Minor League Barometer: Down on the Farm

Fernando Tatis, Jr. had a horrific start to the season, leading some to foolishly question whether he was truly an elite prospect. Tatis has rebounded in a big way, hitting over .330 since April ended. Tatis is now batting a respectable .283/.358/.516 with 15 home runs and 14 stolen bases for Double-A San Antonio. It must be pointed out that Tatis is also just 19 years of age, so he is among the youngest players at this level, yet he has more than held his own of late. The Padres are in dead last in the NL West, so San Diego will see no need to rush Tatis to the big leagues. That being said, he may have a legitimate shot at winning a starting job out of spring training next season in the majors.

Let's take a look at some other prospects making waves in this week's Minor League Barometer.

UPGRADE

Kyle Tucker, OF, HOU – How much longer can the Astros keep Tucker in the minors? At just 21 years of age, Tucker is crushing the ball at Triple-A. He is slashing .304/.371/.512 with 13 home runs, 64 RBI and 14 steals through 79 games at that level. Tucker has the ability to be a five-tool player, with speed, power and the ability to hit for average in his repertoire. The Astros currently have Tony Kemp and Jake Marisnick playing in the outfield, so Tucker could see the big leagues by August.

Roberto Ramos, 1B, COL – Ramos took full advantage of the hitter-friendly confines of the California League to begin the 2018 campaign, but he has continued to rake even since a promotion to Double-A. At High-A, the 23-year-old first baseman hit .304/.411/.640 with 17 home runs and 43 RBI in 60 games. That resulted in a bump to Double-A, where Ramos has not stopped clubbing the ball. He has five home runs and nine RBI through 12 games for Double-A Hartford. First base is perhaps the only spot in the infield that is not blocked by an All-Star caliber player, though certainly Ian Desmond and Triple-A's Ryan McMahon are not slouches. Nevertheless, if Ramos can keep on blasting home runs, he may just work his way into the future plans of the Rockies.

Jordan Yamamoto, P, MIA – The Marlins have overhauled their entire farm system under the direction of Derek Jeter, and Yamamoto was one of the players sent from the Milwaukee Brewers in the Christian Yelich deal. After spending the first six weeks of the season on the Disabled List, the 22-year-old righty has been carving up the competition at High-A. Yamamoto has a 1.55 ERA and 47:8 K:BB in 40.2 innings. He had a 13-strikeout game on June 20th, then followed that up with a 12-strikeout outing on July 2nd. With Sandy Alcantara and Pablo Lopez both pitching well in their MLB premieres this past week, there appears to be a glimmer of hope for the future for the Marlins after all.

Brandon Lowe, 2B/OF, TB – Lowe is putting to rest any notion that he won't be able to hit at the higher levels. The 23-year-old is white-hot of late, batting .410 with three home runs and 13 RBI over his last 10 games at Triple-A. Lowe's current hot streak has pushed his batting average to .323 in 24 games at this level, and he has already shattered his previous season highs in home runs and RBI. With an excellent eye at the dish and some speed to boot, Lowe has been playing in the outfield in order to give him a better shot at seeing at-bats with the big club sooner. Though the Rays are notoriously slow in promoting their prospects, Lowe could force Tampa's hand if he keeps raking.

CHECK STATUS

Oneil Cruz, SS, PIT – Cruz could be a big riser up the minor league rankings this season. He's 6-foot-6, bats lefty and plays shortstop. He has also been tearing the cover off the ball for Low-A West Virginia, slashing .300/.358/.505. Still a teenager, Cruz does have the usual struggles with strikeouts, fanning 77 times over 75 games. Nevertheless, he has double-digit home runs already, the potential for double-digit steals, and is currently hitting .311/.371/.525 in 2018. Cruz remains a tad raw and does come with some risks, but he has tremendous upside based on his physical gifts alone.

Lewis Thorpe, P, MIN – Thorpe missed two whole seasons due to Tommy John surgery and then mononucleosis, but the 22-year-old southpaw from Australia deserves a look. He bounced back with a 2.93 ERA and 91:33 K:BB in 83 innings in 2017, mostly at High-A. Surprisingly, his strikeout rate has jumped even more in 2018, as he has fanned 96 batters in just 78.0 innings for Double-A Chattanooga. Even Thorpe's control has improved, as he is walking fewer batters per nine innings than a season ago. Because he has been consistently around the plate, Thorpe has been slightly more hittable overall this season though. However, he has seen his ERA drop from 5.45 in the middle of May to 4.04 as of this writing. He fanned 12 batters in a one-hit, one-walk masterpiece on June 21. Thorpe could be working his way back into Minnesota's future plans, assuming he can stay healthy and perform.

Yusniel Diaz, OF, LAD – Diaz may be a better actual baseball player than fantasy commodity. Mostly a line drive hitter, Diaz has just four home runs in 45 games for Double-A Tulsa. He missed some time earlier this season due to a minor hip issue, and actually was delayed starting the season due to an assortment of other injuries as well. His plate discipline has been by far his best trait in 2018. In fact, the 21-year-old from Cuba has the same number of walks as strikeouts (35). He has seven steals but has been caught six times. Diaz is a lifetime .283 hitter in the minors, but it remains to be seen how much pop he will have, and he has been unable to turn his speed into production on the base paths. He will also have to deal with a bevy of outfielders ahead of him on the depth chart, including Alex Verdugo at Triple-A. Diaz still has more time to develop and mature, but he may not end up being the super prospect many make him out to be.

Justin Dunn, P, NYM – Dunn is having a bounce back season in the New York Mets organization. He posted a 2.36 ERA and 51:15 K:BB in 45.2 innings at High-A to begin the 2018 campaign. That led to a promotion to Double-A, where Dunn has been equally impressive through four starts for the Binghamton Rumble Ponies. Dunn has collected a 2.41 ERA and 38:13 K:BB in 33.2 innings pitching in front of Tim Tebow. Dunn has emerged as arguably the top pitching prospects for the Mets, who have reportedly been considering shopping some of their big-league arms at the trading deadline. If so, that could expedite the 22-year-old Dunn's ascension to the big leagues.

DOWNGRADE

Nick Senzel, 3B, CIN – One of the top hitting prospects in baseball is likely lost for the season. Senzel underwent surgery for a fracture in his right index finger, and it would be surprising to see him return this year. Senzel had difficulty staying on the field in 2018, having been limited to just 44 games at Triple-A Louisville. He missed about a month earlier this season due to a reoccurrence of vertigo. Senzel did hit .310/.378/.509 with six home runs and eight steals, but his timeline has obviously been pushed back at this point in time. Eugenio Suarez has also had a stellar season at the hot corner for the Reds, and if Cincy does not sell off parts at the trade deadline, it will be interesting to see how the Reds handle the glut of players in the infield. Senzel is still a top-flight prospect, but he will not see the big leagues until 2019.

Albert Abreu, P, NYY – Abreu can hit triple digits on the radar gun, but he has been unable to stay healthy over the last two seasons. He was limited to 53 innings in 2017 due to elbow problems, and has been limited to 48.1 innings thus far in 2018. He is currently on the Disabled List for the second time in 2018. Abreu has averaged more than a strikeout per inning since entering the minors in 2014, so the 22-year-old has plenty of promise. That being said, he's pitched 100 innings just once in a season since that time, and he could use some more experience to harness his command.

Luis Ortiz, P, MIL – Ortiz seems to have the repertoire to be an elite pitcher, but the raw stuff has just not been converted into those results. Ortiz possesses four pitches with the ability to command all of them on a given day. However, he has a over a 4.00 ERA over the last two seasons, including a 4.20 ERA currently at Double-A. Though he has seen a slight bump in his strikeouts in 2018, he has also been slightly more hittable. In addition, like Albert Abreu above, Ortiz has yet to prove he can be a workhorse at the higher levels. The 22-year-old has yet to pitch 100 innings in the minors since 2014. The former first round pick may simply need some time to work on his sequencing, but the Brewers are still waiting for everything to come together for the 6-foot-3 righty.

Luis Robert, OF, CHW – Speaking of players who cannot seem to stay on the field, Robert recently aggravated a thumb injury and returned to the Disabled List. He will be out for 4-8 weeks. The 20-year-old has been limited to just 21 games this season due to the ailment. In just 75 at-bats in 2018 split between Low-A and High-A, Robert is hitting .293 with nine RBI and five steals. Overall, Robert has been limited to just 49 games as a professional despite signing with the White Sox organization over 13 months ago. Take into account that he did not play for a full year prior to signing, and Robert certainly appears to be in need of some seasoning. Robert is physically gifted with superb bat speed and athleticism, though it is difficult to project what he will become in terms of average and power. The upside is tantalizing, but it is safe to say that Robert is not close to seeing the big leagues at this time. With Eloy Jimenez and Blake Rutherford also getting injured, it has not been a good week for White Sox outfield prospects.