Fantasy Baseball Farm Report: Grayson Rodriguez, coming soon
Grayson Rodriguez is ready. This seems beyond dispute. Over Rodriguez's last five starts at Triple-A Norfolk, he's allowed only three runs and 14 hits in 28.2 innings while striking out 43 batters. He tossed 7.0 two-hit, no-walk innings in his last turn, punching out 10.
Again: He sure seems ready.
Baltimore has already promoted Adley Rutschman, so Rodriguez shouldn't be too far behind. He has a five-pitch arsenal, featuring a blazing fastball. He might just be a tier-of-one pitching prospect at the moment. Have a look...
Grayson Rodriguez dials it up to 99.2 🔥
MLB's top pitching prospect struck out a season-high 11 in 5.1 scoreless frames for the @NorfolkTides. pic.twitter.com/YJQZKPtP5E— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) May 18, 2022
Rodriguez simply doesn't have much left to prove against minor league batters. It's a big leap from Norfolk to the A.L. East, but his stuff should play in any park, against basically any lineup. He's available in about 70 percent of Yahoo leagues currently, but that's gonna spike as soon as he gets the call.
Riley Greene, back in action
Riley Greene's season was briefly put on hold after he suffered a foot injury in spring training, but he's finally back in the lineup for Triple-A Toledo. He's gone 3-for-10 in his first three minor league games of 2022 with a stolen base and two RBI. Greene is an all-category hitting prospect who was challenging for a spot on Detroit's opening day roster before the injury delayed his arrival. Whenever he gets promoted to the majors, there should be a manager in every league who can find a spot for him.
Francisco Alvarez is surging
Francisco Alvarez entered the season ranked almost universally as a top-10 prospect after producing a .941 OPS at age 19 with 24 homers in 99 games. He was scuffling in mid-May at Double-A Binghamton, but he's broken out in recent days. with 10 hits and four homers over his last five games. We're probably not gonna see Alvarez with the Mets this season, though his raw power makes him a player worth stashing in any sort of dynasty format.
Can we just please get Vinnie Pasquantino to KC?
Vinnie Pasquantino is coming off a monster week at Triple-A Omaha (4 HR, 7 XBH, .478), raising his season slash to .303/.396/.667. He's cleared the fence 14 times so far this season and he's walking nearly as often as he strikes out (25 vs. 30), which is generally a good sign. Pasquantino's homers are rarely cheap...
Vinnie Pasquantino didn't miss this high heater.
The #Royals' No. 5 prospect smashes a three-run homer for his 8th roundtripper with the @OMAStormChasers: pic.twitter.com/NAOEuWjnWN— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) May 14, 2022
He shouldn't require much additional seasoning. Carlos Santana is having a dreadful year for the Royals (.528 OPS), so it's not as if there's no need for Pasquantino at the big league level.
Ezequiel Tovar, unrivaled leader of Yard Goats
Ezequiel Tovar, a Colorado prospect, is absolutely dominating for the Double-A Hartford Yard Goats. He's homered 10 times in 43 games, driven in 30 runs, scored 29, swiped 16 bags in 17 attempts and he's hitting .326/.408/.593. The 20-year-old also has 10 doubles and three triples among his 56 hits.
He might be ready for a new challenge.
Swing away.
On a 3-0 pitch, No. 6 @Rockies prospect Ezequiel Tovar left the yard for the @GoYardGoats. pic.twitter.com/yxDoVAh1DI— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) May 29, 2022
Tovar delivered a 15/24 power/speed season in 2021 at Single-A — which was plenty impressive — and he's now on pace to exceed those numbers in July. He's an excellent dynasty stash, as he'll obviously do his hitting in a friendly home environment when he makes it to the big leagues.
