2021 Top 100 Prospects

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Baseball is back and I am more thankful than ever to be able to get lost in the game I love! After a very weird year thanks to COVID, everything is back on schedule (except for the AAA season which has been delayed at least a month) and we are hopefully going to be able to enjoy a full MLB season. While I was happy we at least were able to watch an abbreviated season last year, one of the worst parts was the limited minor league news and stats we got to see. It has been fun getting to see the reports from the Alt. Camp and seeing how some of the games best fared when they went up against tougher competition, but it did make it hard to follow some of the progress these players were making. I have been putting in my research, reviewing news and notes throughout the year, watching video, and reading some of the other great content out there and has led me to compile my list of the top prospects in baseball.

This year I decided to expand my list from 50 prospects to 100, but in exchange I won’t have much reasoning for my ranks this year in this story. I hope this will open discussion and that some of you will reach out in the comments or on Twitter (@BoSoxRox13) to have a dialogue about a lot of these guys. I would love to hear everyone’s thoughts on the list and what they think I got right, or what they think I got wrong. The best part of these lists is that they can be formulated in many different ways and no one is “right” or “wrong,” but we can compile very different perspectives that gives us a wider outlook at what we expect from these players.

What I take into consideration when making my list:

1. Ability- My list is all about who I think has the best talent and skills. In other words I will generally rank players based on their “ceilings” and less on their “floors.” When I look at lists, I often find myself just wanting to find the guys that if everything clicks for them will be the next superstars of the league. I am not necessarily concerned by how far away they are from the bigs.
2. General Makeup- When watching video of players I look for are there certain aspects of their stances that I like, or do they have a pitch mix that has shown success in the majors. There are many qualities I look for in players and if they are displayed in performances that player will get a boost in my ranks. I also like to follow many of these players on social media, and getting to see some of their training videos or things they post helps me understand their perspectives and mentality towards the game.
3. Team- What system a player is being brought up in plays a big factor in their development. Teams like Tampa or Cleveland have shown the ability to make the most out of their pitching prospects, where as teams like Pittsburgh have had a history of struggling with evaluation and development.
4. Eye Test- I am not a big believer in advanced analytics. I think they are useful and should be utilized, but I often feel they are overused and act as a crutch in arguments about players. If a player hasn’t had success for a few years and has shown no promise, pretty soon their ability to have great analytics needs to be questioned. I trust what I see and sometimes the numbers just can’t explain that.

Things I don’t weigh heavily in my ranks:

1. Defense- While this can play a factor in some of my decisions, it is a very small factor. Defense’s value to me in fantasy is only that it will help a player stay on the field and get a longer leash, other than that it has no value in fantasy.

2021 Top 100 Prospects

1. Jarred Kelenic OF SEA 21
2. Julio Rodriguez OF SEA 20
3. Spencer Torkelson 1B DET 21
4. Wander Franco SS TB 20
5. Bobby Witt Jr. SS KC 20
6. Marco Luciano SS SF 19
7. Noelvi Marte SS SEA 19
8. Mackenzie Gore P SD 22
9. CJ Abrams SS SD 20
10. Jasson Dominguez OF NYY 18
11. Sixto Sanchez P MIA 22
12. Alex Kirilloff OF MIN 23
13. Riley Greene OF DET 20
14. Max Meyer P MIA 22
15. Matt Manning P DET 23
16. Adley Rutschman C BAL 23
17. Triston Casas 1B BOS 21
18. Austin Martin SS TOR 22
19. Andrew Vaughn 1B/DH CWS 22
20. Corbin Carroll OF ARI 20
21. Jeter Downs SS BOS 22
22. Drew Waters OF ATL 22
23. Luis Patino P SD 21
24. Nate Pearson P TOR 24
25. Trevor Larnach OF MIN 24
26. Tarik Skubal P DET 24
27. Jordan Groshans SS TOR 21
28. Asa Lacy P KC 21
29. Logan Gilbert P SEA 23
30. Zac Veen OF COL 19
31. Kristian Robinson OF ARI 20
32. Dylan Carlson OF STL 22
33. Alek Thomas OF ARI 20
34. George Kirby P SEA 23
35. Brennen Davis OF CHC 21
36. Pete Crow-Armstrong OF NYM 18
37. Casey Mize P DET 23
38. Daniel Lynch P KC 24
39. Joey Bart C SF 24
40. JJ Bleday OF MIA 23
41. Ian Anderson P ATL 22
42. Spencer Howard P PHI 24
43. Michael Kopech P CHW 24
44. Emerson Hancock P SEA 21
45. Nick Gonzales SS PIT 21
46. Royce Lewis SS MIN 21
47. Robert Pauson SS OAK 18
48. Vidal Brujan 2B TB 23
49. Edward Cabrera P MIA 22
50. George Valara OF CLE 20
51. Brailyn Marquez P CHC 22
52. Orelvis Martinez SS TOR 19
53. Erick Pena OF KC 18
54. Randy Arozarena OF TB 26
55. Ha-Seong Kim SS SD 25
56. Grayson Rodriguez P BAL 21
57. Mick Abel P PHI 19
58. Robert Hassell OF SD 19
59. Austin Hendrick OF CIN 19
60. Josiah Gray P LAD 23
61. Brandon Marsh OF LAA 23
62. Garrett Mitchell OF MIL 22
63. Ke’Bryan Hayes 3B PIT 24
64. Nolan Gorman 3B/2B? STL 20
65. Jordyn Adams OF LAA 21
66. Nick Lodolo P CIN 23
67. Hunter Greene P CIN 21
68. Maximo Acosta SS TEX 18
69. Wilman Diaz SS LAD 17
70. Nolan Jones 3B CLE 22
71. Hedbert Perez OF MIL 17
72. Carlos Colmenarez SS TB 17
73. Luis Matos OF SF 19
74. Brayan Rocchio SS CLE 20
75. Xavier Edwards SS TB 21
76. Simeon Woods-Richardson P TOR 20
77. Daniel Espino P CLE 20
78. Francisco Alvarez C NYM 19
79. Bobby Dalbec 1B/DH BOS 25
80. Geraldo Perdomo SS ARI 21
81. Josh Jung 3B TEX 23
82. Cristian Pache OF ATL 22
83. Clarke Schmidt P NYY 25
84. Jazz Chisholm SS MIA 23
85. Alek Manoah P TOR 23
86. Kody Hoese 3B LAD 23
87. DL Hall P BAL 22
88. Michael Toglia 1B COL 22
89. Oneil Cruz SS PIT 22
90. Nick Bitsko P TB 18
91. Cristrian Hernandez SS CHC 17
92. Ethan Hankins P CLE 20
93. Aaron Bracho 2B CLE 19
94. Hudson Head OF PIT 19
95. Garrett Crochet P CWS 21
96. Blake Walston P ARI 19
97. Jesus Sanchez OF MIA 23
98. Tahnaj Thomas P PIT 21
99. Heston Kjerstad OF BAL 22
100. Quinn Priester P PIT 20

Think I have a guy to low? Think I am way to high on someone? Have general comments about my ranks? I’d love to hear from you. Feel free to comment on my article and let me know. You can also feel free to message me on Twitter (@BoSoxRox13) and leave your comments there. Also be on the lookout for my “Justifying my Top 100” series where I will breakdown my ranks and why I have some of the players where I do.