Prospectus Feature: AFL Preview: Glendale Desert Dogs

Mesa Solar Sox- Cubs, Indians, Marlins, Athletics, Blue Jays

The Guys You Know

OF Bradley Zimmer, Cleveland Indians (#27 on Midseason Top 50)

OF Eloy Jimenez, Chicago Cubs (#28 on Midseason Top 50)

SS Franklin Barreto, Oakland Athletics (#35 in Midseason Top 50)

2B Ian Happ, Chicago Cubs (#50 in Midseason Top 50)

The Guys You Don’t

RHP Sam Bragg, Oakland Athletics – Cookie cutter low-to-mid 90’s reliever with a SL and a meh change.

RHP Jeff Brigham, Miami Marlins – Brigham profiles more as a reliever given his premium fastball, potential average slider, and below average command. —SG

LHP James Buckelew, Miami Marlins – He competes and throws strikes, but lacks a viable major-league offering and will head out to the desert to most likely clean up other pitcher's messes with his 89-91 fastball and fringy secondary offerings. —SG

RHP Trey Cochran-Gill, Oakland Athletics – Traded for Evan Scribner this past offseason, Trey’s control improved upon entering the system. That along with a mid-90s fastball/slider combination give him a shot with the rest of the crowd. —SG

RHP Dylan Covey, Oakland Athletics – Originally a first rounder in 2010, Covey was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes and turned down an offer with the Brewers to attend San Diego. Taken in the fourth round three years later, Covey can thankfully work with his body now and looks like a back-end starter with an above-average fastball and a host of secondary offerings, all of which he can throw for strikes. He missed most of the year with various injuries, including a strained oblique muscle. —SG

LHP Matthew Dermody, Toronto Blue Jays, Dermody appeared at three minor league levels this season, all culminating in five games at the big league level. He has some deceptiveness to him and throws a lot of Sliders with his 91-92 mph fastball. He looks like a LOOGY in the making. —SG

RHP Frankie Montas, Oakland Athletics Montas missed time at the start of the year due to injury and pitched limited innings in 2016 on the whole. Montas has a huge fastball and a bat-missing slider but his change doesn’t have much major league utility at last viewing which creates problems on the second and third time through the order. He’s destined for a bullpen role and as the importance of late inning relievers continues to grow he’s going to have to reign in his command to earn a high-leverage role. – MR

RHP Michael Peoples, Cleveland Indians

RHP Justin Shafer, Toronto Blue Jays- Shafer looks the part, but besides his 90-92 fastball, there isn’t a major league average offering and is very hittable in the zone. —SG

RHP Duane Underwood, Chicago Cubs Underwood’s stuff and command took a step backward in 2016 creating a murky picture for where his stock goes from here. Underwood has already shown he can dominate the lower minors with his fastball that runs in the mid-90s and a curve that flashes plus on good days. – MR

C Victor Caratini, Chicago Cubs – He keeps teasing at a hit tool that could be above average but it isn’t complemented with very many additional skills. There’s little power in the profile, and his catching skills leave alot to be desired. – MR

C Austin Nola, Miami Marlins- The lesser known Nola brother, Austin was a fine defender in the dirt, but his lack of offensive skills has always held him back. Now he heads to Arizona to see if he can catch, as this will be his first time there in a game environment. —SG

3B Brian Anderson, Miami Marlins- Anderson has turned himself into a solid all-around player, although the defensive skills at 3B leave his future home in question. —SG

1B Ryan McBroom, Toronto Blue Jays- McBroom does feature plus raw power from the right side but as a 1B only player, he lacks a viable hit tool to be more than just a platoon bat at the next level. —SG

SS Yairo Munoz, Oakland Athletics – Munoz got hurt in spring training, missed some time at the start of the 2016 year and never really got on track. Munoz swings from his ass and it creates fun home run power but the approach is lacking and he can run into his share of weak contact as a result of a below-average approach. If he pulls it together it could be really fun though. —MR

OF Dexter Kjerstad, Miami Marlins- Kjerstad offers an interesting power/speed combination but lacks utility at the highest level given his below average arm and slow swing with poor pitch-recognition skills. —SG

OF Yefri Perez, Miami Marlins- A pure 80 runner, Perez got some big league time this year, primarily as a pinch runner. He heads to the desert to prove that he can do more than just be Terrance Gore. —SG

RHP James Farris, Chicago Cubs
RHP Trevor Frank, Cleveland Indians
LHP Jarlin Garcia, Miami Marlins
RHP Cameron Hill, Cleveland Indians
LHP Tim Mayza, Toronto Blue Jays
RHP Ryan McNeil, Chicago Cubs
LHP David Speer, Cleveland Indians
RHP Drew Steckenrider, Miami Marlins
RHP John Stilson, Toronto Blue Jays
C Eric Haase, Cleveland Indians
C Danny Jansen, Toronto Blue Jays

The Guys You Will

RHP Conner Greene, Toronto Blue Jays – Greene can touch the upper 90s and will show good feel for a change at times. His curveball lags behind though, and his ability to finish off hitters diminished this year. All the tools are there for a mid-rotation pitcher, but he’s going to be around the zone more often, and if he is around the zone more often, he’ll need a reliable third offering. —CG

SS Yu-Cheng Chang, Cleveland Indians – Chang is unlikely to stick at shortstop in the long term, but has the defensive tools to handle third base just fine. The question is whether the bat is up to the standards reserved for the hot corner, since he lacks the power typically associated with the position, thanks to a short swing. That swing allows him to make consistent contact, but the likelihood is that Chang ends up as a useful reserve more than a steady starter. —CG

OF Anthony Alford, Toronto Blue Jays – Injuries have hit Alford hard this season as he missed extended time with a concussion as well as a knee injury. In my looks this year he still showed off the double-plus run and above-average defensive skills in CF that make him a valuable asset. While he didn’t aspire anyone at the plate at first, he still shows off the premium bat speed and ability to handle pitches in the zone for hard contact. While the power might not play at its fullest utility, there is still more than enough here for a quality everyday player at the big league level. —SG

OF Greg Allen, Cleveland Indians- A lesser known prospect, Allen had a very successful year in High-A, as well as an initial month and a half in AA. A 70 runner, Allen uses his speed extremely well, grading out as an above-average defender in CF who is capable of making tough plays make routine. While he lacks overall power, his flat swing-plane and ability to generate hard contact raises his value over just defensive players. The ceiling is an everyday glove-first defender, with the floor being a 4th OF who can pinch-run and replace the non-quality OF defenders. —SG

2B Max Schrock, Oakland Athletics – A draft-eligible sophomore signed for $500k out of the 13th round in 2015 by the Nationals, Schrock was dealt for Marc Rzepczynski earlier this year. He's a weird prospect to be a huge overslot—a tiny college second baseman—but there's a real big hit tool here, and he's already blitzed through the low-minors. Oakland has had good success with this kind of one-tool profile in the past, and I think he's got a good shot at being a hit-first major-league 2B. —JS