5 Red sox prospects, Manuel Margot, and Javier Guerra in BP Top 101 prospect as below.
www.turnerpublishing.com/files/uploads/BP-101Prospects.pdf7. Yoan Moncada, 2B, Boston Red Sox
The Red Sox paid $31.5 million dollars for the 19-year-old
Moncada ($63 million if you include the 100 percent tax Boston
had to pay for exceeding their bonus pool), giving a glimpse
into a world where the top amateur talent is allowed to freely
negotiate their services with teams, a scenario more horrifying
to baseball owners than anything dreamed up by David
Cronenberg. So far Moncada has looked well worth the money
(which is more than you could say for Crash), showing five
average-or-better tools in the South Atlantic League. Moncada
has work to do at second base and may fit better at third,
where he would have more than enough arm for the position. At
either spot, the bat has the potential to anchor the middle of a
major-league lineup.
14. Manuel Margot, OF, San Diego Padres
Margot's high ranking here is thanks in part to a renewed
emphasis on defense across the game. This is not to suggest
that potentially plus center-field gloves were ever at risk of
becoming passe in scouting circles, but it's easier to get on the
bandwagon in an era when the Royals have won back-to-back
pennants. Margot won't be hitting in the eight hole, either: He's
shown some bat-to-ball ability and gets more power out of his
sub-six-foot frame than you'd expect. The party piece here is the
speed/defense combination, which should get plenty of work in
the still-spacious Petco outfield.
35. Rafael Devers, 3B, Boston Red Sox
It’s unusual even this far down the list to find a plus hit–plus
power bat like Devers. Granted, he’s still very young and a ways
away from contributing to the big club in Boston, but you don’t
have to squint too hard to see an impact major-league hitter
given the above-average bat speed and backspin Devers produces
at the plate. If he were a lock to stay on the left side of
the infield, that’s a borderline All-Star profile, but he’s already
stout at just 18 years old and struggles with his footwork. When
he moves across the diamond to first base, the bat will be just
“good” there.
46. Andrew Benintendi, OF, Boston Red Sox
A bit of a surprise pick by the Red Sox at no. 7 in the 2015 draft,
Benintendi hit the ground running, putting pitchers in both the
New York–Penn and the South Atlantic League to the sword.
There is no one carrying tool here, and the ceiling isn't as high as
it usually is for a seventh-overall pick, but nothing grades out as
worse than average, and he gets more power out of his 5-foot-
10 frame than you’d expect. His advanced approach makes the
whole offensive profile play up, and he should stick in center
field. The lack of a long professional track record or standout tool
injects some risk into the profile, but there isn’t much more Benintendi
could have done in 2015 to quell any remaining doubts.
56. Javier Guerra, SS, San Diego Padres
Guerra entered 2015 as one of our “prospects on the rise” in a
very, very deep Red Sox system. He enters the 2016 season in
the Padres system (he was part of the package for Craig Kimbrel),
and as one of the best shortstop prospects in the game.
Guess he rose. What changed? The slick glove that brought
Guerra to our attention in the first place remains. Everything
he does in the field is loose and smooth, and he shows both
the range and arm the position demands. The bat was the real
revelation. In his full-season debut, the 19-year-old Panamanian
knocked 15 home runs in the South Atlantic League, and while
the power may not reach quite those heights at higher levels,
he’s always shown above-average bat speed and a frame that
could add strength as he ages. Guerra still needs refinement in
his approach, but given the defensive projection, if he turns into
even an average hitter in the majors, he’s a slam-dunk first-division
shortstop.
73. Anderson Espinoza, RHP, Boston Red Sox
Remember what you were doing at 17? If your answer doesn’t
involve hitting triple digits with your fastball on the back end of
a seven-figure bonus, then you and Espinoza might not have a
whole lot to talk about. The Venezuelan wunderkind forced his
way stateside in his first professional season, then proceeded to
whiff a batter an inning while allowing all of three earned runs
in his first 40 frames of Rookie ball. That’s a 0.68 ERA if you’re
scoring at home. Espinoza’s heater already shows projection as
an elite major-league weapon, and he backs it up with startlingly
advanced feel for a pair of potentially plus secondaries. Still,
his slight build and the natural attrition rate of young pitchers
are reasons enough to keep expectations in check, kind of like
your junior prom date did when you were the kid’s age.
98. Michael Kopech, RHP, Boston Red Sox
Kopech's dominant season in the South Atlantic League was
cut short in July by a 50-game suspension for using a banned
amphetamine. If you insist the two are related we will point
you to that XKCD comic about correlation versus causation
(no. 552; there truly is an XKCD for every situation). Even in an
abbreviated stint, Kopech showed a fastball that could bump
the upper 90s and a potentially plus power curve. The mechanics
(like much of the rest of the profile) are a bit raw and he may
eventually settle in as a power arm in the bullpen. Given that he
won't turn 20 until a month into the 2016 season, Kopech still
has plenty of time to try sticking as a starter.