Minor League Baseball League Top 10 Prospects: Pacific Coast League

10. Willie Calhoun, 2B/OF, Los Angeles Dodgers/Texas Rangers

Calhoun’s small frame has led to him being overlooked to some degree throughout his amateur and even his professional career, but his bat has continued to push his case forward. Drafted in the 17th round out of high school, the 5’8″ (in platform shoes) and 200+ pound Calhoun had an odd build that didn’t attract most “major schools”, so he went to Yavapai College in Arizona, where he was a 4th round pick by the Dodgers in 2015.

Calhoun has possessed a powerful bat, even if he isn’t built in a traditional manner for any position on the field. Initially in his draft season, Calhoun hit .316/.390/.519 with 23 doubles, a triple, 11 HR, and 2 stolen bases as he moved up all the way to high-A in that draft year.

Calhoun spent all of 2016 in AA, hitting .254/.318/.469 with 25 doubles and 27 home runs, putting up a 45/65 BB/K ratio. He then went to the Arizona Fall League, and though he did put up some impressive batting practice displays, he did not have great numbers, but it certainly gave scouts a chance to see his powerful swing.

Calhoun spent the entire season in the PCL, going from the Dodgers organization to the Rangers organization in the Yu Darvish deal. He hit .300/.355/.572 with 27 doubles, 6 triples, 31 home runs, and 4 steals in 128 games with a 42/61 BB/K ratio.

Calhoun has played most of his time in the outfield since being acquired by the Rangers, and his excellent ability to provide power without swing and miss. He is getting a shot at the major league level in September, and he should come into spring training next season with a legit chance to win a starting job for the Rangers.

9. Tyler O’Neill, OF, Seattle Mariners/St. Louis Cardinals

O’Neill is somewhat legendary for his physical build, which makes some sense with family background in body building, but it has also gotten him some odd reports in the scouting community at times.

O’Neill has a powerful swing from the right hand side, and at 5’11” and 215-225 pounds, he isn’t built like a normal power hitter, but because he has such force that he can accelerate his progress through the minor leagues, the Canadian has moved up the minor leagues in spite of some red flags.

O’Neill swings with force in every swing, but due to his build, he does have some length to his swing, which has led to high strikeout totals. He’s also struggled to show consistent contact skills due to the length of his load to the zone in his swing.

The interesting part is that with all of that, O’Neill still put up prodigious power numbers on the season, hitting .246/.321/.499 with 26 doubles, 3 triples, 31 home runs, and 14 stolen bases. He also had a 54/151 BB/K ratio over 557 plate appearances.

With the athleticism to handle the defense of either outfield corner, albeit more with a fringe-plus arm than a traditional right field plus power, plus arm profile, O’Neill should get a chance soon to work in the major leagues with his pitch recognition. Every word I’ve ever received from a scout is on just how coachable and personable O’Neill is, and with the Cardinals organization having a good track record of getting production from a guy’s natural talents, O’Neill could be one to watch in 2018 if he can win a job out of spring training.

8. Brett Phillips, OF, Milwaukeee Brewers

I’ll gladly admit some bias here. Though there may be a couple of guys that could pass up Phillips in pure scouting eyes, the intangibles he brings to a clubhouse in his sense of humor, his on field hustle, and his pure joy in the game.

Phillips is certainly not without talent, however. The Astros 6th round selection in 2012 out of Seminole High School in Florida, Phillips has always possessed a rare blend of power and speed that was evident in his breakout 2014 season, when he hit .310/.375/.529 wi 29 doubles, 14 triples, 17 home runs, and 23 stolen bases between two A-ball levels.

Phillips has continued to his well, though his high strikeout totals have shied some away from his prospect stock, especially when he struggled to a .229 batting average in 2016. Phillips responded in AAA this season with a .305/.377/.567 line with 23 doubles, 10 triples, 19 home runs, and 9 stolen bases, posting a 45/129 BB/K over 432 plate appearances.

Phillips has also shown well in his call up to the major leagues in the midst of a playoff race. Flashing his plus defense in the outfield and his double-plus arm, he’s made a handful of highlight-reel plays.

So while he may have a tough road to break into the crowded Milwaukee outfield, his laugh, effort, and talent should force the issue soon enough for the 23 year-old.

7. Jack Flaherty, SP, St. Louis Cardinals

Okay, I fudged Flaherty in here though he didn’t quite qualify for my eligibility, but he also missed by about 0.002 IP/G to make it, so I gave him the leeway as there was really no hitter or pitcher that was that close, and he absolutely belonged on this list.

Flaherty was part of what may have been the greatest high school pitching staff in the history of mankind in 2012, as he would have been a sophomore on the team with Max Fried and Lucas Giolito also on the team. There’s a reason Flaherty primarily played third base!

Coming out of high school as a first round selection in 2014, he had much less hype than his former teammates in their draft seasons, but he showed well at each level, working up one level at a time before 2017.

He opened 2017 in AA Springfield, but that assignment did not last long as he was dominating the league with a 1.42 ERA, however, moving him up to AAA Memphis didn’t seem to challenge him tremendously either. Overall on the minor league season, Flaherty went 14-4 with a 2.18 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, and a 35/147 BB/K over 148 2/3 innings. He’s also shown well at the major league level, though his numbers haven’t followed yet.

Flaherty has a big build that one may think could pump out premium velocity at 6’4″ and 210-220 pounds, but he’s more of a guy who works with precision with his low-90s fastball with plenty of life and tremendous command of the pitch. He can reach back for 96-97 at times, but the pitch tends to flatten out when he does that. Flaherty pitches heavily off of his fastball, but he does have an average to above-average pair of breaking pitches that he can spot well in the zone as well with a curve and a slider. The thing that could take him from a backend starter to a frontline guy will be how his change progresses, as he didn’t have to use it a ton this year, and so far in the major leagues, he’s using the pitch more, but not to great results.

Flaherty has pushed his way into the 2018 rotation plans for the Cardinals for sure. Now he just needs to work to take that step as to what he’ll be in that rotation.

6. Harrison Bader, OF, St. Louis Cardinals

In a year with a host of talented outfield prospects in the PCL, Bader has seemingly fallen under the radar for many, but he’s been doing that quite a bit in his minor league career and simply continues to produce.

Bader went undrafted out of high school, though that very well could have been because the New York prep had a strong commitment to the University of Florida. After spending three seasons there, he was drafted by the Cardinals in the 3rd round of the 2015 draft.

Bader immediately went to work putting up impressive numbers, hitting .311/.368/.423 across the New York-Penn League and Midwest League in his draft year, with 13 doubles, 2 triples, 11 home runs, and 17 stolen bases in just 61 total games.

Moving up in 2016, Bader flashed much of the same talent, earning his way out of AA, but struggling in AAA in his first exposure to the level. Combined, Bader hit .267/.335/.452 with 19 doubles, 5 triples, 19 home runs, and 13 stolen bases. His strikeout to walk rate became a bit troubling at 36/131 over 517 plate appearances, rate levels of 7% BB rate and 25.3% K rate.

After a solid showing in the Arizona Fall League, Bader went to Memphis this year and has ridden the shuttle between the majors and Memphis a few times. While with the PCL club, he hit .283/.347/.469 with 18 doubles, a triple, 20 home runs, and 15 stolen bases over 479 plate appearances with a 7.1% walk rate and 24.6% strikeout rate. He’s hit for a .741 OPS at the major league level in 75 plate appearances with 3 home runs and 2 steals.

Bader has tremendous athleticism, and while he arguably doesn’t have a single plus tool, he also could argue that he has all five at an above-average level. I would personally argue that his instincts and routes in centerfield, which were my biggest concern with his defense at that position, have been cleaned up significantly, and I’d likely grade him as a pure 60 in center field.

With Dexter Fowler signed for four more guaranteed seasons, it’s highly unlikely that Bader can push Fowler aside for the 2018 season, though like even the greatest defensive center fielder of recent times, Andruw Jones, he could start in a corner in deference to the veteran Fowler until his talent ends up winning out and forcing the veteran to move or the team to move him via trade.

Bader is aggressive at the plate, but his swing has seen impressive growth in his time as a professional, and it would not be out of the question to say he could hit for a .260-.280 average with 20/20 type of speed and power as long as he can keep the strikeouts in check.

5. Franklin Barreto, SS, Oakland Athletics

While the raw talent of Barreto has been raved about since the Blue Jays signed him out of Venezuela in 2012 before trading him as part of the Josh Donaldson deal, he may have taken a bit of a step backward in the last year and a half or so.

Barreto had struggled before 2016 to play a full minor league season, and when he finally did play one in 2016, he had an excellent season in some respects in AA, but he also had some issues with strikeouts and a surprisingly high caught stealing rate. He finished the year with a handful of games in AAA in 2016, so he returned to the level to start the season. With Nashville, Barreto hit .290/.339/.456 with 19 doubles, 7 triples, 15 home runs, and 15 stolen bases over 111 games. He struggled to a 27/141 BB/K ratio.

Barreto still has that legit talent, and it’s not gone anywhere, but he’s still struggling to show a consistent eye at the plate with tremendous strike out issues, and his stolen base numbers were low with high amount of caught stealing, in spite of excellent speed.

The biggest issue will be his defensive positioning. While he’s listed as a shortstop, he’s been moving significantly to second base over the last few years. With Nashville this season, Barreto played 83 games at short and 25 at second. I’m personally on board with scouts who believe his future home is actually off the dirt, playing center field.

Until he shows that he can get the strikeouts in line and get his defensive home figured out, I have to drop Barreto some right now.

4. Alex Verdugo, OF, Los Angeles Dodgers

Coming out of high school, many liked Verdugo off the mound as much or more than as a hitter. The Dodgers didn’t even mess with that, selecting him in the 2nd round in 2014 and immediately hanging up the pitcher’s glove.

Verdugo’s balanced approach at the plate allows him to avoid strikeouts pretty well, striking out in just over 11% in his minor league career. Verdugo isn’t going to be a guy who hits 30 home runs or steals 30 bases, so his excellent contact ability and eye will be his biggest assets offensively.

Defensively, Verdugo has excellent reads off the bat, but what stands out in the field for Verdugo is his plus-plus arm, which he uses for power and accuracy, whether in center field or right field. He fell just short of his third straight season with double-digit assists.

Verdugo actually seems to fit perfectly into what is missing at the major league level for the Dodgers, giving them a plus defender in the outfield with the ability to lead off or at least hit high in the lineup without giving up at bats to strikeouts at the top of the order. He could certainly challenge for a starting job in 2018. With Andre Ethier and Curtis Granderson free agents after this season and Joc Pederson entering his first year of arbitration, so the team could certainly find an opening in the outfield for Verdugo.

3. Derek Fisher, OF, Houston Astros

For a time while both were in the same farm system, there was a legit question whether Phillips or Fisher would turn out the better prospect. Phillips broke out in the minors the same year that Fisher was the Astros’ first round selection out of the University of Virginia, and both have similar power/speed profiles.

Fisher has always had some swing and miss, but he’s also shown his power and speed, hitting .275/.364/.483 with 21 doubles, 8 triples, 22 home runs, and 31 steals across both full-season A-ball levels in 2015 in his first year in the system. He followed that up by hitting for less average, which seemed to drop him down prospect rankings, even though he still had 21 home runs and 28 stolen bases while playing in AA and AAA in 2016.

This season, Fisher just barely met the minimum plate appearances as he was up and down quite a bit with the major league team, and though he’s had some struggles with the Astros, his time in Fresno was exceptional, as he hit .318/.384/.583 with 26 doubles, a triple, 21 home runs, and 16 stolen bases.

Fisher has a compact swing, but he does have some load into the zone, which is a significant part of the issues he has with strikeouts, but the speed and power of his swing through the zone would allow for big power as he develops in the major leagues. His athleticism allows him to work well in any outfield spot, though his arm likely makes him a better fit in left or center. He’s making a push for a starting job right now on a playoff team, and he should be penciled in for the 2018 lineup.

2. Dominic Smith, 1B, New York Mets

While the Mets prospect at #1 may not surprise folks, this very well could raise some eyebrows. However, Smith has taken some significant strides forward this season in many areas of his game offensively that lead me to think he’s the guy that belongs right here.

From the time he was selected 11th overall in the 2013 draft out of high school, many have been deriding Smith for his lack of power from a big guy (6′, 230-240 pounds). He had smacked plenty of doubles but struggled to produce home run power before hitting 14 in 2016 and then this season, he took things up a notch.

Smith made a couple of slight changes in his smooth lefty swing this season to access more loft, and the results were impressive, to say the least. He hit .330/.386/.519 with 34 doubles, 2 triples, 16 home runs, and a stolen base on the season. His new swing did not lead to exorbitant strikeouts, as Smith has always had respectable strikeout numbers. He has never struck out 20%, and his 17% rate this season was more than reasonable for the power he was showing.

The more impressive thing to me was the shape Smith came in this year. Derided about his shape when he came out of high school, Smith has worked hard to build himself into a quality athlete, but he took things to another level this offseason, adding visible strength while also truly adding flexibility and agility, which was evidence as his already impressive defense was taken up another notch.

I’ve often struggled with the exact guy to compare Smith to, but with his more athletic build, the comparison struck me as obvious this season in former Mariners first baseman Alvin Davis. Davis had his career cut short by injury, but he had a career line of .280/.380/.450 in the late 80s and early 90s, which is an impressive slash line for that era, especially considering he was really done as a regular at 30 years old.

Smith has taken over first base in New York, and it’s likely that he’s now taken on that position for many years to come, in partnership with his teammate, and the #1 guy on this list…

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1. Amed Rosario, SS, New York Mets

Part of the reason that Rosario has seemingly been underappreciated as a prospect along the way is that his value to a fantasy baseball player is going to be slight, at best. While he’s a guy who should not hurt the offense, he’ll likely not ever hit 30 home runs or steal 30 bases.

Rosario shines in his consistency on the offensive side of the ball, a better base runner than he is a base stealer, getting quality contact on difficult pitches frequently, and using his power well to drive the ball into gaps.

What makes Rosario special is the work he does with his glove. He has incredible range, smooth movements, and a plus arm that easily gets the ball across the diamond. Most impressive is that he has very instinctive movements off the bat, often having an initial step in the right direction on a ball right off the bat, which has allowed him to make a play that most others either cannot get to or have to simply grab and hold as the runner is already down the line.

Rosario has come up to the majors and hit for power and stolen seven bases before eclipsing 40 games played, however, that seems to have come on the heels of an over-aggressive approach, which is not Rosario’s typical MO. It’d be most likely he returns more to a 7% walk rate and 12% strikeout rate guy with some rate adjustment expected, but a spike to nearly 30% is certainly extreme.

Rosario should be a fixture at shortstop for the Mets for many years to come.

Next: 2017 Minor League Awards team

Some of the top prospects who didn’t make the minimum time in the league this season included Walker Buehler, Cody Bellinger, Lewis Brinson, Luke Weaver, Carson Kelly, Josh Hader, Matt Chapman, Matt Olson, Ryan McMahon, and Ian Happ. All of those players would have merited consideration for this list, but none had the requisite time for the list.