Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
About three weeks ago, the 2023 Dodgers Digest Midseason Top 55 Prospects list was published just in time for the upcoming trade deadline. Well, there’s obviously been some movement since then, so updates have been made.
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Graduations
Emmet Sheehan – #6
Jonny Deluca – #19
Traded
Nick Nastrini – #9 – Traded To White Sox
Eddys Leonard – #31 – Traded To Tigers
Maximo Martinez – #35 – Traded To White Sox
Devin Mann – #41 – Traded To Royals
Additions
Hyun-Seok Jang – #16 (New) – International Free Agent Signing
Hunter Feduccia – #28 (Not Ranked)
Gus Varland – #29 (New) – Returned From Brewers
Alec Gamboa – #33 (NR)
Alexander Albertus – #53 (Honorable Mention)
Elias Medina – #55 (HM)
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While the rankings of all the players are listed, those whose reports remained the same were omitted to avoid repetitiveness. Additionally, movement in the rankings is noted.
Anyway, here’s a look at the updated 55 best prospects heading towards the conclusion of 2023.
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Note: Only players who have not exceeded rookie eligibility are included on this list. I have also assigned Future Value grades and the level of risk for each prospect.
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1. C Diego Cartaya, 21, AA (-)
2. C/1B Dalton Rushing, 22, A+ (-)
3. OF Josue De Paula, 18, A (-)
4. 3B/2B/DH Michael Busch, 25, AAA (-)
5. OF Andy Pages, 22, AAA (-)
6. RHP Gavin Stone, 24, AAA (+1)
7. RHP Nick Frasso, 24, AA (+1)
8. LHP Maddux Bruns, 21, A+ (+2)
9. RHP River Ryan, 24, AA (+2)
10. SS/3B Joendry Vargas, 17, R (+2)
11. RHP Ryan Pepiot, 25, AAA (+2)
12. RHP Landon Knack, 26, AAA (+2)
13. RHP Kyle Hurt, 25, AAA (+4)
45 FV / High Risk
14. LHP Ronan Kopp, 21, A+ (+1)
15. 2B Jorbit Vivas, 22, AA (+1)
16. RHP Hyun-Seok Jang, 19, R (New)
40+ FV / Very High Risk
As their final act for the 2023 IFA class, the Dodgers managed to sign South Korean phenom Hyun-Seok Jang just before he would have needed to declare for the KBO Draft. Jang flashed a large arsenal of premium stuff as a high schooler and was projected to be the first overall pick had he chosen the KBO.
At just 19 years old, Jang already has a physical build, officially listed at 6-foot-2, 185 pounds. His fastball has reached the 97-98 mph range and he features multiple intriguing secondary pitches. Jang attacks hitters with a bendy curveball that sits in the high 70s, a sweeper in the low 80s and a changeup that has some nasty fading action.
Since Jang is only 19 (and has the added risk of being a high school arm), he shouldn’t be expected to reach the majors for at least a few years. With 2024 being his first full pro season, the most likely timeline probably has Jang debuting in late 2026 or even 2027 if everything goes according to plan. His stuff is good enough that he could dominate the minors to speed up his path to the big leagues, but it is impossible to assume that for any teenage pitching prospect. However, if Jang dominates out of the gates next year, he will fly up prospect boards right away.
Per @DanielKimW, the #Dodgers are “on the verge” of signing top Korean RHP prospect Hyun-Suk Jang
— Bruce Kuntz (@Bnicklaus7) August 7, 2023
At just 19 years old, Jang already rides his fastball into the upper 90s to go along with a slider, a sweeper, a curveball and a changeup. This is a huge get pic.twitter.com/1I1LNccuB8
17. RHP Payton Martin, 19, A (+3)
18. OF Eduardo Quintero, 17, R (+3)
19. OF Jose Ramos, 22, AA (+4)
20. LHP Justin Wrobleski, 23, A+ (+4)
21. C/2B Yeiner Fernandez, 20, A+ (-3)
40 FV / Medium Risk
22. IF Rayne Doncon, 19, A (+3)
23. 3B Jake Gelof, 21, A (+3)
24. C/1B Thayron Liranzo, 20, A (+3)
25. CF Kendall George, 18, R (+3)
26. RHP Jake Pilarski, 25, AA (-4)
27. U Austin Gauthier, 24, AA (+2)
28. C Hunter Feduccia, 26, AAA (NR)
40 FV / Medium Risk
Though he has continually flown a bit under the radar, Hunter Feduccia has had an impressive season in Triple-A. His 116 wRC+ is impressive for a catcher, and 0.85 BB/K ratio is a drastic improvement from 2022. He is almost certainly the third catcher on the Dodgers’ depth chart at the moment.
While his offense has been most noteworthy this year, he has also done well on the defensive side as a catcher. He is a good framer and he has managed an Oklahoma City pitching staff that has included more than a few players with major-league experience well. Limiting the running game has been a bit of an issue for Feduccia, but that is nothing out of the ordinary for this year’s Dodger team. He’s Rule 5 Draft eligible this offseason, and especially considering how Austin Barnes has fared in 2023, the Dodgers may end up making Feduccia their new backup catcher moving forward.
Hunter Feduccia is 4-4 with a homer, double, and 4 RBI so far in an absolute Triple-A slugfest pic.twitter.com/JwYU2JeAcH
— Bruce Kuntz (@Bnicklaus7) April 19, 2023
29. RHP Gus Varland, 26, AAA (New)
40 FV / High Risk
After he was taken in the Rule 5 Draft over the offseason, Gus Varland was returned to the Dodgers after struggling through eight appearances with the Brewers. Since returning to Los Angeles, Varland has turned his season around by dominating in Triple-A. He has posted a 2.16 ERA with a 29.3% strikeout rate and 6.0% walk rate with Oklahoma City.
Varland has electric stuff that plays in a backend relief role. His fastball rides into the upper 90s with induced vertical break in the mid-to-high teens. He pairs that heater with a hard slider that touches 90 mph itself, though it averages around 88 mph. Varland is a good bet to be added to the 40-man roster at some point (maybe even before the end of the month so he is postseason eligible), as the Dodgers will likely want to avoid losing him in the Rule 5 Draft again this offseason.
Gus Varland is in the game for OKC pic.twitter.com/rlz8RPgLwM
— Bruce Kuntz (@Bnicklaus7) July 30, 2023
30. OF/1B Samuel Munoz, 18, R (+3)
31. RHP Peter Heubeck, 20, A+ (+3)
32. RHP Carlos Duran, 22, A+ (-)
33. LHP Alec Gamboa, 26, AAA (NR)
40 FV / High Risk
Alec Gamboa’s fastball has extremely impressive metrics. In his last outing on August 12th, he threw a four-seamer that had 22.8″ of induced vertical break, which is far above-average. He struggled in Double-A last year, but has posted a 2.33 ERA between Tulsa and Oklahoma City in 2023. Gamboa will surely be taken in the Rule 5 Draft this offseason if he makes it there unprotected, but it seems unlikely that Los Angeles will let that happen before he could debut in Dodger blue.
34. C Jesus Galiz, 19, A (+2)
35. RHP Edgardo Henriquez, 21, A (+2)
36. IF Oswaldo Osorio, 18, R (+2)
37. OF Chris Newell, 22, A+ (+2)
38. RHP Jesus Tillero, 17, R (+10)
39. RHP Jerming Rosario, 21, A+ (+1)
40. SS Alex Freeland, 21, A+ (+2)
41. OF Damon Keith, 23, A+ (-11)
42. 3B Logan Wagner, 19, R (+1)
43. LHP Wyatt Crowell, 21, R (+1)
44. RHP Brady Smith, 18, R (+1)
45. RHP Joel Ibarra, 21, A (+1)
46. RHP Lucas Wepf, 23, A+ (+1)
47. IF/OF Mairoshendrick Martinus, 18, R (+2)
48. RHP Reynaldo Yean, 19, A (+2)
49. OF Arnaldo Lantigua, 17, R (+2)
50. RHP Alvaro Benua, 20, R (+2)
51. RHP Ben Casparius, 24, AA (+2)
52. RHP Eriq Swan, 21, R (+2)
53. IF Alexander Albertus, 18, R (HM)
35+ FV / Very High Risk
Alexander Albertus tore through the DSL to start 2023 and earned himself a promotion to the ACL. He has only gotten better in his first 11 games in the States, posting a 1.008 OPS and 3.33 BB/K. Albertus has great patience at the plate, consistently working walks while also limiting strikeouts. Defensively, he’s more likely to wind up at third or second than at shortstop, but he has played all three spots this season.
54. C/1B Angel Diaz, 19, R (+1)
55. IF Elias Medina, 17, R (HM)
35+ FV / Very High Risk
With 163 professional plate appearances under his belt, Elias Medina has slashed .315/.381/.566 with seven homers and 16 stolen bases. His 138 wRC+ places top 15 in the organization. Medina’s 0.42 BB/K ratio and .358 BABIP leave some room for regression, but his combination of speed and power is worth keeping an eye on.
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Honorable Mentions: LHP Moises Brito (-), RHP Chris Campos (-), RHP Jared Karros (-), OF Dylan Campbell (-), OF Jaron Elkins (-), SS Bryan Gonzalez (-), RHP Kendall Williams (NR), 1B Joe Vetrano (-), LHP Ben Harris (-), SS Jeral Perez (NR), 1B Yorfran Medina (NR)
