MLB Top Prospects: A new wave of backstops

It’s not often that MLB top prospects are catchers because much of the learning is completed at the major league level for a catcher, but three young backstops are making an impact on scouts at the low-A level in 2018

With the focus on catching throughout baseball, it would make sense that MLB top prospects would be more heavily catchers, yet in the 150 MLB top prospects list from this spring here on Call to the Pen, only 9 were catchers. However, there is a trio of young catchers in low-A this season that are establishing themselves such that they could all three receive serious top-100 consideration this coming offseason.

William Contreras, Atlanta Braves

The Atlanta Braves signed Williams Contreras in February 2015 from Venezuela. He has big league bloodlines as his brother Willson Contreras is the outstanding young shortstop for the Chicago Cubs.

Contreras had an impressive debut in the Dominican Summer League, hitting .314/.370/.413. He struggled out of the gate the following season in the Gulf Coast League, but his bat improved each month. Then he hit Danville in the Appy League, where he was the Atlanta Braves player of the year at the level.

His first full season didn’t start until the end of April, so he’s not even a full month into play with Rome, yet scouting reports are very high on Contreras. He’s impacting the ball well, working deep counts, and working hard with Braves coaches on the areas he’s needed to improve. While the statline is .255/.342/.378 right now, he’s shown the hard work that he did with his time in the GCL that should allow him to continue improving throughout the season.

Contreras has tremendous patience behind the plate, high-end athleticism in his movements behind the plate, and works well framing right now. He will continue to work on his accuracy in his throws to second and his setup behind the plate to allow him to block balls better, but he’s been putting in the work, and he’s shown the willingness to make the efforts to take talent into production.

Ronaldo Hernandez, Tampa Bay Rays

While many focused on the Rays signing of Adrian Rondon in their deep July 2014 class, the Rays signed some very good talent in that class, including Hernandez, who was a third baseman when he was originally signed out of Columbia.

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The Rays immediately moved him behind the plate, and he worked a ton on defense in his debut, struggling with the bat as he was focusing on his defensive work. In a return to the level in 2016, Hernandez’s bat showed out for sure, as he hit .340/.406/.485 with more walks than strikeouts.

The Rays jumped him to the Appy League in 2017, and he and Contreras were the focus of many debates over who was the most exciting young catcher in the Appy League in 2017, as he hit .332/.382/.507. The Rays have been giving him time at DH plenty this year with Bowling Green to keep his bat in the lineup, but he’s showing well defensively, hitting .274/.312/.387 right now with the Hot Rods, and he’s receiving very good marks for improvements in his framing, though he still has some work to do in his lateral movement to handle stuff in the dirt.

MJ Melendez, Kansas City Royals

Coming into the 2017 draft, Melendez was highly regarded for his natural feel for the game, with a father who was a college coach. Melendez had reported power, but his offense game was still raw with his defense being considered far ahead of his offense.

Melendez has shown plenty this season with the bat as he’s developed his tools with the bat, truly impacting the ball. Melendez has really hit very well of late, and is hitting well enough that he’s been getting quite a few reps at DH. On the season, Melendez is hitting .279/.336/.623 with 8 doubles, 5 triples, and 8 home runs.

While Melendez has work at the plate to do in his pitch recognition, he has already shown an ability to crush pitches. His work behind the plate does have some steps to take, but he has shown plenty of positive growth already.

Next: CTTP's top 150 prospects

There are plenty more young catchers that are excellent and could end up among MLB top prospects. These are just three that should definitely be followed as they are showing well early on in their career.