September is here and the trade deadline dust has settled. It’s now time for teams to make that late push either to make the playoffs or to gain home-field advantages.
The Rockies lost two players off the list this week. Sam Hilliard graduated from the list after surpassing the 130 at-bat mark in the Majors. Brendan Rodgers has been removed from the list due to a re-aggravation of his 2019 shoulder injury, which led to surgery. A few players were called up to the Majors and now feature fairly prominently on the list, including the Pirates’ Ke’Bryan Hayes and the Marlins’ Jazz Chisholm.
A number of existing rookies made big moves up the list, which we’ll discuss further below, including Ian Anderson, Nick Madrigal, and Ryan Mountcastle. Let’s get to it.
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The Top 50 Redraft Prospects for 2020
Ranking | Player | Pos | Team | ETA |
1 | Alec Bohm | 3B | PHI | MLB |
2 | Luis Robert | OF | CWS | MLB |
3 | Jake Cronenworth | IF | SD | MLB |
4 | Jesus Luzardo | SP | OAK | MLB |
5 | Gavin Lux | SS/2B | LAD | MLB |
6 | Ian Anderson | SP | ATL | MLB |
7 | Sixto Sanchez | SP | MIA | MLB |
8 | Nick Madrigal | 2B | CWS | INJ |
9 | Alex Kirilloff | OF | MIN | September |
10 | Wander Franco | SS/3B | TB | September |
11 | Triston McKenzie | SP | CLE | MLB |
12 | Tony Gonsolin | SP | LAD | MLB |
13 | Ryan Mountcastle | LF | BAL | MLB |
14 | Dane Dunning | SP | CWS | MLB |
15 | Joey Bart | C | SF | MLB |
16 | Dylan Carlson | OF | STL | MLB |
17 | Ke'Bryan Hayes | 3B | PIT | MLB |
18 | Cristian Javier | SP | HOU | MLB |
19 | Tarik Skubal | SP | DET | MLB |
20 | Spencer Howard | SP | PHI | MLB |
21 | James Karinchak | RP | CLE | MLB |
22 | Jose Garcia | SS | CIN | MLB |
23 | Casey Mize | SP | DET | MLB |
24 | David Peterson | SP | NYM | MLB |
25 | MacKenzie Gore | SP | SD | September |
26 | Sean Murphy | C | OAK | MLB |
27 | Luis Garcia | 2B | WAS | MLB |
28 | Kris Bubic | SP | KC | MLB |
29 | Isaac Paredes | 3B | DET | MLB |
30 | Nate Pearson | SP | TOR | INJ |
31 | Adrian Morejon | P | SD | MLB |
32 | Devin Williams | RP | MIL | MLB |
33 | Josh Staumont | RP | KC | MLB |
34 | Andres Gimenez | SS | NYM | MLB |
35 | Jo Adell | OF | LAA | MLB |
36 | Jazz Chisholm | SS | MIA | MLB |
37 | Brady Singer | SP | KC | MLB |
38 | Matt Foster | RP | CWS | MLB |
39 | Carter Kieboom | 3B/2B | WAS | September |
40 | Cristian Pache | OF | ATL | September |
41 | Luis Patino | SP | SD | MLB |
42 | Josh Lowe | OF | TB | September |
43 | Daulton Varsho | C/OF | ARZ | MLB |
44 | Mitch Keller | SP | PIT | INJ |
45 | Jordan Romano | RP | TOR | INJ |
46 | Keibert Ruiz | C | LAD | September |
47 | Jesus Sanchez | OF | MIA | MLB |
48 | Nolan Jones | 3B | CLE | September |
49 | Drew Waters | OF | ATL | September |
50 | Clarke Schmidt | SP | NYY | September |
Notes on Prospects 1-10
1. Alec Bohm, 3B, Phillies: The Phillies’ young third baseman has cooled down recently but still remains one of the top young hitters in the Majors. His BB-K rate of 7-8 in 16 games remains extremely positive and suggestive of future success but the line-drive rate of just 13% remains curiously low for someone with so much raw power. With a 50% ground-ball rate, he needs to get back to lifting the ball more consistently.
5. Gavin Lux, IF, Dodgers: It’s nice to see Lux finally getting a shot to stick in the Majors with the Dodgers. If he’s granted enough at-bats in September, he can be a really nice boost to fantasy managers as they transition to the playoffs. His aggressive ranking on this list is based on the assumption that he’ll play mostly every day while allowing others to rest for a lengthy playoff push. He's only owned in 51% of Yahoo leagues so there may still be time to grab him.
6. Ian Anderson, SP, Braves: I was fairly confident at the beginning of the year that Anderson was being underrated by a lot of prospect rankers and he’s shown us the value of a good command/control and mixing pitches. His fastball has been sitting close to 95 mph with positive Pitch Values on both his curveball and changeup. He's rostered in just 59% of Yahoo leagues.
8. Nick Madrigal, 2B, White Sox: Madrigal is showing no ill effects from the injury that kept him out for close to a month. Since returning, he has eight hits and a stolen base in four games. And while all his hits have been singles and he doesn’t hit many balls in the air, Madrigal still has a line-drive rate of 27% and we should start to see more gap pop resulting in doubles and triples. He's owned in just 30% of Yahoo leagues right now.
10. Wander Franco, SS, Rays: We’ve seen a number of prospects move up from the alternate training sites to the Majors and have an immediate impact on the game. If Franco gets a shot, I fully expect that to happen here. The fact that Willy Adames is hitting so well (OPS of .970) is a possible deterrent.
Notes on Prospects 11-30
11. Triston McKenzie, SP, Indians: McKenzie wasn’t as sharp in his second start but he continues to look good with his fastball-heavy approach. With Cleveland very likely bound for the playoffs, the club will no doubt continue to lean on this young hurler as long as he’s effective.
12. Tony Gonsolin, SP, Dodgers: The trade of Ross Stripling to the Blue Jays helped to clear up some of the starting pitching depth that was keeping the more talented Gonsolin from getting regular innings in the rotation. He finally allowed his first run of the year on Aug. 30 but has allowed just nine hits in 17.2 innings. He's owned in just 44% of Yahoo leagues.
13. Ryan Mountcastle, OF, Orioles: I’ve never been a huge believer in Mountcastle because of his putrid approach at the plate. He reached the Majors and looked really good by walking four times in his first four games. Since that time, though, he hasn’t taken a free pass in six games. He continues to hit (for now) so I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt given that he should see regular playing time throughout the remainder of the season.
14. Dane Dunning, SP, White Sox: Like Ian Anderson above, I felt Dunning was underrated as a prospect entering 2020 but I also wasn’t sure how well he was going to bounce back from Tommy John surgery. Well, he’s looked really good as the K-BB rate of 14-2 can attest to though his first two MLB starts. He’s never been a hard thrower but his fastball is perhaps a tick below where it was pre-injury but his above-average command and control have both been on full display with his four-pitch mix. There should be lots of opportunities to grab Dunning off the waiver wire as he's owned in just 19% of Yahoo leagues.
17. Ke’Bryan Hayes, 3B, Pirates: Hayes had an excellent debut for the Pirates with two hits and a home run. The power display was good to see given that a lack of consistent pop has been an issue for the young third baseman. The raw power has always been there but he’s had major issues getting balls in the air on a consistent basis. He's owned in just 8% of Yahoo leagues.
22. Jose Garcia, SS, Reds: Garcia was seen as a major sleeper entering the 2020 season after a promising 2019 season in High-A ball. He’s had some swing-and-miss issues early on but I remain hopeful that he’ll settle in and produce some solid numbers throughout the next few weeks.
Notes on Prospects 31-50
36. Jazz Chisholm, SS, Marlins: I was surprised to see the Marlins give Chisholm a shot after he posted a 30% strikeout rate in Double-A last year. But he’s an extremely toolsy player with the potential to impact the game with his raw power — and he also has the speed to steal some bases.
45. Jordan Romano, RP, Blue Jays: Romano hit the disabled list recently with a finger injury but he’s expected back before the season ends. With the Jays in a playoff hunt, he should slot back into the closer’s role once he’s healthy.
48. Nolan Jones, 3B, Indians: The presence of Jose Ramirez at third base complicates things for Jones but Cleveland could use an offensive spark to help out as the club inches towards the playoffs. There’s enough versatility on the club to find playing time for the young infielder, who offers plus power and great on-base skills.
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