Baseball teams aren't built in a day. Franchises like the San Francisco Giants, who developed a core of young players and then made trades out of the farm system to support their growing success, understand this. So while the Giants have played just about all of the cards in their hands, they can see other teams on the horizon that are just now beginning to develop the new generation of great players.
Let's get acquainted with five of the very best prospects in baseball. For our purposes, we're including only players who were in the minors prior to expansion of MLB rosters in September.
1. SS Corey Seager, Los Angeles Dodgers
2012 draft pick Corey Seager hit poorly in 2013, but he was absurd in 2014: he batted .349/.402/.602 and led the minors in several hitting categories. Los Angeles has been in no rush to bring him up for a full season (if he plays enough games, it could affect his free agency status in the years to come), but they didn't miss their chance when rosters expanded for the postseason: they called him up this week for their stretch run and playoff games.
2. RHP Lucas Giolito, Washington Nationals
Giolito has been on scouts' radar for years, and he was the best pitcher available when he was drafted in 2012. So why has it taken this long for him to develop? Well, Giolito got Tommy John surgery very soon after being drafted. In 2014, though, Giolito was back and better than ever. Giolito has a fantastic curveball and is developing a nasty changeup, and he's back to being the number one pitching prospect in the game.
3. LHP Julio Urias, Los Angeles Dodgers
The Dodgers bought out Urias' contract from a team in the Mexican league, and they're looking pretty smart right now. Urias is incredibly polished for being so young (and young he is: he's just 19-years-old). He won't be swooping in to help the Dodgers in the postseason — L.A. is taking it slow with him, capping his pitch counts and keeping him in the minors — but he'll be in the big leagues soon enough.
4. 3B/OF Joey Gallo, Texas Rangers
Gallo is on this list thanks partly to his strong performance so far this season. Gallo made a very brief stint in the majors, but he needs a bit more time in the minors to develop more fully as a player. He struggles with lefties, which he'll need to fix if he wants to become the dangerous power hitter that he is projected to be. With his skill, it seems likely that he can and will.
5. RHP Tyler Glasnow, Pittsburgh Pirates
Like Seager, Glasnow was good enough to merit a call-up to the big league squad when rosters expanded in September. He got roughed up in his first start, but expect him to figure things out: he was virtually unhittable in the minor leagues. And in the years to come, you can count on hearing about Glasnow a lot more often.
Leave a Comment