10 Players Who Stood Out In Our August Prospect Reports

All season long, Baseball America correspondents deliver insight, updates and new developments in player development via monthly organization reports.

Because it’s impossible for one person to know all things, reading all 30 org reports always enhances Baseball America’s Matt Eddy’s understanding of prospects. Here are the top 10 things he learned from August’s batch of reports. Consider these his “a-ha” moments.

You can find the complete collection of monthly organization reports here.

1. The Twins believe 2023 third-rounder Brandon Winokur has the athleticism to shorten his swing and leverage the obvious power in his 6-foot-6 frame. The shortstop has seven home runs in 30 games for Low-A Fort Myers since the All-Star break.

2. Mariners scouting director Scott Hunter knew he had to draft Campbell two-way player Grant Knipp when he saw him at the MLB Draft Combine this year. The hard-hitting catcher slammed 18 home runs in 29 Colonial Athletic Association games this spring and hit 98 mph off the mound after having not pitched in more than half a decade.

3. Alabama third baseman Gage Miller wasn’t recruited out of high school and spent two years at a small junior college. But he caught the Marlins’ attention in the third round this year after ranking third in the Southeastern Conference batting race. He quickly hit his way to High-A in his pro debut.

4. The fact that he slipped to round three of the 2023 draft motivates Nationals righthander Travis Sykora to succeed. He also wasn’t thrilled with spending April this year in extended spring training before making his pro debut.

5. Giants lefthander Joe Whitman didn’t pitch much in two seasons at Purdue. After transferring to Kent State, he won Mid-American Conference pitcher of the year honors in 2023 and now has a chance to develop into a three-pitch starter.

6. After spending two seasons at Cal as an outfielder/righthander, Steven Zobac focused on pitching in 2022, when the Royals drafted him in the fourth round. He has used a “pitching-dominant perspective” and his athleticism to shine this season.

7. Drafted by the Guardians out of Clemson in the fourth round in 2023, catcher Cooper Ingle has improved his power production and defensive reliability in pro ball. His swing decisions remain top notch.

8. Angels first-round pick Christian Moore learned he had an astigmatism in his eye while at Tennessee and was fitted for a contact lens. Angels 2023 first-rounder Nolan Schanuel had a similar experience at Florida Atlantic. 

9. The Dodgers had catcher Dalton Rushing play left field every day when he reached Triple-A Oklahoma City in August. This opens a path for his “special” bat to play every day in Los Angeles, where all-star Will Smith has catcher locked down.

10. The White Sox fielded a Midwest entry at the 2023 Area Code Games that included nine high school players who would be drafted in the top five rounds in 2024. That includes their own second-rounder Caleb Bonemer from Michigan, who is already hard at work trying to level his swing to decrease vulnerability to high fastballs. 

GET READY FOR DYLAN CREWS’ MLB DEBUT

PUTTING AARON JUDGE’S 2024 SEASON IN CONTEXT

Why Is Hitting So Hard In MLB Nowadays?

There will always be a group of baseball fans who believe that the game has lost its way, and that the current crop of baseball players can’t come close to measuring up to the greats of the past.

It’s true in 2024, but it was just as true in 1916.

Yet for those fans who are not playing Major League Baseball in 2024, it might be difficult to fathom just how hard the current environment is for hitters.

J.J. Cooper took a deep dive into the data to explain why the combination of increased velocity, reliever usage and a change in pitch selection has created a very difficult day-to-day for the world’s best hitters. And to do so, he held up Aaron Judge’s mesmerizing recent run against Miguel Cabrera’s run from 2009-2012 to assess two Hall of Famers in the middle of the peaks of their careers.

Spoiler: Some of the numbers are pretty incredible.

J.J. COOPER JOINS FOUL TERRITORY TO GO DEEP ON JUDGE

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August 26, 2024: Ohtani/Judge MVP Weekends, NL West = NL Best? Playoff Race Updates

10 STATCAST STANDOUTS

Drake Baldwin, Rhett Lowder Headline This Week’s Data Dive

Every Monday morning we’ll highlight several players who stood out to us based on their underlying Statcast metrics. These are not full scouting reports, but can often serve as good early indicators of prospects who might be ready to break out or are demonstrating MLB-ready skills.

Last week, we dove into the exciting Fresh Prince of Bend-Air, discussed the challenges that Jack Leiter is facing pitching in the PCL, marveled at Jacob Misiorowski’s bullpen dominance, and much more.

This week, we’ll talk about:

• A massively underrated Braves prospect

• Making some noise for Rhett Lowder

• The player Eli Ben-Porat is rooting for the most

• A 29-year-old making his MLB debut

• Is Kyle Manzardo a platoon bat?

• Chase DeLauter doesn’t whiff or chase

• Campbell off to a promising start in Triple-A

• The next Tommy Edman?

• The secret to Sproat’s success won’t shock you

• Another potent Pirates pitching prospect

BA POLL

HERE’S WHAT’S TRENDING AT BASEBALL AMERICA….

• Matt Eddy explains why high school players debuting in their draft summer might (mostly) be a thing of the past

• D-backs prospect Demetrio Crisantes is a breakout candidate

• Here’s how each MLB team spent their 2024 bonus pool money

• ICYMI, you can find our Florida Complex League Top 20 here and Arizona Complex League Top 20 here

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