We’ve already run through the NL West, the NL East, the AL West and the AL Central in our look at some of the up-and-coming talent that figures to step into the Major League spotlight whenever play resumes. Let’s take a run through the NL Central…
Chicago Cubs
Nico Hoerner is the most interesting name to watch. The 2018 first-rounder skyrocketed through the system to make his MLB debut late last season, and while his .282/.305/.436 output didn’t exactly set the world on fire, it capped an impressive rise for a 22-year-old in his first full pro season. The Cubs hope there’s a potential everyday option at second base here. We could also see 27-year-old Robel Garcia and his light-tower power get another audition, though his contact skills (or lack thereof) are a notable red flag.
The organization lacks high-end, MLB-ready pitching prospects, but it wasn’t that long ago that righty Adbert Alzolay was considered to be just that. He was limited by a triceps injury last year and pitched just 81 2/3 innings between the minors and a brief MLB call-up, but his strikeout numbers are intriguing. Other rotation options include Cory Abbott, Tyson Miller and Justin Steele, but no one from the bunch is regarded as a blue chipper.
In the ’pen, expect some combination of James Norwood, Dillon Maples and Duane Underwood Jr. to be called into action as injuries arise. All three are on the 40-man roster.
Cincinnati Reds
Shogo Akiyama will be one of the most interesting “rookies” to watch this season. He’s of course new to the MLB circuit but no stranger to playing professionally, having starred for Japan’s Seibu Lions over a nine-year career in Nippon Professional Baseball. A career .301/.376/.454 hitter in Japan, Akiyama hit .296 or better with at least a .385 OBP in each of his final five seasons with the Lions.
The Reds are suddenly a somewhat veteran club, so there aren’t many rookies who’ll be trusted with an Opening Day role. Well-regarded catcher Tyler Stephenson could be summoned in the event of an injury to Tucker Barnhart or Curt Casali. Shortstop Jose Garcia drew some eyes with a big spring showing but has yet to reach Double-A. He probably needs some more minor league time.
If a starter goes down, right-hander Tony Santillan has steadily climbed the ranks, although he struggled in a pitcher-friendly Double-A setting a year ago. Still, with the Reds set to potentially lose both Trevor Bauer and Anthony DeSclafani to free agency next winter, they’ll probably want to get a look at Santillan at some point.
The bullpen has a host of potential options — Vladimir Gutierrez, Reiver Sanmartin, Joel Kuhnel and Tejay Antone among them. Gutierrez has worked as a starter but struggled enormously in Triple-A, and his power fastball would seemingly play well in relief. Kuhnel has already made his MLB debut.
Milwaukee Brewers
The Brewers signed 10 Major League free agents this winter, traded for several players who’ll be on the Opening Day roster and don’t have a particularly well-regarded farm. All of that is to say — their rookie contributions might be few and far between. (To be fair, there are some semantics at play here; neither Keston Hiura nor Luis Urias is technically a rookie despite lacking a full season in the Majors. Both are highly intriguing young players.)
Jacob Nottingham might be called upon should Omar Narvaez or Manny Pina fall to injury. Outfielder Tyrone Taylor made his MLB debut last year but is buried behind a host of more experienced options. Former first-round pick Corey Ray has yet to debut but also finds himself on the wrong end of that deep outfield mix. Milwaukee picked up Mark Mathias in a small trade with the Indians and kept the versatile infielder on the 40-man roster, but it might take multiple injuries and/or a huge Triple-A showing to get to the Majors.
Righty Devin Williams leads the pack of bullpen candidates, having debuted with a 3.95 ERA in 13 2/3 frames last year. Right-handers J.P. Feyereisen and Angel Perdomo figure to emerge at some point, too, and waiver claim Eric Yardley provides a left-handed option who posted big numbers in Triple-A with the Padres last season. Rotation candidates include righty Drew Rasmussen, who had a nice year in Double-A in ’19. Trey Supak was rocked in seven Triple-A starts after a solid Double-A showing himself.
Pittsburgh Pirates
Right-hander Mitch Keller barely still qualifies a a rookie and should have a rotation spot for much of the season. Keller, long one of MLB’s premier prospects, was clobbered in his debut effort, but it’ll be interesting to see how he fares without the juiced ball and (presumably) without the prior front office/coaching staff’s emphasis on a two-seam fastball.
The Bucs have already talked extension with third base prospect Ke’Bryan Hayes — one of the game’s best defensive minor leaguers. Hayes didn’t have a great year at the plate in Triple-A in 2019, but he’ll open the season there and should break into the big leagues this year. As the club’s potential third baseman of the future, he’s a definite name to watch.
After that pairing, there’s a drop. Jason Martin and Jared Oliva might get some time in the outfield, and depending on injuries middle infielder Kevin Kramer and first baseman Will Craig are possibilities.
It feels like Nick Burdi has been a prospect forever, but the 27-year-old was healthy and opened some eyes this spring with a good showing. He’s undergone both Tommy John and thoracic outlet surgery but boasts a triple-digit heater when healthy. Blake Cederlind and Cody Ponce could see time in the ’pen, as JT Brubaker could in the rotation.
St. Louis Cardinals
Among NL Central prospects who could plausibly debut in 2020, outfielder Dylan Carlson is perhaps the most highly regarded. A consensus top 20 minor leaguer who belted 26 home runs, stole 20 bases and posted a combined OPS north of .900 between Double-A and Triple-A last year, Carlson is viewed as a potential cornerstone piece. He’ll have to stave off Tyler O’Neill, Lane Thomas and fellow rookie Justin Williams, but Carlson has the highest ceiling of the bunch.
Yadier Molina just keeps on going, so there’s little hope of Andrew Knizner seeing meaningful time unless there’s an unfortunate injury to Molina. But Knizner is touted as a potential starting catcher himself and is more or less MLB-ready. Likewise, infielder Edmundo Sosa is ready for an MLB look but lacks an obvious path given the team’s veteran infield mix.
Left-handers Genesis Cabrera and Kwang-Hyun Kim give the Cards a southpaw option both in the rotation and in the bullpen. Kim, long one of the better pitchers in the Korea Baseball Organization, had an eye-opening spring showing. Right-hander Junior Fernandez tops the list of intriguing bullpen candidates thanks to a sub-2.00 ERA in the minors last year and a heater that averaged nearly 97 mph on a brief MLB cup of coffee.
Hiura and Urias are the best
Urias is a AAAA bust
Urias got better with more at bats The Phillies are a AAAA team
After 302 plate appearances at age 22?
Rather have Hoerner than Urias.
Keller, Huira and Hayes.
Pirates have 2 of best prospects in the division for sure.
Yawn
Says the guy with the team that induces narcolepsy.
Wow, so insightful and thought-provoking!
Steve, hope all is well with you during these days. I think you meant Colin Rea on the 40 man instead of Cory Abbott.
Carlson will be the roy in 2021
Given the Cardinals’ current outfield options, I highly doubt Carlson will maintain rookie status going into next year unless the entire 2020 season is cancelled or he suffers a major injury.
The point that i was making is that there wont be a rookie of the year this year, captain obvious.
Then you need to be more specific, as it sounded like you were claiming he just wouldn’t get enough playing or roster time in 2020 to lose rookie status. At this point, cancelling the entire season is still pretty unlikely, and Carlson is more likely to win 2020 NL Rookie of the Year.
I hope youre right on both ends
I feel bad for Knizner. Molina said before he signed that 3 year extension he was definitely retiring after those 3 years. I would hate to see Knizner go, but would rather trade him so he could be starting for some major league team.
Similar to the Martinez Arozarena trade. Now both of them are going to get regular at bats and playing time.
another “heir to Molina” come and gone
Quality catching depth is the hardest thing to come by in the MLB, Molina still producing is a great problem for them to have
If Molina who will be a first ballot Hall of Famer and is still one of the very best wants to keep playing then it’s a very nice problem to have.
Molina may make the HOF someday, but he’s not first ballot. He’s not as good as Mauer nor Posey and neither of them are first ballot.
His peak may not have been as high but I’d take Yadi over either of those guys in a heart beat. He has been a high quality player for the better part of the last 2 decades while Posey and Mauer only really had 5-7 years of peak performance. Yadi is first ballot HOFer and I’d put him ahead of Mauer and Posey in that discussion.
too funny. mauer? 9 gold gloves and all stars to mauers 3 gold glove and 6 all stars. 2 world series rings to….wait did mauer even make a playoff run? mauer was a catcher for what 12 or 13 years of his career before concussions moved him to 1st base. and Posey? 3 world series titles is only thing he has on molina. 1 gold glove? maybe a little research and you wouldn’t look so well you know. you should have said pudge then you would have looked like you knew something about baseball.
You wanna make a bet son?
Not Arozarena, as Tampa traded for too many ex-Padres OFs and have shipped him down to AAA. He’ll have to wait for the inevitable injury to Kiermaier.
Even then it’s no guarantee cause Margot is on the roster.
The forgettable Manuel Margot. The 2020 breakout candidate. And the 2019 breakout candidate. And the 2018 breakout candidate. And the….
I didn’t realize Arozarena was optioned. I assumed he would be on the roster after the spring he had, batting somewhere around,500
I think the Rays have found a way to maximize their penny pinching team control over Arozarena. They’ll leave him down in AAA til about the trade deadline so they get another year of control over him. And then we’ll see him replace Margot or Kiermaier(if they can dump him at some point)
Only halfway logical explanation I have for what they did there.
No he didnt. He said he would evaluate it and would like to sign one more deal before retiring. I looked allover and couldnt find a single comment that said he would definitely retire after that 3 years.
Maybe I’m mistaken, but pretty sure he said that after signing the extension which was back in 2016 I believe so would be difficult to find it from 4 years ago, but if I’m wrong whatever. I have no problem admitting it.
He very much hinted that he was done after the contract…did he say that he would retire? I’m not sure but I think he said something along those lines
Ok obviously he did say it. I guess I was going by what he said not long after. You weren’t wrong.
Actually it was easy to find so I don’t know what your problem was with the research EndinStealth…
google.com/amp/s/www.mlb.com/amp/news/yadier-molin…
ST. LOUIS — Catcher Yadier Molina said on Monday that he plans to play out his current contract with the Cardinals and then call it a career.
“Three more years,” Molina said bluntly. “That’s it.”
I’m a Cub fan but dammit, there’s no way a baseball fan can’t give it up for that badass Molina.
I feel bad for Knizner also and he already has realized that he will probably be playing for another team. Herrera looks to be the one to take Over if Molina ever decides to hang it up
I’m really excited to see Akiyama this season, I love seeing some good contact hitters play the game sometimes. It’s a nice sway from the high strikeout, power hitter.
On the flip side – even though he’s not a rookie – Hiura is going to be a full fledged star by the end of this season. Let’s look at his numbers from last season: In about a half a season he had 19 homers 95 hits and a line that look like this, .303/.368/.570… for a .938 ops!!! Double his stats for a full season and he has around 190 hits and close to 40 homers, (for anybody who likes rbi’s as a stat, he had 49 last season, so he’s hit almost 100 in full). This guy is so underrated it’s pathetic.
Only downfall for Hiura is his defense and lack of versatility. His bat is something else though!
That pretty much describes the Brewers’ position players in general. They’re going to hit, but that defense will not be fun to watch.
Again, the silver lining in the Pirates trainwreck would’ve been a number of 5-star caliber players in the minors but sadly, they’re just not there. Interesting that this article says nothing about Tucker or O’Neill Cruz, and the potential for a logjam in the infield. No real OF prospects, no catchers, no power pitchers. Yoy.
Cruz seems more like a 2021 debut to me. Tucker exhausted his rookie status in 2019 (although to be fair, I guess I kind of let that criteria slide when mentioning Hiura/Urias).
They changed the ball? I didn’t hear that.
Who cares what you think or do
Steve, how in the world do you not mention Brailyn Marquez in the Cubs list? He is their best pitching prospect since Kerry Wood. 100+mph fastball and is a lefty who is ready next year to dominate, health permitting. Big miss on your part IMO.
Probably because he is earmarked for AAA in 2020. The earliest he would see MLB is a late call up. Also alot of people dont think he has the durability to be a starter long term.
Doesn’t matter. He’s got an electric arm with ace potential. There was nothing said about where the prospect is in the system.
It says rookie radar. You know you have to play in the majors to be a rookie right? If a player isnt projected to be a rookie then he isnt included. It’s not hard.
Can you predict who a “rookie” will be, Hellen Keller? You have no idea. With his arm he could end up with the ML team this year.
Come on you being purposefully obtuse. He is not on the rookie radar. He isnt projected by any professionals to be in the majors before September. That’s what this entire article is for. It’s not for homers wanting one of their players mentioned.
I’m not a homer and even if I was, how does your comment even make sense? He mentioned lots of Cubs players.
Then why are you hung up on this one. ALL the scouts are saying at best he is a September call up. Thus not on the rookie radar. It’s not hard.
Cardinals mentioned cue the trolls.
Maurice lock, Clepto, strike four will be on soon just wait…they can’t help themselves
Keller is going to have a great year. He had a.475 BABIP last season, and no player in history has pitched at least 150 innings and had a BABIP over .400. Plus he had a 3.78 SIERA, 3.19 FIP, and didn’t give up many long balls last year. Very unlucky, but now that they really improved CF defense, and will probably see more time from Cole Tucker and Ke’Bryan Hayes next season. Hopefully, Josh Bell gets better at first base. The only way is up for him.
I’ll trade you Ronald Guzman for Josh Bell, so that your 1b defense will be immaculate.
Man I didnt have the raw numbers but watching some of his starts it felt he was just about the unluckiest pitcher Id had ever seen in a season –
Just perfectly placed bloopers and all the hits lined up to score runs then he would come out and mow thru 9 hitters in a row with ease
Pirates should just move on from Will Craig at this point. Average defender at first base, no plate discipline, and his only real asset is ok, but not great power. But with or without the juiced ball, you can find about 50 other replacement level guys who hit about 20-25 home runs a season.
Why don’t the Cubs just move Baez back to 2B and play Hoerner at his natural SS? I can’t imagine the added defensive value of playing Baez at SS over 2B is greater than the defensive value lost by playing Hoerner out of position.
That is completely backwards. A SS should have no issue moving to 2B. You don’t move an all world glove like Javy Baez’s off SS for Nico Hoerner.
Not always, as there are players who are simply much better fielders at SS than 2B (such as Ozzie Smith), but that’s beside the point. They’re still moving Hoerner to a tougher position at which he has little experience in exchange, where many 2B do have a tough time making the switch. Meanwhile, Baez does have significant quality experience at 2B, making for an overall superior defensive alignment. It doesn’t matter if you have a Gold Glove caliber SS if it means you have to make due with an iron glove at 2B.
SS is undoubtedly tougher than 2B. Poor defensive SS’s get moved to second base all the time. The reverse is almost never true. Hoerner will be fine at 2B.
With the increased shifts in today’s game I don’t think 2B has ever been a lower regraded defensive position. That’s why you have Max Muncy, Mike Moustakas, and other non mobile defenders playing there. Cubs definitely will keep Baez where he’s at.
Muncy is nothing like Moustakas in terms of mobility. Muncy can run at an above average pace (27.7 feet/second sprint speed) while Moustakas can’t (25.7 feet/second). Plus Muncy had really good defensive numbers at 2B.
Nico Hoerner is the closest thing to a blue chipper prospect. Hes the future 2B for the Cubs.
Hiura and Carlson are both at a similar level and also expected to be starters in the near future for their teams. There’s also the unpredictability of the imports Akiyama and Kim, where one of both of them may actually outperform the other guys in the short term.