Notes from the Field: April 21, 2016

Magneuris Sierra, CF, St. Louis Cardinals (Low-A Peoria)
Sierra is small-framed with broad shoulders compared to his body. There is plenty of room for strength projection and a bit for growth. He hits from an even stance, with even balance and his hands at his ear. There is a small hitch, leading to some length in the swing but he compensates for that with average bat speed and a simple stride. The plane of the swing is mainly flat but he does feature some uppercut when he tries to pull the ball. Most of his hits came to the opposite side but he did show ability to pull the ball.

Sierra is an explosive runner that glides to fly balls in the OF. His speed plays on the basepaths as well, and he likes to steal bags. His arm is another plus tool featuring easy carry and accuracy from center field. He doesn't hesitate to show it off. His glove in center is solid, with good jumps and the speed to make up for mistakes (of which there were several). He lost focus several times, including one ground ball that got past him and ended up at the wall. The 20-year-old has premium physical tools, and the bat will be the determining factor if he reaches his ceiling. –James Fisher

Yusniel Diaz, OF, Los Angeles Dodgers (High-A Rancho Cucamonga)

Diaz is young and raw with the bat, both in his appoach and mechanics. He has an open, crouched stance with a high back elbow and a wrap as he loads. A late hitch flattens his bat as he triggers, adding length into the zone. He has a big stride and struggled repeatedly with his timing in my first looks, consistently getting to his front side early and losing his already-limited leverage. He was particularly vulnerable to high cheese, leaking early with his hips and expanding every which way. The speed underway looks to push plus, with a fluid motion and easy acceleration, though he ran a 4.2 and a 4.35 out of the box, in both cases watching the ball and checking up. He's a little flat-footed on his leads, with a jerky, inefficient crossover leading to a poor release on his lone stolen base attempt on which he got thrown out by two steps on a 2.0 pop. The actions of a center fielder are present, though he showed raw reads on multiple chances. -–Wilson Karaman

Jake Bauers, 1B, Tampa Bay Rays (Double-A Montgomery)
Bauers’ greatest strength is obvious right away. The hit tool has plus potential based on a short, quick stroke from the left side. He gets to an optimal hand placement during load and stays compact through the zone with the ability to backspin and drive to all fields. He covers the plate well and has a good approach, allowing him to utilize his contact skills. His power potential is in question. Because of his short swing and line-drive approach, he could limit his home run totals for the sake of contact and average. He flashes over-the-fence power to the pull side but is limited to doubles pop to center and left. Bauers will eventually settle into first base (plus glove) or left field (fringe average) and has below-average speed, so the power needs to develop. If it does, he’s an average everyday player. –David Lee

Boog Powell, CF, Seattle Mariners (Triple-A Tacoma)
Powell is a plus runner, consistently posting home-to-first times between 4.10 and 4.15. A left-handed hitter, Powell uses a compact stroke with a small load, an efficient bat path, and limited weight transfer. He's not a big guy and his swing isn't conducive to more than the occasional line drive in the gap, but he puts the bat on the ball with frequency, hitting mostly line drives and grounders in my viewings. An ideal lead-off man, he's adept at working deep into the count and capable of putting tough pitches in play. He's also a discerning hitter who knows the strike zone, detects spin out of the hand, and waits for a pitch he can handle. In the outfield, Powell takes crisp routes. He has an average arm: It's not strong, but it plays up thanks to a quick transfer and accuracy. On the bases, he gets good reads off the bat. There aren't too many players with Powell's lack of power who have established themselves as big league regulars, but he does everything else well, and could wind up as a starter in center or a very dependable fourth outfielder. –Brendan Gawlowski

Jacob Faria, RHP, Tampa Bay Rays (Double-A Montgomery)
Faria has the two-pitch mix to become a serviceable major leaguer soon. His fastball sat 90-92 and touched 93 in a recent look, with above-average downward plane from a high three-quarters slot. The pitch is especially tough down in the zone with life and slight arm-side run. His changeup flashes plus potential at 80-82 with late sink to give him a major-league-quality pair of pitches. Faria’s breaking ball is behind at 82-85. It lacks bite and acts slurvy, and it rolls into the zone as a contact pitch instead of breaking away, which will bite him if used too often. He has a solid pitcher’s frame with room to add muscle, and he repeats his delivery well despite it being slightly deliberate and short in the arm path. If Faria can further develop his command (hittable up and on plate), he’s a back-end starter or setup-type reliever. An improved breaking ball could push the role higher, but there were few signs that will happen. –David Lee

Isan Diaz, SS, Milwaukee Brewers (Low-A Wisconsin)
Diaz has a smallish frame with strength through the shoulders and legs, but lacks much physical projection. His approach starts from a slightly open stance with his weight shifted to the back foot. The load begins with a small leg kick, and a little wiggle with the hands that are at the shoulder. His swing had some uppercut to the plane and generates backspin. There is strength in the swing, and natural quickness through the zone is also evident. Everything he hits has been hard so far this year, even the routine 4-3 groundouts. It seems as though he barrels everything. He recognizes spin well for A-ball and it should be a positive going forward. The combination of plate discipline and bat speed will lead to 10-12 homers.

Diaz can steal a bag but will be more of a surprise-theft guy. He isn't an average runner, checking in at a tick below. He does possess quick feet though. The glove is solid but not spectacular and is boosted by solid positioning and body control. He Is an adequate defender at short for now, but a move to second base seems likely. –James Fisher

Ryan Helsley, RHP, St. Louis Cardinals (Low-A Peoria)
Helsley is a physical right-handed starter, with a four-pitch mix, drafted out of Northeastern State in 2015. At 6-foot-1, 195 pounds, there is strength throughout his frame, especially in the lower half and through the chest. He starts his delivery from a semi-windup and separates his hands a tad early before extending into a long swing in the back. He gets through it quickly with good arm speed out of a high three-quarters slot, landing on a slightly flexed front leg and following through on-line towards the plate. The four-seam fastball sits 93-96 mph with limited life. The pitch plays average to a tick below because of the limited movement, but he does show feel for the pitch glove-side and down. He gave up his one home run on a four-seamer up in the zone during this viewing.

To make up for the lack of life on the fastball, Helsley throws a two-seam fastball and is tinkering with a cutter that should keep hitters off balance. The two-seamer is 90-92 with enough run to miss barrels, but the pitch is still below-average at present. The cutter is still a work in progress at this point, sitting 87-89 with average movement at times, and hitters didn't barrel it. He throws a 12-6 curveball sitting 73-78, with quality spin that he can throw for strikes or as a chase pitch down in the dirt. He really shows feel for the pitch, and it has a chance to be an average offering in the future. The changeup is still a work in progress, but when he throws it with proper arm speed it has deception and flashes downer action. Helsley is around the zone with all of his pitches and has a plan on the mound. If he continues to make strides with the secondary offerings, he will be a back of the rotation starter that will eat innings. –James Fisher

Chris Ellis, RHP, Atlanta Braves (Double-A Montgomery)
Acquired as part of the trade that sent Andrelton Simmons to Anaheim, Ellis’ three-fastball look is intriguing and likely enough to get him to the majors alone. That’s good, because his secondaries lag behind a touch and he doesn’t have a true out pitch. He’s capable of throwing a four-seamer to both sides, a two-seamer he spots well to the arm side, and a cutter to the glove side on left-handers, all within a similar 88-93 band. The two-seamer is the best of the three with above-average run and sink commanded well, but all are usable major league offerings. Ellis flashes an above-average changeup with late fade and average arm action, while he’s capable of throwing a breaking ball at different speeds. The power breaker at 82 is slightly tighter and shows better bite, but he tends to wrap both and they can get slurvy. Ellis needs to command his stuff at a high rate to pitch to weak contact, but he has shown the ability to do so when he repeats his arm slot and drives to the plate well. He’s likely to settle as a back-end starter or middle reliever, but the chance is there for slightly more. –David Lee

James Reeves, LHP, New York Yankees (Low-A Charleston)
Reeves was a pleasant surprise when he trotted to the mound in a recent outing and began spitting out plus-potential sliders. He was a 10th-round pick last June as a strict left-handed reliever, and it could end up being a solid grab. He has a thin frame with narrow hips that won’t allow for much growth, but the arm is quick from a low three-quarters slot that provides deception. His fastball is 88-91, touching 92 with late sink from a tough angle, and he isn’t afraid to work both sides of the plate. His slider flashed plus at 77-79 with extremely late break. When it’s tight and shows true two-plane ability, it’s a wipeout pitch that darts below bats. He adds a changeup in the low-80s with fringe fade but slows his actions and is show-me quality. Reeves could quietly become a solid relief prospect in the Yankees system. –David Lee

Javier Guerra, SS, San Diego Padres (High-A Lake Elsinore)

Bracketing a necessary age-level adjustment, my first couple looks at Guerra were not particularly good ones. He swung at the first pitch in all eight in-game plate appearances I saw, showing a hyper-aggressive approach against anything hard and struggling to identify spin. He doesn't get cheated, either; all of his swings, even the ones with two strikes, were max effort from the heels, and he struggled with his timing, showing a limited ability to get ahead of sequencing and make adjustments. There were some good elements evident in the swing, most notably quickness into the zone, above-average bat speed, and very strong wrists. When he does put a barrel on the ball he can drive it, and he showed an ability to generate loud contact to the opposite gap. He's an average-at-best runner, with a high-effort running style that looks like it will limit his utility to below-average as a base-stealer. His actions in the field were those of a natural shortstop, with fluidity in his movement and lateral quickness evident, though he struggled to anticipate a couple hops and nonchalant-ed multiple plays. The throwing arm is an easy plus, with plenty of velocity and carry for the left side. –Wilson Karaman

Franchy Cordero, OF, San Diego Padres (High-A Lake Elsinore)
Cordero stands square and with a tall posture in the box, gradually tilting forward during an inconsistently balanced load. He usually toe taps, but mixes in an occasional high leg kick when he's fastball hunting. The hips leak when he does that and looks to pull, but when he stays balanced he showed an ability to keep the hands in and inside-out the baseball or hit it hard up the middle. There's some leverage and bat speed, though he looks to extend and showed vulnerability on the inner third, and there's a lot of swing and miss at present. He shows plus or better straight line speed, with run times of 4.02, 4.08, and 4.17, and decent instincts in center field. He got solid jumps and reads on multiple chances, with above-average pickup and range to both gaps. –Wilson Karaman

Paul Fry, LHP, Seattle Mariners (Triple-A Tacoma)
For a reliever, Fry works with simple and clean mechanics. The lefty works with a low three-quarters arm slot, but there's limited effort in the delivery and he keeps his head still. He crossfires, which makes it difficult for lefties to see the ball out of his hand. He projects as a solid left-handed reliever at the highest level long-term, but his velocity has been down all spring, and that continued in my viewings last week. He was 89-90 with the fastball, topping out at 91 with some tail while mixing in the occasional four-seam fastball. His two-plane slider features above-average movement and is sharp enough to miss bats. El Paso hit him a little bit though, and while it's an enticing package, he could really use those few extra ticks on his fastball. –Brendan Gawlowski