PROSPECT: Ethan Salas, C, San Diego Padres
ANALYSIS: The top international signee this January, Ethan Salas received a $5.6 million bonus, an enormous amount in the modern international signing era. For reference, the Padres had just $5,285,500 in bonus pool money in the 2023 period, so the Padres invested a lot of money in Salas.
The rumors during spring training began to fly about his elite defense and potential power, with veteran Padre pitchers raving about his performance behind the plate. His arm was also on display in a handful of games, showing pop times that would be elite among MLB catchers.
Salas skipped straight over complex ball to full-season ball at 17 years old, but he's held his own, hitting .267/.350/.487 with nine home runs and 22 extra-base hits over 220 plate appearances. He's only caught half of his appearances thus far as the Padres attempt to ease him into a catcher's workload, but the raw tools are incredibly impressive.
VERDICT: It's rare to suggest a catching prospect lower than Triple-A should be rostered in all levels of dynasty, let alone a teenage catcher, but Salas is the type of unicorn that warrants that. If he's available in your dynasty league, he shouldn't be.
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