Gavin Williams looked incredible against the Royals on Tuesday night, firing seven shutout innings and allowing just one hit. Kansas City is missing Vinnie P, and Sal P is out of the lineup right now, but I got to see every pitch Williams threw on this night, and he was in rhythm from the first inning, particularly with his fastball atop the zone. He’s got some room for growth with his off-speed command, but Cleveland is a great place to hone that.
All the way down the pipeline, Guardians OF Jose Pirela is dominating the Dominican Summer League, slashing .422/.525/.644 with 12 strikeouts, ten walks, and two home runs in 13 games. Already 6’3” 181 lbs at 17-years-old, Pirela has been caught stealing in all three of his attempts this season and might be confined to four-category production from a corner.
Red Sox SP Hunter Dobbins (23, AA) is no Gavin Williams on the style front. Where Williams is smooth and balanced all the way through their delivery, Dobbins trips some reliever triggers in terms of repeatability.
18-years-old as of April 25, Cubs SS Jefferson Rojas is in Low-A already and on course to be young for his level throughout his minor league career. If he can handle the time constraints of shortstop at the upper level, he’ll catch a lot of shine from public-facing, real-baseball lists.
Rangers OF Tommy Specht (19, A) is from my hometown. Went to a high school where I coached for a summer. These details only matter insofar as they clarify why I struggle to gauge Specht’s value in the dynasty-verse. Looks like an Evan Carter starter kit to me.
Hasn’t been much minor league baseball this week. Pretty much an empty slate Tuesday, which makes this the perfect time to circle back from some questions I missed while on the road.
Oddball Herrera wrote:
“Crazy to think we see Lawlar this year? He has made the adjustment to AA, and AZ doesn’t have a lot of margin for error…Super curious to see if he starts getting time at other spots (3B?) in the near future.”
Not crazy at all. Diamondbacks SS Jordan Lawlar has mastered the level over the past month, slashing .330/.390/.580 with five homers and ten steals with a 13.8 percent strikeout rate across 26 games. He’s scheduled to play in the futures game and might be on the move to Triple-A afterward.
Here’s a link to the full Futures Game rosters as of today.
Lawlar’s Double-A teammate Ryan Bliss made the game as well and will finally catch some prospect shine if he hits. Get him before game time if he’s available in your leagues. I’ll go in depth on the Futures Game in Sunday’s post.
Reds SS Noelvi Marte earned a promotion to Triple-A this week and will also play in the futures game. He’s been more good than great at Double-A (.281/.356/.464), but good is kinda great for a 21-year-old carrying a ten percent walk rate and 17 percent strikeout rate. How he’ll fold into an increasingly crowded infield remains to be seen, and he might even be a nice trade piece if they’re willing to explore that route.
Oddball Herrera also wondered about Brett Baty’s fate against left handed pitchers. Manager Buck Showalter is trying to keep playoff hopes alive, and Baty has struggled to make consistent contact even against righties. Feels like a platoon unless they fall out of contention.
Philip wrote:
“Itch, Yorfran is intriguing. Should I make him Myfran?
I have seven minor-league slots. In them are the following: Connor Phillips, Carlos F Rodriguez, Yanquiel Fernandez, Kevin Alcantara, Luis Guanipa, Rayner Arias, and Derek Bernard.
Who would be my first drop if I wanted to pick up someone like Ourfran Medina? Would you swap him for one of the others?”
Loved this. It’s between Yorfran, Rodriguez and Bernard for me, and I would probably just wait and see, checking in on each guy every few days or so. I’d probably end up holding the guys you have unless Medina forces the issue.
Thanks for reading!
