Who to Watch: Florida State League

With action underway (if not postponed) throughout the minor leagues, we bring you guide to the players you should be watching throughout the minor league seasons. Throughout the week the Prospect Team will bring you a league or three per day, with every team covered, and every Top 10 prospect noted. We'll also provide reports on guys who couldn't crack the Top 10s, but are well worth your time anyway. Other pieces in this series:

The Midwest League
The California League
The South Atlantic League

Bradenton Maruaders- Pittsburgh Pirates

#4 SS Kevin Newman

Keep an eye on:

2B Kevin Kramer
A second-round pick out of UCLA in the 2015 draft, Kramer will be Newman’s double play partner for the season (insert Seinfeld joke here). An above-average hitter with a good idea of what he’s doing at the plate, Kramer could be a second-division starter if you squint hard enough. He lacks much power and doesn’t have a great arm, limiting his potential overall.

RHP Yeudy Garcia
Garcia has a double plus-fastball, above-average breaking ball and ability to generate ground-balls. His command right now is below average, as is his change, so one of the two will have to take a step forward in order for him to a future in the rotation. As a bullpen arm he could have a set-up man ceiling with the fastball-breaking ball combo.

Brevard County Manatees- Milwaukee Brewers

#6 RHP Devin Williams
#9 RHP Cody Ponce

Keep an eye on:

LHP Kodi Medeiros
When Medeiros is on, his plus fastball-slider combination is one of the best combinations of pitches in the minors. His heater can elicit double-plus grades at its best, based on the movement and sink he gets on it from his low slot, plus the 92-94 velo. His slider has crazy depth and movement. His cambio is better than he gets credit for, but hasn’t needed it thus far. His issues are his slight frame, repeatability of his delivery, and that he tends to get under the baseball a lot, which hinders his control. A solid performance will shoot him back up lists.

RHP Bowdien Derby
Acquired along with Jacob Nottingham from Oakland earlier this year, Bowdien Henry Asa Derby (Bubba) is a bullpen arm in the making. He impressed in his first year in pro ball with some big-time arm strength pitching at 92-94 as a starter with late life. His go-to pitch is an above-average change, due to its arm speed and late action. The slider is fringe-average right now as it lacks depth and needs further refinement. He throws a ton of strikes but he won’t be able to get away with the same mistakes in Florida that he did in Vermont. While there’s a chance the breaking ball improves enough to start, he could be fast-tracked as a bullpen arm where the fastball will play to double-plus.

Charlotte Stone Crabs- Tampa Bay Rays

#3 RHP Brent Honeywell

Keep an eye on:

C Nick Ciuffo
In a system with some depth at catcher (including Justin O’Conner, Chris Betts) people often forget about the 2013 first-rounder. It seems to be now or never for the former South Carolina commit as the depth will catch up to him sooner rather than later. Billed as a potential plus power guy from the left side, the pop hasn’t showed up in three years with a career .604 OPS. The plus arm is still there and while it is agreed upon that catchers take longer than other positions to develop, he doesn’t have time on his side.

INF Andrew Velazquez
After missing most of 2015 with various injuries, the former seventh-round pick of the Diamondbacks will start again in Charlotte looking to build on what made him so valuable. He works deep counts, waiting for pitches that he knows he can do damage with. This is a double-edged sword as pitchers with a good approach can chew him up faster than a piece of Juicy-fruit. He has played all over the INF as a pro and profiles best as a UTIL player down the road.

Clearwater Threshers- Philadelphia Phillies

No players in top ten

Keep an eye on:

RHP Thomas Eshelman
If you weren’t aware of Eshelman’s mastery of the strike zone before reading this article, I’ll drop this on you. In 376 college innings he walked 18 guys for a 0.43 BB/9. Now onto his arsenal, no pitch alone stands as above-average but they all play up because of his ability to throw strikes and command the zone.

LHP Matt Imhof
While he is repeating the level he spent all of last season at, it’s possible he’s not long for the FSL as he builds up his innings. He has good size and a clean delivery with some deception, though one concern is a fastball that doesn’t play that well in terms of velocity. He does have fair command and movement to compensate. He has a back-end starter ceiling and an up-and-down floor if it all comes together.

Daytona Tortugas- Cincinnati Reds

#7 RHP Keury Mella

Keep an eye on:

RHP Wyatt Strahan
Armed with one of the best curveballs in the system, Strahan, the Reds third-rounder in 2014, performed decently in his first season of pro ball. While he throws strikes with everything, the lack of average fastball command and usable third pitch at this point suggests a future in the bullpen. If so, his plus fastball-curveball combination could mean a 7th inning role or higher.

3B Taylor Sparks
The good news: Sparks has plus raw power, a plus arm at 3B, runs better than you would think, and is an above-average fielder. The bad news: he has a long, uphill swing, lacks pitch recognition skills, and doesn't always seem to have an approach at the plate. All of that contributed to a strikeout rate over 30 percent in Daytona in 2015. It’s hard to project a major-league future given his current swing-and-miss, but there is an outside shot of him becoming an everyday guy because of the combination of his tools.

2B Blake Trahan
Trahan is a 70 runner on the scale, and has a plus arm, but might not be an everyday shortstop. His first-step quickness isn't the best and tends to rush his throws. He profiles more as a second-sacker given his size, contact-oriented swing, and lack of power.

Dunedin Blue Jays- Toronto Blue Jays

#1 OF Anthony Alford
#2 RHP Conner Greene
#7 SS Richard Urena
#9 OF D.J. Davis
#10 LHP Ryan Borucki

Keep an eye on:

RHP Thomas Robson
After missing most of the past two seasons with TJ surgery, Robson will look to put himself back on the map. Originally a fourth-rounder in 2011, Robson pitches at 90-93 mph, but it’s a very heavy pitch and generates tons of weak contact and groundballs. His curve and change will flash average but he’s still regaining feel for everything after a lot of missed time.

Fort Myers Miracle- Minnesota Twins

#4 INF Nick Gordon
#5 LHP Tyler Jay
#6 RHP Kohl Stewart
#7 LHP Stephen Gonsalves

Keep an eye on:

RHP Felix Jorge
Buried in a very deep system, Jorge could play his way up the rankings after his promising 2015 campaign. Tall and lanky, Jorge has a solid-average fastball and major league command to go with it, his change is his best off speed offering, as he has good arm speed, with some late action to boot. While the slider is fringy right now, it is starting to tighten up and become a usable third offering. His ceiling is that of a back-end starter if the breaking ball comes around, if not he can be a usable bullpen arm.

Jupiter Hammerheads- Miami Marlins

#9 INF Brian Anderson

Keep an eye on:

RHP Jeff Brigham

While on a thin team from a prospect standpoint, Brigham still has some potential. An undersized righty, Brigham has plus arm strength but lacks much in the way of plane on his fastball, making it more hittable than one would suggest. His slider is fringe-average but has flashed average in the past, while the change lacks movement or deception. To stay as a starter his command and changeup will need to make serious jumps forwards—it is more likely he is a bullpen, arm-strength reliever though.

Lakeland Flying Tigers- Detroit Tigers

#4 RHP Spencer Turnbull
#5 OF Christin Stewart
#7 RHP Joe Jimenez

Keep an eye on:

LHP Tyler Alexander
An unexpected second-rounder out of Texas Christian University in 2015, Alexander is an arm that more people should take notice of. While all of his pitches grade out as average, it’s his command that makes everything play up. In my looks this spring training his fastball was 88-92, but he had plus command of the pitch, consistently frustrating his opponents. While he doesn’t have much wiggle room to work with, a strike-throwing lefty with plus command won’t be in the minors with long.

3B Zach Shepherd
Signed out of Australia in 2012, Shepherd has been one of the youngest regulars in the league at each stop in his pro career. He will play most of 2016 at 20 years old and can still grow into his athletic frame. He doesn’t have much strength now, but should grow into more down the road. He has a good idea at the plate as he has shown an all-fields approach in his career thus far. He is getting better at third base, showing an average arm with good accuracy and decent footwork. His ceiling isn’t the highest but could improve a lot this year.

LHP Jairo Labourt
One of the three LHP’s the Tigers acquired for David Price, Labourt will be repeating the FSL. He has plus arm speed from a deep arm-swing which can fire out 92-95 mph fastballs. Because his arm is so quick, he tends to lose his timing between his arm and body causing him to lose the plate. His slider is a potential plus offering at 84-87, and has sharp two-plane movement, but lacks command. His change is well behind the other two, as he doesn’t throw it with much feel or arm speed, and hitters could see the pitch early. While he has the body and arm speed to start, he is more than likely a reliever when all is said and done.

Palm Beach Cardinals- St. Louis Cardinals

#2 RHP Jack Flaherty

Keep an eye on:

LHP Austin Gomber
Gomber fell to the Cardinals in 2014 based on a lackluster junior season at Florida Atlantic, but has steadily improved in pro ball. While not the smoothest delivery, it doesn’t hinder his strike-throwing ability with any of his pitches. His FB is 90-92 mph, but has late life and deception from his delivery, making it a tough pitch to square up. His above-average change also has late life and gets swings-and-misses off it. He has a slurvy breaking ball that has a noticeable hump, but is effective at getting strikes. His upside in the rotation is limited unless the breaker takes a step forward but is a safe bet to be a no. 4/5 guy down the road.

St. Lucie Mets- New York Mets

#2 SS Amed Rosario
#8 OF Wuilmer Becerra

Keep an eye on:

RHP Chris Flexen
Good things come to those who wait, and the wait might be over for Flexen. While he missed most of the past two seasons with TJ surgery, he looks ready to take a step forward. Featuring a solid-average fastball with good movement, he is able to locate the pitch to both sides of the plate, although there isn’t much leeway because of its velocity. His curve is a mid-70s offering with fair downer action. His change is fringy right now but he has shown good feel for the offering and should get better with time.

3B Jhoan Urena
A switch-hitting third baseman with power from both sides and a plus arm, Urena looked to be overmatched as a 20-year-old in the FSL last season. He will still be one of the youngest regulars in the circuit as a 21-year-old now. He has plus raw power from both sides as he gets good backspin and loft on balls, but hasn’t showed up in-game yet as he struggled with pitch recognition. Pushed aggressively last year, look for Urena to make some strides and put himself back on the prospect radar for next season.

Tampa Yankees- New York Yankees

#2 SS Jorge Mateo
#4 RHP James Kaprielian
#10 LHP Ian Clarkin

Keep an eye on:

RHP Chance Adams
Primarily used as a reliever at Dallas Baptist, Adams will get the chance to toe the rubber every fifth day in Tampa. Featuring a mature body, Adams makes velocity look easy coming from his arm as his 91-93 mph fastball really jumped out of his hand and got to hitters quickly. While he is undersized, he has an aggressive mentality and could stick in a rotation if he can handle the workload.