later to acquire Benson during the offseason, the Mahle trade has very quickly become one of the most productive swaps in recent team history.  For Minnesota, the trade is already infamous, as Mahle battled injuries and made only nine starts for the Twins before undergoing Tommy John surgery in May.

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