The first day of the MLB draft is finally done! We hope you enjoyed our Day One live stream yesterday, it was a ton of fun and thanks to all who watched and participated. Before diving in, remember we have our Draft Headquarters with information and links to everything and everyone in this draft class.
This class has long been known to be very deep, with a ton of strong quality players across the first round and beyond. But were there any standouts that now reign supreme over their organization’s prospect charts?
I’ve broken these down into “Definite New Top Prospect” and “Maybe New Top Prospect?”. If a team is not listed, then their draft pick (for example Emerson Hancock in Seattle) was certainly not good enough to be in the conversation for top pick. And because I know y’all are dynasty addicts like me, I’ve dropped a line where necessary.
Definite New Top Prospect
Toronto Blue Jays - Austin Martin, SS
The stunners at 2 and 3 left Martin to drop to the Blue Jays as it seems GM Ross Atkins had been putting out some real good vibes into the world and he got rewarded. Martin’s high floor but strong upside eclipse Nate Pearson’s high risk/reward profile here. A chance at a plus hit tool, instincts and above average pop give Martin the foundation to lead the charge in this org until he debuts.
Fantasy Point of View: Pearson makes it a closer battle in the fantasy world because of how close he is to the majors, but Martin gets the edge. I like how the bat has a chance to have no gaps in it.
Milwaukee Brewers - Garrett Mitchell, OF
Mitchell is an 80-grade runner who has an average hit tool but needs a swing change to get to his pop. We think Milwaukee can do that, especially because he’s such an athlete and those tend to take well to mechanical changes. But really, this is just about being the best by default. The Brewers have the worst system in baseball and eclipsing Brice Turang isn’t hard to do.
Fantasy Point of View: Even more so Mitchell when viewed in this lens, he might be their only top 100 fantasy prospect.
Maybe New Top Prospect?
Detroit Tigers - Spencer Torkelson, 1B
It speaks to the Tigers’ elite depth at the top that even with the uncontested top talent of the draft now in their farm system, it’s not a slam dunk that Torkelson is the best prospect. In our Prospects Live Discord Staff channel, there was talks of Matt Manning being the top dog, then Tork, then Casey Mize. Some felt Mize over Tork by a hair. Given Tork’s positional limitations and the pitchers’ strong performance at the upper level of the minors, it makes sense why he doesn’t take home the No.1 label. Good problem for Tigers fans to have.
Fantasy Point of View:: In dynasty leagues, Torkelson is easily the best prospect in the system. Often equated to Andrew Vaughn (whom I view as a top 10 fantasy prospect), Torkelson has the power, patience and statline sparkle that make me drool.
Miami Marlins - Max Meyer, RHP
Not unlike Tigers fans, Marlins fans got to feel pretty good knowing that the third overall pick of the draft might not be good enough to top the org farm. The top five of the Marlins system has been ranked in different ways according to different preferences. Do you value superstar upside? Jazz Chisholm could be the best. Do you value preternatural talent? Sixto Sanchez could be the guy. A strong floor and upside combo? Max Meyer enters the picture with arguably the best 1-2 punch in the draft with an elite fastball and wipeout slider that routinely cracks 90 mph. His changeup is hovering at average and is the key to maximizing the potential to rocket as an SP2.
Fantasy Point of View: Bats over arms, guys and gals. JJ Bleday still takes the top fantasy spot here, likely followed by Chisholm and then potentially Meyer or Sixto.
Kansas City Royals - Asa Lacy, LHP
The stunner picks at 2 and 3 let both Lacy and Martin drop out of their expected top three. This one is really close as Bobby Witt Jr’s upside with the bat and tools are tantalizing, along with his skill position. Lacy’s higher floor but strong ceiling make him a worthy challenger though. With a four-pitch arsenal led by a plus fastball and change that both generate whiffs, Lacy has what it takes to ascend the ranks as a power lefty. If he’s not 1, he’s most certainly at least 2.
Fantasy Point of View: A tough choice here. Leaning Witt because bats over arms in dynasty and we need to see how real Lacy’s four-game stint was in the spring.
Cincinnati Reds - Austin Hendrick, OF
In our player breakdown, we mentioned the Reds were a landing spot for Hendrick, someone whose mix of upside and park could produce some really fun results. Well that reality is here and it’s got us wondering how high Hendrick should rank. Jose Garcia, Nick Lodolo and Hunter Greene were our top three Reds prospects in our Top 30. That’s not an easy group to crack but with a thunderous bat, elite bat speed and elite exit velo, we’re talking about someone who can be a perennial 30+ home run hitter with a strong OBP. That’s a really enticing profile. But Garcia’s defense, Lodolo’s high floor and Greene’s drool-worthy upside present different tastes.
Fantasy Point of View: Again, this is really tough as it comes down to Garcia and Hendrick for me in fantasy, but I’m leaning Hendrick as the new top fantasy prospect because of the potential plate production, hit tool be damned.
Philadelphia Phillies - Mick Abel, RHP
I nearly didn’t include this one, but on our MLB Draft Day stream both Matt Thompson and Alex Jensen said they’d take Abel over Spencer Howard and Alec Bohm. I’m the biggest Bohm stan on the site so that’s blasphemy (not to mention Howard’s ascent in 2019), but in the spirit of discourse, I put Abel here. He’s a rare safe prep righty with SP2 upside thanks to a plus fastball and slider, and if everything breaks right, SP1 is not out of the question. So the upside will allow him to potentially be the top dog in Philly, but more likely than not that happens because the other two lost their eligibility.
Fantasy Point of View: It’s still Alec Bohm here for me and it’s not close.
**Colorado Rockies - Zac Veen, OF
I put the Rockies here with an asterisk because Brendan Rodgers should still be the uncontested top prospect, but he has 54 at-bats to go before exhausting eligibility. When he does, though, Veen is primed to take the top spot. The top prep player in the draft, this is an extremely fun landing spot for someone who can barrel balls very well, has 98th percentile exit velo, and a 6-foot-4 frame to grow into with some speed.
Fantasy Point of View: Oh baby, I’ve got stars in my eyes. I’d put Veen above Rodgers right now in dynasty leagues. And maybe that’s too much of a reactive take, but the power/speed combo is really, really tantalizing.
I expected to have more than two slam dunk prospects (if you omit Rodgers I guess you can count Veen as a third), but it goes to show that while this class is deep, it lacks some of the elite talents we’ve come to expect.