Post by Commissioner Erick on May 1, 2018 14:53:47 GMT -5
The other league I created to balance out the leagues, the West Indian Short League, hasn't gotten a lot of attention. Let's look at how its best and most disappointing players have fared.
3B Jackson Soto—Braves: A 2017 24th round pick, Soto tore up the Dominican League in 2017 slashing .361/.466/.723 with nine home runs. He played in 53 games but only started 21 of them, so there were still questions about whether his bat could play. He advanced up to short-season ball in 2018 and continued to mash. He hit .333 leading the West Indian league, and spearheading Barbados to the Caribbean League championship.
Now 23, the Braves have announced Soto will move up to High-A next year. He's mostly fully formed without a major calling card so it's interesting to see where he ends up. It's possible he tops out at Double-A or overseas, so having a huge year in the Florida State League will go a long way to proving the production can continue as he works his way up.
RF Michael Medina—Dodgers: Medina dominated the West Indian League, leading the league in home runs, RBIs, OBP, SLG, OPS, and WAR on the way to winning the league's MVP. His OPS ended up at 1.098, and he produced 4.1 WAR in a truly spectacular campaign.
Medina has a violent swing which limits his hit tool presently. Despite finishing with a .332 average, scouts doubt he can put together the type of swing that can succeed in the upper minors. He can fun a little, field a little, and he has good power for the minors, so a trip to A-ball should answer questions as to Medina's future.
CF Randhi Balcazar—White Sox: A minor league free agent signing out of Venezuela in 2017, Balcazar had a nice season for the Haiti Revolutionaries, swiping a league-leading 15 bases and playing excellent center field defense before being promoted to A-Ball late in the year. Balcazar still needs work refining his base-running, and he was thrown out eight times as well. Considering that his speed and defense is well ahead of his hit tool, that refinement may decide whether or not he has a big league career at all.
Scouts aren't enamored with Balcazar's ability to hit and he has little power to speak of. The White Sox have promoted him to A-ball, and if he can hold his own at that level, he should keep working up the minor league ladder.
1B Leandro Santana—Reds: In his age-21 season, Santana repeated the West Indian league. Though his batting relative to the league declined to completely league average, he led the league in zone rating as a first baseman.
Santana's glove probably plays well enough to make him an adequate third baseman, and he has a positive zone rating at that position. His bat doesn't look like it plays well enough at first. A switch to third base seems like a logical conclusion. He's likely only a Triple-A caliber player anyway, but a strong 2019 season will go a long way in answering what position he should be.
1B Zach Featherstone—Twins: After an underwhelming age 22 season in Grenada, Featherstone repeated last year and hit 19 home runs and drove in 60, second only to Medina in those stats.
Featherstone already has a good hit tool, good approach, and good power. His defense, however, is non-existent. Despite decent speed he's clumsy on the diamond and inexperienced in the outfield. His bat may carry him to the upper minors, but it's not good enough to overcome a complete lack of defense.
1B Samuel Ortiz—Dodgers: Playing alongside Medina in Jamaica, Ortiz led the league in runs scored with 50. He had a solid average at .287, and got on base at a .371 clip, despite just five home runs. Ortiz mainly played second and third base, but was inadequate and is now basically just a first baseman.
Ortiz has decent patience and gap pop, but doesn't bring enough power or defense to play even in the upper minors. His best bet is to keep batting in front of Michael Medina.
SP Adrian Rodriguez—Reds: Adrian Rodriguez, for the second straight season, led the West Indian Short League in ERA following a 1.33 2017 with a 2.46 2018. Rodriguez doesn't strike out many batters at all, but his groundballing ways keeps pitches in the park.
Rodriguez walks too many guys and doesn't miss many bats, dampening his major league prospects. Still, leading a league in ERA for two straight years, even if it's just a short-season league, is a notable accomplishment.
RP Salvador Villareal—White Sox: Villareal had the unusual distinction of finishing second in saves with 21, but tying for the most wins with eight. He worked to a 1.82 ERA and struck out 44 in 39.2 innings, a year after working to a 1.22 ERA.
With little left to prove, Villareal will work his age-21 season in full season ball. His movement and control are fringy, but OSA gives him enough marks to perhaps make it to Triple-A.
SP Jose A. Suarez—Angels: Suarez also tied for the West Indian league in wins, though he also took on the most innings and strikeouts as well. Despite the strikeouts, his best attribute may have been his control as he walked only 26 in 100 strikeouts. With an 8-3 record, and a 3.51 ERA in his second go around in Trinidad, it may be time to bring him stateside.
Suarez' three-pitch mix with a potentially solid curveball and changeup should bring him to the upper minors. If his stuff can work in Triple-A, he may be able to carve out a stint in the major leagues.
SP Matt Rowland—Braves: After a disastrous 2017 in A-Ball in 2017 where Rowland walked 50 batters, fanned 43, and went 2-15 with an 8.09 ERA, he was demoted to Short-Season ball. In 2018, Rowland led the league in FIP, tied for the lead in WAR, and regained the confidence needed to pitch in professional baseball. Rowland issued just four home runs and 17 walks in 73.1 innings, before finishing the year with an awful stint back in Rome.
Rowland throws in the mid-90s and has the potential for a strong fastball-slider combination. He commands those two pitches well. However, he has no feel for his changeup and it routinely gets tattooed. There's probably enough for the Braves to develop, but that changeup needs to come around or he needs to become a relief pitcher. He'll pitch next year as a 21-year old so he has time to figure it out.
SP Luis A. Pena—Angels: Pena pitched well across three levels of A-Ball in 2017, but was tasked with repeating Short Season ball this season. He excelled as expected, with a 7-2 record and a 2.48 ERA. He tied for the lead in WAR with 1.9, limiting home runs, walking few, and missing bats.
Scouts think he can tighten his curveball, in other areas is a finished product. He should probably get back to pitching in full season ball, but will likely do it as a reliever.
SP Jose Ma. Martinez—Twins: Martinez was the third pitcher in the league who put up a league-leading 1.9 WAR, this time doing so with Grenada. After a solid rookie league campaign last season, Martinez allowed only four home runs in 82 innings, the main ingredient in his excellent campaign.
Despite his strong year, and despite entering his age-22 season for next year, Martinez is still developing his fastball command and repeating his delivery. As such, it wouldn't be a stretch to picture him in Grenada next year.
CF Mat DeMarco—Braves: After beginning his professional career with a bang, hitting .318 with six home runs in the Gulf Coast League in 2017, the sixth round pick DeMarco hit for just a .703 OPS in Barbados last season. The respectable power was there, but he couldn't get on base enough to take advantage of his speed, stealing one base. He also produced a negative zone rating in center field albeit, a -1 mark.
DeMarco profiles as a good speed and defense player, with a hit tool good enough to make the majors. He'll turn 21 next year, and has to improve his approach before he can put the rest of skills to good use.
RF Bryan Martelo—Royals: Martello was signed in 2017, was an All Star in the West Indian League that year, and was good enough to earn a place on the Colombian National Team during the 2018 World Cup of Baseball. He followed that up by repeating Short-Season ball, and he produced a disappointing .204 season with negative value in left.
There's disagreement with what Martello projects as, though most people see a future big leaguer. OSA slaps an 8 on his power, and also sees him as being fairly advanced presently. This creates an evaluation challenge as where to place him as Brian Schmidt still sees some work to be done. Martelo may be a star, or he may not be. He may need to season more in the low minors, or he may need a more aggressive assignment. There are fewer more enigmatic players in the low minors.
SP Nick Meservey—Braves: A 15th Round pick in 2017, Meservey pitched well for Barbados before moving on to Rome, where he was hammered. He started 2018 off with Rome, struggled, and was brought back down to pitch in Barbados. The underlying numbers were good, but Meservey worked to a 5.23 ERA and allowed 10 home runs in 72.1 innings.
Meservey throws a good fastball and curveball, but his changeup hasn't developed enough to get advanced hitters out. His fastball and curveball are fine and tough to square up, but that changeup is the key to his development. There may be a major leaguer in Meservey, but it may be as a reliever.
SP Kevin Pimentel—Braves: A 17th round pick in 2017, Pimentel did a good job in rookie ball in 2017, and worked his way up to Barbados late in the year. However, after a strong 2017, Pimentel struggled in 2018, working to a 5.49 ERA. A .349 BABIP suggests bad luck and bad defense is a major culprit, though Pimentel allowed eight dingers in 62.1 innings.
Like Meservey, Pimentel has been held back by a poor changeup. His fastball/slider combination works in the low minors, and Pimentel uses them to get out of jams. However, he can't command that changeup yet. Pimentel has enough talent to pitch in the upper minors, though like with Meservey, it may be as a reliever.
3B Jackson Soto—Braves: A 2017 24th round pick, Soto tore up the Dominican League in 2017 slashing .361/.466/.723 with nine home runs. He played in 53 games but only started 21 of them, so there were still questions about whether his bat could play. He advanced up to short-season ball in 2018 and continued to mash. He hit .333 leading the West Indian league, and spearheading Barbados to the Caribbean League championship.
Now 23, the Braves have announced Soto will move up to High-A next year. He's mostly fully formed without a major calling card so it's interesting to see where he ends up. It's possible he tops out at Double-A or overseas, so having a huge year in the Florida State League will go a long way to proving the production can continue as he works his way up.
RF Michael Medina—Dodgers: Medina dominated the West Indian League, leading the league in home runs, RBIs, OBP, SLG, OPS, and WAR on the way to winning the league's MVP. His OPS ended up at 1.098, and he produced 4.1 WAR in a truly spectacular campaign.
Medina has a violent swing which limits his hit tool presently. Despite finishing with a .332 average, scouts doubt he can put together the type of swing that can succeed in the upper minors. He can fun a little, field a little, and he has good power for the minors, so a trip to A-ball should answer questions as to Medina's future.
CF Randhi Balcazar—White Sox: A minor league free agent signing out of Venezuela in 2017, Balcazar had a nice season for the Haiti Revolutionaries, swiping a league-leading 15 bases and playing excellent center field defense before being promoted to A-Ball late in the year. Balcazar still needs work refining his base-running, and he was thrown out eight times as well. Considering that his speed and defense is well ahead of his hit tool, that refinement may decide whether or not he has a big league career at all.
Scouts aren't enamored with Balcazar's ability to hit and he has little power to speak of. The White Sox have promoted him to A-ball, and if he can hold his own at that level, he should keep working up the minor league ladder.
1B Leandro Santana—Reds: In his age-21 season, Santana repeated the West Indian league. Though his batting relative to the league declined to completely league average, he led the league in zone rating as a first baseman.
Santana's glove probably plays well enough to make him an adequate third baseman, and he has a positive zone rating at that position. His bat doesn't look like it plays well enough at first. A switch to third base seems like a logical conclusion. He's likely only a Triple-A caliber player anyway, but a strong 2019 season will go a long way in answering what position he should be.
1B Zach Featherstone—Twins: After an underwhelming age 22 season in Grenada, Featherstone repeated last year and hit 19 home runs and drove in 60, second only to Medina in those stats.
Featherstone already has a good hit tool, good approach, and good power. His defense, however, is non-existent. Despite decent speed he's clumsy on the diamond and inexperienced in the outfield. His bat may carry him to the upper minors, but it's not good enough to overcome a complete lack of defense.
1B Samuel Ortiz—Dodgers: Playing alongside Medina in Jamaica, Ortiz led the league in runs scored with 50. He had a solid average at .287, and got on base at a .371 clip, despite just five home runs. Ortiz mainly played second and third base, but was inadequate and is now basically just a first baseman.
Ortiz has decent patience and gap pop, but doesn't bring enough power or defense to play even in the upper minors. His best bet is to keep batting in front of Michael Medina.
SP Adrian Rodriguez—Reds: Adrian Rodriguez, for the second straight season, led the West Indian Short League in ERA following a 1.33 2017 with a 2.46 2018. Rodriguez doesn't strike out many batters at all, but his groundballing ways keeps pitches in the park.
Rodriguez walks too many guys and doesn't miss many bats, dampening his major league prospects. Still, leading a league in ERA for two straight years, even if it's just a short-season league, is a notable accomplishment.
RP Salvador Villareal—White Sox: Villareal had the unusual distinction of finishing second in saves with 21, but tying for the most wins with eight. He worked to a 1.82 ERA and struck out 44 in 39.2 innings, a year after working to a 1.22 ERA.
With little left to prove, Villareal will work his age-21 season in full season ball. His movement and control are fringy, but OSA gives him enough marks to perhaps make it to Triple-A.
SP Jose A. Suarez—Angels: Suarez also tied for the West Indian league in wins, though he also took on the most innings and strikeouts as well. Despite the strikeouts, his best attribute may have been his control as he walked only 26 in 100 strikeouts. With an 8-3 record, and a 3.51 ERA in his second go around in Trinidad, it may be time to bring him stateside.
Suarez' three-pitch mix with a potentially solid curveball and changeup should bring him to the upper minors. If his stuff can work in Triple-A, he may be able to carve out a stint in the major leagues.
SP Matt Rowland—Braves: After a disastrous 2017 in A-Ball in 2017 where Rowland walked 50 batters, fanned 43, and went 2-15 with an 8.09 ERA, he was demoted to Short-Season ball. In 2018, Rowland led the league in FIP, tied for the lead in WAR, and regained the confidence needed to pitch in professional baseball. Rowland issued just four home runs and 17 walks in 73.1 innings, before finishing the year with an awful stint back in Rome.
Rowland throws in the mid-90s and has the potential for a strong fastball-slider combination. He commands those two pitches well. However, he has no feel for his changeup and it routinely gets tattooed. There's probably enough for the Braves to develop, but that changeup needs to come around or he needs to become a relief pitcher. He'll pitch next year as a 21-year old so he has time to figure it out.
SP Luis A. Pena—Angels: Pena pitched well across three levels of A-Ball in 2017, but was tasked with repeating Short Season ball this season. He excelled as expected, with a 7-2 record and a 2.48 ERA. He tied for the lead in WAR with 1.9, limiting home runs, walking few, and missing bats.
Scouts think he can tighten his curveball, in other areas is a finished product. He should probably get back to pitching in full season ball, but will likely do it as a reliever.
SP Jose Ma. Martinez—Twins: Martinez was the third pitcher in the league who put up a league-leading 1.9 WAR, this time doing so with Grenada. After a solid rookie league campaign last season, Martinez allowed only four home runs in 82 innings, the main ingredient in his excellent campaign.
Despite his strong year, and despite entering his age-22 season for next year, Martinez is still developing his fastball command and repeating his delivery. As such, it wouldn't be a stretch to picture him in Grenada next year.
CF Mat DeMarco—Braves: After beginning his professional career with a bang, hitting .318 with six home runs in the Gulf Coast League in 2017, the sixth round pick DeMarco hit for just a .703 OPS in Barbados last season. The respectable power was there, but he couldn't get on base enough to take advantage of his speed, stealing one base. He also produced a negative zone rating in center field albeit, a -1 mark.
DeMarco profiles as a good speed and defense player, with a hit tool good enough to make the majors. He'll turn 21 next year, and has to improve his approach before he can put the rest of skills to good use.
RF Bryan Martelo—Royals: Martello was signed in 2017, was an All Star in the West Indian League that year, and was good enough to earn a place on the Colombian National Team during the 2018 World Cup of Baseball. He followed that up by repeating Short-Season ball, and he produced a disappointing .204 season with negative value in left.
There's disagreement with what Martello projects as, though most people see a future big leaguer. OSA slaps an 8 on his power, and also sees him as being fairly advanced presently. This creates an evaluation challenge as where to place him as Brian Schmidt still sees some work to be done. Martelo may be a star, or he may not be. He may need to season more in the low minors, or he may need a more aggressive assignment. There are fewer more enigmatic players in the low minors.
SP Nick Meservey—Braves: A 15th Round pick in 2017, Meservey pitched well for Barbados before moving on to Rome, where he was hammered. He started 2018 off with Rome, struggled, and was brought back down to pitch in Barbados. The underlying numbers were good, but Meservey worked to a 5.23 ERA and allowed 10 home runs in 72.1 innings.
Meservey throws a good fastball and curveball, but his changeup hasn't developed enough to get advanced hitters out. His fastball and curveball are fine and tough to square up, but that changeup is the key to his development. There may be a major leaguer in Meservey, but it may be as a reliever.
SP Kevin Pimentel—Braves: A 17th round pick in 2017, Pimentel did a good job in rookie ball in 2017, and worked his way up to Barbados late in the year. However, after a strong 2017, Pimentel struggled in 2018, working to a 5.49 ERA. A .349 BABIP suggests bad luck and bad defense is a major culprit, though Pimentel allowed eight dingers in 62.1 innings.
Like Meservey, Pimentel has been held back by a poor changeup. His fastball/slider combination works in the low minors, and Pimentel uses them to get out of jams. However, he can't command that changeup yet. Pimentel has enough talent to pitch in the upper minors, though like with Meservey, it may be as a reliever.