Alright, picking up where we left off…
| 16. RHP Thad Ward | 21. RHP Zach Brzykcy (37) | 26. RHP Gerardo Carrillo (8) |
| 17. OF Roismar Quintana (25) | 22. RHP Jake Irvin | 27. OF Daylen Lile (18) |
| 18. LHP Matt Cronin (15) | 23. LHP Evan Lee (22) | 28. LHP Tim Cate (19) |
| 19. C Israel Pineda (23) | 24. 3B Trey Lipscomb | 29. RHP Aldo Ramirez (13) |
| 20. LHP Jose Ferrer | 25. C Drew Millas (30) | 30. 1B Will Frizzell |
It’s a little disturbing that a Top-10 organization would have a Rule 5 pickup within its Top 30, never mind so high up. Why that might be? Perhaps because he was Boston’s #19 guy in 2022 and the #10 guy in 2021, and #7 in 2020…
Incumbency is about the only reason to explain a 25-y.o. who repeated not one but two levels in 2022 and only did well at the level in which he was a year older than the league average. Likewise for a 21-y.o. who did not pitch at all in 2022.
As in years past, IFAs make up a third of the list and pitchers half the list. Seven of the 30 were acquired, and four of the 30 were H.S. picks. It wasn’t that long ago (2020, IIRC) there were only four or five in the entire system.
Obviously, with the team in rebuilding mode, the shift has gone away from high-floor college seniors to high-ceiling HS guys. I don’t expect this to last, but it sure is nice to see… so long as both the front office and the fans remain patient.
Some tidbits:
- Breakout prospects: Pineda, Brzykcy, and Parker
- Still no word on Brady House’s injury beyond that it was in his back
- Shoulder woes were to blame for Carrillo’s performance, diminished velocity
- Brzykcy could make his MLB debut in 2023, likely to start ’23 in AAA
- Ramirez did indeed develop Nats’ elbow and had TJ surgery sometime in the spring
Now, we’ll examine what BA predicted in 2020 for 2023 (put down your morning coffee):
C – Tres Barrera
1B – Drew Mendoza
2B – Luis Garcia
SS – Trea Turner
3B – Carter Kieboom
LF – Juan Soto
CF – Victor Robles
RF – Adam Eaton
#1SP – Stephen Strasburg
#2SP – Patrick Corbin
#3SP – Max Scherzer
#4SP – Jackson Rutledge
#5SP – Wil Crowe
CL – Tanner Rainey
I don’t think we can be any more generous than 2-for-14, and that’s only if you count Corbin as the #2 guy (starting pitcher, not salary).
And we’ll close with the “I think we’re parked, man” list for 2026:
C – Keibert Ruiz
1B – T.J. White
2B – Luis Garcia
SS – C.J. Abrams
3B – Brady House
LF – Robert Hassell
CF – Elijah Green
RF – James Wood
DH – Joey Meneses
#1SP – Cade Cavalli
#2SP – MacKenzie Gore
#3SP – Josiah Gray
#4SP – Jarlin Susana
#5SP – Jackson Rutledge
CL – Jose Ferrer