Nico Hoerner, Brennen Davis, Brailyn Marquez Make Another Top 100 List
Cubs Have 5 More in Top 175 First Year Prospects
We’ve been keeping you updated on all the prospect rankings that have dropped over the past few weeks, the latest two of which come via Prospects Live. One is the top 175 first-year prospects for 2020, the other features their top 100 overall. Let’s first take a look at the top 100, which came out Monday morning.
Nico Hoerner came in at No. 48, Brennen Davis was No. 62, and Brailyn Marquez was third at No. 77. According to a subsequent tweet from PL, Miguel Amaya fell just short at 103. Seeing Amaya fail to make the main list was a little odd, especially since he the same service had ranked him as the top Cubs prospect a month ago. However, that list was the work of just one writer and this latest was compiled by several.
Outside of Amaya’s drop, there’s nothing out of the ordinary here. Seeing Cubs prospects all over these lists has become standard since the end of the 2019 season, now it’s a matter of seeing more of them and getting those rankings lower. Or higher.
The Top 175 list of first-year players comprised of players taken in last year’s draft and signed as international free agents. The good news is that the Cubs placed five prospects on the list. The bad news is that it’s still going to be a while before we get to see three of them playing for full-season affiliates.
Shortstop Kevin Made and catchers Ronnier Quintero and Ethan Hearn are all still teenagers and should spend a good deal of time at extended spring training. Hearn could and should make it to Eugene in June to play short-season ball, but the other two may have to wait for next year before leaving Mesa.
The other two players, Chase Strumpf and Ryan Jensen, could skip South Bend and make their full-season debuts at Myrtle Beach.
While it wasn’t surprising to see any of these five making the cut, it was quite a shock that neither Strumpf nor Jensen was the highest-ranked of the group. That honor fell to Made, who drew praise for his bat and projectability.
A talented hitter with a ton of projection in his frame. What Made lacks in actual size he makes up for with bat speed and hand eye coordination. He shows above average raw power at present with the type of build that 15 to 20 pounds of muscle could push into plus territory. My favorite Cubs signing of a top heavy class for Chicago.
You might think the Cubs should have more players in the top 175 just based on the math, but this list was more about projections and ceilings. There’s a lot of volatility when you’re talking about a group of players made up largely of teens and those who’ve logged zero professional experience in the US. As such, it’s hard to take this as a definitive ranking just yet.
