DrB's 2018 Giants Top 50 Prospects: Honorable Mention Part I

I am usually so excited by the #1 Giants prospect, I post his profile first and work down.  I'm pretty darn excited about Heliot Ramos, more than any recent #1, but I'll try something different this year and start with the HM's and work up.  How's that?

Chase Johnson, RHP.  DOB:  1/9/1992.  6'3", 190 lbs.  Drafted Round 3, 2013.  AAA:  0-2, 4.35, 10.1 IP, 0 BB, 9 K's, GO/AO= 1.10.  Johnson is a hard throwing former college closer who was a rising star in the Giants organization until 2016 when he started to develop arm problems and was moved to the pen, reportedly to try to preserve it.  He started 2017 well enough, but went on the DL on April 23 and underwent TJ surgery in early May.  The typical timetable would have Johnson back on the mound in games in May or June, but the Giants generally take it slow with TJ returnees.

Roberto Gomez, RHP.  DOB:  8/3/1989.  6'5", 180 lbs.  Minor League FA 2016.  AAA:  3-9, 4.07, 971 IP, 38 BB, 89 K, GO/AO= 1.32.  MLB:  0-0, 8.44, 5.1 IP, 1 BB, 6 K's.  Gomez came up through the Rays system but last pitched for them in 2014.  He was out of affiliated ball until the Giants signed him to a minor league FA contract.  He came on strong late in the minor league season for Sacramento and was given a cup of coffee with the Giants that did not go as well.  He's still on the 40 man roster. If he sticks there, he will likely start the season back in Sacramento waiting for another chance to come along as the season progresses.

Pierce Johnson, RHP.  DOB:  5/10/1991.  6'3', 200 lbs.  Drafted on Compensation A Round 2012(Cubs).  AAA:  3-2, 4.31, 54.1 IP, 27 BB, 74 K, 9 Saves.  MLB:  0-0, 0.00, 1.0 IP, 1 BB, 2 K's.  Pierce Johnson has always had impressive K rates.  Seems like I recall somewhere that he is a very hard thrower too.  He was DFA'd by the Cubs late in 2017 and the Giants picked him off waivers.  If he sticks on the 40 man roster, we'll likely see him in spring training where he is a sleeper candidate for a bullpen job.  More likely he starts the season in Sacramento and vies for a midseason callup.

Matt Gage, LHP.  DOB:  2/11/1993.  6'4", 240 lbs.  Drafted Round 10, 2014.  AA:  4-4, 2.88, 78.0 IP, 20 BB, 55 K, GO/AO= 1.36.  AAA:  2-7, 5.75, 67.1 IP, 20 BB, 40 K, GO/AO= 1.07.  Before you get too excited by Gage's AA numbers, it was his 3'rd season pitching there.  Things did not go as smoothly after a promo to Sacramento.  He's a contact pitcher with a modest GB rate, a combination that might work better in the majors than in the PCL.  The challenge for Gage is convincing the Giants to trust him with a MLB opportunity.

Sam Coonrod, RHP.  DOB:  9/22/1992.  6'2", 225 lbs.  Drafted Round 5, 2014.  AA:  4-11, 4.69, 103.2 IP, 42 BB, 94 K, GO/AO= 1.04.  Coonrod is a hard thrower who puts a lot of effort into his delivery.  That may have caught up with him late in the 2017 season when he went on the DL.  I recall reading somewhere that he underwent TJ surgery, but now I cannot confirm that.  If true, he will likely miss all of 2018, then try to mount a comeback in 2019.  Many analysts saw him as a future reliever even before the injury.

DrB's 2018 Giants Top 50 Prospects

I thought the Giants might resolve their offseason needs by the end of this week and we could post a top 50 prospects list that had a reasonable chance of remaining intact until at least midseason.  With reports of no imminent trades and Kuip reportedly saying the process could drag on until March 1, we'll have to go ahead and post the final prospect list and start posting our profiles or we won't be done before the minor league season starts.  If there is a major subtraction of prospects in a trade, we'll just have to revise the list.  Oh well!  With that introduction, here's the list:

1.  Heliot Ramos, OF
2.  Tyler Beede, RHP
3.  Steven Duggar, OF
4.  Bryan Reynolds, OF
5.  Austin Slater, OF
6.  Chris Shaw, OF/1B
7.  Aramis Garcia, C
8.  Andrew Suarez, LHP
9.  Sandro Fabian, OF
10.  Jacob Gonzalez, 3B
11. Shaun Anderson, RHP
12. Gregory Santos, RHP
13.  Alexander Canario, OF
14.  Joan Gregorio, RHP
15.  Miguel Gomez, 2B
16.  Dan Slania, RHP
17.  Garrett Williams, LHP
18.  CJ Hinojosa, IF
19.  Ryan Howard, IF
20.  Ricardo Genoves, C
21.  DJ Snelton, LHP
22.  Reyes Maronta, RHP
23.  Julian Fernandez, RHP
24.  Tyler Rogers, RHP
25.  Sam Wolff, RHP
26.  Heath Quinn, OF
27.  Jonah Arenado, 3B
28.  Raffi Vizcaino, RHP
29.  Melvin Adon, RHP
30.  Patrick Ruotolo, RHP
31.  Jalen Miller, 2B
32.  Kelvin Beltre, 2B
33.  Seth Corry, LHP
34.  Logan Webb, RHP
35.  Jason Bahr, RHP
36.  Stetson Woods, RHP
37.  Carlos Diaz, LHP
38.  Orlando Garcia, 2B
39.  Malique Ziegler, OF
40.  Rob Calabrese, C
41.  Shane Matheny, 3B
42.  Logan Baldwin, OF
43.  Bryce Johnson, OF
44.  Camilo Doval, RHP
45.  John Gavin, LHP
46.  Jose Marte, RHP
47.  Aaron Bond, OF
48.  Diego Rincones, OF
49.  Ismael Munguia, OF
50.  Manuel Geraldo, SS

Honorable Mention:  Tyler Herb, RHP, Eduardo Rivera RHP, Miguel Figueroa RHP, Jeffry Parra C, Conner Menez LHP, Jake Greenwalt RHP, Franklin Van Gurp RHP, Garrett Cave RHP, Brandon Van Horn SS, Jacob Heyward OF, Dylan Rheault RHP, Wil LaMarche RHP, Rodolfo Martinez RHP, Michael Cederoth RHP, Dillon Dobson 1B, Dylan Davis OF, Matt Winn  C, Ronnie Jebavy OF, Gio Brusa OF, Cory Taylor RHP, Sandro Cabrera LHP, Chase Johnson RHP, Roberto Gomez RHP, Pierce Johnson RHP, Matt Gage LHP, Sam Coonrod RHP.

Once again, try to not get too hung up on the exact order here.  The main point of this exercise is to become more familiar with the prospects in the Giants organization.

Hot Stove Update: Dodgers Bolster Pen; Giants Sign 3 To Minors Deals

There was finally a significant trade in the Hot Stove League yesterday, but not involving any speculated names.  The Dodgers upgraded the left side of their bullpen by acquiring LHP Scott Alexander from the KC Royals in a 3-way trade involving the White Sox.  Alexander had 69 IP for the Royals last year with a 2.48 ERA, solid K and BB rates and an extreme groundball rate.  He'll be a lefty specialist who can go for more than 1 or 2 batters at a time for the Dodgers.  The Dodgers also get minor league IF Jake Peter from the ChiSox.

The Royals come away with a solid RHP SP prospect in Trevor Oaks and IF Erick Mejia.  Oaks is 25 yo, 6'3", 200 lbs. who posted a 3.24 ERA in 84 IP and solid K and BB rates for AA Tulsa last year.  The ChiSox end up with 2 bullpen vets, RHP Joakim Soria and LHP Luis Avilan plus $3 M, $1 from KC and $2 M from the Dodgers.

Comment:  Interesting that the Dodgers seem to always be in the middle of 3-way trades while I can't remember the last 3-way the Giants were involved in.

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Meanwhile, the Giants bolstered their depth by signing 3 players to minor league deals including former Giants C Hector Sanchez.  This may be a big win for the Giants for no other reason than it prevents Hector from batting against them in 2018.  Other signings include IF Chase D'Arnaud who has kicked around awhile and never found traction to a MLB career and RHP Jose Valdez who is not the Jose Valdez who pitched in the Giants organization a few years ago.  Valdez throws hard, but has never translated that into MLB success.

Fantasy Focus: Breakout Candidate- David Dahl; Impact Rookie- Ryan McMahon

The Colorado Rockies have spent over $100 M on relief pitching this offseason, which does not seem to leave a lot for filling position holes left by the apparent departures of Carlos Gonzalez and Mark Reynolds.  It does open up opportunities for Breakout Candidate,  OF David Dahl and Impact Rookie Candidate, IF Ryan McMahon.

Dahl was the Rockies' first round draft pick in 2012, #10 overall.  He made steady progress through the farm system putting up impressive numbers along the way.  His career minor league slash line is .307/.354/.511.  He got a late season callup on 2016 and slashed .315/.359/.500 with 12 2B, 4 3B, 7 HR, 5 SB, 6.3 BB%, 24.9 K% in 237 PA's.  I wrote up an Impact Rookie profile on him last year and added him to an N/A roster spot on my fantasy baseball team.  The only problem is he did not get 1 MLB PA in 2017 due to a stress reaction in his rib cage or back or somewhere.  Dahl has now finally been cleared to start swinging a bat and barring any further setbacks and any other offseason additions will compete for a starting OF job with the Rockies in 2017.  His health will need to be monitored closely but who does not want a high-ceiling young hitter who will play half his games in Coors Field on their fantasy baseball roster?

Ryan McMahon was the Rockies 2'nd round draft pick, #42 overall, in 2013.  He crushed the lower minors, but then struggled to a .242 BA in AA in 2016.  He was reassigned to AA in 2017 and slashed  .326/.390/.536 with 6 HR and 7 SB in 206 PA's.  That earned him a midseason promo to AAA where he exploded to a .374/411/612 with 14 HR in 314 PA's.  He only had 24 PA's in a September callup and hit just .158.  He should have an opportunity to play regularly for the Rockies in 2018 either in RF or 1B.  Again, you gotta love young hitters in Coors Field.

Fantasy Focus: Third Base Bargains

Third base is a deep position for fantasy baseball managers, deep enough that you might want to roster more than one and use one as a IF or UT player.  There 3B who you would want to draft early or spend big on no matter what position they played.  Nolan Arenado, Jose Ramirez, Kris Bryant and Anthony Rendon are names that come to mind.  Don't forget about Joey Gallo and his 41 dingers that came with a .208 BA.  If you are in an OBP league, Gallo suddenly becomes an elite hitter.

One guy who does not get a lot of attention but has been remarkably consistent over his career is Kyle Seager.  He's hit 25-30 HR's for 4 consecutive seasons now.  He's not a breakout player or sleeper but may be a bargain must because of his consistency.  I'd target him if you want to spend your high draft picks or your auction money on other positions or if you are looking for a nice player to roster as an IF or UT player.

Fantasy Focus: Breakout Candidate- Jaimer Candelario

Jaimer Candelario is a 24 year old switch-hitting 3B who came up through the Cubs system but found himself blocked several ways at the Cubs MLB level.  The Tigers liberated him last midseason with a trade that sent Justin Wilson and Alex Avila to the Cubs.  Candelario went on a tear after getting Calle up to Detroit with a .330 BA.  He's unlikely to hit .330 for a full season but he's an excellent hitter with gap+ power and a relatively rare ability to maintain strong walk and contact rates.  Gap+ power does not really do him justice as he is an extra base machine.  Last season he had exactly 600 PA'a over 2 levels with 2 organizations and hit 45 doubles, 4 triples and 18 HR's with 9.2 BB% and 21.1 K%.  Through most of his minor league career, he maintained double digit walk rates while keeping his K rate under 20%.

It looks like the Tigers are willing to move Nick Castellanos off 3B to make room for Candelario which is good for prospective fantasy baseball owners.  He should be the full time starter at 3B. He is better batting RH, but no slouch from the left side of the plate either.  He may have more value in OBP leagues than standard 5X5's.

Scouting the 2018 Draft: Joey Bart

Joey Bart is a college catcher for Georgia Tech.  He's a big one at 6'3", 230 lbs and he B-R, T-R.   He got some attention coming out of HS for his strong throwing arm and power potential and has made nice progress in his first 2 college seasons.  He hit .299 as a freshman but with just 1 HR.  He found his power stroke in his 2'nd college season with 13 dingers to go with his .296 BA.  His record in wood bat leagues is mixed as he slashed .309/.389/.433 in the Cape Cod League in 2016, but struggled to a .176 BA in just 30 AB's in 2017 before joining USA Baseball.  The slash lines consistently come with a relatively low walk rate and a 25% K rate.

Bart has always had a strong throwing arm with good pop times and gunned down 40% of base stealers last year.  There were questions about the rest of his catching game, but he has worked hard to upgrade those and is now generally considered to be a future MLB catcher by most scouts.

Bart offers an intriguing combination of catching tools and skills with power in the bat, and that is probably enough to give him a long MLB career, but it might be a fringy one with a high risk that he's a career backup catcher.  Best case scenario would be something like Mike Zunino.  Personally, I would not spend a first round draft pick on him and probably not a second rounder either.
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DrB's Updated 2018 Draft Board:

1.  Seth Beer, OF/1B, College(Clemson)
2.  Jarred Kelenic, OF, HS
3.  Nander De Sedas, SS, HS
4.  Kumar Rocker, RHP, HS
5.  Ethan Hankins, RHP, HS
6.  Brady Singer, RHP, College(Florida)
7.  Logan Gilbert, RHP, College(Stetson).
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8.  Matthew Liberatore, LHP, HS
9.  Travis Swaggerty, OF, College(University of South Alabama)
10. Tristan Pompey, OF, College(Kentucky)
11.  Nolan Gorman, 3B, HS
12.  Greyson Jenista, OF/1B, College(Wichita St)
13.  Casey Mize, RHP, College(Auburn)
14.  Nick Madrigal, 2B, College(Oregon St)
15.  Shane McClanahan, LHP, College(University of South Florida)
16.  Jackson Kowar, RHP, College(Florida)
17.  Ryan Rolison, LHP, College(Mississippi)
18.  Griffin Conine, OF, College(Duke)
19.  Brice Turang, SS, HS
20.  Jeremy Eierman, SS, College(Missouri St)
21.  Joey Bart, C, College(Georgia Tech)