RoboScout’s Top MLB Prospects At The Upper Levels On Sept. 22, 2024

Double-A Hitters (min 25 PA) – FINAL

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Emmanuel Rodriguez	MIN	100	100
2	Roman Anthony	BOS	90	91
3	Agustin Ramirez	MIA	90	90
4	Luke Keaschall	MIN	85	89
5	Bryce Eldridge	SFG	86	88
6	Moises Ballesteros	CHC	88	87
7	Cole Young	SEA	85	86
8	Kristian Campbell	BOS	80	85
9	Matthew Lugo	BOS	81	85
10	Walker Jenkins	MIN	82	85
11	Sebastian Walcott	TEX	90	82
12	Ryan Clifford	NYM	83	82
13	Carter Jensen	KCR	82	82
14	Samuel Basallo	BAL	90	81
15	Alex Freeland	LAD	74	80
16	Edgar Quero	CHW	76	79
17	Dalton Rushing	LAD	72	79
18	Carson Williams	TBR	81	79
19	Hao-Yu Lee	DET	78	78
20	Matt Shaw	CHC	76	77
21	Jimmy Crooks	STL	71	77
22	Cooper Ingle	CLE	70	77
23	Alejandro Osuna	TEX	73	76
24	Deyvison De Los Santos	MIA	82	75
25	Colby Thomas	OAK	72	75

With a final Double-A slash line of .281/.379/.416, Cooper Ingle (Guardians) finishes in the top 25 for hitters at the level. With a 14% walk rate–after a 17% in his 305 plate appearances in High-A–the catcher projects to have something like a .350 OBP at peak in the major leagues, albeit with 12-to-15 home run power.

As you would expect given his results–and that he’s a Guardians prospect–Ingle shows a plus contact rate and above-average to plus swing decisions. Also, as one might expect, he doesn’t have thunderous bat speed. Ingle’s 101 mph 90th percentile exit velocity is below-average for the level, though his xwOBAcon is average. In two-catcher leagues–especially where OBP is a category–Ingle is showing more than enough hit tool chops to be rostered. He should probably be considered a top 150 to 200 fantasy prospect, but does need to advance his work behind the plate.

Yankees catcher Rafael Flores ranks outside the top 25 but inside the top 50. He compiled a 150 wRC+ in Double-A this year over 273 plate appearances at 23 years old. That alone gives him a peak projection in the major leagues of 20+ home runs with an above-average wRC+. Under the hood, the power is definitely supported by the metrics, with a 108.1 mph 90th percentile exit velocity while barreling at a better than 20% rate. His swing decisions are actually better than average, while his contact rate is merely average.

Still, Flores is yet another Yankee catcher with lots of power and bat speed that will translate to the major leagues. However his defense lags behind the offense, potentially portending a move to first base.

Double-A Pitchers (min 15 IP) – FINAL

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Noah Schultz	CHW	99	100
2	Zebby Matthews	MIN	100	100
3	Logan Henderson	MIL	98	96
4	Tink Hence	STL	98	95
5	Kumar Rocker	TEX	97	95
6	Quinn Mathews	STL	95	94
7	Moises Chace	PHI	91	92
8	K.C. Hunt	MIL	95	92
9	Bubba Chandler	PIT	91	91
10	Chandler Champlain	KCR	95	90
11	Braxton Ashcraft	PIT	91	90
12	Thomas Harrington	PIT	91	88
13	Chase Dollander	COL	88	88
14	Brandon Sproat	NYM	89	87
15	Ben Shields	NYY	88	87
16	Brett Kerry	LAA	91	86
17	Eiberson Castellano	PHI	89	85
18	Zach Penrod	BOS	88	85
19	Brandon Young	BAL	90	85
20	Sean Sullivan	COL	89	85
21	Troy Melton	DET	85	85
22	Caden Dana	LAA	86	84
23	Andrew Morris	MIN	86	83
24	Cameron Weston	BAL	85	82
25	Carson Palmquist	COL	85	82

Rangers righty Winston Santos ranks just off the list at No. 28. He was one of the last cuts from this week’s “minor league pitchers with traits to target” article. The 22-year-old was No. 28 on the High-A rankings after hurling 64.1 innings with a 1.13 WHIP and 2.80 ERA with a 30% strikeout rate. He followed that up in Double-A Frisco with a 1.15 WHIP and slightly gaudy 4.89 ERA (though with a 3.63 xFIP) and maintained a 30% strikeout rate.

Santos has a 96 mph four-seam fastball that he throws just over 50% of the time. It grades out as a 51 using the rubric of the minor league pitch arsenal article. His 85 mph slider (34% usage) is a 58 on the strength of its 43% whiff rate, while his 88 mph changeup (12%) grades out as essentially average as a 49. With his 33% ball rate, the model grades his arsenal as a top 15 pitch mix at Double-A.

Tigers righty Troy Melton finished the Double-A season at No. 21 and his pitch mix also grades out favorably. His 96 mph fastball (44% usage) with its big extension got above-average whiffs, grading as a 56. His 83 mph slider (25%) graded as a 52, and his changeup (16%) graded as a 55 as it elicited a plus chase rate and above average whiffs. His 87 mph cutter (10%) rounded out his arsenal as a 48. With two average pitches, two above-average pitches and a ball percentage of 34%, Melton projects to be a midrotation starter for the revitalized Tigers.

Until last week, George Klassen had not had a very auspicious beginning to his Double-A career since the Angels acquired him from the Phillies in the Carlos Estevez trade. Klassen put up a 17% walk rate in 28 innings for Double-A Rocket City, which includes his 12 strikeouts and one walk over six innings on Sept. 14. His arsenal, however, on a pitch type basis, suggests that this might just be variance.

Klassen’s 97 mph four-seam fastball (50% usage) grades as a 53 on account of its above-average chases, whiffs, and CSW%. His 88 mph slider (23%) is a 60 and his 90 mph cutter (13%) is a 62, as both have a 50% whiff rate or better. His 86 mph curveball (10%)–a third distinctly-shaped breaking pitch–also gets whiffs at an above-average rate for the level and grades as a 52. His ball percentage is at 38%, which is pushing the boundaries for control as it correlates highly to a 10% walk rate.

Still, with a plus slider and cutter and two other average or better offerings, Klassen has the ingredients to be a midrotation starter if he can harness the command a bit better.

Triple-A Hitters (min 25 PA)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	James Wood	WSN	100	100
2	Jackson Holliday	BAL	93	92
3	Kyle Manzardo	CLE	86	90
4	Coby Mayo	BAL	86	89
5	Adrian Del Castillo	ARI	80	87
6	Emmanuel Rodriguez	MIN	81	87
7	Miguel Vargas	CHW	79	86
8	Roman Anthony	BOS	84	86
9	Andy Pages	LAD	79	85
10	Bryce Eldridge	SFG	78	81
11	Jose Fermin	STL	72	80
12	Dillon Dingler	DET	70	78
13	Chase Meidroth	BOS	70	78
14	Shay Whitcomb	HOU	76	78
15	Johnathan Rodriguez	CLE	74	78
16	Kristian Campbell	BOS	68	77
17	Jacob Wilson	OAK	70	77
18	Jasson Dominguez	NYY	72	77
19	Agustin Ramirez	MIA	73	76
20	Moises Ballesteros	CHC	74	75
21	Nacho Alvarez Jr.	ATL	68	75
22	Luis Matos	SFG	68	75
23	Matthew Lugo	LAA	68	75
24	Dalton Rushing	LAD	65	75
25	Andres Chaparro	ARI	69	74

Guardians outfielder Johnathan Rodriguez made a surprise appearance on the RoboScout top 120 overall, which we discussed on our last fantasy podcast. It begins to make more sense when you see that he has 13 home runs and a 159 wRC+ since July 29. On the season, the Guardians slugger has a 90th percentile exit velocity of 108.3 mph, which is the 15th-highest mark among hitters who have had at least 30 plate appearances in Triple-A.

Unlike fellow org mate Jhonkensy Noel, who has the 13th highest 90thEV and is currently plying his wares in the major leagues, Rodriguez only chases an essentially league-average 24% of the time. Big Christmas, meanwhile, chased at a 41% rate in the minors in 2024. Noel is two years younger than Rodriguez, but they are very similar profiles and project to have similar peak years. Rodriguez is definitely an interesting name for 2025.

Other than Roman Anthony, Blue Jays outfielder Alan Roden is arguably the hottest hitter in Triple-A. Roden has a 174 wRC+ and .258 ISO in August and September spanning 173 plate appearances for Buffalo. Roden is showing solid swing decisions, excellent contact and now potentially a bit more pop. His 103 mph 90th percentile exit velocity is 3 mph harder than his mark in 2023. Roden is in the vein of advanced hit tool Jays prospects, like recent callups Spencer Horwitz and Nathan Lukes. Both have shown a knack for getting on base, along with league-average power and even stolen base totals.

Matthew Lugo was a surprising pop-up name for the Red Sox earlier this year. The Angels acquired Lugo at the deadline. After a slow start, he once again finds himself gracing a RoboScout list, this time at Triple-A. Lugo is a name that I will be targeting for 2025 redraft. He looks like he can show solid on-base ability with 20-to-25 home run power, with potential double-digit steals. To help contextualize, his Statcast metrics cluster with Andres Chaparro and Joey Loperfido, though with potentially higher bat speed.

Triple-A Pitchers (min 15 IP)

Rank	Name	Team	Robo	RoboCast
1	Paul Skenes	PIT	100	100
2	Christian Scott	NYM	91	90
3	Zebby Matthews	MIN	88	87
4	Bubba Chandler	PIT	87	86
5	David Festa	MIN	88	84
6	Tylor Megill	NYM	84	82
7	Will Warren	NYY	82	81
8	Jack Leiter	TEX	82	81
9	Reid Detmers	LAA	87	80
10	Yilber Diaz	ARI	82	79
11	Chad Patrick	MIL	81	78
12	Quinn Priester	BOS	83	78
13	Cade Povich	BAL	82	78
14	Chayce McDermott	BAL	79	76
15	Thomas Harrington	PIT	79	76
16	Louie Varland	MIN	79	76
17	Logan Henderson	MIL	79	76
18	Cristian Mena	ARI	79	74
19	Noah Cameron	KCR	81	74
20	AJ Smith-Shawver	ATL	77	74
21	Carson Spiers	CIN	75	74
22	Alec Marsh	KCR	77	74
23	Tobias Myers	MIL	73	73
24	Michael McGreevy	STL	77	73
25	Quinn Mathews	STL	73	72

Happy bidding!