MLB top prospects: Best 1-2 prospect combinations in baseball

30. Chicago Cubs

The Cubs gutted the top end of their system in trades to help the major league team and have one of the youngest rosters in the game based on prospects developed in their system, so a lack of top-end guys is not a huge talent. However, when they hit on a guy like Nico Hoerner in the first round and get way more than expected (.327/.450/.573 in 14 games before getting hurt), that’s huge! Hoerner right now is the only 2018 selection attending the Arizona Fall League. The second guy on my personal list would be catcher Miguel Amaya, and while the Panamanian is incredibly talented, he’s also 19 and still plenty raw behind the plate and at the plate, making him a tough guy to push the Cubs rank up beyond this spot.

29. Boston Red Sox

The talent of this pair is worthy of being much higher, but Michael Chavis and Jay Groome have missed significant parts (or all) of 2018 due to suspension or injury, which makes it hard to rank them higher. Chavis looked good when he was back on the field, giving hints that his 2017 breakout was not a complete PED-fueled blow-up. Groome missed all of 2018 to Tommy John surgery after flashing brilliance but inconsistency in his first full season in 2017.

28. Kansas City Royals

The Royals used a tremendous system to lead to a multi-year playoff run and one of the most successful runs in team history. Rebuilding the system has led to a huge influx of talent, but that talent simply hasn’t reached the point of true materializing yet, which leaves them at this point. Certainly highest in profile is top 2018 pick Brady Singer, the ace of the University of Florida staff, who has not yet made his pro debut after a heavy workload this spring for the Gators. The #2 on my personal list is catcher MJ Melendez, who was an absolute standout in low-A in 2018, but he’s also 19 and still in the low levels, so he has plenty of development yet to do.

27. Arizona Diamondbacks

While the Diamondbacks overall have one of the least amount of depth in a farm system in the game, they have done well to develop a handful of solid prospects, including starter Jon Duplantier, who has been absolutely dominant the last two seasons when he’s on the mound. His previous health issues and injuries this year will keep that issue present. Infielder Jasrado Chisholm was tremendous in his first full season this year, working his way to high-A, hitting 25 home runs and stealing 17 bases, flashing incredible raw talent.

26. Seattle Mariners

Within a year or so, this pair could look much better. Kyle Lewis played his most games in a season this year, but that still was just half a season. He had his ups and downs, but the talent is obvious. Evan White was drafted for his ability to be a premium defender at first base and hit for average. He struggled some early in the season, but he really came into his own in the second half, finishing with a tremendous August, when he hit .363/.454/.703 with 5 of his 11 home runs.

25. Miami Marlins

One of the most naturally talented players in the entire minor leagues, Monte Harrison can also be one of the most frustrating when watching him from a scout’s perspective. This season is a great example. He his 19 home runs and stole 28 bases in AA, which are great numbers, especially with his great defense. He also struck out an astounding 215 times, however. With one of the most gifted arms in baseball, Alcantara is similar to Harrison, but on the mound. He has an incredible blend of velocity and tremendous breaking stuff, but he struggles to keep the ball in the zone.

24. New York Mets

The Mets have signed some excellent middle infielders, and Andres Gimenez could end up being the best of them all overall. He has excellent contact skills with the ability to make loud gap contact and flash his plus speed. Gimenez is still raw in the field, though he’s got incredible defensive skills. The #2 on my personal list is the Mets top 2018 selection Jarred Kelenic. Kelenic finished his pro debut with 6 home runs and 15 steals over just 56 games, showcasing the incredible talent he has.

23. Texas Rangers

The Rangers are reputed for their depth of raw talent, and their top two players are exactly in those lines as Leody Taveras was able to not completely embarrass himself at high-A at 19, though he could use a season to collect himself after being pushed rather aggressively the last two years. The other big prospect is Cuban signee Julio Pablo Martinez, a Rangers signee this offseason. He blew through rookie ball, but he struggled in exposure to the Northwest League initially. He did recover by the end of the season, but for a guy assumed to be very advanced, that struggle raised a few flags on Martinez.

22. San Francisco Giants

The Giants last two first round picks make this pairing one of the most dynamic pairs of an incredibly shallow system. Joey Bart has hit very well this year in his debut after being the #2 overall selection, and some assume that he will work his way quickly to the big leagues behind the plate. Heliot Ramos will not move as quickly, but he has incredible raw talent that has not been present in the Giants system in a long time and could translate into a future middle-of-the-order hitter.

21. St. Louis Cardinals

Before his arm went down again, Alex Reyes showed exactly why he was such a highly regarded prospect. However, with two major arm injuries now in the course of three seasons, it’s a legitimate concern whether he will be able to get on the mound as a starter long-term. The Cardinals lucked into one of the top power hitters in the entire 2018 draft this season as Nolan Gorman fell to them, and he exploded in his first exposure to pro ball, hitting .291/.380/.570 on the season with 17 home runs over just 63 games.

20. Cleveland Indians

The injury to top arm Triston McKenzie and the trade of jhe team’s former top position prospect takes the Indians from one of the top 10 duos to this position. Even after injury, McKenzie flashed plenty to believe that he has a bright future ahead of him. Nolan Jones may not be a top 25 talent, but he’s no slouch, and working his way to high-A this season was indicative of the speed that he could move now that he’s worked through his defensive concerns at the hot corner.

19. Pittsburgh Pirates

The Pirates also saw an injury to their top arm slow his season to some degree, and then some struggles at the top level of the system has raised a few questions on his polish in Mitch Keller‘s changeup, but he’s still one of the best young pitchers in the entire game. Ke’Bryan Hayes is one of the elite third base defenders in all of minor league baseball, and his work with the bat has steadily increased, with 44 extra base hits this season.

18. Baltimore Orioles

Though he struggled after his acquisition, Keibert Ruiz is one of the most natural hitters in the minor leagues, a guy that has the likely ability to hit .300 at the major league level with very good bat control and defense in the outfield. Establishing himself in 2017, Ryan Mountcastle made a successful transition to third base in 2018 while his bat was able to keep up, giving him a very good chance to make an appearance at the hot corner in Baltimore in 2019.

17. Milwaukee Brewers

The revival of Corey Ray may be one of the most impressive prospect stories of the 2018 season as Ray had one of the best seasons in all of AA, though he’ll have his work cut out for him to break through the crowded Brewers outfield. The top guy in the Brewers system, Keston Hiura, showed his ability with the bat and finally worked his way into the field with AA Biloxi at second base, where he was passable at least.

16. Colorado Rockies

Considered the most talented among the 2015 draft class of shortstops coming out of high school, Brendan Rodgers has seemingly had fits and starts in his development, pushing forward in one moment, then dropping back and struggling the next. The Rockies have seen young pitching propel the team into contention in recent years, and they could have their next very good one in Peter Lambert in the minor leagues, with an excellent balance of pitches and ability to keep the ball in the zone.

15. Philadelphia Phillies

Really, pairing anyone with Sixto Sanchez would get them fairly high on this list, but the Phillies had to be very pleased with the progress of outfielder Adam Haseley, who hit .300+ this season in his first full season in the system, making his way to AA. Sanchez’s raw ability on the mound is tough to match in all of baseball, but his injury issues has him down enough to put the pair here.

14. New York Yankees

A year ago, the Yankees would have easily been top 5, and very possibly #1. With the graduation of a few players, the system leans on an undersized lefty Justus Sheffield and a still-raw toolsy outfielder Estevan Florial right now, though the depth of the system is still incredible.

13. Detroit Tigers

The first two-pitcher grouping on the list, the Tigers are able to pair the top overall selection in this year’s draft class with one of the biggest improvements among raw young arms seen this year. Casey Mize has all the stuff to at least be a staff ace, if not an ace in the eyes of all of baseball. Matt Manning‘s 2018 saw him go from a guy with a blazing fastball to a possible #1 pitcher with elite stuff that worked all the way to AA, striking out 154 in 117 2/3 innings.

12. Los Angeles Dodgers

While the Dodgers won’t move Alex Verdugo in trade, they seem to not work to find him a spot at the big league level, in spite of spending his second season hitting over .300 in AAA. He has received just enough MLB playing time that he could fall off this list due to exceeding rookie limits. The second guy on my list is young catcher Keibert Ruiz, who did have some struggles as a teenager in the upper minors, but the fact that he was even in the upper minors as a teenage catcher says all you need to know about his incredible ability behind the plate.

11. Oakland Athletics

A pair of lefties lead what has become a very deep farm system. Jesus Luzardo has placed himself firmly among the top 20-30 prospects in the entire game with his incredible 2018 performance. While AJ Puk missed all of 2018, his strikeout ability in 2017 in the upper minors is such that if he can return to the player, he will have plenty to offer the A’s.

10. Washington Nationals

The Nationals saw teenager Juan Soto set the league on fire, but the outfielder who was top-ranked coming into the season was Victor Robles, and after a season marred by injury, Robles could be an impact player in 2019 for the Nationals. Carter Kieboom is a guy that should move into the top 50 in a lot of MLB top prospects lists due to his incredible ability and production this season.

9. Cincinnati Reds

Before he was injured, Hunter Greene had begun to show the ability that led to the Reds trusting him to use his incredible arm off of the mound instead of pursuing his big bat. The hope is that he’ll make his way to the mound in late 2019 and be able to progress again. Nick Senzel seemed on a path to push the Reds for a spot in the big leagues before he was injured as well.

8. Atlanta Braves

With the players like Acuna and Albies making their way to the majors, the Braves are left with two arms at the top of their list, and they could not be more different. Mike Soroka is the epitome of mental approach on the mound, with the ability to manipulate his pitches and dominate a game in that way. Ian Anderson has all the raw stuff, but he needed to harness it, which he really made huge strides in doing in 2018, arguably overtaking Soroka as the top prospect in the system.

7. Los Angeles Angels

Coming into the 2017 draft, many saw Jo Adell as a very talented player who had not faced top competition, and therefore was likely going to take multiple years in the minor leagues. Instead, Adell has launched himself into the top 10 of all prospects with his incredible 2018 season. Not at the same level as Adell, but Brandon Marsh has similarly outleaped expectations this year going from a guy who wasn not on MLB top prospects lists, but he certainly will factor into them this offseason.

6. Tampa Bay Rays

With one of the best farm systems in the game graduating multiple players to the major leagues this year, the Rays also had Wander Franco establish himself among the top 2-3 prospects in all of baseball. Pairing that with the tremendous talent that Brent Honeywell displayed before his Tommy John, and you have a very impressive duo who are on very different ends of the development curve, with Franco likely to open in low-A in 2019 and Honeywell likely to fight for a big league rotation job.

5. San Diego Padres

The top farm system in the game right now has one elite prospect, but the second is a tough one to pick. Fernando Tatis, Jr. struggled out of the gate, but his final numbers were still incredibly impressive, with 16 home runs and 16 steals on the season. He’ll likely fight for a big league role in 2019. MacKenzie Gore battled through injuries in 2018, but when he was on the mound, the stuff was tremendous, the results weren’t always there, however.

4. Minnesota Twins

The pair that finished the year in Fort Myers, winning a Florida State League championship will both be top 25 prospects this offseason as Royce Lewis was able to put together a .292/.352/.451 season, showing his power and speed with 14 home runs and 28 stolen bases. However, arguably the second-best season in the entire minor leagues was that of his teammate, Alex Kirilloff, who returned from a year away due to Tommy John surgery and hit .348/.392/.578 with 44 doubles, 20 home runs, and 101 RBI on the season.

More from Call to the Pen

• Philadelphia Phillies, ready for a stretch run, bomb St. Louis Cardinals
• Philadelphia Phillies: The 4 players on the franchise’s Mount Rushmore
• Boston Red Sox fans should be upset over Mookie Betts’ comment
• Analyzing the Boston Red Sox trade for Dave Henderson and Spike Owen
• 2023 MLB postseason likely to have a strange look without Yankees, Red Sox, Cardinals

3. Houston Astros

Kyle Tucker and Forrest Whitley were both highly rated before the season, and both improved their stock through interesting seasons in 2018. Whitley missed significant time due to suspension, yet was able to flash dominance on the mound once he returned. Tucker had struggles to establish himself with the Astros at the big league level, but he was dominant in the minors. Interestingly, the Astros likely would remain in this place or perhaps fall just one swapping out Whitley for Yordan Alvarez in a very top-heavy system.

2. Chicago White Sox

Coming into the season, many figured that by the end of the year, we would see both Eloy Jimenez and Michael Kopech enough in the big leagues that neither would be on MLB top prospects lists going into the 2019 season. Both will still be eligible after Eloy was hurt early in the season and, in spite of a dominant year in the upper minors, will not see any big league time in 2018. Kopech got to the big leagues and flashed some brilliance, but he blew out his elbow and will miss all or most of 2019.

1. Toronto Blue Jays

The cream of the crop remains the Jays duo. The top prospect on nearly any MLB top prospects list out there, Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. had an incredible minor league season, leading all of the minor leagues in average and on-base. He had the highest slugging of any qualified batter as well. Bo Bichette did nothing to dissuade high opinions of his abilities, hitting .286/.343/.453 in AA at 20 years old with 43 doubles, 11 home runs, and 32 stolen bases while handling shortstop well.

So that’s our list of the top MLB top prospects duos by team. Who do you think is too high? Too low? Comment below!!