Prospect Hot Sheet: May 5

This installment of the Prospect Hot Sheet considers what minor league players did from April 28-May 4. Remember, this feature simply recognizes what the hottest prospects in the minors did in the past week—it’s not a re-ranking of the Baseball America Top 100 Prospects. Number in parentheses indicates players’ ages.

1. Dustin Fowler, of, Yankees (22)
Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (International)

Fowler can help win games with his bat, his speed or his glove in center field. For instance, he hit for the cycle last Sunday as part of a 5-for-6 game that included a walk-off home run. An enhanced walk rate this season—not to mention a .250 isolated slugging percentage—is a step in the right direction for Fowler, an 18th-round pick out of high school who signed for $278,000.

AVG	OBP	SLG	XBH	BB	SB
.481	.533	.815	5	3	1

2. Carter Kieboom, ss, Nationals (19)
Low Class A Hagerstown (South Atlantic)

A first-round prep shortstop from Georgia last year, Kieboom has transitioned smoothly to full-season ball this season. He owns a .333 average on the year and has smacked five home runs, three of them in a game at Lexington on Sunday. With defensive tools to stay at shortstop, Kieboom could be on the verge of a breakout.

AVG	OBP	SLG	XBH	BB	SB
.407	.429	.852	6	1	0

3. Jeff Hoffman, rhp, Rockies (24)
Triple-A Albuquerque (Pacific Coast)

The Rockies sport three rookies and a sophomore in their big league rotation, but they’re letting Hoffman gain needed experience at Triple-A. He strung together two quality outings this week at Las Vegas and El Paso to give Colorado something to think about when they need another arm in the future. Hoffman deserves a medal for recording a 3.95 ERA in 28 career starts for Albuquerque.

ERA	IP	H	HR	BB	SO
1.39	13	5	0	4	13

4. Yoan Moncada, 2b, White Sox (21)
Triple-A Charlotte (International)

The top power-speed talent in the minors has done nothing to dispel the notion that he is now the top prospect in baseball following the graduations of Andrew Benintendi and Dansby Swanson and Tommy John surgery for Alex Reyes. Once Moncada stabilizes his strikeout rate—and he has made progress on that count—he will be considered for a callup.

AVG	OBP	SLG	XBH	BB	SB
.478	.538	.652	2	3	1

5. Sean Newcomb, lhp, Braves (23)
Triple-A Gwinnett (International)

As always, Newcomb ranks among his league’s leaders in strikeouts and walks, but the seven scoreless innings he tossed this week could signal that he’s turned a corner—or not. Either way, he tied a career high with 11 strikeouts and hasn’t been scored upon in either of his past two starts, thanks to his potent three-pitch mix.

ERA	IP	H	HR	BB	SO
0.00	7	1	0	2	11

6. Jacob Faria, rhp, Rays (23)
Triple-A Durham (International)

Faria added strength to his lower half in the offseason and at Durham this season has emphasized driving toward home plate with his back leg. The alterations have paid off for Faria, who claimed the IL strikeout lead this week with an 11-whiff effort against Buffalo.

ERA	IP	H	HR	BB	SO
0.00	6	3	0	1	11

7. Patrick Mazeika, c, Mets (23)
High Class A St. Lucie (Florida State)

A .348 hitter in college, Mazeika has done nothing but hit in three years in the Mets system. He went 12-for-22 with a home run this week, but what’s even more encouraging is that he’s staying healthy and hitting for significantly more power, all while playing catcher three games out of four.

AVG	OBP	SLG	XBH	BB	SB
.545	.542	.864	5	1	0

8. Jake Gatewood, 1b, Brewers (21)
High Class A Carolina (Carolina)

Now a full-time first baseman after playing shortstop and third base early in his career, Gatewood has prototype size (6-foot-5) and power production to man the position. He mashed four home runs and drove in eight runs this week, and the 2014 supplemental first-rounder could be turning a corner in his fourth pro season.

AVG	OBP	SLG	XBH	BB	SB
.357	.471	.857	6	6	1

9. Anthony Banda, lhp, Diamondbacks (23)
Triple-A Reno (Pacific Coast)

Banda’s ERA stood at 7.56 after two starts this season before he righted the ship. He allowed one run over two home starts in Reno this week, and in his last four starts he sports a 30-to-9 strikeout-to-walk ratio and .217 opponent average.

ERA	IP	H	HR	BB	SO
0.82	11	8	0	3	14

10. Kolby Allard, lhp, Braves (19)
Double-A Mississippi (Southern)

Allard made just 16 starts last year, none above low Class A, so what the teenager has accomplished in Double-A speaks well to his future potential. His 1.36 ERA ranks among the best in the SL, but what truly stands out about his recent performance is the 11-strikeout effort at Birmingham yesterday.

ERA	IP	H	HR	BB	SO
1.50	12	7	1	2	14

11. Isan Diaz, ss/2b, Brewers (21)
High Class A Carolina (Carolina)

The prize of the Jean Segura trade continues to develop steadily in the Brewers system, where he again is showing tremendous power and patience as a lefthanded-hitting middle infielder. Diaz plays a block of games at shortstop and then a block at second base as he and Carolina teammate Luis Aviles rotate responsibilities.

AVG	OBP	SLG	XBH	BB	SB
.375	.421	.750	6	4	1

12. Rafael Devers, 3b, Red Sox (20)
Double-A Portland (Eastern)

Devers started slowly at high Class A last season but has had no such trouble in his first exposure to Double-A. He went 10-for-28 this week with four home runs, which included a two-homer night in Hartford on Tuesday. Things could come together quickly for Devers, as they did for Xander Bogaerts in 2013, when he began at Double-A and finished on the Boston postseason roster.

AVG	OBP	SLG	XBH	BB	SB
.357	.419	.786	4	3	0

13. Danny Jansen, c, Blue Jays (22)
High Class A Dunedin (Florida State)

Not many batters hit .400 for a month, even in the minors leagues. Jansen did in April, when he hit .402 in 82 at-bats. He popped three extra-base hits this week, including a home run, and drew his fourth walk of the season, which are welcome embellishments for a batting line that had been driven by good fortune on balls in play.

AVG	OBP	SLG	XBH	BB	SB
.423	.444	.615	3	1	0

14. Renato Nunez, 3b/of, Athletics (23)
Triple-A Nashville (Pacific Coast)

Nunez looked sharp in the Venezuelan League last winter, which has helped him thrash Triple-A pitchers as he repeats the PCL. Using his plus power, he crushed a minor league-leading seven extra-base hits this week, including four home runs. Take note of the neutral PCL parks in which he excelled: Round Rock and Nashville. The A’s have Nunez playing left field every day, now that Matt Chapman is healthy.

AVG	OBP	SLG	XBH	BB	SB
.318	.464	1.000	7	6	0

15. Mitch Keller, rhp, Pirates (21)
High Class A Bradenton (Florida State)

In a year in which many of the game’s top pitching prospects took steps backward in April, Keller just kept doing his thing. The athletic righthander continues to show advanced command of the strike zone with 25 strikeouts and five walks in his five starts this season.

ERA	IP	H	HR	BB	SO
0.00	7	5	0	1	9

16. Scott Blewett, rhp, Royals (21)
High Class A Wilmington (Carolina)

Blewett hasn’t recorded huge strikeout totals this season, but he has been remarkably durable (Carolina League-leading 34.1 innings) and effective (one earned run in his past three starts). That’s good news for a Royals organization that has seen many of its prep first-round pitchers fizzle in pro ball. Note: Foster Griffin, Blewett’s Wilmington teammate, also has pitched well in the early going.

ERA	IP	H	HR	BB	SO
0.69	13	8	0	3	7

17. Drew Harrington, lhp, Braves (22)
High Class A Florida (Florida State)

A third-round pick last year from Louisville, Harrington’s fastball command is too advanced for the FSL, but he benefits from the chance to more freely incorporate his changeup. He has generated an extreme groundball rate thus far (67 percent of batted balls) and has a quality fastball and slider that will get him to the big leagues.

ERA	IP	H	HR	BB	SO
1.64	11	6	0	1	10

18. Daniel Camarena, lhp, Yankees (24)
Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (International)

A four-pitch lefthander who missed the 2015 season after having Tommy John surgery, Camarena began the year at Double-A Trenton before a quick promotion to Triple-A, where in three starts he is 3-0, 1.98 with 17 strikeouts and three walks in 18.1 innings. Camarena throws in the low 90s with a nice changeup, so if he continues to sharpen his breaking stuff he has big league starter potential.

ERA	IP	H	HR	BB	SO
1.50	12	8	0	3	12

19. Yanio Perez, of/1b, Rangers (21)
Low Class A Hickory (South Atlantic)

The Rangers signed Perez for $1.1 million last September after he left Cuba. He has had no trouble adjusting to low Class A competition—he ranks among the SAL leaders with a .337 average and .587 slugging. Perez has above-average raw power and blasted four home runs this week. As was the case with Andy Ibanez last year, the true test for Perez will come when the Rangers promote him to a higher level.

AVG	OBP	SLG	XBH	BB	SB
.476	.500	1.095	5	2	0

20. Garrett Stubbs, c, Astros (24)
Double-A Corpus Christi (Texas)

Stubbs spent a couple weeks on the disabled list in April with a hamstring injury but has not looked rusty since his return. He rocked two home runs at home on Sunday, one day after going deep against the same Frisco opponent, and also picked up a pair of doubles.

AVG	OBP	SLG	XBH	BB	SB
.300	.364	.850	5	1	0

HELIUM

Lucas Herbert, c, Braves. Catching is hard, particularly for teenagers straight out of high school. The demands of managing a pitching staff for five months while also trying to produce at the plate—well, it’s easy to see why many prep catchers stumble initially. A second-round pick in 2015, Herbert learned that lesson firsthand in 2016, when he hit .185 in 96 games at low Class A Rome. Yet he still ranked among the Top 30 Prospects—if just barely—in a deep Braves system. That’s how strong his defensive chops are. As Herbert repeats the South Atlantic League this year, he is showing signs of life. He went 6-for-14 (.429) this week and homered in three straight games.