Prospects of the Week: May 2 – May 8

May 9, 2022 Jeremy Mahy General, MiLB, Prospects of the Week 0

Jerming Rosario, Rancho Cucamonga Quakes, California State League. Photo credit Gail Verderico, @1baseball_gail on Twitter
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Each week during the Minor League Baseball season we pick the hitting and pitching prospects from each level (Triple-A, Double-A, High-A, and Single-A) who, in our opinion, had the best week. The team awards the Prospects of the Week hitters and pitchers for each level, while also presenting other names at each level that are just as deserving of POTW honors. Feel free to reply in the comments with any player who deserves to be mentioned that may not have made our cut.

Any issues with this week’s POTW? Did we miss anyone deserving? Hit us up and set us straight! As always, tweet us @Prospects1500 when you see a great performance that warrants consideration for Prospect of the Week. Enjoy, and make sure you’re keeping an eye out for these prospects in your dynasty leagues.

Triple-A

HITTER: Chadwick Tromp, C (Braves NR)
Gwinett Stripers (5 G, .471/.526/1.353/1.879, 8 H, 3 2B, 4 HR, 12 RBI, 7 R, 2 BB)
International League Player of the Week!
Tromp was claimed off waivers from the Giants last September. As the weather heats up in Atlanta, so has Tromp in the neighboring Gwinnett. Tromp went 8-17 this past week with 4 home runs and 12 RBI, while scoring 7 runs. He has a robust .364/.390/.727 on the year. (@MKelley_ND)

Honorable Mentions:
JJ Bleday, OF (Marlins #6)
Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp (6 G, .429/.556/.952/1.508, 9 H, 2 2B, 3 HR, 5 RBI, 7 R, 6 BB)
Ryan Dorow, 3B (Rangers NR)
Round Rock Express (6 G, .455/.520/.909/1.429, 10 H, 2 2B, 3B, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 5 R, 3 BB, 0 K)
Pacific Coast League Player of the Week!
Jared Young, 1B (Cubs NR)
Iowa Cubs (6 G, .500/.536/.962/1.498, 13 H, 3 2B, 3 HR, 4 RBI, 6 R)

PITCHER: Jared Koenig, LHP (Athletics NR)
Las Vegas Aviators (1 GS, 6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 10 K)
In his start against the River Cats this week Koenig set a new career-high in strikeouts (10). He only allowed 3 base runners in his 6 innings of work (2 singles & 1 walk), and never had a runner reach second base. Koenig’s last 2 starts have been impressive allowing only 2 runs and racking up 19 strikeouts. Might we see him in Oakland this year?

Honorable Mentions:
Kyle Hart, LHP (Red Sox NR)
Worcester Red Sox (1 GS, 6 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 8 K)
International League Pitcher of the Week!
Hart is a bit on the older side for a prospect at 29 years old, but no hits over 6 innings gets a well-deserved mention here.


Parker Dunshee, RHP (Athletics NR)
Las Vegas Aviators (1 GS, 6 IP, 1 H, 0 R, BB, 6 K)
Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Week!
Connor Seabold, RHP (Red Sox #14)
Worcester Red Sox (1 GS, 7 IP, 2 H, ER, BB, 8 K)

Double-A

HITTER: Grant Witherspoon, OF (Rays NR)
Montgomery Biscuits (6 G, .583/.630/.917/1.547, 14 H, 3 2B, 3B, HR, 6 RBI, 7 R, 3 BB, 3 SB)
Grant Witherspoon was a 4th round draft pick back in 2018 out of Tulane and will not show up on many prospect lists (if any) but if he keeps hitting like he has to start this season that might change. He wore out the Biloxi staff this week to the tune of 14 hits with 5 of them going for extra bases. On the season, he leads his team in batting average (.372), slugging percentage (.628), and RBI (20). Witherspoon just adds more depth to an already incredibly deep Tampa Bay system.

Honorable Mentions:
Ezequiel Duran, 2B (Rangers #6)
Frisco RoughRiders (6 G, .462/.462/.846/1.308, 12 H, 4 2B, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 4 R, SB)
Lenyn Sosa, SS (White Sox #15)
Birmingham Barons (6 G, .423/.464/.808/1.272, 11 H, 2 2B, 3B, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 7 R)
Dominic Fletcher, OF (Diamondbacks #45)
Amarillo Sod Poodles (5 G, .444/.474/1.278/1.752, 8 H, 5 HR, 10 RBI)

PITCHER: Brayan Bello, RHP (Red Sox #6)
Portland Sea Dogs (1 GS, 7 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 5 K)
Eastern League Pitcher of the Week!
On May 5th the Reading lineup had its hands full in both games of a double hitter. In game 1, Brandon Walter limited them to just 3 hits through 6 innings while striking out 10. Game 2 saw Bello throw a 7-inning, complete game no hitter, only the 5th in Sea Dogs history. He collected his 3rd win in only his 5th start of this young season. The top pitching prospect in our preseason Red Sox top 50 is certainly living up to the hype so far.

Honorable Mentions:
Garrett Stallings, RHP (Orioles #37)
Bowie Baysox (1 GS, 6 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K)
Ken Waldichuk, LHP (Yankees #10)
Somerset Patriots (1 GS, 5 IP, 0 H, 3 BB, 12 K)
Taj Bradley, RHP (Rays #5)
Montgomery Biscuits (2 GS, 10 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 12 K)
Southern League Pitcher of the Week!

High-A

HITTER: PK Morris, 1B (Blue Jays NR)
Vancouver Canadians (6 G, .450/.560/.900/1.460, 9 H, 3 2B, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 4 R, 5 BB, 2 SB)
Northwest League Player of the Week!
Morris had a strong week at the plate and raised his season average to a team-leading .289. On May 6th he capped off an already strong day with a walk-off blast to center field for his second of the day.

Honorable Mentions:
Colt Keith, 3B (Tigers #14)
West Michigan Whitecaps (6 G, .407/.448/.630/1.078, 11 H, 3 2B, HR 4 RBI, 4 R, 2 BB, 2 SB)
Midwest League Player of the Week!
Henry Davis, C (Pirates #3)
Greensboro Grasshoppers (4 G, .412/.474/.824/1.298, 7 H, 2B, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 4 R, BB, 2 SB)
Michael Sandle, OF (Astros NR)
Asheville Tourists (5 G, .318/.348/.909/1.257, 7 H, 2B, 4 HR, 10 RBI, 5 R, BB, 3 SB)

PITCHER: Gordon Graceffo, RHP (Cardinals NR)
Peoria Chiefs (2 GS, 12 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, BB, 16 K)
Graceffo was a Spring Training sensation for the Cardinals touching 100 mph on the radar gun while displaying good command on his fastball. He has done nothing so far in high-A games to dampen that excitement. In 27.2 innings so far this year he is sporting a 0.65 ERA and 0.51 WHIP. That stellar command has been on full display with only 2 walks to 38 strikeouts. He is flat-out dominating High-A hitters right now and might get the bump to AA Springfield soon. Dynasty league owners might want to get in on him before it is too late.

Honorable Mentions:
John Carver, RHP (Diamondbacks NR)
Hillsboro Hops (1 GS, 5 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 10 K)
Northwest League Pitcher of the Week!
Brent Headrick, LHP (Twins NR)
Cedar Rapids Kernels (1 GS, 6 IP, 1 H, 0 R, BB, 10 K)
Shane Drohan, LHP (Red Sox #46)
Greenville Drive (2 GS, 11 IP, 6 H, 2 BB, 13K)

Single-A

HITTER: Alex Ramirez, OF (Mets #7)
St. Lucie Mets (6 G, .536/.552/.893/1.445, 15 H, 3 2B, 2 3B, HR, 5 RBI, 4 R, BB, SB)
Florida State League Player of the Week!
The 19-year-old center fielder is off to a blistering start to the season for the 18-9 St. Lucie squad. He absolutely wore out Palm Beach pitching this week with 15 hits out of the lead-off spot with 6 going for extra bases. Some evaluators feel that Ramirez has a chance to be a 5 tool player when all is said and done.

Honorable Mentions:
Yosy Galan, OF (Rangers #50)
Down East Wood Ducks (5 G, .550/.571/1.000/1.571, 11 H, 2B, 3B, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 5 R, BB, 2 SB)
Carolina League Player of the Week!
Jeremy De La Rosa, OF (Nationals #7)
Fredericksburg Nationals (5 G, .444/.474/1.000/1.474, 8 H, 2 2B, 3B, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 5 R, BB, SB)
Edwin Arroyo, IF (Mariners #14)
Modesto Nuts (6 G, .381/.391/.905/1.296, 8 H, 2B, 2 3B, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 6 R, BB, 3 SB)
Vaun Brown, OF (Giants NR)
San Jose Giants (5 G, .478/.500/1.000/1.500, 11 H, 4 HR, 5 RBI, 6 R, 3 SB)
California League Player of the Week!

PITCHER: Noah Cameron, LHP (Royals NR)
Columbia Fireflies (1 GS, 5 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 7 K)
Carolina League Pitcher of the Week!
Cameron’s longest and best start of the season so far came this week against Delmarva. He was dealing throughout this game, throwing 5 perfect innings. In those 5 innings he needed only 60 pitches, throwing 40 of them for strikes, and only faced a three ball count twice. In the process, he lowered his season ERA to 4.19.

Honorable Mentions:
Jerming Rosario, RHP (Dodgers #47)
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (1 GS, 5 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K)
California League Pitcher of the Week!
Sam Benschoter, RHP (Reds NR)
Daytona Tortugas (1 GS, 5 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 6 K)
Florida State League Pitcher of the Week!
Ben Casparius, RHP (Dodgers #38)
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (2 GS, 7 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 4 BB, 8 K)

Jeremy Mahy

Jeremy covers the St Louis organization and contributes on Prospects of the Week for Prospects1500. Born and raised in the Midwest, he is a lifelong fan of the Birds on the Bat. You can follow him on Twitter @JMahyfam for more baseball content.

"Love is the most important thing in the world, but baseball is pretty good, too." -Yogi Berra

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