Graduated from Prospect News: Stash List Volume 3: Red Letter Days: Matt McLain
Just a refresher or if it’s your first season with us: Players like Jordan Walker are ineligible for the stash list because anyone who has already been promoted in-season is ineligible. Guys like Royce Lewis are a bit of a gray-area.
1. Reds SS Elly De La Cruz | 21 | AAA
Unless half this list gets promoted and I write a new one next Sunday, this should be Elly’s last stash. The Reds are on the verge of dancing around a weak division, and they’ve been dragging their feet on it long enough. They’re five games out of first but tied with the Cardinals, half a game behind the Cubs. De La Cruz is slashing .341/.452/.765 with a 20.2 percent strikeout rate in 21 May games along with nine home runs and seven stolen bases.
2. Twins SS Royce Lewis | 23 | AAA
Carlos Correa is banged up and batting .215. Seems like he’ll play through the pain, but Minnesota has to be considering its options now that Lewis is hitting .321 with three home runs and two stolen bases in seven Triple-A games. He’s striking out a lot, but that’s a minor quibble when a guy comes back after this long and immediately starts raking.
3. Guardians RHP Gavin Williams | 23 | AAA
Best pitcher in the minors. While Cleveland squeezes all it can from Hunter Gaddis and Aaron Civale, Williams keeps piling up the whiffs. They’re in a strange spot as an organization. They’ve got guys to sort, and they aren’t scoring any runs while they attempt to sort them. Triston McKenzie will be back soon, so it’s getting hard to see the near-term path for Williams. They might consider trading from strength, but that’s not typically their strategy, and I can’t blame them. It’s just not ideal to let a guy like this burn a bunch of pitches on Triple-A hitters.
4. Reds 1B Christian Encarnacion-Strand | 23 | AAA
Hitting .323 with eight home runs in 22 May games, striking out at a 30.8 percent clip over that stretch. Another complication here is Spencer Steer, who has thrived as the everyday first baseman, slashing .316/.369/.547 in 23 games this month.
5. Orioles OF Colton Cowser | 23 | AAA
Hasn’t played since May 16 due to quad tightness. Placed on the Injured List this week. History suggests they’re in no hurry to rush him back. He’ll almost certainly join the big league team in 2023, but it says something that I even feel the need to qualify it. Might be on something of a stretch-run-only timeline.
6. Orioles 2B Jordan Westburg | 24 | AAA
Takes a little effort to keep this list from devolving into a festival of tiny tears. There comes a time in every prospect’s development when he’s done all he can to state his case. It’s up to the organization to clear a space for him. Westburg recently hit his 30th Triple-A home run. He’s played 133 games at the level and is slashing .303/.378/.577.
7. Rays 1B Kyle Manzardo | 22 | AAA
Small step back for Manzardo, who’s hitting .229 in May and .258 on the season. Be careful here, by which I mean any kind of dynasty buy window closed long ago. Wouldn’t hurt to explore trade options if you have him. I think he’s plenty good, but this team is hard to crack,
8. Reds LHP Andrew Abbott | 23 | AAA
82 strikeouts in 47 innings is impressive, and now Abbott has consecutive dominant Triple-A starts under his belt. Seven walks even in those good games suggest he could benefit from spending some time refining his control, but that can happen at the big leagues, too, even if the great American small-park isn’t the best place to make mistakes.
9. Red Sox SS David Hamilton | 25 | AAA
I must admit I’m starting to lose hope in Hamilton’s near term playing time outlook. Have to wonder when he’d ever get called up if not right now.
10. Rays LHP Jacob Lopez | 25 | AAA
Opened his Triple-A career this week with five shutout innings. He’s been untouchable for the last month, posting a 0.69 WHIP and 35 percent strikeout-minus-walk rate in 27.2 innings across two levels. He’s a deceptive lefty who has been dominant for a while but missed 2022 due to Tommy John surgery.
11. Guardians C Bo Naylor | 23 | AAA
Cleveland doesn’t score many runs, and Naylor might be able to help. Naylor 2.0 alone is not enough to alter their offensive fates, is perhaps the thinking, but Bo is walking just about as much as he’s striking out and producing power along with his .379 on base percentage, so it’s reasonable to expect he’ll get a chance sometime soon.
12. Mariners RHP Bryan Woo | 23 | AA
Fish, coffee and fastball-dominant right-handed pitchers. Seattle has a lot of things to recommend a visit, but it’s a must-stop destination for anyone seeking pitching help from the minor leagues. Gilbert, Kirby and Miller give them developmental success to rival any team in the game.
13. Pirates C Henry Davis | 23 | AA
Opinions may vary on whether or not Davis belongs in the major leagues tomorrow, but it’s pretty clear the bat doesn’t belong in Double-A, where he’s waking as much as he’s striking out (~17 percent) and posting a 187 wRC+.
14. Diamondbacks OF Dominic Canzone | 25 | AAA
In his last 26 games, Canzone is slashing .402/.500/.717 with 19 walks (17%) and 14 strikeouts (12.5%). Seems like a fine time to bring up a hot hand, but the club brought Jake McCarthy back instead. Makes some sense, I guess. Canzone is not the defender you get with McCarthy.
15. Mets SS Ronny Mauricio | 22 | AAA
He’s been on base in 16 straight games, hitting .370 over that stretch. Would be higher if he had an angle on some playing time.
Thanks for reading!
