Baseball Prospect Rankings for 2012
Now updated for 2012's Top Prospects
Scouting Book's Top Prospects list is a Combined List, a calculated summary of the overall valuations of the entire prospect universe.
Remember: this page is the result of an automatic process that re-sorts and re-ranks players often.
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There's not much more to say about Bryce Harper that hasn't already been reprinted hundreds of times. The young phenom is probably the best hitting prospect since Alex Rodriguez, and that's after we disregard the 96mph fastball he can throw as a pitcher.
Full Scouting Report for Bryce Harper
SB 1BA SC 3BP SN ES ML 2
A superior athlete with a centerfielder's speed and instincts, Mike Trout looks ready for a bright future patrolling Torii Hunter's turf. A patient hitter with a line drive stroke to all fields, he has a mature understanding of the strike zone and an ability to work it. His excellent speed and baserunning sense is ready right now, and his power seems to be arriving as hoped. Of course, the Angels may have exhausted poor Trout when they shipped him to AFL play after a minor league season that was already exhausting, and that's not even counting the 40 games he played in Anaheim. Ignore the uncharacteristic .220 he showed during his time in MLB: when he returns in 2012, it'll be with all his ability intact, and he won't return to the minors again.
Full Scouting Report for Mike Trout
SB 2BA SC 2BP SN ES ML 3
How many scary-good pitching prospects does any franchise need? If you're Tampa Bay, the answer appears to be 'all of them', and lefty Matt Moore fits right in with that master plan. Moore works with easy 93mph heat that has been clocked as high as 96, but it's the plus curve that makes hitters look foolish. Even his third and least mature pitch, a fading change, is much better developed than any changeup minor leaguers hitters are accustomed to dealing with. The Rays don't usually push their prospects very hard, but until someone manages to figure out Mr. Moore, they're going to be forced to promote him fast. He should see Tampa Time in 2012.
Full Scouting Report for Matt Moore
SB 3BA SC 1BP SN ES ML 1
He's six foot five with a 95mph fastball and he's... Japanese? Well, half-Japanese, at least. Darvish, the Japanese/Iranian wunderkind who's half baseball star and half sex symbol, is Japan's best young pitcher, and his upside is high enough that more than one team felt comfortable giving him a $60M contract, and that's only after spending another $50M for the right to even speak to him in the first place.
Full Scouting Report for Yu Darvish
SB 4BA SC BP SN ES ML
When news broke that the Mariners had traded the 'untouchable' young pitcher Michael Pineda to New York, you didn't need to read the rest of the story to know which Yankee prospect had to be coming back to Seattle. There was only one worth that price.
Full Scouting Report for Jesus Montero
SB 5BA SC 5BP SN ES ML 12
As expected by Scouting Book readers, rake-thin Colombian righthander Julio Teheran forced his way onto the Braves roster in 2011, and he should be considered one of the very best prospects in all of baseball entering 2012. Unless he falls off the rails, this will be the last time he qualifies as a prospect: he should be be toeing the rubber every fifth day for the Braves next year.
Full Scouting Report for Julio Teheran
SB 6BA SC 4BP SN ES ML 4
The Cardinals first round pick in 2009, pitcher Shelby Miller is a raw but talented prospect with a wicked-hot fastball that has excellent and natural late movement. He's learning to rely on more than just his admittedly-great heat to excel in pro ball, too, so it's not surprising to see his nifty 12-6 curve frustrate batters. More exciting is the extra sink he's starting to trust on the less-explosive two-seam version of his fastball, a pitch that even good hitters will beat into the ground with abandon. With a projectable body that could probably add muscle in the years to come, he looks like a good workhorse candidate in St. Louis come late 2013 or so, though he'll probably get a look-see a bit sooner than that.
Full Scouting Report for Shelby Miller
SB 7BA SC 6BP SN ES ML 5
A graduate of Team USA's championship squad, Miami's Manny Machado is a well-rounded hitter who was recognized as one of baseball's best high-school shortstops in 2009. He hasn't have a lot of power yet, and there are questions about his speed, but he does have a solid-average bat and the sort of above-average footwork and soft hands that give him a decent chance of actually sticking at short. Like all shortstops from Miami, Machado is sometimes compared to Alex Rodriguez, though that might be stretching his upside more than a bit. So far he looks more like a future Yunel Escobar, and by 'future' we're talking 2014 or 2015. Don't be surprised if he regresses a bit coming back from his knee injury in 2011, and don't worry if he does, either. He's very young and a very long way away from MLB, so there's plenty of time for a possible break out to a higher level.
Full Scouting Report for Manny Machado
SB 8BA SC 8BP SN ES ML 6
Like a taller twin to Gerrit Cole, righty James Taillon is a geniune monster power arm from Texas (via Quebec), a very high-ceiling pitcher who has already cracked 100mph on many radar guns. If that's not enough to get your attention, note that while his slider and change are below average, his curveball has already been rated a plus pitch. If he can hold his arm together under increasing workloads and develop his command and control to pro levels, he could be a viable #2 or #3 starter by 2014 or so, with a shot at being a genuine ace somewhere down the road. If Pittsburgh can keep Taillon, Cole and Allie together and healthy, they could have a rotation that evokes 1990's Atlanta only a few years from now.
Full Scouting Report for Jameson Taillon
SB 9BA SC 16BP SN ES ML 8
A two-way player and 2004 Little League star who most preferred as a pitcher, righthander Jurickson Profar was signed as an international free agent in 2009. At the time, the teen was blessed with a 94mph heater and a slider that could have matured into a real plus pitch, but the Rangers were determined to make a shortstop out of him, and so far it's paying off. A full season off the mound later and he's showing off every tool in the box, including a ridiculously-advanced batting eye for a teenager. In 430 at-bats in the Sally League, Profar walked more often than he struck out (65 vs 63), an incredibly rare feat among young players.
Full Scouting Report for Jurickson Profar
SB 10BA SC 7BP SN ES ML 7
Spending $8M to sign number one pick Gerrit Cole might have seemed extravagant for a 'small market' team like the Pirates, but when you keep finishing in last place, you need to get something out of it, right? For now, the Pirates look wise: the righthanded Cole joins Jameson Taillon as the best 1-2 punch on any prospect roster in the majors.
Full Scouting Report for Gerrit Cole
SB 11BA SC 10BP SN ES ML 11
The Yankees top international signee back in 2007, righthander Arodys Vizcaino got a taste of MLB ball in 2011 and should be back to stay in early 2012. His fastball hovers in the low 90s, but should get harder as he matures. He complements that with an already-superb curve and a developing change. In any other system, he'd be a number one prospect. In Atlanta, he's easy to overlook.
Full Scouting Report for Arodys Vizcaino
SB 12BA SC 21BP SN ES ML 36
One of the top high school arms in the country, Jacob Turner was drafted in the first round (9th overall) by the Detroit Tigers in 2009. More a potential pitcher than a pitcher just yet, Turner's three starts in Detroit last season weren't exactly high art, but at least the organization has a firm handle on what they're working with now. Turner has a big, strong, projectable body and a low-90's fastball, but the rest of his arsenal is very much in-development. While he could contend for a starting job in the thin 2012 Tiger rotation, smarter money would put him back on the farm to refine his game a bit first.
Full Scouting Report for Jacob Turner
SB 13BA SC 11BP SN ES ML 15
Jarrod Parker, one of the most highly-touted prospects in the 2007 draft, fell to the Arizona Diamondbacks with the 9th overall pick. Shipped to Oakland as a part of Billy Beane's re-re-rebuilding plan, Parker shows exceptional character and makeup, which means he may be destined for the big leagues sooner than most.
Full Scouting Report for Jarrod Parker
SB 14BA SC 23BP SN ES ML 26
With a nickname that sounds like something out of a Radical Feminist Manifesto, Manny Banuelos is a young and tiny lefthander signed out of Mexico who's already being heralded as a shining success story for the Yankee's international scouting team. Man-Ban's fastball is an easy 92mph, while his changeup already looks like a plus pitch, remarkable in such a young player. He's been working on adding a curve and/or slider to his mix, which would silence those calling him a bullpen-only piece, but even his existing two-pitch arsenal has been effective so far. He'll be brought along slowly, as the ever-conservative Yankees have no need to rush him, but if his next year is as good as his last, he'll have to be considered one of the top young arms in the minor leagues.
Full Scouting Report for Manny Banuelos
SB 15BA SC 9BP SN ES ML 13
Probably the best overall hitter in the Nats system despite lacking Bryce Harper's moonshot power, Anthony Rendon was the team's first round draft pick in 2011. A nominal third baseman, he'll probably shift to second or left field for the Nats soon, at least as long as Ryan Zimmerman appears entrenched at the hot corner. He'll definitely be a potent part of a future Nats lineup, and could debut around the same time as superprospect Bryce Harper moves to the Beltway for good.
Full Scouting Report for Anthony Rendon
SB 16BA SC 56BP SN ES ML 27
Devin Mesoraco is a catching prospect who's a little late to bloom (then again, aren't they all?) in the Reds system. The 15th overall pick of the 2007 draft, Mesoraco fell off the charts for awhile after posting .260 and .228 averages in his first two full seasons of minor league ball. But a switch flipped somewhere in 2010, as Mesoraco posted a composite line of .302/.377/.587 with 26 home runs in 2010, followed by a 2011 line of 289/.371/.484 at AAA Louisville last year, complete with 15 more home runs. If the Reds seemed too eager to trade away super-prospect catcher Yasmani Grandal, there's probably no better reason than Mesoraco. He still strikes out a bit too much and can be beat by quality stuff inside, but Mesoraco suddenly looks to have very few shortcomings. He should get a shot with the Reds in late 2012.
Full Scouting Report for Devin Mesoraco
SB 17BA SC 12BP SN ES ML 14
The main return for the departing Dan Haren, Arizona's Tyler Skaggs is almost ready to compete at the major league level, and should contend for a rotation spot in early 2012. Skaggs was 8-6 with an ERA of 2.99 across 25 starts last year, including a 2.51 ERA in eight starts at the higher-level stop in Mobile. If he doesn't break camp with the Diamondbacks, he'll join them before the year is up.
Full Scouting Report for Tyler Skaggs
SB 18BA SC 26BP SN ES ML 21
The fastest legs in red stockings, infielder Billy Hamilton should soon get a shot at locking down a long-term infield job in CIncinnati's young lineup. The Pioneer League's player of the year in 2010 just kept on running wild at A-ball in 2011, stealing 103 (not a typo) bases in 130 games with Dayton, and doing so at an 84% success rate. The switch-hitting Hamilton really does look like a prototypical leadoff hitter thanks to his wheels and on-base skills. In the field, he's capable of shortstop, but more likely to land at second base come 2013 or so. If he gets a callup in late-2012, expect to see dust fly.
Full Scouting Report for Billy Hamilton
SB 19BA SC 70BP SN ES ML 34
Originally drafted by the Indians, the latest junior ace from Ole Miss was also the latest top pitching prospect to be traded between rebuilding teams last year, something of a leitmotif for MLB in 2011. In fact, ex-Indian and current Rockie Thomas (Andrew) Pomeranz was probably the best lefty of the 2010 draft class, so his arrival in Colorado wasn't insignificant in any way.
Full Scouting Report for Drew Pomeranz
SB 20BA SC 14BP SN ES ML 24
Prospects
Top Prospects 2012
Combined Ranking
1 to 20 of 520 Prospects
