As we’ve seen the past three days, baseball’s a collision between baseball’s present and future is taking place in the Pacific Coast League. The amount of prodigious talent in this league gives fans a glimpse of the players they’ll get used to seeing every day. In the final installment of GotC’s 2015 preview of the PCL, the Pacific Southern Division is brimming with pitching prospects who could be future aces if they reach their ceiling.
Las Vegas 51s (New York Mets)
There are too many prospects on this team to discuss at length, so if you want to learn about them individually, read this and this.
Here is the short version: pitchers Noah Syndergaard and Steven Matz are so good, opposing PCL managers probably wouldn’t turn down an opportunity to flog Mets General Manager Sandy Alderson for sending both pitchers to Triple-A to start the season, Kevin Plawecki is one of the best catching prospects in baseball and Dilson Herrera is one of the best second base prospects in the game. Expect to see all of them in the majors at some point in 2015.
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There are others who may be making appearances in Queens this season as well. Matt Reynolds, a second baseman as well, saw his batting average and On base percentage jump over 100 points from 2013 to 2014 and plays more than adequate defense. He gives the Mets two good options if they decide to part ways with Daniel Murphy. Pitchers Matt Bowman (3.44 K/BB, 3.22 ERA in 2014) and Jack Leathersich (career 15.2 K/9) saw their chances of pitching in the majors, most likely in the bullpen, rise after Zach Wheeler and Josh Edgin succumbed to the Tommy John epidemic.
Salt Lake Bees (Los Angeles Angels)
The Angels will have to settle for one potential front-line starter in Andrew Heaney. Heaney’s potential was used to acquire Dee Gordon and Dan Haren (Marlins) and Howie Kendrick (Dodgers), so clearly the Angels aren’t the only team to think highly of him. He had a rough spring but pitched well in his 2015 opener, tossing seven scoreless innings and striking out eight hitters.
Nick Tropeano may not have the upside of Heaney, but he could be a middle-of-the-rotation arm. He won the PCL ERA title last season (3.03) and doesn’t beat himself with walks (2.7 BB/9 innings). Cam Bedrosian throws air-sizzling heat and has future closer written all over him if he can figure out his control problems (4 BB/9).
Third baseman Kyle Kubitza supposedly has the raw power to be an effective power bat off the bench—if a player hits eight home runs in 440 at-bats, does he really have raw power?—and he draws plenty of walks (career .387 OBP entering play Saturday), but that is the extent of his potential contribution.
Albuquerque Isotopes (Colorado Rockies)
Jon Gray struggled this spring (nine runs in 13.2 innings) but he has the arsenal to be a front-line starter. The likelyhood the Rockies’ rotation flaters is high, and Gray with some ore Triple-A experience would help stabilize the rotation. He struggled in his fist minor league start giving up five earned runs in four innings on eight hits. Clearly he needs more work, but not much.
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Outfielder/first baseman Kyle Parker and shortstop Cristhian Adames are lying in wait to take over when players in front of them move on. Parker has the power to hit 20 home runs a season and is thought to be the heir to first base once Justin Morneau’s contract runs its course and Adames is a highly skilled defender at short. He will slide into the starting role if the hush tones that Troy Tulowitzki will be traded turn out to be true. He doesn’t need to be great offensively, because shortstop has turned into a defense-first position—see Andrelton Simmons.
El Paso Chihuahuas (San Diego Padres)
Give me a moment while I search for a prospect G.M. A.J. Preller hasn’t traded…Okay, I think the following players are still controlled by the Padres:
Outfielder Rymer Liriano is good defensively but has a low ceiling offensively—he’s a career .274/.342/.428 hitter in the minors with limited power. Essentially, he’s a younger version of Cameron Maybin, whom the Padres traded to Braves in the eleventh-hour trade that brought closer Craig Kimbrel to San Diego. He, along with Alex Dickerson, who has done nothing but hit in the minors; he is career .298 hitter through four minor league seasons; are buried behind the Padres’ trade-acquired outfield and power-hitting prospect Hunter Renfroe. They may be traded.
Catcher Austin Hedges is lauded for his defensive talent. As a result, he won’t have to exhibit great offensive acuity to make an impact in the majors. If he proves he can handle a pitching staff, he’ll find a home in San Diego. Unless he gets traded…