The speed has always been there for Turang, but he has looked as comfortable on the base paths as ever. Waldichuk was dealt to the As as part of the Frankie Montas return at the 2022 Trade Deadline. Carter is already a polished hitter with an advanced approach. A good athlete with big raw power that he has already tapped into in games, Pages has launched 57 homers in his last two seasons. His consistent splits left-on-left further solidify just how safe his bat is. The lost 2022 season is upsetting, but at 21 years old and already in Double-A, Espino was ahead of schedule. Standings. The son of MLB All-Star Matt Holliday and the No. After showing flashes of his ability at the complex last year, Wood made some small tweaks to get his lower half more involved and has started to tap into his elite raw power. The boxes are sold from the Topps Japan site for 18,480 (around $135), which is nearly double the 2021 box price. As Japans 12 clubs prepare to chase the pennant, here are six players from the Pacific League to keep an eye on. If Carter cleans up his routes he will easily project as a plus defender in centerfield. Priesters changeup lags behind the rest of his arsenal. De La Cruz absolutely flies. He has good feel for the change and it gives him another bat-missing pitch. Vientos numbers against lefties give him the floor of a platoon masher. Parada has worked hard on his defense, but still has some ways to go. Back to back seasons in the upper minors with gaudy strike out numbers and improving walk rates had Waldichuk continuing his ascent as a highly regarded pitching prospect after being a more under-the-radar guy as a fifth round pick in 2019. A new year, a new board and new ranks. PARALLEL CARDS: Gold #/25 (1:752), Red #/5 (1:3,705), Platinum 1/1 (1:18,029). While Matos will need to adjust his approach in order to have success at the upper levels, his impressive season was buoyed by fantastic bat-to-ball skills. He finished the season 11-6 overall, leading the Central League in ERA (1.82), complete games (10), shutouts (six), innings (148.2), strikeouts (148) and WHIP (0.87). Big time physical projection and a pretty good feel for the strike zone, Caissie has immense offensive upside, especially in the power department. An advanced feel to swing the bat and elite defensive potential have PCA making up for lost time this season. After taking over the closer role from veteran Yuito Mori, Moinelo never looked back, picking up eight holds and 24 saves. Shiomi was a big reason why the Swallows won the Japan Series last year, becoming the teams leadoff hitter with an impressive combination of power and speed. Lawlar very rarely looks sped up or fooled in the box and it always looks like he is in control of the at-bat. His fastball clocked in as the second-hottest among qualifiers, averaging around the mid-90s, and he complemented it with a deep arsenal, including, among other pitches, a promising splitter and cutter/slider. At its best, the curve should be a plus swing-and-miss pitch to both lefties and righties thanks to its vertical break. Unfortunately, things have not gone to plan for either Lewis or the Twins. The change has the ability to miss bats, however, it specializes in inducing soft contact. Merrill maneuvers the barrel really well with great plate coverage. He's got that dawg in him and will likely be the youngest infielder in AA early in 2022. Vargas should factor into the Dodgers 2023 plans and beyond with a skillset capable of replacing Justin Turners production if all goes right. The left-handed hitter widened his stance while getting more into his legs than his previous upright setup. The power/speed combo that Davis possesses along with a good feel to hit evoke some young Matt Kemp memories. Steer emerged in 2021 with a more athletic, lower-half driven stance and added a bit more of a leg kick to generate some more impact. Colas found more consistency with his swing as the season went on, driving the ball in the air more frequently while using the whole field. Plus power, athleticism and a patient approach gives Naylor exciting offensive upside. The 2022 Nippon Professional Baseball season is over, and while there wont be any games to watch during the off-season, that wont stop us from evaluating the best performers from this past year. He finished with a flourish that saw him take the pitching Triple Crown in the Pacific League with an 11-6 record, 2.16 ERA and 149 strikeouts. You just need to sign up for a Topps Japan account. Though the jump in ground ball rate is not quite ideal, Campusano uses the whole field and hits the ball hard enough to get away with it. Gassers solid stuff, natural deception and developing command have him looking like a potential No. The Rays very likely have another homegrown stud pitcher on their hands. A former two-way player at Duke, Mervis also played some third base when he was not pitching. Stats. An above-average arm is just the icing on the cake for a guy who should command the outfield as well as anyone in the business once he gets to the big leagues. January 17, 2023 . On top of that, 2022 Topps Baseball Japan Edition includes base Autographs for 42 subjects (including Ohtani), averaging 1:61 packs. Theres some effort in the delivery, but Leiters plus athleticism and ridiculous strong lower half helps. With the Buffaloes out of contention, the club opted to protect their star pitcher rather than running him out in a bid for either the ERA or strikeout title. Even in his banged up 2022, Matos stole 11 bases on 14 tries. Here is a list of a few names to watch in the coming years. The tendency to get a bit long and pull happy, will be something to monitor as he ascends to the upper minors, however his body control and solid chase rates give him a good chance to develop into an average hitter. However, some of the leading contenders for the title of best baseball player in Japan include Ichiro Suzuki, Shohei Ohtani, and Kenta Maeda. A great athlete, Cowsers lower half adjustability and impressive feel for the barrel help him put good swings on tough pitches and use the whole field. To put a ceiling on Perez would be ridiculous. In three years as a Mariner, he was 15-24 with a 4.97 ERA. A sweet left-handed swing with a ton of whip, Mayer hit the ball hard and can spray it all over. An aggressive hitter, Chourios 33% chase rate has limited his ability to take free passes, but thanks to how quick Chourio is to the ball, he rarely misses fastballs, mashing to an OPS over 1.100 against them. pic.twitter.com/Cm19SHZxDa. The best pitching prospect in baseball really does not have a weakness on the mound. Rafaela controls his body well and has steady numbers against breaking balls and off speed pitches. Walker will need to improve against spin and get more comfortable in the outfield, which is exactly why the Cardinals are sending him to the Arizona Fall League. Statcast Leaders Baseball Savant Top Prospect Stats. Free shipping . Burleson has enough strength to leave the yard to all fields when he really gets a hold of one, hitting a handful of opposite field home runs this season. Jung has had impressive bat-to-ball skills dating back to his days at Texas Tech, where he hit .348/.455/.577 over his three years as a Red Raider. With multiple shortstops at the big league level for the Orioles, Westburg has seen action at third base and second base this season. The pennant races are set to begin anew as NPB prepares to kick off another season. Colas is an aggressive hitter, which stifled his walk rates, but he rarely misses mistakes and feasted by ambushing fastballs. But as Yamakawa dealt with various injuries and lost protection in the lineup with the departures of players like Hideto Asamura and Shogo Akiyama, his production also took a hit, reducing him to just 24 homers each in 2020 and 2021. His two breaking balls had the tendency to blend together earlier in his career, but he has focused on distinguishing the two offerings. For another, his build is the most prototypical of the pitchers included in this piece, at 6-foot-2 and 211 pounds. Still extremely talented and young, theres plenty of reason to believe that Matos can bounce back in 2022. Simply put, Murakami had arguably the greatest NPB season of all-time. Suzuki is still a couple of years away from domestic free agency and without being posted, as Kenta Maeda was in 2015, he would have to wait until at least 2023 to move to MLB. He could probably benefit from getting the ball in the air a bit more (47% GB rate), though Hendersons ability to hit the ball hard to all fields and above average speed should have him routinely above average in the BABIP department. After a breakout 2021, injuries and a back surgery in May stifled Davis momentum in the early going of 2022. This allows him to keep his weight back and spray the ball all over the field. Netos athleticism is evident at shortstop where he has solid range with a knack for the highlight reel play. An elite athlete, Carroll controls his body exceptionally well, staying in his back hip and using the whole field well. 40 home runs wouldnt be out of the question at Coors Field, but he will also split the gaps and run wild. Lacking some of the tools to dream on, Turang slipped to the back end of the first round in 2018s MLB Draft. If Ford struggles behind the dish like many of his high school catching predecessors, he has a really exciting bat and plus speed to fall back on. Arroyo is a natural up the middle, with clean actions, impressive footwork and a rocket for an arm. Height/Weight: 60, 195|Bat/Throw: R/R|1st Round (3), 2020 (MIA)|ETA: 2022. Priester may not consistently be a huge strikeout pitcher, though when he is on, he can accumulate Ks in bunches. On top of that, 2022 Topps Baseball Japan Edition includes base Autographs for 42 subjects (including Ohtani), averaging 1:61 packs. Most Japanese players who have done well in the majors have been pitchers, albeit with three very notable exceptions in Ohtani, Ichiro Suzuki, and Hideki Matsui. A high-floor offensive profile along with plus speed and a solid above-average glove, that can play all over the diamond, McLain is yet another safe prospect in this Reds system who you fans can still hope for fringe All Star upside. Another Brewers prospect with game-changing speed, Frelick covers a ton of ground in center and has continued to improve his reads and routes with more experience out there. An above average runner, Neto should provide some value on the base paths and mix in a handful of stolen bases. As we continue to see with this new generation of catchers, athleticism can really help set prospects apart behind the dish; especially high school catchers. Can Seiya Suzuki build success in the major leagues into his already sparkling resume from nine years in Japans Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB)? His footwork can get a bit sloppy, as can his actions, which has led some evaluators to speculate a potential move to third base. The power is closer to average than above average for Ruiz, but he hits a ton of line drives and generates some impressive carry to his pull side. It's easy to get caught up in what Yamakawa doesn't provide. Nice cards good corners low price no combine shipping . He has rarely needed to use the pitch in the lower levels, but continues to use it more frequently as faces stiffer competition. His reads are already at least big league average and the combination of his speed and efficient routes make it seem like he can get to any baseball. Theres much more potential for Herrera offensively and still plenty of time to get there. With George Valera, it is really about the bat. The Dodgers are hoping Pages can develop into a fringe-average hitter with big power and if he can make some swing tweaks, theres a chance he can get there. Does a great job of hunting pitches he can do damage with early in counts before relying on his natural feel to hit and ability to spray the ball all over when he has two strikes. An extremely fundamentally sound third baseman, Jung may not wow with the range, but only made three errors in his final 77 games at the hot corner in the minors. Id be lying to you if I said I expected above average exit velocities from Merrill in year one, however his max exit velocity of 110 mph and 90th percentile EV of 104 mph with still plenty of room to fill out has Merrill looking like he could tap into even more juice. The Mets likely have their third baseman for 2023 and beyond in Baty. He got it as high as 98 during a Premier12 game last winter. McLain is a line drive hitter who splits the gaps and can tap into above-average pop to his pull side. If Carter had more buzz around him in the 2020 Draft, Carter would probably be one of baseballs most discussed prospects. Ruiz has seen his chase rates drop by more than 5% while hitting significantly better against breaking balls. After operating more in the upper 80s with his slider last season, Brown tweaked the slider to sit in the low 90s with sharper bite. Theres no minor league pitcher with bag of pitches as deep and as nasty as G-Rod. 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