Here are the Top 10 catching prospects for 2023
MLB Pipeline will reveal its 2023 Top 100 Prospects record at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday, Jan. 26, with a one-hour present on MLB Network and MLB.com. Leading as much as the discharge of the Top 100, we’ll study baseball’s high 10 prospects at every place.
Even with some massive graduations, the crop of catching prospects is fairly deep.
The high two from final 12 months’s record, Adley Rutschman and Gabriel Moreno, are not prospects. Slightly additional down final 12 months’s Top 10, Joey Bart, Luis Campusano, MJ Melendez and Shea Langeliers have all misplaced prospect standing. But the record highlighted beneath has regenerated with some thrilling new names.
It begins, in fact, with among the finest total prospects within the sport, Francisco Álvarez of the Mets, and the record has a pleasant mix of Draft picks (six) and worldwide signees (4). There’s a mix of first-round picks (4) and later-round finds, excessive price ticket indicators on the worldwide market and a few actual bargains who’ve jumped on the map since becoming a member of the professional ranks.
The Top 10 (ETA)
1. Francisco Álvarez, Mets (2023)
2. Diego Cartaya, Dodgers (2024)
3. Kevin Parada, Mets (2025)
4. Harry Ford, Mariners (2025)
5. Logan O’Hoppe, Angels (2023)
6. Endy Rodriguez, Pirates (2023)
7. Henry Davis, Pirates (2024)
8. Bo Naylor, Guardians (2023)
9. Drew Romo, Rockies (2024)
10. Edgar Quero, Angels (2025)
Complete record »
Hit: Parada (60)
The first catcher taken within the 2022 Draft, No. 11 total by the Mets, Parada retains factor easy on the plate with an excellent really feel for the barrel. He hit .361 with a .453 OBP at Georgia Tech in his Draft 12 months and that method might enable him to hit .300 with loads of pop as a giant leaguer.
Power: Álvarez (70)
There possible isn’t one other prospect in baseball with extra energy than Álvarez, each uncooked and in video games. He hit 24 homers as a teen in A ball in 2021, then 27 extra at age 20 on the higher ranges final 12 months. His whip-like swing and plus bat pace will proceed to provide loads of dwelling runs within the massive leagues.
Run: Ford (60)
Ford, the Mariners’ first-round decide in 2021, doesn’t simply “run well for a catcher.” His plus pace performs on the basepaths — he swiped 23 bases in his first full season — and he’s athletic sufficient to play second base or heart area if there was ever a necessity.
Arm: Davis (70)
While he continues to work on enhancing the opposite elements of his defensive sport, there aren’t any questions with Davis’ arm, which is perhaps the strongest of any prospect at any place. It performs properly along with his fast ft and switch, in addition to his accuracy.
Field: Romo (60)
Romo additionally has a plus arm to go along with his different excellent defensive attributes. He’s athletic and agile behind the plate with good fingers and blocking abilities. Rockies pitchers have preferred throwing to him as properly.
Highest ceiling: Álvarez
An argument might be made to place Cartaya and his total skillset right here, but when Álvarez may be even a mean receiver, his offensive upside ought to make him an All-Star a number of occasions over.
Highest ground: O’Hoppe
While none of his particular person instruments leap off the web page, O’Hoppe does all the things properly and his work ethic factors to a future the place he performs above his instruments as a giant league common backstop for a very long time.
Rookie of the Year candidate: Álvarez
Assuming he will get sufficient at-bats in New York, it’s simple to see Álvarez placing up the type of numbers to draw loads of consideration from ROY voters.
Highest riser: Quero
The switch-hitter wasn’t even on the Angels’ Top 30 on the finish of the 2021 season, however has jumped within the radar with a really sturdy full-season debut in 2022 that noticed him end with a .965 OPS.
Humblest starting: Rodriguez
Rodriguez signed for simply $10,000 with the Mets again in July 2018 and he’s now knocking on the massive league door after an enormous 2022 season that noticed him attain Triple-A in his second season with the Pirates since coming over within the three-team deal that despatched Joe Musgrove to the Padres.
Most to show: Davis
There’s all the time a warmer highlight on former No. 1 total picks, and Davis did present loads of glimpses of his offensive potential in his first full season in 2022, however he additionally solely performed in 59 video games due to wrist points. A full, wholesome season ought to reply a number of questions.
Keep a watch on: Yainer Diaz, Astros
He made it as much as the massive leagues briefly in 2022, however he’s coming off an enormous offensive season within the Minors (.306/.356/.542 with 25 homers and 96 RBIs in Double- and Triple-A). That’s nothing new as he’s accomplished nothing however hit in his profession, with a .321/.358/.510 line to show it.
