Top Baseball Prospects for 2013
Now updated for 2013'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. If you're coming to this page directly, you're missing 9/10ths of what we do, so please
also visit our home page , and read this blog entry before telling us how stupid we are. Thanks!
A smallish lefty drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the third round of the 2011 MLB Draft, Georgia native Adam C. Morgan is a quality pitcher on his way to Citizens Bank in the near future. After spending most of the year in high-A Clearwater, Morgan enjoyed a late-season promotion to AA Reading, where he struck out 29 batters in 35 innings and turned in a 1.27 WHIP. He's likely to return to Reading for most or all of 2013, during which time he'll work on sharpening his already-plus change and trying to get some repeatable movement on his 92mph fastball, which can flatten out at times. Some scouts cringe at his stiff-legged high-effort delivery, but when you're only six feet tall, you need to generate power somehow. While a bit risky going forward, he seems to have the smarts and work ethic to succeed. Pencil him in as bullpen help next year and a fifth-starter competitor the year after that.
More Scouting Book Info on Adam Morgan
SB 181BA SC BP SN ES 92ML
A lightly-built lefthanded starter from Venezuela, Oriole prospect Eduardo Rodriguez is a steadily-developing pitcher who could help out the Orioles of the near future. He's risen smoothly through the minors so far, and after a full-season 3.70/1.24 performance in 22 starts for A-level Delmarva in the Sally League, should taste AA ball for the first time in 2013.
More Scouting Book Info on Eduardo Rodriguez
SB 182BA SC BP SN ES 100ML
The Cardinals' first pick of the 2010 Amateur Draft (25th overall), Arkansas' Zack Cox is a toolsy player with a high-end mix of baseball instincts and work ethic. He abandoned pitching to focus on hitting as a college freshman, and he hasn't looked back since. His bat speed is exceptional, and allowed him to turn on even the best heat in college ball while also letting him adjust to off-speed pitches with an ease seldom seen in NCAA.
More Scouting Book Info on Zack Cox
SB 183BA SC BP SN ES ML
A tall, thin pitcher being developed in the Padres system, Ohio native Matt Wisler looks every bit a future rotation anchor. In 23 A-ball starts last season, Wisler struck out almost exactly one batter per inning while walking barely more than one per game. That's exactly the sort of performance that the control-obsessed Padres love to see, and it should grant Wisler a promotion for 2013.
More Scouting Book Info on Matt Wisler
SB 184BA SC BP SN ES ML
A tall and thin righthander from Oakland, Joe Ross was the 25th overall draft selection in 2011, taken by the San Diego Padres. Reports on Ross are uniform in noting that his fastball and curve project to be major league average (that's good) while his change needs a great deal of work (that's bad, but not unusual for a youngster like Ross). Given the good pitching climate and coaching staff in the Padre system, Ross ranks a bit higher than he would elsewhere.
More Scouting Book Info on Joe Ross
SB 185BA SC BP SN ES 88ML
The Mets first round pick (13th overall) in 2011, outfielder Brandon Nimmo earned his high draft pick with superior tools and excellent projectability, thanks to his strong, mature physical frame. Nimmo slashed a respectable .248/.372/.406 in low-A ball, and should spend 2013 working up to higher A levels. He's still young, but in an offensively weak system, he could move quickly and land in New York before 2015.
More Scouting Book Info on Brandon Nimmo
SB 186BA SC BP SN ES ML
He's not overpowering and his stuff is only a bit above average, but lefty Sean Gilmartin is already exceeding expectations by pitching smarter and with more cunning than anyone in the Braves organization. A first round selection out of Florida State in 2011, his command and control looked good during his short time in Rome and even better in Fall league play, where his changeup looked more advanced than his experience would suggest. Can smarts and touch get him all the way to The Show? The organization that built an empire around Glavine and Maddux thinks so.
More Scouting Book Info on Sean Gilmartin
SB 187BA SC BP SN ES ML
The Dodgers' first round pick in 2007, righty Chris Withrow has been growing into a premium power arm, and that's exactly what the Dodgers are looking for. His fastball, the best in the Dodger system, still lives around 93 but can hit 98 on occasion and always comes in with good movement. His improving curve is a potential strikeout pitch, an 11-5 hammer that he's comfortable throwing in almost any count. A onetime middle-rotation candidate who's recently been seeing more action from the bullpen Withrow went 3-3, 4.65 at Chattanooga in his third full year of AA ball, but if he's really a reliever now, the important numbers are the ones that show he struck out more than a batter per inning. He should get a test in LA this season.
More Scouting Book Info on Chris Withrow
SB 188BA SC BP SN ES ML
A devasting lefthander who has struck out more than one batter per inning throughout his college career, Texan Matt Purke signed with the Nats after being drafted in 2011's third round. The man who went 16-0 as a college freshman is one of several Nats youngsters who could rise to dominate as a closer, though his lefthandedness should tempt the Nationals to at least explore using him in longer outings before committing him to a 9th inning future. Short action in 2012 showed the filthiness of Purke's stuff but also the risks inherent in banking on young pitchers: the youngster was shut down after only three starts due to shoulder problems that eventually required surgery. He'll be kid-gloved for the next little while, making him an easy-to-forget-about sleeper for 2015 or so.
More Scouting Book Info on Matt Purke
SB 189BA SC BP SN ES ML
A 14th round pick in the 2010 draft who was also coveted by the Red Sox a year earlier, Texas righthander Nick Tepesch is a big, strong, powerful pitcher who could sling his way into the Ranger roster sooner than some think. His AA debut season came mainly in the form of 14 starts, and he was capable enough with five and a half innings of work per week. But the Rangers have also tested him as a reliever, and that might be where his high-control fastball and wipeout slider combination will be most effective in the future. Watch closely.
More Scouting Book Info on Nick Tepesch
SB 190BA SC BP SN ES ML
Prospects
Top Prospects 2013
Combined Ranking
180 to 190 of 650 Prospects
