Prospects1500 #2EarlyMiLBMock Draft – Episode III

Episode III: Rounds 20-30

The late rounds feature picks 229-360, where managers are drafting for upside, seeing if there are any gems that fell through the cracks, and trying to hit on the next wave of top prospects. Check out Episode I (Rounds 1-9) and Episode II (Rounds 10-19) to get a sense of where managers have picked to this point. Here are the final rounds of #2EarlyMiLBMock.

Round 20

Ben on his selection of Joey Wentz, LHP, ATL: Joey Wentz may turn out to be a better real life pitcher over a dynasty asset, but he is an arm that I really like amidst the deep stable of Atlanta pitching prospects. Wentz came into 2018 as a fringe Top 100 prospect, only to have minor injury sap his developmental momentum. However, Wentz was able to put together an absolutely dazzling June and July, where he allowed only 2 ER across 33.1 IP. In Diamond Duos IV, I acquired Wentz in a November 2017 trade as the third best prospect in the deal for Madison Bumgarner (behind Jesus Sanchez and Cristian Pache), and flipped him as part of a mid-summer deal for J.D. Martinez. Both deals, compliments of Wentz, have worked out well for me so far.

Round 21

Michael on his selection of Casey Golden, 1B, COL: Casey Golden, my 21st pick (251 overall), had 20 home runs and 59 RBI in 54 games at Rookie-level Grand Junction in 2017; he was the Colorado Rockies 20th-round pick out of UNC-Wilmington in that year’s draft. This year he had 34 homers, 95 RBI and 24 stolen bases in 124 games at Low-A Asheville. He moved to left field and was the Rockies’ organization all-star at that position this summer.

Ben on his selection of Tyler Freeman, SS, CLE: Freeman was one of my favorite prospects that I saw this past summer, and that includes seeing Vlad Jr., Bo Bichette, Peter Alonso, and Andres Gimenez. Freeman was easily the top New York Penn League hitter this summer who I wrote about previously on this site (here), and should continue to show off his impressive hit tool in full season ball in 2019. Freeman gets some Michael Young comps with his bat-to-ball skill, and that would be a great outcome for the Indians if they can get that kind of production from the standout middle infielder in the future.

Round 22

Michael on his selection of Ryan Rolison, LHP, COL: Lefthander Ryan Rolison was drafted by the Rockies in the first round (22nd pick overall) in 2018 out of the University of Mississippi. The Rockies limited his innings at Rookie-level Grand Junction because of his spring workload. He had a 1.86 ERA and struck out 34 in 29 innings with a 0.79 WHIP. That earned him my pick 22 (254 overall) in the Prospects1500 mock draft.

Round 23

Ben on his selection of Austin Allen, C/1B, SDP: I like to find value at the catcher position in dynasty since I don’t like to overpay for hitters who maximum play about 80% of their teams’ games, and Allen fits the bill as a the 18th catcher taken off the board in this draft. The power hitting backstop should surpass that ranking, especially as he is in the high minors and playing well in the Arizona Fall League. It bodes well for Allen that his bat is valuable enough to find him some time at 1B, and he is a good target in 2 catcher formats.

Round 24

Ben on his selection of Andres Munoz, RHP, SDP: If you want to find a high probability future closer in the minors, look no further than Munoz. With the ability to spot a fastball that can touch 103 MPH, Munoz is an easy target in dynasty leagues who could close in the MLB as soon as 2019.

Round 25

Andy on his selection of Cal Quantrill, RHP, SDP: A former top-40 prospect is rarely available at the 294th spot of a prospect mock draft, but that’s exactly where I was able to snatch up Padres righty Cal Quantrill. Of course, his 5.15 ERA and 1.47 WHIP at Double-A last season is a big step down, and many folks have concerns about his low strikeout totals (7.6 K/9 at AA, 6.4 at AAA). Still, I see a well-built right-hander with fastball command and a plus-plus changeup, who could be a very solid No. 3 starter if his slider continues to develop. He maintains his mid-90’s command deep into games, so I have little concern about a potential bullpen move. I am ecstatic to get this kind of ceiling/floor combo in the 25th round of this draft.

Scott on his selection of Darwinzon Hernandez, RHP, BOS: I’m probably being a Red Sox homer but to get Darwinzon Hernandez in the 25th round seems like a steal to me. He’s easily in Boston’s Top 10 prospects and some will have him Top 5 come early 2019. His performance has been solid in the Arizona Fall League and he impressed in the Fall Stars game.

Round 26

Ben on his selection of Tucupita Marcano, 2B/SS, SDP: Marcano is a favorite of international prospect hound Barry ‘Ernesto’ Baker (@barrybaker8664) and for good reason: the 19-year-old Marcano posted a 26 BB: 10 K ratio in the AZL before getting the promotion to Short Season ball. Marcano is an OBP machine with enough tools to get excited about shooting up rankings in 2019.

Round 27

Ryan on his selection of Kyle Dohy, LHP, PHI: I was incredibly happy to find someone in the 27th round of a draft like this, that may be seeing high leverage situations in the major leagues within the next year. When that player was a 16th round pick out of Division II, Cal Poly Pomona, it may sound even more improbable. Kyle Dohy didn’t exactly follow a direct path to a potential shot at the major leagues. Dohy pitched at 3 colleges in 3 years, posting a
5.99 ERA and 6.78 BB/9 as a junior before the Phillies grabbed him with the 474th overall pick in 2017. The lefty reliever sat in the high 80’s with a good curveball and above average changeup, but with massive command issues. In his professional debut, Dohy was about what Philly expected, striking out 9.9 batters per 9 innings, but also putting up a 9 BB/9. As the calendar turned to 2018 though, Dohy found another level. Dohy has jumped his fastball up to the mid-nineties, making his breaking ball a bit more of a slider and making it a plus pitch, giving him 2 or 3 plus pitches and results to prove he’s for real. Across 3 levels in 2018, all Dohy did was put up a 14.8 K/9, while allowing 34 hits in 67.1 innings. His command has remained a bit of an issue, however it isn’t every day you get a left handed pitcher with 3 above average to plus pitches coming out of the bullpen. If he can fine tune the command a bit, we may be seeing the future closer in Philly.

Round 28

Michael on his selection of Josh Fuentes, 3B, COL: Josh Fuentes, my 28th pick (326 overall) had a breakout season in 2018, earning the Pacific Coast League MVP award after a stellar season at AAA Albuquerque. He had 14 homers, 95 RBI and a .327/.354/.517 slash line this summer, putting him in line to replace his cousin, Nolan Arenado, as the Rockies’ third basemen if he should leave in free agency or be traded.

Scott on his selection of Nicky Lopez, 2B/SS, KCR:  One other huge value I’m banking on is getting Royals 2B Nicky Lopez in the 28th round, 328th overall. Lopez split 2018 between AA and AAA, and I’ve even seen Lopez ranked as high as 15th overall in MiLB Power Rankings based on 2018 regular season performance with age and level being major factors in how each statistical category is weighted.

Round 29

Brent on his selection of Joerlin De Los Santos, SS, STL: For those of that have played Dynasty Fantasy Baseball with me, they know that while I do not ignore long term sustainability, I am always “in it to win it.”  Thus I tend to use a lot my minor leaguers, prospects, whatever you want to call them, as trade pieces.  Because of that, I’m always “recouping” my minors so to speak, so I do a lot of research on prospects.  One that really caught my attention was my 29^th round pick of the draft, Joerlin De Los Santos, a SS prospect for the Cardinals.  He spent the summer in the Dominican Summer League as a 17-year-old (turned 18 in September).  He hit a robust .359, but I take that with a grain of salt, given the uncertainty of quality pitching in the DSL.  What DOEs stand out, however, is the incredibly mature plate discipline he exhibited.  In 234 ABs, he walked 41 times, while striking out only 36 times.  That is just rare to see at such a young age.  He also has a very good physical build-up, with lots of room to “grow into.”  He is obviously a long ways from the majors, however, to show such a “strong eye at the  plate” already, he is someone that should be on the radar of any Dynasty Baseball aficionado.  Remember I mentioned him here first!

Round 30

Tony on his selection of Chris Shaw, OF, SFG: For my final selection I went with Chris Shaw. I love his power potential even though I could love without the strikeouts and home park. He may need another few months in the minors after his short September stint but it was definitely worth the gamble this late.

Ben on his selection of Sean Reynolds, 1B, MIA: Reynolds hit one of the hardest balls I saw this year during my look of him playing for Batavia, which I wrote about on this site here. A converted pitcher, the 6’7″ Reynolds is a great athlete with huge raw power, a good throwing arm and some speed (13/14 SB). The slugger knocked 17 HR in the New York Penn League, nearly doubling the next best player (9 HR). The mix of counting stats, and 42% K rate, makes him one of the more polarizing prospects in the game. While some won’t consider such a K profile, I think about the progress that Reynolds made this year with the bat and the fact that he is now dedicating his energy to hitting full time. I also like Reynolds because he offers much more than just power as a tool: he can run and throw too. His skill set is somewhat similar to Cleveland’s Will Benson, who is a year ahead of Reynolds in his development. At this point in the draft, I’ll take a flier on a Joey Gallo/Adam Dunn/Chris Davis type of hitter: all of whom are/were Top 150 overall fantasy players during their heyday.

As a writer who has been in the industry for one year, it is an incredible feeling to have contributed something like this that fans and other writers can use and enjoy. I am grateful to Scott Greene for giving my idea the green light of doing a mock draft at this point in the year, and thus #2EarlyMiLBMock and the #Mocktober season were born. Make sure to keep the Final Google Draft Sheet, along with everyone’s final rosters, handy for your own drafts this winter. Thanks for following along with the team at Prospects1500.

Feature Image of Tyler Freeman by Ben Wilson

Ben Wilson

Ben is an Assistant Editor and also covers the Red Sox and Dynasty/Fantasy baseball content for Prospects1500. He also runs the #2EarlyMiLBMock, an annual prospect-only mock draft, for the Prospects1500 website. Ben is an experienced fantasy baseball player and is a deep league dynasty specialist. He has also contributed at FantraxHQ, RotoFanatic, and retired blogs Real McCoy Minors and Notes from the Sally. Follow Ben on Twitter @TBDubbs11.

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