This month for Prospects1500 I’ve decided to take a stab at placing the Reds top 50 prospects to their future landing spots come the beginning of the baseball season. The Top 50 has changed due to new information, trades, and just more time to delve in to the prospects throughout the organization.
Below you’ll find the likely landing spots for the Top 50 prospects at the start of the 2017 season followed by their current Prospects1500 rank and position.
These are the guys that have the best chance of making the big league club out of Spring Training.
MLB (Cincinnati Reds):
Robert Stephenson (4) SP
Austin Brice (20) RP
Cody Reed (34) SP
Tony Renda (41) Utility
Prospect Recap MLB: Robert Stephenson has been working on his control for years, while Reed had a rough debut season. Both will surpass prospect status this year as they both work on their own issues. Tony Renda will get enough at-bats to lose his prospect status as well, while the newly acquired Austin Brice will take over a spot in the much needed, revamped Cincinnati bullpen.
Triple A (Louisville Bats):
Amir Garrett (2) SP
Jesse Winker (3) OF
Sal Romano (14) SP
Keury Mella (16) SP
Phillip Ervin (17) OF
Rookie Davis (21) SP
Alex Blandino (22)2B
Alejandro Chacin (26) RP
Calten Daal (30) SS
Eric Jagielo (32)3B
Jackson Stephens (44) SP
Barrett Astin (46) RP
Prospect Recap Triple A: The Bats will have all 5 of their starting pitchers coming from the Reds top 50 prospects. Homegrown talents Garrett, Romano, and Stephens will compliment trade acquisitions Mella and Davis. Familiar names Winker and Ervin will man the outfield while 3 infield spots will be noteworthy in Blandino, Daal, and Jagielo will be there. Even the bullpen has 2 representatives on the top 50 list!
Most Likely to Move Up: Amir Garrett
Out of this group, Garrett has the best shot of making the big league club. He could easily switch spots with Stephenson if Amir has a hot spring training. The Reds could decide to hold off on his arbitration clock and let him start in Louisville while calling him up later. If Winker regains his old power or Sal Romano has a strong showing, they could potentially debut this year too. I doubt we’ll see any of the rest of these guys, unless they’re a September call up.
Double A (Pensacola Blue Wahoos):
Luis Castillo (5) SP
Tyler Mahle (7) SP
Nick Travieso (9) SP
Aristides Aquino (11) OF
Jimmy Herget (23) RP
Blake Trahan (24) SS
Zack Weiss (27) RP
Ismael Guillon (31) SP
Taylor Sparks (35)3B
Alex Powers (43) RP
Nolan Becker (50) RP
Prospect Recap Pensacola: Again pitching is the Reds strong suit while 4 out of the 5 rotation starters are in the Top 50 rankings. The bullpen is strong as well boasting 4 prospects of their own. The hitting side of things looks a bit light as Aquino, Trahan, and Sparks are the only 3 everyday players projected to start the season in Double A.
Most Likely to Move Up: Nick Travieso spent his entire season with Pensacola last year. When I started this article, I thought I’d be listing him on the Bats roster. The Reds have depth at pitching and Travieso is the younger than the five I have listed on the Bats. That being said, he has the arm to make the move, so he’s only one injury away from being called up. Zack Weiss is another candidate as he spent last year injured, but the year prior was fantastic out of the pen.
High A (Daytona Tortugas):
Nick Senzel (1) 3B
Vladimir Gutierrez (6) SP
Chris Okey (12) C
Alfredo Rodriguez (15) SS
Shed Long (25) 2B
Ariel Hernandez (29) RP
Ty Boyles (36) SP
Gavin LaValley (39) 1B
Sarkis Ohanian (40) RP
Sandy Lugo (42) RP
Tanner Rainey (47) SP
Prospect Recap Daytona: If you’re a Reds fan who enjoys infield prospects, buy your tickets now! Projected to appear in Daytona are 5 top 50 infielders, including the number 1 overall prospect Nick Senzel. Buy tickets early because he may be on the move (read below). Chris Okey, Shed Long, Gavin LaValley and recent international signee Alfredo Rodriguez project to appear for the Tortugas this season. The pitching tapers off here, but we still have 3 of the top 50 prospects in Gutierrez (another recent international signing), Ty Boyles, and Tanner Rainey in the rotation. The bullpen is also intriguing as it boasts the best curveball in the business with Ariel Hernandez.
Most Likely to Move Up: Nick Senzel
The recent trend of SEC draftees to being expressed to the show shouldn’t be ignored. Senzel has shown he can play with the likes of Dansby Swanson, Alex Bregman, and Andrew Benintendi and he plowed his way through Rookie Ball and Low A last year. If he breaks camp with Daytona, it won’t be long before he’s in Pensacola, Louisville, and eventually Cincinnati. His plate discipline and understanding of the game make him a high ceiling, low risk player. Draft him now!
Low A (Dayton Dragons):
Taylor Trammell (8) OF
Tony Santillan (10) SP
Tyler Stephenson (13) C
T.J. Friedl (18) OF
Ian Kahaloa (19) SP
Michael Beltre (33) OF
Ryan Hendrix (37) RP
Zack Correll (38) RP
Scott Moss (45) SP
James Vasquez (48)1B
Prospect Recap Dayton: Opposite of Daytona, Dayton should be where you go if you want to see young, toolsy outfielders. All 3 outfield spots are represented in the top 50 as Trammell, Friedl, and Beltre could make for an exciting beginning of the season. Young arms will be there too as Santillan (round 2, 2015), Kahaloa (round 5, 2015), and Moss (round 4, 2016) should be there as well. Former 1st round pick Tyler Stephenson will be manning the plate as he looks to return from an injury riddled season.
Most Likely To Move Up: T.J. Friedl
If you’re reading this, you’ve probably read the interesting story of the undrafted T.J. Friedl. He’s a bit older than the other guys on this list. He’s a bit more seasoned being from the University of Nevada and playing for Team USA as it traveled to Taiwan, Japan, and Cuba. He’ll dip his toes in at Dayton, but if the water is fine it’ll be no time before he moves to Daytona.
Rookie Ball (Billings Mustangs):
Max Wotell (28) SP
Andrew Jordan (49) SP
Prospect Recap Billings: Max Wotell has an unorthodox approach to pitching and will get some attention in Billings before moving up eventually. Andrew Jordan had a rough go last year in Billings and will continue to work on developing to become a better prospect.
Most Likely to Move Up: Both
Typically guys like these will start in rookie ball because they need some extra work. It’ll be virtually impossible for them to spend all season in Billings with inevitable injuries happening above them at some point.
Lover of baseball analytics. Baseball card, ticket stub, and memorabilia collector. Cincinnati Reds Season Ticket Member. MLB Passport and MiLB Passport carrier.
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Jeff Manninghttps://www.prospects1500.com/author/reds001/
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Jeff Manninghttps://www.prospects1500.com/author/reds001/
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Jeff Manninghttps://www.prospects1500.com/author/reds001/
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