News, analysis and scouting reports of San Diego Padres Prospects
Header image

Top 25 Padres Prospects – Midseason 2012

Posted by Jeff in AZL Padres | Eugene Emeralds | Fort Wayne Tin Caps | Lake Elsinore Storm | Player Update | San Antonio Missions | Tucson Padres - (14 Comments)

This is a list of the best prospects in the Padres’ organization.  To be eligible for this list a player must still posses their rookie status.  Prospects are ranked both by their ultimate potential and the likelihood that they will reach that potential.  The easiest way to understand the rankings is to consider what order players would be selected in if the entire organization were eligible for a draft.  Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA) for each prospect is when they would reach the majors if they are able to reach their potential.

If you have any questions or comments about the list, send Jeff a message or post a question to the Padres Prospects Facebook Page.

Updated: July 2012

*Yasmani Grandal, Yonder Alonso, Alexi Amarista, Anthony Bass and Joe Wieland were not eligible for this list due to their big league status*

1) Rymer Liriano – With the graduations of Grandal and Alonso, Liriano is able to reclaim his spot as the Padres’ top prospect.  A surprising midseason promotion to Double A offered a new challenge for the 21 year old who still has 20/20 potential with plus defense in right field. ETA: Late 2013

2) Keyvius Sampson – Although his stat line looks less than dominant, Sampson has had a huge year for the progression of his career.  The Padres elected to skip the 21-year-old Florida native over High A as a way to jump start his advancement through the organization after he came to camp this Spring with an improved curveball.  ETA: Late 2013

3) Jedd Gyorko – Gyorko has seen his stock rise as much as any Padres prospect this season after putting up huge numbers in San Antonio and Tucson, and a call up appears more imminent than ever.  Still, baring a trade or injury Gyorko is unlikely to see action until later in the season even with his newfound versatility as a serviceable second baseman.  ETA: 2012

4) Max Fried – Fried is making his first appearance in the Padres’ Top 25 after being selected eighth overall in the 2012 MLB Draft.  Fried is scheduled to throw about 20 innings this season in the Arizona League before his preparation for 2013 will begin.  The 18-year-old lefty offers top-of-the-rotation upside and may be benefiting in these rankings from limited play thus far.  ETA: Late 2015

5) Austin Hedges – It’s tough to say enough about how impressive Hedges’ 2012 campaign has been thus far as he’s managed to keep a respectable batting average, show an excellent approach and hit for a surprising amount of power in his first full season of professional baseball while playing elite defense behind the plate.  Hedges’ bat is much more advanced than most scouts had come to believe which could shorten his development time in a big way.  ETA: Late 2014 Continue reading “Top 25 Padres Prospects – Midseason 2012” »

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Padres Prospects First Half Review

Posted by Jeff in Fort Wayne Tin Caps | Lake Elsinore Storm | MLB Draft | Organizational Audit | Player Update | San Antonio Missions | Scouting Reports | Tucson Padres - (4 Comments)

And just like that, the first half of the minor league season is over.  It seems like just yesterday we were reporting from Spring Training and getting excited over the aggressive promotions of Edinson Rincon and Keyvius Sampson, yet here we are 90 days later with a half-season of games to look back on.

Injuries have become the calling card of 2012 on both the MLB and MiLB sides with 13 prospects from our Preseason Top 25 spending time on the disabled list.  Luckily, few of those seem very serious but the Padres seem set on letting guys like Joe Ross, Casey Kelly, Robbie Erlin and Joe Wieland take a very slow road back to live action.

Tucson Padres

Position prospects on the Tucson Padres shined offensively with Yasmani Grandal (.335/.443/.521) and the early-season promotion Jedd Gyorko (.341/.383/.592) leading the way.  Grandal has hit his way into an extended look in San Diego replacing a slumping Nick Hundley and Gyorko is expected to join him sometime in the near future. Continue reading “Padres Prospects First Half Review” »

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Padres Prospect Mailbag: 2012 MLB Draft Edition

Posted by Jeff in Mailbag | MLB Draft - (8 Comments)

Some questions have been slightly edited to be shorter and more direct. If you have a question for the next Padres Prospect Mailbag, shoot us an email: mailbag@padresprospects.com

What would your Top 10 in the system look like after the draft? – Steve

Assuming all the main guys sign, and keeping in mind that I reserve the right to change this later:

1)    Yasmani Grandal
2)    Rymer Liriano
3)    Keyvius Sampson
4)    Joe Ross
5)    Austin Hedges
6)    Robbie Erlin
7)    Max Fried
8)    Casey Kelly
9)    Jedd Gyorko
10) Cory Spangenberg Continue reading “Padres Prospect Mailbag: 2012 MLB Draft Edition” »

, , , , , , , ,

Padres Grab Max Fried with 2012 First Round Draft Pick

Posted by Jeff in MLB Draft | Player Update | Scouting Reports - (4 Comments)

Finally, the speculation can end.  With their first pick of the 2012 MLB Draft the San Diego Padres selected high school left hander Max Fried.

Fried is a Southern California native who was considered by many to be the top high school pitcher in the entire draft.

His arsenal is led by a fastball that sits in the upper 80s to lower 90s with arm-side run, but Fried has shown the ability to hit 95 at times when he needs it.  Fried’s changeup is a work in progress but some see it has his best offering in the future as he already shows great arm speed and more run than fade with the pitch.  Fried has a curveball that will sit in the mid-70s with sharp downward break that some evaluators see as a potential 70 pitch if he’s able to remain consistent with the offering. Continue reading “Padres Grab Max Fried with 2012 First Round Draft Pick” »

,

2012 MLB Draft: Padres Strategy, Draft Board, Predictions

Posted by Jeff in MLB Draft - (1 Comments)

The 2012 MLB Draft is officially upon us and the Padres are in prime position to add to their already deep farm system with six picks in the first 100 selections.  Unfortunately, this year’s draft is not nearly as deep as last year’s when the Padres were able to add Cory Spangenberg, Joe Ross and Austin Hedges to the fold, but there are still plenty of talented players available.

Chase has already looked at a few potential Padres picks (here, here and here), so today we’re going to take a closer look at the Padres’ likely draft strategy to try and narrow down the possible scenarios.

San Diego’s drafting style has done a complete turn around in the last few years as Jaron Madison and his team were able to change processes to better focus on finding the best talent available and get as many looks as possible at that talent.  This has led to a change in the type of players the Padres have elected to target in recent years, which was as evident as ever in last year’s draft.

It has all been done in a concentrated effort to avoid continuing the drafting style that found one productive Major Leaguer in almost two decades.  Even members of the front office are willing to admit that the process in 2009 – when many of them were around – that led to the selection of star-athlete Donavan Tate and his eventual $6 million bonus was poorly executed without even considering what he has done on the field since that day.  Needless to say, changes were necessary. Continue reading “2012 MLB Draft: Padres Strategy, Draft Board, Predictions” »

, , , , , ,

Padres MLB Draft Mock Review

Posted by Chase in MLB Draft - (0 Comments)

With the draft just about here, I wanted to review a few mock drafts from some of the industry’s most respected publications to see the possible selections that San Diego could be making with the 7thoverall pick.  With the new MLB Collective Bargaining Agreement in place and no real industry consensus picks at the top of the draft, anything is possible for the Padres at #7, making this one of the most exciting picks for San Diego in recent memory. Below you will see a breakdown of what we see as the best case, most likely, and most interesting scenarios the Padres could be encountering in the first round.

Best Case Scenario: Carlos Correa, SS

Mock Draft: Baseball America’s Mock Draft 3.0

Published On: June 1, 2012

Though Baseball America’s mock draft published on Monday will likely be the most accurate version we’ll see, Padres fans have to be encouraged by this prognostication made by one of the most respected prospect publications in the industry.  Of course, due to the fact that Correa has gotten some serious helium over the last few weeks, it seems that the outcome predicted in this so-called best case scenario is also the most unlikely for San Diego. Continue reading “Padres MLB Draft Mock Review” »

, , , ,

2012 MLB Draft Scouting Reports: Lucas Giolito, Max Fried, Joey Gallo

Posted by Chase in MLB Draft | Scouting Reports - (2 Comments)

Lucas Giolito – RHP

What to Love:  We’ll start this series with one of the biggest high school pitching prospects in this year’s draft: Lucas Giolito.  This Southern California native combines a great frame and a fluid delivery with some of the best stuff in the draft class, including a fastball that has touched 100 MPH, a strong power curve and a changeup that has shown potential.  At 6’6 220 lbs, Giolito will be able to add some weight to his somewhat wiry frame, which should allow him to add velocity to his already impressive arsenal.  Giolito has also been able to leverage his size and his over-the-top delivery to create tremendous downhill plane on his pitches, leaving scouts seeing plenty of strikeouts and groundballs in his future.  Needless to say, this right-hander has seemingly limitless potential.

What to Loath:  There has only been one wart on Giolito’s scouting report, and it’s a big one: injury risk.  After some monster early showcase performances (including one at the 2011 Area Code games, where the exclusive video below was filmed), Giolito went down with a sprained ulnar collateral ligament and did not throw another pitch during the remainder of the high school season.  While no surgery will be required in his recovery, any potential damage to the UCL in a pitcher’s throwing elbow will understandably be cause for serious concern.  With a commitment to UCLA, Giolito also has the leverage of a strong college program to bring to the negotiating table.  The right-hander could forego a professional career for another three years if the opportunity to prove his health and get a quality education are worth more to him than the contract he’s offered out of high school. Continue reading “2012 MLB Draft Scouting Reports: Lucas Giolito, Max Fried, Joey Gallo” »

, , ,