Other Installments in the 2024 Midseason Top 50:
20.) Grant Holman, RHRP
How Acquired: Drafted (Round 6, 2021)
Current Team: Las Vegas
2022 Midseason Rank: 21
2023 Midseason Rank: 28
Holman gets the nod as the top pure relief prospect in the system, largely on his floor: he’s advanced quickly through the minors and doesn’t have Pedro Santos’ command troubles or Ryan Cusick’s inconsistency. Holman pounds the zone with a three-pitch mix of a mid-90s fastball, a plus splitter, and an improved slider. The fastball and slider are fairly low-spin, but Holman pitches with enough downhill angle, deception, and command that they still are consistently effective in the upper minors and should translate well enough to big leagues. He’s a smart, aggressive pitcher who comes right at hitters and changes eye levels effectively, setting the tone throughout every plate appearance. It doesn’t feel like he throws the splitter enough–he’s clearly worked on the slider and is eager to bring it into games frequently this year after being all about the split in 2023–but hey, if he can get outs in Vegas of all places on a mostly fastball-slider mix, that’s a great sign for those pitches. He’s probably a middle reliever, but saying any pitcher is probably anything at the big league level counts for a lot. If you want to dream on a right-tail outcome, think Héctor Neris’ career.
19.) Daniel Susac, C
How Acquired: Drafted (Round 1, 2022)
Current Team: Midland
2022 Midseason Rank: N/A
2023 Midseason Rank: 9
Susac is a weird player to evaluate. One can understand why he was picked where he was–he’s got a big arm behind the plate that he’s using more and more functionally as time progresses, he’s quite strong with big swing leverage, and he has hand-eye coordination for days, allowing him to move the bat around with a ton of fluidity. He’s just 23 and is hitting .260 in Midland, a number that is dragged down by a really rough April, after which he’s been up near .300.
But we’re also at the point where the longstanding concerns about Susac’s approach become a more salient issue. It’s one thing to have an overaggressive approach, but what’s stood out about Susac over the last two years is more that he too often picks the wrong pitches to swing at, chasing at an elevated rate but not being particularly aggressive within the zone.
Not only does that affect Susac’s on-base ability and give him a higher strikeout rate than anyone with his barrel adjustability should compile, it has really limited his power output, especially at the Double-A level. That’s an interaction of the poor approach with other issues–hitting a lot of ground balls and struggling to maintain strong bat speed.
The optimist here repeats the mantra “catchers develop late.” This would be Susac’s senior season had he stayed in college, and he’s hit for average and played increasingly solid defense for the past six weeks. It’s premature to confine him to pure backup projection, and further premature to write him off. The tools are there, so he stays as a key player in the system.
What I’m waiting to see here, though, is any sort of improvement at the plate from Susac’s initial pro form, particularly on the approach front. Once a player shows he can make adjustments, I have a much easier time envisioning him adapting further. In fairness, this is something that can sometimes take longer for high draftees like Susac, who have been confronted with failure in their baseball-playing lives less than almost any other pro players and thus start from a lower baseline of figuring out how to react to struggles (we’ve seen this, for instance, with Tyler Soderstrom and Max Muncy when they were in Lansing, which they eventually pulled themselves out from). Caveats aside, the approach is a big concern that impacts Susac’s offensive utility across the board, and it’s been pretty static for about two years now, so it’s hard to not react to that by moving him down a tier or so. He’s already hanging in in Double-A and has plenty of time to figure things out, though, and talent remains.
18.) Gunnar Hoglund, RHSP
How Acquired: Trade (from Toronto with Kevin Smith, Kirby Snead, and Zach Logue for Matt Chapman, 2022)
Current Team: Midland
2022 Midseason Rank: 6
2023 Midseason Rank: 13
The good news about Hoglund’s 2024 is clear: he’s been healthy and effective in Midland. He actually leads the A’s organization in innings by a wide margin, he’s near the top in strikeouts, and he’s had a velocity rebound after sitting just 89-91 in 2023. The less good news is that his velocity still isn’t quite back to pre-draft levels, as Hoglund tends to come out throwing 92-93 before tailing off toward 90-92 toward the end of his lengthy appearances.
It’s hard to project as a truly impactful starting pitcher if that’s all the velocity there is, but Hoglund’s giving it a go. Not only does he retain strong command, he’s also reworked his delivery to feature a more exaggerated hip turn that hides the ball well and helps him sneak the fastball by hitters. That’s the sort of note that might sound like I’m just softening the blow of Hoglund’s inability to light up the radar gun, but the fastball plays: he consistently gets swinging strikes with it over 10% of the time on quite high usage.
There’s no particular reason the usage needs to stay so elevated, because Hoglund has a good slider and changeup that also miss bats aplenty. Both have had some slight inconsistency over the past two years, but there are plenty of outings where he has all three working together and keeps hitters consistently off balance.
All of that means that Hoglund is now a high-floor back-of-the-rotation type, particularly as he’s starting to erase the longstanding health concerns (emphasis on starting to, but still). His route to being more than that would either involve the velocity continuing to rise or his arsenal containing more than three pitches and thus taking more pressure off the fastball. He’s still inexperienced enough in pro ball that both remain possibilities, though the most likely scenario is that he’s a sort of righthanded JP Sears. The fact that that’s so easy to envision still merits this placement.
17.) Brady Basso, LHSP
How Acquired: Drafted (Round 16, 2019)
Current Team: Las Vegas
2022 Midseason Rank: 44
2023 Midseason Rank: 41
Evaluating Basso is still a bit of a curious endeavor, which isn’t normally the case for 26-year-olds who have been in minor league baseball for half a decade. On paper, Basso has a traditional back-of-the-rotation starter’s skillset, with four pitches and an ultra-clean, repeatable delivery that gives him an extra-high release point. He’s got a very impressive minor league track record and hasn’t looked overmatched in his initial trials at the big league level.
The thing that’s strange is that, as much of a finished product as his skillset would seem to imply Basso is, he has very little experience being a true starting pitcher, seeing as he was a college reliever and has missed about three seasons of pro time between the pandemic and 2021 Tommy John surgery. He’s still thrown 5+ innings less than ten times between college and his pro career combined. That’s meant he really hasn’t had to worry much about third-time-through the-order patterning until now. Basso’s approach to pitching has tended to feature a lot of fastballs and cutters to the glove side, which feels like the sort of approach that can wear thin as games progress, especially as neither pitch is overwhelming on its own.
Still, I’m bumping Basso up a bit relative to where I would’ve put him a month ago, because it seems like he’s starting to adapt to that challenge as he gets more exposed to it. He’s finally gained some confidence in a changeup, a pitch he threw maybe once an outing last season, and it’s been effective in Las Vegas thus far and given him more ability to work east and west. The cutter and his big mid-70s curve have been effective offerings, and Basso’s ability to spot all of his pitches has never been a concern since he turned pro. He’s also held his velocity well as he’s been allowed to work deeper into games, averaging around 93 mph on his fastball and 88 on the cutter, which is half a tick higher than he was in 2023, if anything.
All told, then, Basso seems to be on his way to taking the final steps to a JP Sears-esque role as a dependable command-oriented flyball lefty starter (funny how Sears is an analog for both Hoglund and Basso, and he applies a little differently to each–more stuff-wise with Hoglund and more statistically with Basso–but he's a convenient comp here). None of his pitches are truly wow offerings (though the curve wows aesthetically), but they all work together very well, enabled further by the command. Chances are high that he’ll get big league starts this year. He may need a bit of up-and-down time to fully unlock the deep-into-games patterning he’ll need to succeed, but there’s plenty of reason to think he’ll figure it out by sometime in 2025.
16.) Royber Salinas, RHSP
How Acquired: Trade (from Atlanta with Esteury Ruiz, Kyle Muller, Freddy Tarnok and Manny Piña for Sean Murphy, 2022)
Current Team: Las Vegas (7-day IL)
2022 Midseason Rank: N/A
2023 Midseason Rank: 10
As with Susac, I’m hoping this ranking captures the lowest point of Salinas’ value, and it’s very possible it will. In April, when he was pitching very effectively in Midland and sitting at his usual ~94 mph, he would’ve rated in the top ten prospects in the system fairly comfortably and contended for the title of second-best pitching prospect in the system. Since then, though, the velocity and shape of his fastball have backed up considerably, as has his command, and he’s landed on the IL after his second Triple-A start, which saw him throwing alarmingly slowly, just 87-89. At least the injury gives some context to the struggles, though pitching injuries are always ominous in themselves.
If Salinas’ May regression and the injury are just a blip, he’ll bounce right back up the list, because he’s showed a wipeout slider, a good curve he could stand to use more, and imposing physicality and extension that helps the fastball play up (when it’s in its typical 92-96 mph range, anyway). Command is going to be a long-term question, as Salinas has had intermittent balance issues in his delivery, and he’s been prone to disaster innings that wreck otherwise-dominant outings. There’s also the question of his pitch mix, as the curve and nearly-junked-in-2024 changeup are solid pitches, but Salinas rarely throws them–but if anything, the potential for him to eventually employ a more well-rounded arsenal adds to the excitement rather than subtracting from it. But before whatever this May hiccup was, Salinas’ conditioning, command, and consistency had been making strides forward across his year-plus in the A’s organization. The troubles over the past month were wide-ranging and dramatic enough that I feel compelled to move Salinas down this far, but he’s shown too much talent for too long to not still be considered among the organization’s best handful of pitching prospects.
15.) Cole Miller, RHSP
How Acquired: Drafted (Round 4, 2023)
Current Team: ACL A’s (full-season IL)
2022 Midseason Rank: N/A
2023 Midseason Rank: N/A
This is pretty much a total stab in the dark ranking-wise, as the highly-touted 2023 fourth-rounder still has yet to make his pro debut after undergoing Tommy John surgery earlier this year. Miller might still be able to make it back by his 20th birthday, though, so he’ll have plenty of time to progress once he’s through his rehab if all goes well. I’ve seen the same stuff on amateur video that it seems most see: he’s got a big, projectable frame, easy delivery, already-present low-90s heat, and a slurvy slider and a changeup that have some potential. It’s an enticing mix of decent present attributes and a lot of potential to dream on, so it’s easy to understand what the A’s were thinking in going over slot for him last year. For now, though, it’s all about getting Miller healthy. Once he’s back and has shaken off the rust, we’ll see what impact he can make.
14.) Brennan Milone, INF
How Acquired: Drafted (Round 6, 2022)
Current Team: Midland
2022 Midseason Rank: N/A
2023 Midseason Rank: 29
Milone is arguably the most complete hitter in the system right now. He’s spent most of his pro career at first base and probably only has about 55-grade raw power, which seems like a huge limiting factor until it becomes apparent that Milone gets to all of the power he has. He’s a surgeon in the box with his unorthodox yet balanced pirouetting style, and he’s pretty short to the ball but quite explosive through contact, able to hit the ball to all fields and handle both heat and spin very effectively.
Listed at 6’0” 198–which doesn't seem too far off–Milone doesn’t really look like a 1B-only guy, and he’s certainly got more speed and flexibility than most first basemen, though he’s not an impactful baserunner or anything. The A’s have tried him at second and third, but though he has average arm strength, his arm accuracy has had all sorts of issues, particularly at the hot corner, leaving it highly uncertain he’s going to be a competent infielder anywhere other than first even though his range isn't too bad. I’m still not ruling out corner outfield work, though, and as it is with Cooper Bowman, the lack of an outfield look for Milone this year can be chalked up to the RockHounds’ outfield depth as much as it can be to a lack of confidence in his ability to transition to that role.
Milone still might hit enough to hang in as a first baseman in the big leagues in the Christian Walker mold, and he’s very likely to be able to do what Connor Joe can do, at least–occupy the sixth or seventh spot in a big league lineup effectively and bring a balanced set of skills to the dish. He’s not the highest-ceiling guy in this part of the list by any means, but he only just turned 23 and is nearly big-league-ready as a hitter, and he’s been a model of consistency in a way that so many of the players in this area of the list haven’t. Much like it is with Nate Nankil a bit further down the list, I think there’s an underrating of the quiet all-around effectiveness of Milone’s skillset and thus expect him to outstrip current projections of his upside.
13.) J.T. Ginn, RHSP
How Acquired: Trade (from Mets with Adam Oller for Chris Bassitt, 2022)
Current Team: Las Vegas
2022 Midseason Rank: 11
2023 Midseason Rank: 26
Ginn has been mostly healthy and mostly effective this year, which is more than can be said for a number of the other heralded upper-minors pitchers in the system (and more than can be said about his own 2022 and 2023 seasons). He’s gotten off to as reasonable of a start as you can reasonably expect a pitcher to have in the Pacific Coast League, his velo is back up into the 92-95 range, and both halves of his trademark sinker-slider combo are missing bats at strong rates.
Ginn is a good athlete with an easy delivery who could eat up a ton of innings with his groundball-oriented efficiency if his body will allow him to do that. He’s always run groundball rates over 50%, but because both of his primary pitches manage to miss bats, he’s more Brady Singer than Dakota Hudson. Ginn changes eye levels pretty well given how much everything in his arsenal sinks, and he’s started to incorporate a four-seamer and change the shape and power of his slider a little more to add more wrinkles into his arsenal.
Ginn’s changeup has not been a major part of his game this year, though, and his platoon splits are very sizeable as a result. The changeup has had its moments in his career but is too often too similar to the sinker in velocity and trajectory to make a distinct impact. Ginn’s other traits–the command and the consistency of inducing defense-friendly contact–are very starter-y, so it would be a shame to see the changeup limit him to a righty-heavy relief role. Singer makes this sort of arsenal work, hence the comp, and since Ginn has missed so much time in his career, I can see plenty of paths where Ginn develops a bit more over the next couple of years and becomes that sort of dependable starter. Health remains a concern given the injury history, but again, he’s healthy and effective right now, and that counts for something relative to someone like Salinas.
12.) Brett Harris, INF
How Acquired: Drafted (Round 7, 2021)
Current Team: Las Vegas (7-day IL)
2022 Midseason Rank: 13
2023 Midseason Rank: 17
Harris’ position has held very steady on my list since his early-2022 breakout in Lansing, as he hasn’t really had a further breakout since, but has also really never disappointed as he’s climbed all the way to Oakland in under three years since his 2021 drafting. He’s going to play terrific defense at third base, take his walks, and do enough in the hit and power departments to be a useful big leaguer from basically now on. Harris’ weakness early in his pro career was dealing with spin, but he’s worked hard to track pitches better and has basically eliminated that issue.
Harris is about as low-variance a prospect as there is in the A’s system, since he’s basically ready now and does so many things well but doesn’t have an elite skill apart from his glovework at third. The remaining possibility for upside beyond a Maikel Garcia-style glove-driven profile here is if Harris can tap into more of his strength and lift the ball more, as his groundball rates have consistently been above 50% in the minors (interestingly, he was sub-40% in his Oakland cameo earlier this season). There could be a late-career breakout from Harris if he can get his launch angle up without sacrificing contact. That might be a tall order at this point, but even if it doesn’t happen, Harris’ floor is so high that he’s clearly among the top ten position player prospects in the system.
11.) Jack Perkins, RHSP
How Acquired: Drafted (Round 5, 2022)
Current Team: Midland
2022 Midseason Rank: N/A
2023 Midseason Rank: 11
It’s not clear what Perkins’ status is at this moment after he was scratched from his start on Sunday–he hasn’t been put on the IL, but Midland IL placements (or lack thereof) are often notoriously unreliable. If he misses any significant time, it’ll be a very unfortunate development in a 2024 season that was only just getting off the ground. The uncertainty around his status clouds where to put him on this list, and this is basically where I’d rank Perkins if it turns out nothing is wrong. If he has to miss extended time, he’d be maybe five spots lower.
Perkins is less well-known than most of the upper-minors pitchers I’ve ranked behind him, so this ranking might be somewhat controversial. I think of it like this: Out of all these pitchers (Perkins, Ginn, Salinas, Basso, Hoglund, Beers and Cusick, say, in the 11-25 tier), this is the guy whose best two pitches I have the most confidence in. Perkins’ carrying fastball and breaking ball–more of a slurvy slider in 2023, more of a hammer curve in 2024–are both extremely impressive pitches that are going to play if he commands them at all, and when he’s healthy he commands them fine. Not always great, but fine. The fastball comes in at 94-97 when Perkins is healthy, and it explodes up in the zone, and the breaking ball is touching the mid-80s even in this more curve-y form, showing tightness while breaking a ton. Perkins’ hard cutter and his changeup–a pitch he didn’t even really throw much until last season–are very solid tertiary offerings, and the cutter in particular looked improved in his first outings of 2024, showing a bit more depth relative to the one-plane trajectory it used to have and diving under bats in the low 90s.
Perkins wasn’t as sharp in Midland late last summer–perhaps tired, perhaps hurt, maybe some of both–as he was in Lansing earlier that year, and he’s only gotten to pitch four games this season, so both his injury history and consistency have question marks around them right now. Ultimately, though, I’ve been too impressed with Perkins too much of the time to not count him as one of the system’s best pitching prospects. His arm strength, stamina, ability to impart pitches on bat-missing trajectories, and improving pitchability have a real chance to round into an impactful package for Perkins as a big league starter.
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