Baseball America Prospect Chat

Ben Badler: Before we get started, I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for reading and supporting our international coverage all year and especially on July 2. Our primary goals are to make sure we’re giving you guys thorough, comprehensive, accurate information and to make sure that we’re being fair in how we write about kids who are still 16, but it is nice to see the feedback from what was the biggest July 2 ever for us in terms of readership numbers. The only days more people visit our site the entire year are the three days of the draft, which blows my mind, but it’s awesome to see the enthusiasm people have for the international players coming into the game.

Warren (Texas): How does Jose Azocar profile? ANy hope for the power to develop?
Ben Badler: One of the more exciting players in the Tigers’ system, and he’s mostly getting by on raw athleticism and tools right now, because he does some things that make you scratch your head and wonder how much baseball he’s played in his life. But the speed and arm are above-average, the bat speed is there and he’s hitting over .300 again for the third straight year. The power could come on in the future, but he’s going to have to change his swing and approach to get to it more often because his swing plane isn’t geared toward loft and he has an inside-out approach where he’ll need to learn to turn on more pitches in the air to start showing more game power.

Marcus (Endicott): If the Yankees were planning to make another big investment next July 2, would a lot of those deals have been made already? If so, could the next CBA change those plans?
Ben Badler: There are teams that are making deals for 2017 already, but a lot of the bigger ones are going to have to wait until teams know the rules of the next CBA.

Alan (Atlanta): If you ran a team, would you rather sign Atlanta's haul or San Diego's?
Ben Badler: The Braves got the best player in the class in Kevin Maitan. Beyond Maitan, I like the rest of the Padres’ class a little more, especially if they’re able to add the Cuban players I expect them to sign. Of course that’s also going to cost them more money too, but these are both teams that should be investing money into prospects right now.

Paul Marino (Point Pleasant NJ): What are your thoughts on Sandy Alcantara? Is he somewhat of a second coming of Alex Reyes? TONS of strikeouts but hasn't honed it yet. Thanks!
Ben Badler: I don’t see them as similar pitchers, but I’ve been a fan of Alcantara since he broke out in the GCL last season. It’s a three-pitch mix to start with a fastball that’s been up to 102 mph. Control has to get better, which comes down to repeating his mechanics, but it’s not a high-maintenance delivery by any means, so there’s reason to believe he should be able to get everything synced up with more experience.

Dan (Augusta, ME): Visalia's Dawel Lugo hit for the cycle last night (and didn't crack the Prospect Report). How much has his stock improved this season? Can he stick at 3rd? Thanks
Ben Badler: His stock is definitely up, and I don’t see any reason why he wouldn’t stick at third base. He’s always been an aggressive hitter but had the hand-eye coordination to be able to make contact, even on pitches outside the strike zone, which got him into trouble sometimes. I still want to see better plate discipline, but the bat control is there and the power is growing.

Mike (Virginia): A two part question: 1) What are the chances of an international draft for next year's signing period? 2) How aggressive will the Red Sox be if there isn't a draft?
Ben Badler: I’ve talked to a lot of different well-connected people on this, and there isn’t a strong consensus on whether we’ll have an international draft next signing period under the new CBA. But I do think the rules will change significantly because owners want greater cost control of what they’re paying international players and the union will have no problem giving the owners that as a concession if it means they get some marginal benefits in return for major league players who are on 40-man rosters. But I can tell you the Red Sox, Yankees and some other teams are already planning to go all out again in 2017 if the rules allow them to do so and the penalties aren’t too harsh.

Warren (Texas): What is CJ Edwards upside now that he is back in MLB? Will he stick? What do you see has his future role? Thanks for the chat!
Ben Badler: Looks like a middle reliever.

Jerry (Philadelphia): Do you see the Red Sox giving up Moancada in a trade under any circumstances?
Ben Badler: Dombrowski traded Cameron Maybin, Andrew Miller and Jacob Turner when they were top-tier prospects for the Tigers. I don’t expect they will trade Moncada, but I wouldn’t rule out anything entirely.

TJ (Miami): Why does Miami not sign any high level IFA anymore? Jeff just cheap or are they waiting till they are the only team who can offer more than $300,000?
Ben Badler: They were on Freudis Nova, but, well . . .

Nickrand (Michigan): Power reliever Joe Jimenez hasn't skipped a beat since moving to Double-A. Can he help the Tigers bullpen in the second half or is he too raw?
Ben Badler: He can help this year. The numbers are ridiculous, the stuff he’s doing it with is legit and he’s throwing plenty of strikes.

Claudio (Italy): Hi Ben and thanks for the wonderful coverage on J2. Speaking of last year's J2, what kind of hitter we can expect out of Derian Cruz? I thought he was a light hitting missile with a good glove, but he already slugged one over the fence. Any chance for solid power?
Ben Badler: Thank you. Between the bat speed and the strength through his wrists and forearms, there’s a good amount of snap in his bat to grow into 10-15 home run type power. Obviously what stands out the most is the speed and explosive athleticism, but he’s got a lot more physical upside to grow into solid pop for a shortstop.

Steve (Wilmington): Phillies have reportedly sign anywhere from a dozen to twenty guys on or around July 2 but only 7 are listed on the tracker. Can we assume that the others are very low bonus types?
Ben Badler: All of their main signings are listed for them. Keep in mind that most teams sign anywhere from 15-50 international players each year, mostly on the higher end for organizations with multiple DSL teams. Most of those players are going to sign for under $100K, so we won’t have much on those signings, unless it’s a Jonathan Guzman type who jumps out as a sleeper to watch.

Brian (STL): Thanks for another great chat Ben. Who do you like better, Mags Sierra or Jonatan Machado?
Ben Badler: Machado

Ryan (Houston, TX): Would Alex Bregman win your vote for MiLB POY if it were held today? He's a superfreak, yowwww.
Ben Badler: He’d get my vote.

a.j. (las vegas): If you are the Nationals would you make a Giolito/Turner trade for Mike Trout?
Ben Badler: Mike Trout is modern day Mickey Mantle. It’s going to take more than they to get him in a trade.

Zack (Detroit): Christin Stewart. While the average is not that impressive, the Homerun and walk totals are. I know he strikes out a lot and isn't known as much of a defender, but how does he profile? Is the power and discipline legit? Above average regular perhaps?
Ben Badler: I think you pegged him well. The strikeout rate is just into red flag territory, but it’s not unmanageable at this point and he backs it up with a combination of plate patience and huge power to all fields. If he can make some slight tweaks to get more game contact, he can be an above-average everyday guy.

Steven (Austin): Does Leody Taveras have Robles-like potential?
Ben Badler: I wouldn’t put that on him yet, but I’m all about Leody Taveras. Premium position, athletic, physicality, good combo of tools, skills and the ability to hit in games. He was already in our Rangers Top 10 coming into the year and his stock is only going up.

Tyler (San Diego): Are Ona and Morejon further along than most July 2 prospects? Once they're declared eligible to sign, where can we expect them to start?
Ben Badler: They’re older and more polished than the 16-year-olds coming out of the DR and VZ. They’re not even cleared to sign yet, but at this point, let’s say they get cleared tomorrow, I wouldn’t be surprised if they ended up spending the year in the DSL. This gets complicated and I’m not sure how many people handling these players even know or care about this stuff, but if they sign and play in the United States this year, they’re going to give up a substantial amount of money in taxes to the US government. If they don’t play in the US the year they’re getting paid, they get to keep more of their bonus. So if you see any of these new Cuban signings starting out in the DSL, that’s probably why.

Matthew (Connecticut): Have you heard any rumors on Cesar Daniel Izturis i.e former major leaguer Cesar Izturis's son? Do you think he will end up signing with a team?
Ben Badler: Diamondbacks most likely.

Nickrand (Michigan): You've been very high on Manuel Margot in the past. He has held his own as one of the youngest players in the PCL but isn't hitting the ball with much authority. Does he still have enough upside in his bat to be more than an on-base/speed guy?
Ben Badler: Part of what I like about Margot is that even if he’s an 8-12 home run guy, he’s still an average to above-average regular because of the on-base and defensive skills at a premium position. I do think there’s a higher power ceiling in there than that too, and he’s already in Triple-A at 21, the same age as all the college juniors who just went in this year’s draft.

Proswagonist (Liberl): Which teams are interested in Vladimir Gutierrez?
Ben Badler: Any of the seven teams that are over their bonus pools are the best bets. The Astros had the biggest crew at his last open showcase. Oakland could be interesting candidate now that the A’s made a late decision to go over their pool, but I haven’t heard them connected to him yet.

Proswagonist (Liberl): Did Lazarito lose money by waiting to sign?
Ben Badler: It’s complicated. In the end, his tools and track record of hitting in Cuba and international tournaments made him a talent commensurate with players at the top of a typical July 2 class, and he got paid at that level.

Frank (Chicago): Where would you insert Maitan amongst the Braves' top overall prospects?
Ben Badler: Going to take a little more time to sort through all the new additions to the system, but Maitan should be in their top 10 with a chance to be in the BA Top 100.

John (Taiwan): Toussaint was much better since June. Could him still be the Top 100 prospects after this year? And how about Allard and Soroka, both on the Top 100?
Ben Badler: I wouldn’t have him there yet, but I know he will get Top 100 support from others on the BA staff. If you see him on the right day, he looks like a front-end starter with a plus fastball and a 70-grade curve, then a scout who sees him on the next start sees him a pitcher with little feel for his delivery or how to locate the strike zone with his fastball.

Eric (Boston, MA): Loving me some Benny Baseball - he's just dominating at Portland. Any chance he sees Fenway this year?
Ben Badler: Thanks! I appreciate the kind wo—oh, wait, you meant Andrew Benintendi, huh? Yeah, I guess he’s pretty good. Natural hitter with a great swing who tracks pitches well and controls the strike zone. I do think 2017 is a more likely ETA, but if he’s still raking in August and the Red Sox have a need for him, I wouldn’t rule out seeing him in Boston this year.

Mike (Virginia): I know it's far away, but can you give us two or three names that should draw a lot of interest next year? Anyone to Kevin Maitan's level?
Ben Badler: Eric Pardinho, a pitcher from Brazil, just struck out 14 batters with one walk over six innings the other day in the COPABE 16U tournament in Panama against a Dominican team with several supposed top 2017 prospects. I don’t like to get too much into players for next year yet at this point, but I’ve got to give credit when a kid gets it done on the field on the international stage in front of a big crowd of scouts.

Joe H (Syracuse NY): I know Boston can't sign players from this July 2 class, but can they still trade their pool slots?
Ben Badler: I believe so. MLB hasn’t actually made any public statements or released any public information about this case (hmmmmm….), but there’s nothing I’ve seen that would disqualify them from trading away their slot values, although I’m not sure how many trade partners there are looking for more pool space this year.

Ed (San Diego): Do you think the Padres will trade any or all of their Intl spending allotment to someone like Oakland?
Ben Badler: The rule is that once a team exceeds its international bonus pool, it’s not allowed to trade for any additional slot values. So since the A’s are already over, they can’t trade for any more international slots, even if they wanted to just soften the blow of the overage tax at this point.

Jose (Washington, DC): How impactful is the penalty that was handed down on the Red Sox? What are you hearing from folks in the field?
Ben Badler: We’re going to have more on this later because I want to be thorough and there’s a lot more here than what’s out there in the public right now. But it’s safe to say that most people I talk to from other clubs are not happy with MLB. And from the standpoint of just being a decent human being, what MLB did to the 2016 players who were planning to sign with the Red Sox on July 2 is terrible. MLB went in one day before the signing period opened and shattered the plans and lives of 16-year-old kids who had no involvement in any of this and did nothing wrong.

Jason (North carolina): Hi Ben, terrific intl coverage. are the Braves working on a few more intl signees who are too young to sing right now thanks?
Ben Badler: I expect they will sign Yenci Pena next week once he turns 16. Yefri Del Rosario can sign now. There was some back-and-forth uncertainty involving Cleveland and Atlanta, but at this point, I think the Braves are favorites.

CW (Houston): Has Alex Bregman's ceiling risen? Any chance he will be in number one prospect consideration?
Ben Badler: Yes. I was a big Bregman fan coming out of the draft, but I didn’t think we’d see this type of power from him. I wouldn’t put him No. 1 overall, but he’s an easy top 10 prospect in baseball right now for me.

John (PA): Tyler Glasnow debuts tomorrow vs the Cards. Do you think he's ready to be a competent big league starter and how do you see him long term?
Ben Badler: Long-term, he can be a frontline starter. Right now I expect a few starts where he strikes out 10 with two hits allowed over six innings, then others where he doesn’t make it out of the fourth inning because he walked five batters. When he’s in the strike zone, between the fastball velocity/angle and the devastating curveball, he’s a nightmare to square up, but he’s got to avoid those free baserunners against major league lineups.

Chad (CA): When does BA's midseason prospect list come out?
Ben Badler: Sources tell me: VERY SOON!

Jeff (Del Mar): If Almanzar develops a little power are we talking about an all star?
Ben Badler: He could be, but he’s still 16. With all these kids at 16, it’s always such a long-range projection. For his age group, he’s one of the best hitters in the class with good pitch recognition and a chance to stay at shortstop. A lot to like there.

WILLIE (NYC): Don't you think if they really wanted to teach Boston a lesson and penalize them they should have put the penalty in place another year so they couldn't sign anybody over 300K next year That would be a better penalty
Ben Badler: Yes. It would have been a harsher penalty for the Red Sox and it would have avoided recklessly damaging the lives of the 16-year-old kids for 2016 who did nothing wrong.

Greg (Cincy): So what's made Ian Happ such a great hitter ?
Ben Badler: Good bat speed, a sound swing from both sides, he’s strong and has a patient hitting approach. He can get a little out of control at times, but he has a lot of the attributes you want to see in a young hitter.

joe (philly): when do the 17+ signees start playing in dsl/gcl?
Ben Badler: For the players who are 17 years old who just signed, they can begin playing as soon as MLB approved their contracts.

Ben Badler: Thanks for all the questions. We’ve got midseason prospect updates in the works, I’m heading out to San Diego with the BA crew for the Futures Game, and then Best Tools and League Top 20 lists are right around the corner.