The LA Dodgers Farm System just got some more accolades from the new 2023 Baseball America Prospect Handbook. The Baseball America Prospect Handbook has been published for 23 years and is the creme de la creme for identifying and rating prospects. How do I know? Well, I just do, and it so happens that I have every one of them ever published… except this year’s copy, which is allegedly on the way, but they do send an advance electronic copy, which everyone who bought one has.
The first year it was published was 2001, which was a little smaller in size than the ones produced after that. But, before that, from 1983 until 2000, BA published the rankings of each team’s top 10 Prospects. Someday we might take a look back at that. But, I now have the Baseball America Top 30 Prospects for each team. We had the TOP 10 a couple of weeks ago when they released that – now we have the entire TOP 30.
To refresh your memory, here are the Dodgers’ Top 10 Prospects:
- Diego Cartaya – C
- Bobby Miller – RHP
- Miguel Vargas – 3B
- Michael Busch – 2B
- Ryan Pepiot – RHP
- Gavin Stone RHP
- Andy Pages – OF
- Dalton Rushing – C
- Nick Nastrini – RHP
- James Outman – OF
Before we talk about the next twenty, there are some comments that are worth reviewing. Kyle Glazer opened with this:
“The Dodgers won a franchise record 111 games in 2022 despite setbacks that would have sunk almost any other team.“
Kyle Glaser
… and who was the manager of that team? He then went on to enumerate all the losses of players and injuries and the combination of sub-par seasons by Bellinger, Muncy, Gallo, JT, and Kimbrel, et al. It makes you wonder how the Dodgers won 111 games, but of course, Dave Roberts gets no credit for that – he only gets credit for the losses. Glaser finished with this:
“The faces may be changing, but just as has been the case with the Dodgers for years, the winning ways should continue unabated.”
–Kyle Galser
He also wrote that “The Dodgers boast not only one of the best farm systems in baseball but one of the most major league-ready!”
It is positively the best time in history to be a Dodger fan!
Dodger Prospects 11-30
11. Jacob Amaya – SS (of course, he is gone);
12. Nick Frasso – RHP
13. Josue De Paula – OF
14. Emmet Shehan – RHP
15. Eddys Leonard – SS/2B
16. Ronan Kopp, LHP
17. River Ryan, RHP
18. Jonny DeLuca – OF
19. Michael Grove – RHP
20. Maddux Bruns – LHP
21. Jorbit Vivas – 2B
22. Devin Mann – 2B/OF
23. Landon Knack – RHP
24. Jose Ramos – OF
25. Yeiner Fernandez C/2B
26. Peter Heubeck – RHP
27. Damon Keith – OF
28. Kyle Hurt – RHP
29. Carlos Duran – RHP
30. Justin Wrobleski – LHP
A couple of things I learned: I wondered why Landon Knack seemed “stalled” in his development. Glaser wrote that Knack had lost his pinpoint control as his conditioning had worsened. They say he has poor nutrition and poor sleep habits that affect his weight and make it difficult for him to maintain his delivery. They also say that his poor conditioning is the root of the frequent muscle pulls and strains he suffers every year. It is reported in BA that the Dodgers have challenged him to improve his fitness in 2023.
If Landon Knack improves his fitness, sleep habits, nutrition, and overall conditioning, he could be a stud. If not, he is on the “dud” pile!
This is the best Dodger Farm System I can remember. Rating prospects is not an exact science, and of course, not all of these prospects will make it, but there are some very high-quality players here. It’s amazing the Dodgers keep coming up with more.
Where to Order:
You can order the 2023 Baseball America Prospect Handbook at www.BaseballAmerica.com or www.Amazon.com.
MLB Pipline Names Vargas #5 Best 3B Prospect
… and he might not even play 3B. Also, Joendry Vargas was named the #3 Best International Prospect. He is a 6′ 4′ SS out of the DR. Did I mention that 2023 is a great time to be a Dodger fan?
Discussion (29)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Here are a couple of things I know to be fact. 1. JT had trouble catching up to fastballs all year long. Someone tracked his contact rate against fastballs 95 or better and it was way below what he had done in the past. And it did not just start last season. He was showing signs of that in 21. So when SD would bring in one of their bullpen flame throwers, he was simply overmatched. No way LA was going to pay him what he is getting in Boston no matter how much of a clubhouse leader he was. 2. Trea Turner was as good as gone as soon as they were out of the playoffs. He is an east coast guy and most figured he would want to play there. And the Dodgers were not going to pay him what the Phillies are and what the Padres offered, which was about 50 million more than Philadelphia. 3. Even though Bellinger raised his average 50 points, the Dodgers were unwilling to pay him 18 mil simply because of his superior defense. I for one think the change of scenery is going to be a huge benefit for him and he will have a resurgence in Chicago. 4. Heaney and Anderson both wanted multi-year deals. The Dodgers were not inclined to offer that to either of them. They have this year’s reclamation project in Syndergaard, who career wise has had more success than both of those guys despite his injury history. If he is right this season, look out, he has Ace type stuff. 5. Despite what many fans think, they seem committed to keeping the payroll as low as possible. For Ohtani next year? Possibly, but close to 500 million for one player, even a two-way guy like Ohtani? Doubtful. I think it weakens your ability to add what you might need later. They have to think about Urias being a free agent, replacing most likely 3 spots in the starting rotation if Kersh, Urias and Syndergaard are all gone after this year. Fans say trade Muncy or Taylor and get rid of some payroll. if they traded Taylor at all, they would most likely have to eat some of his salary. Muncy’s trade value is at an all time low. Same with Taylor. Who wants a player who strikes out that much? No, I do not see any trades in their immediate future. They want to see what they have in spring training and go from there.
What’s the purpose of building a strong farm system unless you actually make use of it. I’m very hopeful that that’s what the Dodgers are planning to do this year.
There’s a strong possibility that we will see younger players taking prominent roles all over the diamond; the infield, outfield, and on the pitching staff, both starters and in the bullpen.
I know all of the favorites, but I also believe that we might see some surprises, as there’s a chance we’ll see some unexpected youngsters step up. Some trades involving young players to obtain established veterans are possible, but I also believe that the Dodgers are serious about avoiding the CBT, and sticking with young players is the best way to accomplish that.
This offseason is a changing of the guard. Gone are Belli, JT, TT, and others. There is an opening in the locker room for some leader or leaders.
Maybe Mookie was reluctant to step up with JT and TT and Belli there. Now, there are some openings.
What do Mookie, JDM, Miguel Rojas, Freddie Freeman, and Jason Heyward all have in common? They are leaders!
Will Smith and Max Muncy are also leaders in their own way.
The personality of this team is evolving!
I get it in that those type of managers don’t fit into today’s game but just can’t sit back watch team perform in a lackluster manner in playoff games and not try to find some way to pump em up. I’m not one of those calling for his firing he does a lot of things really well. Being a big part of creating a winning culture for one
The Dodgers announced their promotions for the first half of the season. The first give away comes on April 1st against the D-Backs. A Freddie Freeman bobblehead. Other bobbleheads scheduled for giveaways the first half, Urias, April 3rd, May, May 1st, Betts May 15th, Will Smith, June 13th, Kershaw , June 15th, Lux, July 3rd. Gonsolin, July 6th. Also of note they are giving away a Vin Scully jersey on April 18th.
I agree and sure was hoping Wagner would make it. He got two more years eligibility I believe he will in next two. I’m all for bringing on the youngsters. makes next year even more exciting. Totally agree it’s on the players their highly paid professionals who shouldn’t need outside motivation. At same time wish Roberts would of kicked some dirt on a ump or something of the sort team needed firing up
Bradley
The playoffs are a lot of luck, I’m starting to think all luck. So all you need is a good enough team to get to the playoffs and hope for luck.
That is a travesty!
Scott Rolen is the only on who made it!
There are allegedly 13 Major League Players with these stats for their career:
1. 9000 Games
2. .300 BA
3. .400 OB%
4. .500 SLG%
Todd Helton is one of them.
One of my first thoughts after last year’s embarrassment was need to shake things up and there doing just that
I understand all that Bear but still can’t help but hope for good news in acquiring that extra help I feel we’ll need come October. It’s a long way between now and playoffs and a lot will change by then. I’m optimistic some we don’t see coming just yet could step up and surprise plus the deadline. Honestly excited about coming year and our chances and kinda like not being heavy favorites for a change. I’m anxious to get it rolling and to get that foul taste from last years flop out of the way. All in all I think Friedman is playing it brilliantly as he usually does barring a mistake here and there like Gallo. We’re gonna be just fine and I think much better than some of the predictions. Never know could be going to a parade
I doubt there is anyone who posts on this site who would not want the Dodgers to make a major move and improve the team at positions that some of us feel they are thin at. Namely, the outfield, left and center, shortstop, third base and in the pitching department. Now we all read the rumors and almost every major player who is said to be on the trading block, or who actually is, usually are linked to the Dodgers. We all know Bryan Reynolds want’s out of Pittsburgh, but so far, the Pirates are disinclined to trade him at this point. Now, that can change, but if the Pirates do decide to trade Reynolds, they will most likely wait until a point in time when they can maximize their return. They want a bidding war for his services. Get the Yankees and Dodgers or another team involved, and they can get a lot of prospects in return. As we all have seen so far this offseason, the team seems unwilling to spend a lot of money, hence they did not sign any of the major stars who were on the market. They have made no major trades, even though their division rivals have. To many fans the lack of signing major star is really depressing and it seems like the front office does not really want to win. In reality, it is the perfect time for them to allow some of their prime prospects a chance to crack the lineup. SO what if they play two kids in the outfield? Right now, that is a real possibility. There is not a person here who can predict how any of these players are going to produce. No one here can predict whether or not Gavin Lux will be good at SS or a bust. Why would they trade for Rosario when they can sign him as a free agent next season if Lux and Rojas do not do the job? Makes no sense to give up a bunch of prospects for a rental. Especially when at this point in time, they really do not know how the roster is going to shake out. Have some patience, trust the powers that be to do the right thing when it is needed. Freidman since he has been here has not made one single major trade before or during spring training. I trust the man’s track record and that is what I base my opinion on. You can agree or disagree. That is your choice.
Oh I guess then we wouldn’t need any ogmg those players I mentioned were solid with two rookies paying the outfield according to Old Bear. Boy I don’t. I sure would feel better with a Reynolds or O’Neil in the out field or a Rosorio playing shortstop with playoff experience but again Old Bear thinks the Dodgers are fine.
Signed a few more has been, never was, played out relief pitchers to minor league deals. Depressing it is all the while hoping to acquire difference makers that could actually help
Possible trades players by deadline I read yesterday Amed Rasorio Cleveland Indians SS landing spots dodgers braves Yankees, Bryan Reynolds CF pirates possible landing spots dodgers braves Phillies Yankees, Tyler O’Neil LF possible landing spots Giants Dodgers Padres Mariners, David Bednar Pirates Closer Dodgers Yankees Twins Cubs, Max Kepler Twins CF possible landing spots Dodgers Phillies Tampa Bay. Just some rumors on MLB.com that could be made during spring training if some players don’t plan out for teams.
The Hall of Fame will announce today who made it.
I predict the following players will make it in:
1. Todd Helton 17 years – Career BA: .316/Career OPS: 953 – 61.8 WAR -No way he doesn’t get in. Good Defender too
2. Scott Rolen – 17 years – Career BA .281/Career OPS .855 – 70 WAR – He is borderline IMHO, but he was a great defender too.
3. Billy Wagner – 16 Years One of the great closers of All-Time. 2.31 Career ERA and 0.998 WHIP – He is borderline, but his 422 Saves pave the way. In his last year, he had an 1.43 ERA and 0,865 WHIP
Jeff Kent should be in but his personality will keep him out. He deserves to be in.
Evan Bladh made a point about Rule 5 and how the Dodgers will lose some players next year.
That is probably true… and the Dodgers may see fit to trade some, such as Mike Grove, Leonard or Vivas, Mann, and others who are close but blocked, as Bear alluded to.
This is for Johnny who was talking about River Ryan “just Flowin'”
You are right about Stewart who did not become a full-time starter until he joined Oakland. He had started some in Texas. But Welch was primarily a starter from the day he signed with the organization. Like many kids before him, he was broken in by getting time out of the pen. But in his first two years, almost half his outings were as a starter.
The pitchers listed are mostly SPs, but all of them should be considered BP depth for 2023. I’ve mentioned before how Welch and Dave Stewart started in the BP before morphing into ace-quality starters.
For some reason I kept forgetting about Pedro Martinez…
Interesting to see young Mr. De Paula ranked at No. 13…..I hadn’t heard of him until a couple of weeks back.
So who gets packaged for Ohtani? Or maybe Adames or Reynolds?
Or maybe tossed into some sort of salary dump…
Beyond these 30 is a lot more talent, including the various international signings and recent draftees. There’s no reason to hoard prospects if good deals can be done.
It’s too bad that Ryan Noda was lost in the Rule 5 draft, going to Oakland. Great for him, certainly, but couldn’t Noda have been flipped for a young prospect?
Noda has good power and on-base percentage. Surprising speed. But he was blocked at 1B, not just by Freddie and Max, but also Busch and Vargas. I hope the A’s give him some of that runway.
I know way too little about the prospects and the minors, but to me it has always seemed that the Dodgers, especially over the last several years, concentrated on development more than winning in the minors. Having a team that wins in the minors is usually a byproduct of good coaching and development. You take the skills a kid comes to your organization with, and you improve them if you can. Getting to the majors on raw ability alone, is not that easy. You learn from failure. You don’t fail, you get cocky and by the time you are in the majors, MLB scouts and players will find your weakness and exploit it. Out of that list of 30, I think maybe five or six of those guys will ever make an impact for the Dodgers at the major league level. Some will be lost in the rule 5 draft as soon as next year, and some will be used as trade fodder for needs on the big-league roster. That is what usually happens and what will continue to happen in the future.
The couple times was able to watch Knack pitch in ST came away impressed and was baffled as to why didn’t hear his name spoken of much. Chalked it up to unlucky stints on IL. Here’s to him getting it together the potential is there
The Angels announced that the Moreno family is ending the exploratory process to sell the team and will continue ownership throughout the 2023 season and beyond.
“During this process, it became clear that we have unfinished business and feel we can make a positive impact on the future of the team and the fan experience,” owner Arte Moreno says in a statement released by the club. “This offseason we committed to a franchise record player payroll and still want to accomplish our goal of bringing a World Series Championship back to our fans. We are excited about this next chapter of Angels Baseball. We are grateful to Galatioto Sports Partners for their outstanding efforts throughout the process that allowed us to meet with a number of highly qualified individuals and groups who expressed strong interest in the Club. However, as discussions advanced and began to crystallize, we realized our hearts remain with the Angels, and we are not ready to part ways with the fans, players and our employees.”
Since we’re talking about prospects today and I recently finished my top 10 (well top 11) prospects list, I thought I’d post it today.
Because this is the baseball off season, I decided to look carefully at Dodgers prospects and come up with my top ten prospects list, actually top 11 because I didn’t want to leave someone off that is ranked in the top 10 on dodgers.com. Here are the things I based it on:
1 Readiness/who’s most ready to enter MLB.
2 The stats that are important to me, with more consideration to AA and AAA stats. Because to me the real test starts at AA ball, and you never know about guys in the lower levels, they might fall off a cliff in the upper levels like Pages did from A+ to AA.
4 Any noticeable decrease or increase in stats as they go up the ladder from league to league with large enough samples.
5 A bias towards pitchers when it was a close call, due to past history of the Dodgers producing better pitchers than hitters. There was only one time that happened and it was numbers 5 and 6 on my list.
6 Little consideration of scouting grades and rankings using dodgers.com, because scouting grades go from 50 to 55 overall grades with 2 exceptions, Cartaya at 60 overall and Sheehan at 45 overall, both to me are outliers. So I don’t take scouting as gospel like others seem to do, nothing wrong with that just a difference of opinion. But I’m a show me guy, show me the stats.
And:
7 As someone pointed out to me, Cartaya was playing injured for awhile. So I gave his stats what I think is a fair adjustment up.
8 This isn’t a pure prediction of future results in the big leagues by rank, it’s just how I see it now and things can change next year since I’m a stats guy. But I will say I think the top 2 on my list will have better careers than the bottom 2.
9 There’s most likely big disagreements with me about where Stone and Outman are on my list and how low Cartaya and Pages are. But that’s all right because nobody agrees on everything and the experts are not infallible.
10 This is all just my opinion and I’m not saying I’m right.
My top 10 including one that others rank in the top 10 for a total of 11:
1 Gavin Stone
2 James Outman
3 Miguel Vargas
4 Bobby Miller
5 Ryan Pepiot
6 Michael Busch
7 Dalton Rushing
8 Diego Cartaya
9 Emmet Sheehan
10 Nick Nastrini
11 Andy Pages
I was tempted to put Sheehan above Cartaya, but I didn’t due to having Cartaya a lot lower than the experts.
There is no way many don’t get away at the rule 5 deadline next year. What a great problem to have.
#17 River Ryan (RHP) – I didn’t recognize the name. He’s the guy the Dodgers obtained from San Diego in exchange for Matt Beatty. Not a bad find. The Padres used him as a position player in Arizona rookie league where he excelled with the bat in 2021 (.308BA/.349OBP/.785OPS), but we put him on the mound in 2022 and between Rancho and Great Lakes he has a stat line of 13 games started, 47 IP, 2.45 ERA, 70 strikeouts (13.2 K’s per 9).
Wow, Ramos really fell.
Did they not rank Joendry Vargas because he signed after the cut-off?
I wonder where he’d be–#11 to #15 is my guess.
Stacked list. Really about 20 strong of legit mlb prospects with tons of potential movers.
Even #30 is a real one.
Where is Rushing?