Here's the Dodgers' new top 30 prospects list
Juan Toribio
@juanctoribioThe Dodgers have the best record in the Majors and are on their way to a 10th consecutive postseason appearance. A big reason for their sustained success is their ability to develop quality prospects through the system.?
That¡¯s the case once again in 2022, as the Dodgers hold one of the best -- and deepest -- farm systems in baseball.?
Los Angeles¡¯ strong system is headlined by catcher Diego Cartaya, who continues to rake in the Minors and has ascended to Top 10 prospect status. Over the next couple years, Cartaya has a chance to establish himself as the top prospect in the sport.
Cartaya isn¡¯t alone, however: The Dodgers have seven prospects ranked in MLB Pipeline¡¯s new Top 100. Seven of the eight are ranked in the top 80.
Here¡¯s a look at the Dodgers¡¯ top prospects:
1. Diego Cartaya, C (MLB No. 9)
2. Bobby Miller, RHP (MLB No. 27)
3. Miguel Vargas, 3B/OF (MLB No. 44)
4. Michael Busch, 2B/OF (MLB No. 45)
5. Andy Pages, OF (MLB No. 69)
Complete Top 30 list ?
Biggest jump/fall
Here are the players whose ranks changed the most from the preseason list:
Jump: Gavin Stone, RHP (Preseason: 18 | Midseason: 7) -- Stone is well on his way to becoming the Dodgers¡¯ Minor League Pitcher of the Year. The right-hander has dominated at every level, posting a 1.56 ERA over 20 appearances (19 starts). Stone has also punched out 135 batters over 98 1/3 innings of work. He¡¯s getting called up to Triple-A Oklahoma City, making it very realistic that he helps the Dodgers at some point during the 2023 season.
Fall: Wilman Diaz, 2B/SS (Preseason: 10 | Midseason: 26) -- Diaz was the top prospect out of Venezuela in the 2020-21 international class, but the young middle infielder has not lived up to the hype. Diaz has a .420 OPS in 44 games with the ACL Dodgers.
Right-hander Andre Jackson and third baseman Kody Hoese also continued moving down the list. Jackson was ranked the No. 11 prospect in the system earlier this year, but is left off the list in the Midseason ranking. At 26, Jackson projects more as a reliever. Hoese, on the other hand, hasn¡¯t hit well at any level; he went from the No. 4 prospect in the system in ¡®21 to completely unranked.
**New to the list
**Here are the players added to the Top 30 from outside the organization:
No. 9, Dalton Rushing, C (Selected in the second round of 2022 Draft)
No. 18, Nick Frasso, RHP (Acquired from Blue Jays on Aug. 2 for RHP Mitch White)
No. 28 Logan Wagner, 3B (Selected in the sixth round of 2022 Draft)
Impact callup
Dodgers: Bobby Miller, RHP (No. 2/MLB No. 27)
Ryan Pepiot got the call to replace the injured Clayton Kershaw in the Dodgers rotation, but Miller also could provide rotation depth or be a multi-inning bullpen weapon. The 2020 first-rounder from Louisville has some of the best power stuff in the Minors: an upper-90s four-seam fastball, a heavy mid-90s two-seamer, a low-80s curveball, and a two-plane slider and a lively changeup (both in the mid-80s). His 4.84 ERA in Double-A belies his 108/29 K/BB ratio and .228 opponent average in 83 2/3 innings.
Best tools
Players are graded on a 20-80 scouting scale for future tools -- 20-30 is well below average, 40 is below average, 50 is average, 60 is above average and 70-80 is well above average. Players in parentheses have the same grade.
Hit: 60 -- Miguel Vargas (Jorbit Vivas)?
Power: 60 -- Andy Pages (Diego Cartaya)
Run: 60 -- James Outman (Wilman Diaz)
Arm: 70 -- Jose Ramos
Field: 60 -- Jacob Amaya (Wilman Diaz, James Outman)
Fastball: 70 -- Bobby Miller (Nick Frasso, Ryan Pepiot)
Curveball: 60 -- Maddux Bruns (Peter Heubeck)
Slider: 70 -- Carlos Duran
Changeup: 75 -- Ryan Pepiot
Control: 65 -- Landon Knack