Oakland Athletics Top 28 Prospects

Top Prospects Series

Below is an evaluation of the prospects within the farm system of the Oakland Athletics. Scouting stories have been compiled with info supplied by trade sources in addition to my very own observations. This is the third 12 months we’re delineating between two anticipated aid roles, the abbreviations for which you’ll see within the “position” column beneath: MIRP for multi-inning aid pitchers, and SIRP for single-inning aid pitchers. The ETAs listed typically correspond to the 12 months a participant needs to be added to the 40-man roster to keep away from being made eligible for the Rule 5 draft. Manual changes are made the place they appear acceptable, however I exploit that as a rule of thumb.

A fast overview of what FV (Future Value) means could be discovered right here. A a lot deeper overview could be discovered right here.

All of the ranked prospects beneath additionally seem on The Board, a useful resource the location affords that includes sortable scouting info for each group. It has extra particulars (and up to date TrackMan information from numerous sources) than this text and integrates each workforce’s listing so readers can examine prospects throughout farm methods. It could be discovered right here.

Other Prospects of Note

Grouped by sort and listed so as of desire inside every class.

Fallen Stars
Pedro Pineda, CF
Robert Puason, SS
Lazaro Armenteros, OF

Each of those three was a high 10 prospect within the A’s system at one level however has since hit important hindrances. Pineda, who missed time in 2022 as a result of damage, has good bat pace however struggles to acknowledge strikes, leading to an inflated Okay price whereas nonetheless at Low-A. He is now seen as a participant with excessive damage danger and horrifying swing-and-miss points. Puason has stopped swap hitting. He continues to bounce backwards and forwards between Low-A and the advanced with little signal of lasting enchancment concerning his lack of contact. Lazarito’s strikeout price is decrease than final season, however that’s solely as a result of final 12 months it was within the mid-40s. Oakland can ill-afford for his or her high-bonus worldwide misses to be this large.

The Walkers
Brennan Milone, 1B/2B
Caeden Trenkle, OF
Angel Arevalo, 2B/CF

Milone is a tad previous for Low-A, however is however strolling about as a lot as he’s hanging on the market, although he’s arduous to position defensively. On the flip aspect, Trenkle is a straightforward slot in middle subject, and his persistence on the plate resulted in him reaching base safely in his first 18 video games at High-A. He was positioned on the IL in early May and is now ramping again up on the advanced. Also freshly returned from damage is Arevalo. His stroll price is comically excessive (as is his strikeout price), however his pattern is comically small, as his season solely started in earlier this month.

The Runners
Junior Perez, RF
Euribiel Angeles, 3B
Max Schuemann, SS/OF

Perez’s 19 stolen bases rank second within the A’s system, whereas his OBP ranks as one of many lowest within the org as a result of him hanging out in roughly a 3rd of his plate appearances. Angeles is a risk on the basepaths as properly, however his roughly 1% stroll price isn’t doing him any favors. Schuemann is a jack of all defensive trades. He returned to Triple-A earlier this 12 months and proceeded to convey his strikeout price down by greater than eight share factors relative to his Double-A mark whereas slugging greater than ever and rating second in stolen bases at Las Vegas.

Command Struggles
Jorge Juan, SP
Blake Beers, SP
Yehizon Sanchez, SP
Jacob Watters, SIRP

Juan began the 12 months with 14.1 dominant innings at High-A, the place he struck out almost half his opponents to assist make up for a stroll price above 16%. Since reaching Double-A, his stroll price has held regular whereas his strikeout price has plummeted beneath 20%. Beers has put up comparable numbers to Joey Estes this 12 months, and his slider remains to be a plus providing, however he’s just a few years older than Estes with a much less data-friendly four-seamer. Sanchez posted a 2.51 WHIP at Low-A to begin the season; opposing hitters averaged .378 towards him, so he’s been despatched all the way down to the advanced once more. Watters remains to be beginning this season, and his 15% stroll price to date at High-A is definitely considerably decrease than in his first style {of professional} pitching final 12 months, however the command and arsenal nonetheless appear extra acceptable for a reliever.

Ailing Arms
Stevie Emanuels, SP
Eduardo Rivera, SIRP
Jack Weisenburger, SIRP

Emanuels and Rivera have each returned from damage this season to various outcomes. Emanuels started the 12 months with three appearances on the advanced and is now again at High-A, the place he’ll look to recapture the motion and spin on his arsenal that has traditionally allowed it to play up. Rivera missed a lot of 2022 to damage, then began this season on the IL as properly. When he returned, he skipped the advanced, as a substitute heading proper to Low-A, the place he has struggled to search out the zone constantly. Weisenburger hasn’t pitched since May 2022, having thrown solely 9 innings that season. His damage monitor file is especially regarding as a result of violence in his supply.

System Overview

Even probably the most informal baseball followers have heard about what’s happening with the A’s this 12 months. But earlier than persistent “sell the team” chants began to resound throughout the concrete confines of the Coliseum throughout each residence sport got here the trades that impressed these disgruntled cheers, offers that despatched away Oakland’s greatest names largely in change for prospects. As a end result, solely about half of the gamers listed above have been initially signed by the A’s.

A number of of the gamers acquired within the workforce’s current blockbuster transactions at the moment are on the large league squad, together with Esteury Ruiz (Sean Murphy commerce) and Shea Langeliers (Matt Olson commerce), however most of them have had a lot much less success since their arrival. In specific, almost the entire highly-touted pitching prospects these trades netted have struggled in a method or one other, whether or not or not it’s a velocity decline, dwindling command, damage, or some mixture of the three.

Based on how the A’s rotation and bullpen have carried out on the large league stage, it’s no shock that their system is essentially characterised by a downtick in pitching efficiency, one which isn’t restricted to the commerce acquisitions. Whether it’s the woes of Mason Miller (damage) and Ken Waldichuk (command) atop the listing, or the downward skid of Ryan Cusick and J.T. Ginn, who now discover themselves in direction of its backside, it’s more durable to discover a hurler who is actually thriving than it’s to identify those who’re struggling.

There’s higher optimism to be mined from a few of the homegrown place gamers, like Lawrence Butler’s bettering swing and miss tendencies or the short ascent of younger Zack Gelof. But given the general aura surrounding the Athletics in the intervening time, it will have maybe been unreasonable to anticipate the obvious apathy exhibited by possession in direction of the present workforce (no less than, in its present location) to not influence the standard of its minor league system as a complete. When I attended an A’s sport just lately, I overheard teams round me hoping to see possession begin to make investments extra whole-heartedly within the workforce’s future when it relocates. But even when we see a significant shift in organizational philosophy — one which prioritizes retaining proficient younger gamers and successful on the large league stage — Oakland has fallen behind different entrance workplaces and farm methods. The subsequent good A’s workforce is probably going a methods away wherever it performs.