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Last week, I took a look into some no-brainer prospects. Byron Buxton, Julio Urias and Tyler Glasnow are three of the best prospects in baseball, and I touched on what they were doing in the minors and what can be expected from them the rest of the season.
This week, I'll take a look at some more highly-regarded prospects, but certainly not one's with the pedigree or fanfare like the trio from last week.
Editors Note: Check out all of RotoBaller's MLB prospects analysis here. You can also head over to the prospect rankings dashboard. Our Rankings Assistant is a handy free tool where you can find team-specific prospect breakdowns, tiered positional rankings, 500+ player outlooks, dynasty ranks and more - all in one easy place.
Top MLB Prospects & Their Fantasy Baseball Outlooks
Ozhaino Albies, SS, Atlanta Braves
The Braves are fast-tracking the 19-year-old shortstop faster than anyone ever predicted. Ozhaino Albies had not played above A-ball coming into this season, but a .369/.442/.512 22-game stretch in AA to start this season has seen him catapult his way up to AAA. His 15-game stretch in AAA has been a struggle, but it's crazy that he's already at that level. He's hitting .218/.271/.345 as of Sunday, and has added a home run in 55 at-bats. The youngster had just one career minor-league home run coming into 2016, but has hit two this year. He has a career slash-line of .324/.392/.423 with 54 stolen bases in two-plus seasons.
I didn't think Albies would be fantasy-relevant for another season or two at least, but he's definitely climbing fast. It seems like he could get a September call-up this season, and a chance at a starting job next year. For now, you can monitor his progress- and if the Braves get desperate- they might call him up sooner. You'll be lucky to get a handful of home runs from Albies, but you can book a high batting average, on base percentage and stolen bases from the switch-hitter.
Willson Contreras, C, Chicago Cubs
AAA pitchers can't do anything to slow down 24-year-old Willson Contreras. The catcher of the future for the Cubs appears ready and destined to make an impact this season. The Cubs have an abundance of riches in the minor leagues, and Contreras just might be the best of the bunch. Contreras hit .333/.413/.478 last year in AA, with eight HR, 75 RBI and a 57/62 BB/K ratio. He has feasted off of AAA pitching this season, hitting .339/.436/.509 as of Sunday, with three HR and a 17/14 BB/K ratio.
Contreras likely won't be a big-bopper, but he has double-digit home run potential, with the ability to hit .290-plus at baseball's highest level. The Cubs currently seem committed to a Miguel Montero/David Ross tandem behind the dish, but Contreras will force their hand if he continues to hit. Expect him to get a call within the next two months, and be able to contribute almost immediately.
A.J. Reed erupted on to the scene last year. The 2014 second-round pick clobbered 34 HR and 127 RBI with a .340 batting average in 2015. The hulking first baseman hasn't had the same success in his first taste of AAA baseball, hitting .229/.333/.457 with 6 HR in 105 at-bats. It was thought that Reed would be up very early this season, but his lack of success and a recent hamstring injury that has landed him on the seven-day DL has set him back a bit.
Reed should still be called-up by the struggling Astros this season, but it likely won't be as soon as originally thought. A lot of the luster has faded from the beginning of this season, but Reed still has big-time power. I wouldn't expect much from the 23-year-old this season, but look for him to make a splash in 2016.
Blake Snell, LHP, Tampa Bay Rays
Tampa Bay fans got their first look at Blake Snell when he made his major-league debut in a spot-start at Yankee Stadium on April 23rd. Snell used a 94-MPH fastball with a curveball, slider, changeup combination to carve through the Yankees for five innings of two hit, one walk and one run with six strikeouts.
Since being sent back down to AAA, the left-hander has experienced struggles for the first time in two years. In 20.2 innings since going back down, he's given up 19 hits, 10 walks and 12 earned runs. He's still managed to strike out 26 batters in that time. Despite the recent struggles, he's still in line to be a front-of-the rotation starter for the Rays; maybe as soon as later this year. Look for the Rays to try and deal anyone not named Chris Archer to make room for the 23-year-old Snell to operate in a big-league rotation. You can expect Snell to get called up again by about July. Look for him to instantly become one of the best left-handed pitchers in the American League. He's got big-time stuff and big-time potential.
Jameson Taillon, RHP, Pittsburgh Pirates
From the time he was the second-overall pick in the 2010 draft, there were high expectations for Jameson Taillon. Injuries have derailed his professional career and they have limited him to 425.1 innings in this his seventh year in the minors. In fact, Taillon missed all of 2014 and 2015 due to injuries.
The time off might have done the 24-year-old some good. Taillon has dominated AAA this season, pitching 43.1 innings and registering a 2.08 ERA and 0.81 WHIP. He had a career-high 11 strikeouts on Saturday, and has a 43/5 K/BB ratio. The 6'5" Taillon may have even moved ahead of Tyler Glasnow in the line of pitchers to be called-up next by the Pirates. He seems to be more poised and attacks the strike zone more than Glasnow. It's still a bit difficult to predict what the Pirates will get from Taillon when they call him up this year, because he has not been able to maintain a strikeout-rate, ERA or WHIP as good as the ones he has right now. Regardless of his past, he has a great deal of potential and he has a chance to be a good fantasy asset as long as he can remain healthy. Expect Taillon to be able to rack up some quality starts but don't expect the type of dominance he has been exhibiting in AAA this year. That time could come, but it likely won't be in 2015.
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