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What's up RotoBallers. Welcome back to our weekly column on MLB prospects, where we take a look at some of the top rookies in the minors and how they've been performing recently.
This week, we check in on the farm to see how some household names like Tim Anderson, Dilson Herrera, Manuel Margot and Jesse Winker are doing, as well as an unknown in Ryan Schimpf. As always, we keep our minds focused on their potential fantasy baseball impacts.
Editors Note: Check out all of RotoBaller's MLB prospects analysis here. You can also head over to the prospect rankings dashboard. Our Rankings Assistant is a handy free tool where you can find team-specific prospect breakdowns, tiered positional rankings, 500+ player outlooks, dynasty ranks and more - all in one easy place.
Top MLB Prospects & Their Fantasy Baseball Outlooks
Tim Anderson, SS, Chicago White Sox
Tim Anderson was chosen 17th-overall in the 2013 MLB Amateur Draft by the White Sox, and they had high hopes for Anderson to become their shortstop of the future. The soon-to-be 23-year-old has a career minor league slash-line of .301/.339/.426, giving the Sox some hope that he could fulfill their wish.
This year, Anderson is being tested in AAA for the first time, and has responded with a .302/.324/.409 slash-line coming into last night. Despite the high batting averages over the years, Anderson has a lot of flaws. For one, he strikes out a lot and doesn’t walk nearly enough. He has 332 strikeouts to 64 walks in 330 games. That’s a bad ratio, especially for a guy whose career-high in home runs is just nine. The White Sox let Anderson loose on the base paths last year, as he stole 49 bases in 2015.
The combination of Jimmy Rollins and Tyler Saladino at shortstop is just not going to cut it for a team that has playoff aspirations. They might be inclined to give their shortstop of the future a chance sooner rather than later. He's been on fire, with three-straight multi-hit games, and six in his last ten. When he does get the call, he could struggle in the batting average department, due to his inability to make consistent contact this early in his career. He does have high stolen base potential as soon as this year, but that may be his only viable fantasy asset this season.
Dilson Herrera, 2B, New York Mets
Dilson Herrera has absolutely nothing left to prove at the minor league level. The 22-year-old is a career .302/.364/.473 hitter in the minors, but he has hit just .215/.308/.383 in 149 career Major League at-bats.
Herrera stands just 5’10” and 150 lbs., but that hasn’t prevented him from hitting with power. He’s hit double-digit home runs in three-straight minor league seasons, and even has six at the big league level. This year, he already has nine HR and 31 RBI in AAA. Herrera has a chance to become a very good big league hitter, with the potential to hit 15-20 HR and steal double-digit bases.
The only issue is which team he will play for. The Mets will likely have to trade one of Herrera or Neil Walker, or let Walker become a free agent after this season, and hand over the reigns to Herrera in 2017. Wherever he ends up and whenever he ends up there, Herrera should become a very good performer at a position that lacks a lot of impact bats.
Manuel Margot, CF, San Diego Padres
Manuel Margot came over to the Padres in the offseason, as part of the trade that sent Craig Kimbrel to the Boston Red Sox. Margot has been a highly thought of prospect ever since he was signed as a 17-year-old out of the Dominican Republic.
The 21-year-old is playing in his first season in AAA, and he is not disappointing. Margot is on an absolute tear, putting up 22 hits in his last ten games. He’s hitting .313/.369/.443 with three HR and 16 SB. He has 18 BB to 28 K. The Padres will definitely be calling-up their center fielder and leadoff hitter of the future. The question is when? It will either be after the trade deadline, if they are able to unload one of their current outfielders, or as a September call-up. Margot has star potential, and can become a good OBP guy, with 30-plus steals and a few home runs. Once he comes up, you can count on him never going back down again.
Ryan Schimpf, 3B, San Diego Padres
Ryan Schimpf isn’t your normal highly-touted, young star. He’s quite the opposite. Schimpf was drafted in the fifth-round wayyyy back in 2009 by the Toronto Blue Jays. He’s now 28-years-old and he’s never seen a single day in the Major Leagues.
That could change this year. Schimpf is hitting .347/.416/.714 in AAA, with 13 HR and 45 RBI. The most impressive thing about his season has been the current 10-game stretch he’s on. In that time, Schimpf has hit seven HR and has 14 RBI. It’s one of the most dominant stretches any minor leaguer has put up this season. It’s not like the power surge is an aberration; he’s hit 22 or more home runs in four-straight seasons. He’s played primarily at third base this season, but he’s also played in games everywhere except for center field and catcher. Schimpf will likely never be an everyday player in the Major Leagues, but the Padres or some other team (via trade), might be inclined to give the surging slugger some sort of opportunity. Keep an eye on his situation, to see if and how it develops.
Jesse Winker, LF/RF, Cincinnati Reds
Jesse Winker is a very advanced hitter, especially for a 22-year-old. He was drafted by the Reds out of high school in the compensation round of the 2012 MLB Amateur Draft. Since being drafted, all Winker has done is hit at every level. He’s a career .291/.395/.458 hitter over his 422 games heading into last night.
Winker has a very good eye at the plate, and an advanced approach. He has drawn 262 walks, to 305 strikeouts. This year, he has 31 strikeouts to 29 walks in AAA. Winker has also showed some pop at the plate as well, hitting double-digit home runs three years in a row. He has just two home runs this year, but the Reds believe he will develop into a consistent double-digit home run hitter at the Major League level. On top of that, Winker has a realistic possibility of becoming a .300 hitter in the Majors. The Reds will likely be looking to deal Jay Bruce at this year’s deadline, making way for Winker to step into the outfield, and work towards becoming the three-hitter of their future.
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