Ask BA: Picking The Best Pitcher/Batter Combos In The Minors
Michael Kopech (Photo by Brian Westerholt)
Have a question for Ask BA? Tweet it to J.J. (@jjcoop36) or email it to askba@baseballamerica.com.
Q:
Pick your MiLB Jam team (a pitcher/position prospect from an MLB organization).
Jesse Goldberg-Strassler
Lansing, Mich.
BA:
Great question.
If you were a kid or even a video-game savvy adult in the early 1990s, you likely remember the glory that was NBA Jam. The format was simple: instead of a five-player team, you had two NBA stars for each team facing off in an orgy of slam dunks, massive rejections and basketballs catching fire.
So if you’re picking a pitcher/hitter prospect combo, I’d go with the White Sox’s Michael Kopech and Eloy Jimenez. Kopech is figuratively on fire when he throws his 100-mph fastball while Jimenez is one of the best position prospects in the game, with an outstanding combination of power and hitting ability.
But there are several other good choices as well including the Braves (Ronald Acuna/Mike Soroka), Padres (McKenzie Gore/Fernando Tatis Jr.) and the Reds (Nick Senzel/Hunter Greene).
But to go a little further, with some help from Kyle Glaser and John Manuel, we put together a back-of-the-napkin look at what an MiLB Jam prospect team would look like for every team. In some cases, the choices are easy, but in many of these you could make an argument for someone else to make the team. For example, it would be easy to take Leody Taveras over Willie Calhoun with the Rangers or D.L. Hall over Hunter Harvey with the Orioles.
Arizona Diamondbacks
Jon Duplantier/Pavin Smith
Atlanta Braves
Mike Soroka/Ronald Acuna
Baltimore Orioles
Hunter Harvey/Austin Hays
Boston Red Sox
Michael Chavis/Jay Groome
Chicago Cubs
Adbert Azolay/Aramis Ademan
Chicago White Sox
Michael Kopech/Eloy Jimenez
Cincinnati Reds
Nick Senzel/Hunter Greene
Cleveland Indians
Triston McKenzie/Francisco Mejia
Colorado Rockies
Riley Pint/Brendan Rodgers
Detroit Tigers
Franklin Perez/Isaac Paredes
Houston Astros
Forrest Whitley/Kyle Tucker
Kansas City Royals
Foster Griffin/Nick Pratto
Los Angeles Angels
Jaime Barria/Jordon Adell
Los Angeles Dodgers
Walker Buehler/Alex Verdugo
Miami Marlins
Dillon Peters/Brian Anderson
Milwaukee Brewers
Brandon Woodruff/Lewis Brinson
Minnesota Twins
Fernando Romero/Royce Lewis
New York Mets
David Peterson/Amed Rosario
New York Yankees
Justus Sheffield/Gleyber Torres
Oakland Athletics
A.J. Puk/Jorge Mateo
Philadelphia Phillies
Sixto Sanchez/Rhys Hoskins
Pittsburgh Pirates
Mitch Keller/Ke’Bryan Hayes
San Diego Padres
McKenzie Gore/Fernando Tatis Jr.
San Francisco Giants
Chris Shaw/Andrew Suarez
Seattle Mariners
Nick Neidert/Kyle Lewis
St. Louis Cardinals
Alex Reyes/Carson Kelly
Tampa Bay Rays
Brent Honeywell/Willy Adames
Texas Rangers
Yohander Mendez/Willie Calhoun
Toronto Blue Jays
Nate Pearson/Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
Washington Nationals
Erick Fedde/Victor Robles
Eds Note: Goldberg-Strassler is the play-by-play announcer for low Class A Lansing, a Blue Jays affiliate, and is partial to the Vlad/Pearson pairing.
Comments are closed.