Kristian Robinson (4-for-4 with a double) is slashing .307/.405/.592 with five homers in 25 games for Short-A Hillsboro. He’s one of the sexy prospects that I overlooked in the preseason and now he’s making me pay for it. Granted Robinson is only 18 years old, but his power and speed ceilings are fun to dream on. I’m not too keen on his strikeout rate (28%) but that’s probably more a reflection of his age than anything else. In the preseason, I comped him to Eloy Jimenez. That might seem crazy given he plays center and has wheels, but I think he’ll fill out and slide over to right in the long run. Here’s what else is happening around the minor leagues…
Jo Adell, OF | LAA – (3-for-4 with two homers). The home runs were his 7th and 8th in just 32 games since returning from injury. He’s now hitting .371 for Double-A Mobile. I know I keep telling frequent commenter Al that he won’t be up this year, but maybe there’s a chance we see him before September if he keeps this up. The best news about Adell so far is that he is absolutely demolishing his strikeout rates from last year, whiffing just 18% of the time in Double-A this season compared to 31% last season. Small sample size alert, but still.
Blake Rutherford, OF | CWS – 3-for-5, with three 3-hit games in his last five. If you were one of the clever blokes who bought low on Blake, kudos. He’s certainly turning this campaign around, hitting .345 since the end of May after hitting .186 to start the season. I’m not a giant Rutherford fan, but there are some decent buying opportunities in dynasty when prospect fatigue sets in, and this might be one of them.
Andrew Vaughn, 1B | CWS – 2-for-4 with three RBI. Vaughan is my favorite player from the recent draft, and he’s off to a nice start in Kannapolis. Through his first seven games there, he’s hitting .346 with a .455 on-base percentage. He could move very quickly through the White Sox system (I’d guess on a 2021 ETA) and in my opinion is one of the top picks in first year player drafts.
Austin Hays, OF | BAL | 3-for-5 with a homer (9). Hays is about a week away from his injured list stint and he’s making the most of it. He’s hit in six of his seven games since returning, good for a .444 average. My guess is he’ll get somewhere around 80 plate appearances the rest of the way with the Orioles (based on Steamer projections), but then again you may want to take the under on that number given how long it’s taking them to give Mountcastle some at bats.
Spencer Steer, MI | MIN – 5-for-5, hitting .338 in 19 games with Elizabethton. When you play in leagues like I used to, you have to dig past the first round. That’s why you’ll see me highlight guys like Steer (a third round pick) and even Bryce Ball from last week. Seems silly, but when you’re in round four of a first year player draft in a league with 70-man rosters and 40-man minor league rosters, your ass is grass if the only players you pay attention to are first round selections. Anyway, back to Steer. I’m partial to middle infielders, and I like Steer’s sturdy profile out of Oregon. You might not see him on top prospect lists, but I think you’ll see him in the majors.
