Rising Prospect #2 - Kris Bryant (Chicago Cubs)

Background on Kris

The prospect that I am going to talk about this week is non other than the Chicago Cub's own, Kris Bryant. Kris Bryant was drafted in the first round (second overall) by the Cubs. By the end of the 2014 Minor League season, Bryant was ranked as the Cubs #1 prospect on MLB.com. In all of baseball, Bryant was ranked as the #3 overall prospect. During the 2014 season, he spent his time split between two teams, the Tenneesee Smokies (AA) and the Iowa Cubs (AAA). 

How Did 2014 Go?

During this past season, Bryant had 43 home runs and 110 runs batted in. These are excellent numbers for a player who has only been in the league for two years! He also had a very solid .325 batting average between the two clubs that he played for. This stats not only show that he has a lot of power, but he also has the ability to hit for average and get on base a lot. Like I mentioned last week with Joey Gallo, the potential of striking out may happen a good amount for power hitters. This may or may not be the case with Bryant. As time goes on and with the more at bats he gets, we will be able to see how that plays out. Besides being a power house on the offensive side of the field, Bryant has the potential to be a solid defender as well. He has a very strong arm which is needed for when he plays third base. Another upside to Bryant's game is that he is very athletic. This is something that is not often seen as much with players of his frame and size. His ability on the base paths is something that should not be underestimated as well! 

Kris Bryant earned many awards and honors during the past season. Some include:

• 2014 USA Today Minor League Player of the Year
• 2014 Baseball America Minor League Player of the Year
• Baseball America Minor League All-Star
• Futures Game Selection
• 3x Player of the Week

Overall, I think that Bryant will have a great future in the big leagues. He is already showing a lot of promise while only playing two season of minor league ball. His ability to hit the long ball along with his ability to hit for average and play good defense at third base will allow him to be a very solid player in this next upcoming years. If needed, Bryant has the ability to play the corner outfield positions well due to his athletic ability and arm strength. He may be one of the main pieces that the Cubs are missing in order to turn the franchise around!

Mike's Rating

          A+

Feel free to share your thoughts and opinions on Kris Bryant or on anything that was said in this blog! Thanks for reading!

Rising Prospect #1 - Joey Gallo (Texas Rangers)

Baseball is known to many as America's Pastime. Many people across the country enjoy playing and watching this lovable game. Some, even get the pleasure of playing the game of baseball as their career. In the great span of things, very few individuals get to fulfill their lifetime dream of reaching the Major Leagues to become a superstar. In this blog, I am going to divulge into some of the best prospects across minor league baseball.

Background on Joey

The prospect that I will talk about this week is Joey Gallo of the Texas Rangers. Joey Gallo was drafted in the first round (39th overall) in the 2012 MLB draft by the Texas Rangers. As of the end of the end of the 2014 Minor League season, Gallo was rated as the Rangers #1 overall prospect and MLB's #7 overall prospect according to MLB.com. He split the entire 2014 season between the Rangers Single A Advanced affiliate and their Double A affiliate.

How Did 2014 Go?

Now that some of the basic information has been established about Mr. Gallo, we can talk about why I consider him to be one of the fastest and most promising rising stars in all of baseball. In his split time in A+ and AA ball, he was able to hit a whopping 41 home runs. Not many 20 year olds have power like that! Not only did he hit 41 home runs, he was able to hit for an average of .271 between both teams while compiling 106 runs batted in (RBI). With Gallo's power comes the chance that he will strikeout a lot. This is something that is very common with many power hitters. Gallo can hit very well but he can also play some pretty good defense. He had a fielding percentage of .951 between both teams. He may lack some defensive ability but he has a very strong arm from the hot corner at third base. The most lacking part of his game involves his ability on the base paths, which limits him to some extent.

Gallo also earned many honors and awards from the past season. Some of his awards include:

• MVP in the Carolina League (A+)
• Futures Game selection along with Futures Game MVP
• 4x player of the week throughout the 2014 season

Overall, I believe that Joey Gallo is a very talented and promising player. I think that he can go very far with his career in baseball. He will most likely have to depend on his bat to become the star that he has the potential to be. Due to his power, he might find himself in the DH role for a large majority of his career as he goes through the ranks.

Mike's Rating
           A

Feel free to share your thoughts and insight on Joey Gallo or anything that was said in this blog! Thanks for reading!