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MLB.com Updates its Top 30 List for 2017

With the demise of the John Sickels prospect book, there’s one less news peg to use during the offseason. Hence, today’s post.

For those who prefer to cut to the chase – IN: Armond Upshaw, Jose Marmolejos, and Jose Sanchez; OUT: Rhett Wiseman, Tres Barrera, and Spencer Kieboom.

I mainly bring this to folks’ attention because the 2017 list has the most up-to-date scouting reports (although some have just barely been changed). When I was using the 2016 List to write the player capsules for the 2017 Watchlist, it was frustrating to see that for all the updates that were made to the list as players hit rookie limits last year (e.g. Wilmer Difo) or trades, the scouting reports weren’t changed; just the new players added.

This is also something to keep in mind for during the 2017 season, as several players on this year’s list could be dropped for that reason… Koda Glover, A.J. Cole, Pedro Severino, and Brian Goodwin.

As for movement up and down the list: Nos. 1 and 2 are the same. Juan Soto jumped from 12 to 3, Luis Garcia jumped from 21 to 11 (without playing a single game), Anderson Franco edged up from 17 to 15 (despite a back injury and playing at a lower level in ’16 vs. ’15), Drew Ward dropped from 7 to 14 (despite making the All-Star team and getting promoted), Nick Banks fell from 8 to 25.

In other words, rankings have changed based on largely arbitrary factors that question the validity of the original enumeration. But they’re worth some pageviews (*ahem*).

First spring training game is tomorrow… not a day too soon.

5 Commments

  1. There’s some serious variation this year in the various Nats lists of prospects. And the MLB list shows it. they’re rather “high” comparitively speaking on Luis Garcia, Anderson Franco, Sheldon Neuse and “lower” on guys like Joan Baez, Nick Banks.

    but it is good to be able to read scouting reports on the likes of Yasel Antuna and Jose Sanchez, guys who nobody’s seen or even heard of…

  2. Wow, 13 out of 30 on the list — 43% — have yet to play meaningful time in a full-season league, four of whom are just now donning Nat uniforms for the first time. You could say that the quality of the system is in the very young, or that this list values projectablility over actual performance, or perhaps a bit of both.

    I’m not sure why they have such a great love of Neuse, who struggled just about as much as Banks did. I haven’t given up on Neuse by any means, but we haven’t seen much yet to project him so highly. Wiseman had a better year than both of them; not great, but better.

    I could whine about Goodwin being rated so low despite having a chance to make the MLB roster of a contender, but why bother? Sticking closer to their younger prospect love, the one who stands out to me as criminally underrated is Watson. On what planet is Perkins a better prospect than Watson?

  3. It should be a great year to be a Nats prospect watcher. Even though the franchise has traded away a half dozen top prospects, the’ve restocked with a whole lot of guys with potential whose track records have yet to be established. It’s going to be fun to watch all those 2015 & 2016 draft picks and the Dominican IFAs as they work their way up the ladder.

    As for the rankings, I don’t worry about them too much. How do you accurately compare the two time reigning organizational MVP or the former 1st rounder who has already played in the majors with four 17 and 18-year old kids who haven’t played a game yet? The most encouraging thing is that even with all the departures, the system is still far deeper than it was a decade ago when the likes of Kory Casto was our great hope.

  5. Anyone read about the latest Cuban prospect, Luis Robert? Seems like a stud and his profile fits nicely into the system. Wonder if we make one last run at a signing before the penalty kicks in June.

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