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2022 Minor League Thread

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It improved... It feels plagiarized though like they just ripped off other people's research.
Pretty solid list though. You can get 10 "experts" to make you this list and not one of them will be identical.

PITCHING:
For me(I'm nobody) Espino is our undisputed #1 prospect and probably a top 5 in baseball. They failed to address his mechanical changes and the results that followed with his promotion to A+ ball. I mean who in the hell strikes out 16.2/9 and walks less than 3/9? I can't think of a better Cleveland SP prospect and that includes CC. This cat is rare and everything looks so smooth and easy.

Morris is ready for an opportunity and I think he can outpitch at least 2 of the current starters. We don't talk enough about how good he is IMO.

Battenfield, Pilkington, Myers and Allen aren't far behind. I do question why they seem to limit Myers to a BP role. He threw 117 innings last season. Check his SO and BB per 9IP. He's a SP.

I've said it time and again, the SP depth is fucking ridiculous(excuse my french). It's not like these guys are all hype because they throw hard. All the peripherals point to solid MLB SP. They limit hits, limit walks, and all of them strike out more than a batter/inning.

POSITIONALLY:
You have to love how Valera swings a bat. He may be the best, most well rounded hitting OFer we've had in a long time. Lofty expectations I know, but that swing is sweet. I expect him to grab a spot in 2023.

What happens if Arias continues to hit like he did in 21? He can win a GG at SS and looks to be ready for an opportunity. It's no fluke either. His AAA numbers as a 21 yr old are right inline with his A+ numbers as a 19 yr old. Can't help but wonder what might be if not for the lost 2020 season. Something has clicked with him offensively. He hit 13 HR and 29 2B in 436 AB. I don't find it unreasonable to think that some of those 2B will turn into HR as he matures.

Rocchio is going to force his way into one of the MIF spots by 2023. Is there a more well rounded player in the system?

Freeman hits as well as anyone in the minors and is a solid defender. I'd trade him with the depth currently in the system not because I don't like him, but because his value is so high and there is plenty of quality MIF depth. Plus we still have Miller who I think is going to rebound nicely in 22.

Good Lord! Noel looks like a monster! Bimbo said a while back that there was something in the works with him. I hope he shares that soon.

I'm a huge Lavastida fan and I think he's a better C prospect than Naylor right now. We need another C, but I want a available path for him should he continue to perform. Considering that, Hedges and Leon may very well be our 2 C to start the 22 season.

I'm a little down on Jones at the moment. I know he started slow and picked it up as the season progressed, but I just don't know about him. He's another I would use in a trade for a need if the opportunity presented itself.

Can't help but wonder if OGon won't be given an opportunity. Looks like there will always be some significant swing and miss in his game, but he can obliterate a baseball. He's one of those prospect you expect to fail against MLB pitching, but you never know.

This is the best Cleveland farm since the early 90's. This is how a championship caliber team is built IMO.
 
@CDAV45

Bimbo did say a little about Noel and essentially it was about how there was an NL team that was going to take him even if they had to throw him in the OF once in awhile.
 
@CDAV45

Bimbo did say a little about Noel and essentially it was about how there was an NL team that was going to take him even if they had to throw him in the OF once in awhile.

No, they were going to throw him in as their DH (with universal DH pretty much a given) while they develop him into an OFer.
 
Pretty solid list though. You can get 10 "experts" to make you this list and not one of them will be identical.
Yeah I mean my grievances aren't really with the ranking although some things stand out like Morris at #15 and OGon at #16. One's knocking on the door of being an effective starter and the other is (at least at the moment) fatally flawed.

One comment I found interesting was "but continued his gold glove potential work behind the plate" in the context of Bo Naylor. This does NOT look plagiarized, in fact I've never seen anyone mention something like this. It's almost like they saw him high on prospect lists, saw he was struggling with hitting, and figured "well it must be the defense".
 
Yeah I mean my grievances aren't really with the ranking although some things stand out like Morris at #15 and OGon at #16. One's knocking on the door of being an effective starter and the other is (at least at the moment) fatally flawed.

One comment I found interesting was "but continued his gold glove potential work behind the plate" in the context of Bo Naylor. This does NOT look plagiarized, in fact I've never seen anyone mention something like this. It's almost like they saw him high on prospect lists, saw he was struggling with hitting, and figured "well it must be the defense".
I agree with your take KS, and there's no way Morris is way down to #15 after his performance. It's not like he's a soft tosser and gets lucky with balls in play. Dude has 3 filthy pitches with his FB hitting 97. He walked 3/9IP over the course of the season while striking out 13.7/9IP. The only thing I see to limit him is his IP. He may be a kid you prefer to bring in the 2nd half for the stretch run if you expect to be in it.

I've seen/read in a few places that said Naylor's defense is better than average already so let's hope he picks it back up offensively in 22.

OGon's peripherals all look like he'll crash and burn at the highest level.
 
These lists are always fun to look at and debate.

If those that feel that Morris is listed too low at #15, who do you put him ahead of?

While it appears that he is slated as the next one called up for a start behind the six who have already started MLB games...because he has seen AAA action.... is he really a better prospect than Espino, Allen Jr, and Williams?

And then which position prospects is he better than right now?

I dont think many would argue about Rocchio, Freeman, Valera, Arias, Jones, Noel, and Naylor being better prospects.

That leaves the question of placement between Morris, Tena, Martinez, Lavastida, and Palacios.

Morris at #15 isn't an indictment of him as much as it is an exclamation point on the depth of our system.

We can always quibble about the relative merits of any prospect list, but the only real problem I have with this one is placing Rocchio at a lower tier than Valera, Freeman, and Espino.
 
Pretty good read... and the start of a six part story..


-Chak & Jerson could be worth watching in 2022...
I know he's not listed here due to still being projected as a starting pitcher, but I would expect Carlos Vargas to be used as a reliever this year to accelerate his arrival time in Cleveland.
 
I know he's not listed here due to still being projected as a starting pitcher, but I would expect Carlos Vargas to be used as a reliever this year to accelerate his arrival time in Cleveland.

If those are our best reliever prospects then some of our minor league starting pitchers will necessarily become relievers IMO.
 
I know he's not listed here due to still being projected as a starting pitcher, but I would expect Carlos Vargas to be used as a reliever this year to accelerate his arrival time in Cleveland.
Vargas to the pen makes a ton of sense, but will probably get a crack at starting on the "lightning in a bottle" chance that he comes out on fire.

He probably does a ton of starting/piggybacking this year (50-70 innings) and if he succeeds, great. If not, pen city for 2023.
 
These lists are always fun to look at and debate.

If those that feel that Morris is listed too low at #15, who do you put him ahead of?

While it appears that he is slated as the next one called up for a start behind the six who have already started MLB games...because he has seen AAA action.... is he really a better prospect than Espino, Allen Jr, and Williams?

And then which position prospects is he better than right now?

I dont think many would argue about Rocchio, Freeman, Valera, Arias, Jones, Noel, and Naylor being better prospects.

That leaves the question of placement between Morris, Tena, Martinez, Lavastida, and Palacios.

Morris at #15 isn't an indictment of him as much as it is an exclamation point on the depth of our system.

We can always quibble about the relative merits of any prospect list, but the only real problem I have with this one is placing Rocchio at a lower tier than Valera, Freeman, and Espino.
My point was more focused on Morris being next to OGon. I think OGon at 16 is a much bigger error than Morris at 15. I think a strong case could be made where OGon isn't in the top 30. This author also has Planez pretty high who seems like a younger OGon, not sure why he would be seen as similar value to Halpin for instance. But at least I think it shows a bias - the author is a bit HR obsessed at the expense of defense, speed, and plate discipline.

However the way I'm seeing things I'd have him ahead of Naylor, Lavastida and maybe Martinez (don't know enough about) and Palacios. So that'd have him more in the #12-13 range.

As far as I'm concerned, those top 5 are fairly interchangeable although Espino being low seems the most unreasonable. They all have stuff to work on or concerns.
 
My point was more focused on Morris being next to OGon. I think OGon at 16 is a much bigger error than Morris at 15. I think a strong case could be made where OGon isn't in the top 30. This author also has Planez pretty high who seems like a younger OGon, not sure why he would be seen as similar value to Halpin for instance.

However the way I'm seeing things I'd have him ahead of Naylor, Lavastida and maybe Martinez (don't know enough about) and Palacios. So that'd have him more in the #12-13 range.

As far as I'm concerned, those top 5 are fairly interchangeable although Espino being low seems the most unreasonable. They all have stuff to work on or concerns.
I agree with much of this.

I dont see OGonz as much of a prospect.

Morris is more likely to make a dent in Cleveland this season than Lavastida, Naylor, and Martinez (certainly), but if we don't add some OFs, Palacios will probably get a legit look.
 

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