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Chance Sisco, C, Baltimore Orioles (Double-A Bowie)
Sisco hits from a relaxed upright stance with a slightly-open base. There’s minimal movement in his hands and load before the swing, and his stroke has a “hitterish” appearance with fluid bat-speed and a compact, downward path with a two-handed finish. He’ll show close to average raw power on his best loft contact, though his overall hitting mechanics and swing path lend themselves better to a hit over power type of output; Sisco’s .325 and .109 career batting average and ISO would only further that assertion. I liked the maturity of his overall approach and demeanor in the batter’s box—he continually worked late into counts and carried a seasoned, big-league attitude with him at the plate, never getting too high or low.

Cisco remains a work in progress defensively, though I thought both his throwing and receiving showed improvements such that it isn’t guaranteed he moves off of catcher. He threw out a would-be base-stealer in the series with an arm that showed at-least average velocity and carry through the target, if not a tick more. On the flip side, he also had some issues with his throwing accuracy at times, sending two (strong) throws into the outfield. Cisco will play the entire season at 21, and has already reached Double-A. While he likely won’t ever be a genuine 15+ home run type of bat at the big-league level, the best-case for Sisco is a solid-regular at catcher—one with above-average hitting tools with a chance to be Baltimore’s backstop of the future if his defense can get to average. -Adam McInturff

Albert Abreu, RHP, Houston Astros (Low-A Quad Cities)
Abreu is an athletic right-hander with a strong lower half and limited room for projection. He starts from a semi-windup with a short arm path in the back side. The three-quarters slot leads to an on-line delivery and lands into a flexed front leg. He repeats the slot and mechanics well. The arm speed is average with solid extension out front. His fastball sits 91-93, touching 95 with slight arm-side run. He spots it to both sides of the plate early, with several swings-and-misses, but as he tired it became more control than command, and hitters started to barrel it. All together an average offering that could play up if the command improves.

Both of Abreu's breaking balls started out as fringy pitches at best, but improved as he went. The curveball showed 11/5 shape with a little hump to it. He likes to throw the pitch for strikes in the zone and it is the better offering due to his feel for spinning the pitch. The slider was utilized as more of a chase pitch buried down in the zone. He can flash a quality version of it but also a sweepy version that he gets around of rather than staying on top. Abreu threw a handful of change ups at 81-84, showing downer action but lacked quality arm speed. It's still a work in progress. He could end up at the back of the rotation but is most likely a bullpen arm. -James Fisher

Matt Ball, RHP, Chicago White Sox (Low-A Kannapolis)
You won’t find Ball on prospect lists and he hasn’t been mentioned here before, but he has the type of profile that could sneak up on people if he learns to harness his stuff. The White Sox moved him to the bullpen this year as a full-time reliever for the first time, after realizing the two-pitch mix and control issues wouldn’t work multiple times through a lineup. He has a solid pair of pitches between a 90-95 mph fastball and 80-82 mph slider. The fastball comes easy from an ideal arm path and three-quarters slot. It comes from the hand at a tough angle with length as an advantage, and there’s some late sink. His slider shows late bite with two-plane action and downward break, and it flashed above average. Ball has an ideal pitcher’s frame, two solid pitches, works quickly and filled the zone in a recent look. If he can command enough within the zone, he could emerge as a relief prospect for the White Sox. -David Lee

Jose Trevino, C, Texas Rangers (High-A High Desert)
At the plate Trevino starts from a wide base, with a quiet top-half load. He rolls on his front toe for timing and to initiate his weight transfer with a minimal stride. There's some length into the zone, though he has shown some ability to turn around velocity with mild leverage and average bat speed. He demonstrated a moderate command of the zone, though he's plenty aggressive in-zone and offers at most anything close. There's average raw power with some leverage, and he can drive the ball to the opposite mild with moderate carry, though he doesn't fully engage his hips and max his torque. He has flashed 40 run times with some second gear, though he's likely to settle in as a 30 runner. His is a bigger body with solid physicality behind plate, average agility, and solid receiving with a firm glove. There's above-average arm strength, though he has gotten quick & sloppy on a couple pops, and his ball will tail & sail. -Wilson Karaman

Carlos Pimentel, RHP, San Diego Padres (Triple-A El Paso)
A Triple-A veteran, Pimentel uses a two-seam fastball, a slurvy slider, and a tumbling changeup. The change was his best pitch: He replicated his arm speed well, and at 79-81 mph, he had about 10 mph of velocity separation with above average drop on the offering. He threw a few down and out of the zone, but he was also capable of using it early in counts to steal a strike. The rest of his arsenal was less impressive, however. Even his best sliders were only fringe-average and he hung a couple that just spun feebly. He topped out at 91 with the fastball and, probably due to a high-effort delivery, he didn’t command it well. He’s emergency depth at this point and his likeliest route to the big leagues probably runs through the bullpen. -Brendan Gawlowski

Karch Kowalczyk, RHP, Los Angeles Dodgers (High-A Rancho Cucamonga)
Kowalczyk caught my eye last summer popping 98s and 99s, but it was a relatively straight fastball and he had relatively no idea where it was going. He was down in the 94-96 range in my first look this spring, with some boring action and arm-side run. It's still on the straighter side, and he can't command it down in the zone, with far too many wandering around and above the northern quadrants of the zone. His mid-80s slider has short break and suffers from the same poor command profile. The command issues are driven by a violent, closed delivery with poor hip action. He gets easily out of synch with his top half, over-rotating and losing balls up and out or glove side and low. The inconsistent timing significantly limits his command profile – I'd peg it at a 30 presently – though the velocity is enough to keep him on watch lists. -Wilson Karaman

Quick Hits:

Richard Urena put a couple of nice swings on the ball, netting a HR and some hard line outs. Swing was impressive, plus bat speed and loft. Was aggessive early in count, didn't see him take more than 4 pitches per AB. Average speed. Didn't have much hit to him at short but motions looked fluid, and the glove looks to be at average at least (WH)… Seth Varner Interesting leg curl in delivery; low 3/4 arm slot, average arm speed; pitches with pace. Fielded his position well, made a couple of nice plays; average command. Three-pitch mix, with curve able to get some swings and misses (WH)…Keury Mella has yet to make gains on his command or control. He struggles to repeat a high-effort delivery, and loses his release point often. His fastball hits the low 90s, and he'll pair a deceptive change with a curve that flashes plus. All his pitches lack consistency (WH)… Luis Guillorme is a plus fielder, with an above-average arm, average speed, and an improving hit tool. There will never be any power there and he knows that. (TD)

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Muboshgu
5/03
Interesting to get your take on Abreu, since another site that covers prospects seems to be pumping him up as this year's Francis Martes, to use a comp from the same org.