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Recently at RotoBaller, we began rolling out our Top 10 fantasy baseball prospects lists for every organization in baseball. We began with a look at the NL West/AL West clubs, which were followed by rankings for the NL Central/AL Central teams. We reviewed the NL East clubs on Wednesday and finish up our rankings bonanza with the AL East teams today.
Ranking prospects over the past year hasn’t been easy. However, with a good portion of the minor league season now behind us, we’re starting to get a good handle on which prospects thrived during the unusual 2020 season and which prospects were hindered by it. From early observations, there is a bigger gap than ever between the top prospects and the average or borderline prospects — likely because the top prospects had opportunities to spend time at the alternate training sites and likely had access to better equipment, etc. The less-fortunate prospects were nowhere near as lucky and were left to their own devices.
To be eligible for the list, prospects must have fewer than 130 at-bats or 50 innings pitched at the MLB level. I have also removed a few players that are closing in on those totals. Players selected in the 2021 amateur draft have not been included. They will be added in during our offseason update.
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Baltimore Orioles
1. Adley Rutschman, C
2. Grayson Rodriguez, SP
3. Gunnar Henderson, SS
4. DL Hall, SP
5. Heston Kjerstad, OF
6. Michael Baumann, SP
7. Jordan Westburg, SS
8. Hudson Haskin, OF
9. Kyle Bradish, SP
10. Coby Mayo, 3B
Notes: Rutschman has been very good this year. He started out in Double-A and was on fire for a while before slowing down a bit during the summer and looking tired. A move up to Triple-A appears to have revitalized him. He has a chance to open the 2022 season as the Orioles’ starting catcher, although they may hold him back for a bit due to service time concerns. Rodriguez is one of the best pitching prospects in the minors and people are finally starting to talk about him, which is great to see. He has top-of-the-rotation upside. Henderson gives the Orioles a third above-average prospect. Hall has potential, as well, but I worry durability issues could push him to the ‘pen or limit him to a future No. 3/4 starter role. The list falls off here but Westburg and Haskin have a chance to develop into solid big leaguers. Mayo is raw but he has high upside that he’s just starting to tap into in Rookie ball.
Boston Red Sox
1. Jarren Duran, OF
2. Triston Casas, 1B
3. Jeter Downs, IF
4. Tanner Houck, SP
5. Brayan Bello, SP
6. Nick Yorke, 2B
7. Bryan Mata, SP
8. Blaze Jordan, 3B
9. Jay Groome, SP
10. Gilberto Jimenez, OF
Notes: Boston has been hindered by a weak minor league system for some time now but the organization is starting to show signs of turning things around. The top of the list features two potential impact bats in Duran and Casas. Both have a chance to hit for power and average, while the former also has plus speed. Downs has shown two intriguing tools with his power and speed but his feel for hitting has taken a hit this year at Triple-A. It’s been so bad that you almost have to wonder if he’s trying to play through an injury or dealing with another concern. The Sox may have also struck gold with Yorke and Jordan — two prep prospects that were drafted despite some question marks about their potential. Yorke has looked excellent in A-ball while Jordan has flashed moments of brilliance in Rookie ball. Groome comes with a lot of baggage and durability concerns but he’s struck out 92 batters in just 64 2/3 innings this year (albeit with a 5.15 ERA). I think his future is probably in the bullpen. Houck, Bello, and the injured Mata give the Sox three pitchers with at least mid-rotation upside.
New York Yankees
1. Jasson Dominguez, OF
2. Oswald Peraza, SS
3. Anthony Volpe, SS
4. Austin Wells, C
5. Luis Gil, SP
6. Luis Medina, SP
7. Deivi Garcia, SP
8. Clarke Schmidt, SP
9. Estevan Florial, OF
10. Yoendrys Gomez, SP
Notes: The Yankees have an otherworldly ability to find and accumulate talent. The club paid a large price in terms of the number of assets they gave up while acquiring Joey Gallo and Anthony Rizzo. The Rangers took quantity over quality (although they still got intriguing prospects) while the Cubs did an excellent job turning Rizzo’s expiring contract into two high-ceiling players. When the dust settled, the Yankees were still left with one of the deeper systems around. Dominguez hasn’t been electric but he’s more than held his own despite being one of the youngest players in A-ball. Peraza and Volpe are two exciting middle infield prospects leftover after the club traded away three others. I won't be shocked if I ended up ranking Volpe as the No. 1 prospect in the system in 2022. I had him as the 15th-best talent in the 2019 draft and he was a steal as the 30th-overall pick. The list has a collection of intriguing arms with Gil and Medina possessing the highest ceilings — although the latter has significant reliever risk. Garcia and Schmidt have No. 3/4 starter upsides. Sleeper: Alexander Vargas
Tampa Bay Rays
1. Shane Baz, SP
2. Vidal Brujan, IF/OF
3. Luis Patino, SP
4. Josh Lowe, OF
5. Xavier Edwards, 2B
6. Taj Bradley, SP
7. Greg Jones, SS
8. Carlos Colmenarez, SS
9. Cole Wilcox, SP
10. Curtis Mead, 1B/3B
Notes: The mighty Rays system is starting to show some signs of weakness now that so many prospects have graduated in the past few years. Some trades have helped keep the system fairly robust but modest drafting results haven’t done the organization any favors (they haven’t benefited nearly as well as they should have from multiple first-round and supplemental-round picks). Brujan, Lowe, and Edwards should all be solid big league regulars but I’m not sure any of them have star potential. Baz and Patino both have high ceilings on the mound if everything clicks for them. Both are still just scratching the surface on what they can do on the mound. Bradley caught my eye in 2019 and came back from the lost 2020 season looking even better. Wilcox was looking good before getting shelved with an elbow injury. The Rays already lost promising young hurler Nick Bitsko to labrum surgery, which is an even more worrisome issue than the potential Tommy John surgery that Wilcox may face. I’m not quite sure what to make of Jones, who showed up in 2021 with unexpected power to go with his plus speed. However, the power has quieted down a bit and he’s swinging and missing more than I’d like to see — especially for a speedster. Colmenarez hasn’t played yet this year due to a hamate injury. Sleeper: Heriberto Hernandez
Toronto Blue Jays
1. Orelvis Martinez, SS/3B
2. Gabriel Moreno, C
3. Nate Pearson, SP
4. Alejandro Kirk, C
5. Jordan Groshans, SS/3B
6. Miguel Hiraldo, 2B/3B
7. Otto Lopez, IF/OF
8. Estiven Machado, SS
9. Kevin Smith, SS/3B
10. Leo Jimenez, SS/2B
Notes: The Jays are another organization that is starting to see the talent pipeline dry up a bit. The biggest issue with the organization is that they’ve not done well at developing pitching in recent years, with the exception of Alek Manoah and maybe Pearson (who hasn’t been able to stay healthy). Martinez has been a great story for the Jays this year and he has the potential to develop into a star player if the club can handle him properly. Groshans has slid a bit for me because of his foot and back injuries — both of which have chances to linger and prevent him from reaching his high ceiling. Moreno looked outstanding before suffering a broken hand by an errant pitch. Kirk has shown a very good approach at the plate and promising raw power — although he hasn’t been able to get regular playing time and missed significant time earlier in the year due to injury. Smith lost almost all of prospect value after a rough 2019 season but he worked hard during the lost 2020 season and came back looking excellent. He has a chance to be a solid big league regular. Sleeper: Amell Brazoban
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