Dodgers Farm System Gets More Accolades
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…
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?
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Discussion (76)
Disagree, not disagreeable
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
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!
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.
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.