2019 Bowman Draft Baseball - Complete Prospect Analysis

Hello all. I know its has been a while since my last post but thanks for hanging in there with me. My review of the 2019 Bowman Draft Baseball checklist is complete and overall I think its a strong product. Overall high school arms were very weak in this class. In addition, teams selected a ton of college talent. The one thing that concerns me about a college prospect is will they be able to move quickly and their age. How much upside is still there? Remember these are my opinions so if you disagree that is OK. Go with your instincts. Please see the review below and spread the word. Links to EBay have also been provided. Thank you for your patience and I promise more posts are coming soon.

Antoine Kelly - Milwaukee Brewers P - Pass

Andre Lipcius - Detroit Tigers 2B/3B - A little older but someone I will keep and eye on.

Alek Manoah - Toronto Blue Jays P - Pass

Alec Marsh - Kansas City Royals P - Pass

Adley Rutschman - Baltimore Orioles C - He's the No 1 pick. Prices will be high. Too high for me to recommend.

Aaron Schunk - Colorado Rockies 3B - Pass

Andrew Vaughn - Chicago White Sox 1B - Love him. Has power and can make contact. We should see him in the majors this season. Prices will be insane but could be worth it.

Brett Baty - New York Mets 3B - I like the overall numbers even though the strikeouts are high.

He is someone to keep an eye on. Watch.

Brennan Malone - Arizona Diamondbacks P - Watch. Small sample size.

Brady McConnell - Kansas City Royals SS - Pass. Too old.

Beau Philip - Atlanta Braves SS - Pass. Too old.

Bryson Stott - Philadelphia Phillies SS - Pass. Too old.

Braden Shewmake - Atlanta Braves SS - Pass. Too old.

Blake Walston - Arizona Diamondbacks P  - Pass

Brandon Williamson - Seattle Mariners P - Pass

CJ Abrams - San Diego Padres SS - A top pick who is good but will be high priced.

Corbin Carroll - Arizona Diamondbacks OF - Numbers are not bad. Watch.

Cameron Cannon - Boston Red Sox 2B/SS - Pass. Too old.

Chase Strumpf - Chicago Cubs 2B - Too old.

Dasan Brown - Toronto Blue Jays OF - Watch. Small sample size and is only 18.

Daniel Espino - Cleveland Indians P - Watch. Young arm.

Dominic Fletcher - Arizona Diamondbacks OF - Pass. Too old.

Drey Jameson - Arizona Diamondbacks P - Pass

Davis Wendzel - Texas Rangers 3B - Pass. Too old.

Ethan Small - Milwaukee Brewers P - Pass.

Gunnar Henderson - Baltimore Orioles SS - Watch. Young with small sample size.

Greg Jones - Tampa Bay Rays SS - Pass.

George Kirby - Seattle Mariners P - Pass.

Grant McCray - San Francisco Giants - Watch. Can he develop power?

Hunter Bishop - San Francisco Giants OF- Love him. Another top pick that will be high priced. Its the new normal now with cards.

Isaiah Campbell - Seattle Mariners P - Pass.

Jamari Baylor - Philadelphia Phillies SS - High upside with no stats but I am interested.

John Doxakis - Tampa Bay Rays P - Pass.

Josh Jung - Texas Rangers 3B - Pass for me. Older and I am not sure he will move quickly.

J.J. Bleday - Miami Marlins OF - Great addition to an improved system but I will pass. Older and will be high priced. 

JJ Goss - Tampa Bay Rays P - Pass.

Jack Kochanowicz - Los Angeles Angels P - Pass.

Jimmy Lewis - Los Angeles Dodgers - Pass.

Joshua Mears - San Diego Padres OF - Watch. I want to see how he plays in a full season.

Josh Smith - New York Yankees SS - If you think he can move fast by all means go for it. 

Jake Sanford - New York Yankees OF - Pass. Too old and too many strikeouts.

Jared Triolo - Pittsburgh Pirates 3B/SS - Almost a pass but I have decided to watch. I wonder what the price will be.

Josh Wolf - New York Mets P - Pass.

Keoni Cavaco - Minnesota Twins SS - Watch. Very small sample size.

Kody Hoese - Los Angeles Dodgers SS - Pass. Too old.

Kameron Misner - Miami Marlins OF - Pass.

Kyren Paris - Los Angeles Angels SS - Pass.

Kyle Stowers - Baltimore Orioles OF - Pass.

Kendall Williams - Toronto Blue Jays P - Pass.

Logan Davidson - Oakland Athletics SS - Pass.

Logan Driscoll - San Diego Padres OF - Pass.

Logan Wyatt - San Francisco Giants 1B - Pass.

Michael Busch - Los Angeles Dodgers 2B - Pass.

Matt Canterino - Minnesota Twins P - Pass.

Matt Gorski - Pittsburgh Pirates OF - Pass.

Matthew Lugo - Boston Red Sox SS - Looks to have no power but is young. Still a pass for me.

Michael Toglia - Colorado Rockies P - Pass.

Matthew Thompson Chicago White Sox P - Pass.

Matt Wallner - Minnesota Twins OF - Pass.

Nick Lodolo - Cincinnati Reds P - Wow a pitcher that I will not pass on. I only say that because Derek Johnson works for the Reds now. Hopefully prices are reasonable.

Nasim Nunez - Miami Marlins SS - Pass. Seems to have no power.

Nick Quintana - Detroit Tigers - Pass.

Noah Song - Boston Red Sox P - Pass.

Peyton Burdick - Miami Marlins OF - Monster numbers for an older prospect. Not sure anyone will care. Pass.

Quinn Priester - Pittsburgh Pirates P - Hmmm. Watch. Seems to have good stuff.

Riley Greene - Detroit Tigers OF - Watch. Cost will be high due to being selected 5th overall but is being pushed aggressively by management.

Ryan Garcia - Texas Rangers P - Pass.

Rece Hinds - Cincinnati Reds 3B - No sample size but has insane power. I am interested.

Ryan Jensen - Chicago Cubs P - Pass.

Ryne Nelson - Arizona Diamondbacks P - Pass.

Ryan Zeferjahn - Boston Red Sox P - Pass.

Seth Johnson - Tampa Bay Rays P - Pass.

Shea Langeliers - Atlanta Braves C - Not a bad prospect but I will pass.

Sammy Siani - Pittsburgh Pirates OF - I will keep an eye on him. Watch.

Spencer Steer - Minnesota Twins Utility - Pass.

Tyler Baum - Oakland Athletics P - Pass.

Tyler Callihan - Cincinnati Reds OF - I am interested. Reds seem to be a strong team break candidate.

Tommy Henry - Arizona Diamondbacks P - Pass.

T.J. Sikkema - New York Yankees P - Pass.

Will Wilson - Los Angeles Angels OF - Pass.

Zack Thompson - St. Louis Cardinals P - Pass.

2019 Bowman Chrome Baseball - Complete Prospect Analysis

2019 Bowman Chrome is scheduled to be released on September 18, 2019. After review, the checklist is not very strong but there are some prospects that I like. Please see my thoughts below. If a player on the checklist was not mentioned it means I will not be buying due to the reasons listed below. In addition, keep in mind a ton of these players are very young so you are really buying potential. It might be worth it to watch how they develop and then buy later. Contact me on Twitter with any questions, disagreements or concerns.

Too old (over age 23)
Too many strikeouts (K% over 25%)
A pitcher with a bad K/9 rate
A pitcher with a bad BB/9 rate

Link to Full Checklist (Click on Set Checklist)

Seth Beer - Arizona Diamondbacks OF - Nice player. A little older but I suspect his price will be high as he was a first round pick.

Shervyen Newton - New York Mets SS - Way too many strikeouts but maybe is worth an investment for the right price. You would be buying upside.

Terrin Vavra - Colorado Rockies 2B - Not bad but I still stay away from Rockies prospects.

Owen Miller - San Diego Padres 2B - Buy. Impressive.

Mike Siani - Cincinnati Reds OF - No power right now but I see potential. Would buy if under $10. 

Deivi Garcia -New York Yankees P - Only mentioning him as he will be a high end card. Not a buy for me. The Yankees develop pitchers well though.

Alejandro Kirk - Toronto Blue Jays C - Not bad for a catcher. Worth a bargain bin purchase only.

The prospects below are very young and are long term hold. I would be shocked if a number of these are high end but we shall see.

Noelvi Marte - Seattle Mariners SS -  Rookie ball stats are great. Worth a buy and hold.

Orelvis Martinez - Toronto Blue Jays 3B/SS - Rookie ball stats are great. Worth a buy and hold. 

Brayan Rocchio - Cleveland Indians SS - Need more pop. Only 18.

Alexander Canario - San Francisco Giants - I feel this prospect will be high end. Only 19 and has great numbers.

Jonathan Ornelas - Texas Rangers SS - Only 19. I need to see more power.

Wenceel Perez - Detroit Tigers SS -  Only 19. I need to see more power.

Leonardo Jimenez - Toronto Blue Jays 2B -  Only 19. I need to see more power.

Jose Dever - Miami Marlins SS -   Only 19. I need to see more power.

Israel Pineda - Washington Nationals C -  Only 19. I need to see more power.

Freudis Nova - Houston Astros SS - Only 19. I need to see more power.

Danny Diaz - Boston Red Sox 3B - Only 18. I need to see more power.

Miguel Hiraldo - Toronto Blue Jays SS - Rookie ball stats are great. Worth a buy and hold.  

Stats Don't Lie - August 2019 MLB Prospect Report

The month of August is here are I have listed some important stats to take note of. For this report I wanted to talk about the lesser know prospects that are playing well.

Bo Naylor - Cleveland Indians - Very impressive stat line. Shows power and speed and is only 19. K rate is 23.20% which is OK for now. For sure a buy. 

Canaan Smith- New York Yankees - Smith is having a great season at the A ball level. A buy once he signs a Bowman Chrome Auto. 37 XBH.

Mark Vientos - New York Mets - Very good numbers and showing good power with a 0.157 ISO. For him to be 19 his auto price is undervalued. Ronny Maurico's are overvalued in my opinion.

Miguel Yajure - New York Yankees - A pitcher that does not have an auto but is putting up good numbers this year across the board.

Other pitchers to note are Sixto Sanchez, Blayne Enlow and Simon Woods Richardson. All are having good seasons.

XBH - Extra Base Hits
ISO - Isolated Power

Recap of the National Sports Collectors Convention

I was able to attend the National Sports Collectors Convention on Saturday and I found some interesting things as I looked at all the tables. If you have not been to the show before I recommend going. Its a cool event and the whole industry is in the building. Here are some key takeaways. 

1. The prospects I saw the most across the tables were: 

Wander Franco (Saw Tons) 

Alec Bohm

Nolan Gorman

Marco Luciano 

Bo Bichette 

Kristian Robinson

Tons of Christian Yelich and Ronald Acuna. Not a ton of Gavin Lux, Alek Thomas etc. Only pitcher I saw was Casey Mize. 

Takeaway: People are starting hold prospects instead of sell them after breaks. The old days are over. An argument against this statement may be because the main goal of the show is to make money but I thought it was interesting. Making money on current MLB stars seems to be a new trend as well. I saw a few people buying a ton of Acuna. 

2. PSA vs BGS. The tide has turned. I saw way more PSA graded prospects than BGS graded prospects. PSA seems to be hotter now and sells for a little more than BGS graded cards. BGS graded cards are still good but PSA is the hotter slab right now despite all the issues with PWCC. 

Takeaway: PSA graded cards are the hot ticket but only buy PSA 10 for a prospect. 

3. Mike Trout is the new long term investment. I saw a few tables with his Topps Update PSA 10. These cards were selling for 1K easy. He is easily the safest investment right now. 

Takeaway: If you can afford it. I would buy one and lock it up. Maybe look into his Bowman Sterling Rookie. The print run is lower.

Hope this helps. The market has changed for sure. Be smart. 

Prepare Now for 2019 Bowman Draft

I want to share with the readers the importance of preparing for the release of 2019 Bowman Draft. My guess is Adley Rutschman will be in the product and Bobby Witt Jr will be in 2020 Bowman. Overall as prices rise it might be a good time to put some dollars away as we get closer to the release date. I am aware that Bowman Chrome comes out in September prior to Bowman Draft but I think this draft class will produce a hotter product to invest in.

Stats Don't Lie - June 2019 MLB Prospect Report

The month of June is coming to an end and here are some important stats to take note of. One thing I noticed is most of these prospects are selling for big money. It might be time to invest in non auto's if the prices are out of reach.

Wander Franco - 7% Strikeout Rate - He's number one for a reason.

Jo Adell - 1.046 OPS - Only 100 or so plate appearances but he has insane talent.

Jeter Downs - 0.210 ISO - Underrated prospect in the Dodgers system. Also still affordable.

Mickey Moniak - 31 XBH - He's only 21 and is hitting for more power. Don't give up on him yet.

Conner Capel - 0.189 ISO - Conner was drafted by the Indians but is now with the Cardinals. He is showing some power and sells for around $10.

XBH - Extra Base Hits
ISO - Isolated Power
OPS - On-Base Plus Slugging

Los Angeles Dodgers RHP Josiah Gray - Invest Now

One affordable pitching prospect that is a good deal right now is Josiah Gray. He was originally drafted by the Reds and was traded to the Dodgers last season in the Yasiel Puig trade. His auto's are around $10-15. I think the current price is a huge bargain considering the way prices for prospects have exploded over the past few months. The Dodgers are so good developing talent and I think its a good entry point for a pitcher.

New York Mets Superstar Pete Alonso - 2016 Bowman Chrome Rewind

In 2016 when I reviewed 2016 Bowman I recommended you buy Pete Alonso. The price was around $10-15 at the time. You can say this is a humble brag but please spread the word on what this site is about. It's free to look!

Scouting MLB Prospects in Triple A

The major league baseball being juiced may not be breaking news for most fans but the change has made the ability to scout prospects difficult. Triple A teams have starting using the ball this season and now home run totals have spiked. With these changes I suggest taking Double A stats more seriously when it comes to measuring power potential as home runs in the majors and Triple A have been devalued.

Chicago White Sox 2B Nick Madrigal - Spray Chart Analysis

Nick Madrigal was recently promoted to Double AA Birmingham and it seems he has bounced back from the wrist injury he suffered his last year in college. Nick did not hit for much power in his pro debut and I think this was due to the injury. As you can see he was not able to pull the ball to left field his first year. In 2019 he has done what the White Sox have asked and is pulling the ball to left field. We all know that Nick is an excellent contact hitter. His ISO this year is only .105 but for some reason I think he will add some power to his game as he regains strength in his wrist. 

*Spray charts were used from Baseball Savant.

Nick Madrigal's 2018 Spray Chart 

Madrigal showed little to no power in his first season and only hit to the opposite field.

  

Nick Madrigal's 2019 Spray Chart

Madrigal is finally pulling the ball to left field and showing a little more extra base hit power.