Welcome to the annual series: ‘A Minor (League) Review of 2015.” This series is a great way to receive a quick recap of the ’15 minor league season for your favorite club(s), while also receiving a brief look toward the 2016 season and beyond. It can also be a handy feature for fantasy baseball players in keeper and Dynasty leagues.

The Graduate: Carlos Perez, C: A former Blue Jays and Astros prospect, Perez landed in LA for his rookie season and performed well — although hardly spectacular. He’s become a more aggressive hitter than he was early in his career and he doesn’t posses anything more than gap power. His strongest value comes from his defence and ability to control the running game (He threw out more than 30% of base runners in ’15), which doesn’t help at all in fantasy baseball. He’ll split playing time during the 2016 season with import Geovany Soto.

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Welcome to the annual series: ‘A Minor (League) Review of 2015.” This series is a great way to receive a quick recap of the ’15 minor league season for your favorite club(s), while also receiving a brief look toward the 2016 season and beyond. It can also be a handy feature for fantasy baseball players in keeper and Dynasty leagues.

The Graduate: Joc Pederson, OF: The 23-year-old outfielder broke into the veteran outfield in 2015 and had an outstanding first half of the year. He came back down to earth in the second half but still had a respectable overall season. The youngster hit 26 home runs and played good outfield defence. His batting average was just .210 and he struck out almost 30 percent of the time so there are improvements to make — including improvement against same-handed pitching (and in his home stadium). Pederson stolen just four bases in 2015 but has 20-30 potential so there is more fantasy value in there.

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Welcome to the annual series: ‘A Minor (League) Review of 2015.” This series is a great way to receive a quick recap of the ’15 minor league season for your favorite club(s), while also receiving a brief look toward the 2016 season and beyond. It can also be a handy feature for fantasy baseball players in keeper and Dynasty leagues.

The Graduate: Delino DeShields Jr., OF: I definitely raised an eyebrow when the Astros left DeShields Jr. vulnerable to the 2014 Rule 5 draft. Selected by the Rangers, he had a solid rookie season and was a key contributor to a club that narrowly edged Houston for the American League West title. And the Astros certainly could have used the young speedster after injuries to the likes of George Springer and Jed Lowrie. The infielder-turned-outfielder played 121 games and stole 25 bases but he’ll need to continue to work on his defence in the outfield to become more than a league-average contributor.

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Welcome to the annual series: ‘A Minor (League) Review of 2015.” This series is a great way to receive a quick recap of the ’15 minor league season for your favorite club(s), while also receiving a brief look toward the 2016 season and beyond. It can also be a handy feature for fantasy baseball players in keeper and Dynasty leagues.

The Graduate: Austin Hedges, C: This young catcher parlayed defensive acumen into a second round selection in the 2011 draft. His defence continued to be ahead of his offence while ascending through the minors and it completely took a backseat during his MLB debut in 2015. With offensive-minded Derek Norris also on hand in San Diego, Hedges will likely be relegated to a back-up role — or more time in Triple-A to try and find at least a little more authority in his swing.

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Just prior to last year’s holiday season I wrote a piece for FanGraphs+ that ranked the Top 50 Fantasy Prospects for 2015 by position. Because it’s in the middle of the offseason, it’s often an exercise in futility to properly project playing time for rookies — especially considering the large number of free agent signings and trades that have yet to take place. It’s quite fun, nonetheless, and still serves as a good starting point for understanding who might be turn into a unexpectedly valuable fantasy player for the coming year.

And with every preview, must come a review. With the regular season now behind us, I present to you a review of the projected Top 50 Fantasy Prospects for 2015. I’ve already written about the catchers, first basemen, second basemen, third basemen, shortstops, outfielders, right-handed starters and left-handed starters. Today we round out the series with a review of the relievers.

Actual Wins Above Replacement (WAR) Results
2.3 — Trevor May, Twins
2.1 — Carson Smith, Mariners
2.0 — Ken Giles, Phillies
1.8 — Alex Colome, Rays
1.5 — Keone Kela, Rangers
1.3 — Roberto Osuna, Blue Jays

Marc’s Top 3
Aaron Sanchez, Blue Jays
Cam Bedrosian, Angels
Corey Knebel, Rangers

Collectively speaking, I didn’t expect rookie relievers to play a big role in the 2015 season but MLB managers have become more and more confident in handing the ball the hard-throwing youngsters in key situations.

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Just prior to last year’s holiday season I wrote a piece for FanGraphs+ that ranked the Top 50 Fantasy Prospects for 2015 by position. Because it’s in the middle of the offseason, it’s often an exercise in futility to properly project playing time for rookies — especially considering the large number of free agent signings and trades that have yet to take place. It’s quite fun, nonetheless, and still serves as a good starting point for understanding who might be turn into a unexpectedly valuable fantasy player for the coming year.

And with every preview, must come a review. With the regular season now behind us, I present to you a review of the projected Top 50 Fantasy Prospects for 2015. I’ve already written about the catchers, first basemen, second basemen, third basemen, shortstops, outfielders and right-handed starters. Today is the review of the left-handed starters.

Actual Wins Above Replacement (WAR) Results
2.1 — Robbie Ray, D-Backs
2.1 — Carlos Rodon, White Sox
1.7 — Eduardo Rodriguez, Red Sox
1.6 — Andrew Heaney, Angels

Marc’s Top 6
Andrew Heaney, Angels
Marco Gonzales, Cardinals
Julio Urias, Dodgers
Henry Owens, Red Sox
Carlos Rodon, White Sox
Daniel Norris, Blue Jays

Honorable Mentions
Brandon Finnegan, Royals
Eduardo Rodriguez, Red Sox
Manny Banuelos, Braves
Justin Nicolino, Marlins
Robbie Ray, Tigers

The 2015 season saw some impressive southpaw prospects solidify themselves into true big league performers. Ray and Rodon were the Top 2 arms despite taking very different paths to The Show. A 12th round selection back in 2010, the former need five years of seasoning before making 23 starts at the big league level in ’15. He didn’t show wipeout stuff but he held his own in a difficult home park and definitely has the makings of an innings-eating No. 4 starter.

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Just prior to last year’s holiday season I wrote a piece for FanGraphs+ that ranked the Top 50 Fantasy Prospects for 2015 by position. Because it’s in the middle of the offseason, it’s often an exercise in futility to properly project playing time for rookies — especially considering the large number of free agent signings and trades that have yet to take place. It’s quite fun, nonetheless, and still serves as a good starting point for understanding who might be turn into a unexpectedly valuable fantasy player for the coming year.

And with every preview, must come a review. With the regular season now behind us, I present to you a review of the projected Top 50 Fantasy Prospects for 2015. I’ve already written about the catchers, first basemen, second basemen, third basemen, shortstops and outfielders. Today is the review of the right-handed starters.

Actual Wins Above Replacement (WAR) Results
3.2 — Anthony DeSclafani, Reds
3.1 — Noah Syndergaard, Mets
2.8 — Lance McCullers, Astros
1.6 — Taylor Jungmann, Brewers
1.6 — Raisel Iglesias, Reds
1.5 — Nate Karns, Rays
1.4 — Chris Bassitt, Athletics
1.4 — Joe Ross, Nationals
1.3 — Chris Heston, Giants

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Just prior to last year’s holiday season I wrote a piece for FanGraphs+ that ranked the Top 50 Fantasy Prospects for 2015 by position. Because it’s in the middle of the offseason, it’s often an exercise in futility to properly project playing time for rookies — especially considering the large number of free agent signings and trades that have yet to take place. It’s quite fun, nonetheless, and still serves as a good starting point for understanding who might be turn into a unexpectedly valuable fantasy player for the coming year.

And with every preview, must come a review. With the regular season now behind us and the heart of the postseason underway, I present to you a review of the projected Top 50 Fantasy Prospects for 2015. I’ve already written about the catchers, first basemen, second basemen, third basemen and shortstops. Today ! break down the outfield rookie class.

Actual Weighted Runs Created (wRC+) Results
137 — Randal Grichuk, Cardinals
134 — Michael Conforto, Mets
132 — Stephen Piscotty, Cardinals
132 — Enrique Hernandez, Dodgers
131 — Kyle Schwarber, Cubs
125 — Tommy Pham, Cardinals
124 — Aaron Altherr, Phillies
115 — Joc Pederson, Dodgers

Marc’s Top 5
Jorge Soler, Cubs
Rusney Castillo, Red Sox
Joc Pederson, Dodgers
Steven Souza, Rays
Dalton Pompey, Blue Jays

Honorable Mentions
Mikie Mahtook, Rays
Michael Taylor, Nationals
Jesse Winker, Reds
Byron Buxton, Twins
Stephen Piscotty, Cardinals

I’ve never been a huge fan of Grichuk and that was reflected on my pre-season list (He wasn’t there). I also didn’t expect injuries and disappointing performances to provide as many opportunities for him as they did. We always knew he had immense raw power but he tapped into it surprisingly well in 2015, resulting in a .272 ISO. Unfortunately he swung and missed A LOT (more than 31%) and the .329 OBP is nothing to get excited about. I wouldn’t expect a repeat performance in terms of solid overall game.

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Just prior to last year’s holiday season I wrote a piece for FanGraphs+ that ranked the Top 50 Fantasy Prospects for 2015 by position. Because it’s in the middle of the offseason, it’s often an exercise in futility to properly project playing time for rookies — especially considering the large number of free agent signings and trades that have yet to take place. It’s quite fun, nonetheless, and still serves as a good starting point for understanding who might be turn into a unexpectedly valuable fantasy player for the coming year.

And with every preview, must come a review. With the regular season now behind us and the heart of the postseason underway, I present to you a review of the projected Top 50 Fantasy Prospects for 2015. I’ve already written about the catchers, first basemen, second basemen and third basemen. Today, we wrap up the infield with the shortstops.

Actual Weighted Runs Created (wRC+) Results
133 — Carlos Correa, Astros
128 — Francisco Lindor, Indians
112 — Ketel Marte, Mariners
91 — Tim Beckham, Rays
90 — Addison Russell, Cubs

*Jung-ho Kang was included in the third basemen’s piece.

Marc’s Top 4
Addison Russell, Cubs
Francisco Lindor, Indians
Corey Seager, Dodgers
Deven Marrero, Red Sox

Honorarble Mentions
Hak-Ju Lee, Rays
Tim Anderson, White Sox

The above list of rookie shortstops would be somewhat different if I ranked by WAR, rather than Weights Runs but defence has such little value in fantasy baseball so I focused on offence with Weighted Runs Created. It bears mentioning, though, that many impressive young defensive shortstops entered the game in 2015 — led by Lindor and Russell.

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In or around last year’s holiday season I wrote a piece for FanGraphs+ that ranked the Top 50 Fantasy Prospects for 2015 by position. Because it’s in the middle of the offseason, it’s often an exercise in futility to properly project playing time for rookies — especially considering the large number of free agent signings and trades that have yet to take place. It’s quite fun, nonetheless, and still serves as a good starting point for understanding who might be turn into a unexpectedly valuable fantasy player for the coming year.

And with every preview, must come a review. With the regular season now behind us and the heart of the postseason underway, I present to you a review of the projected Top 50 Fantasy Prospects for 2015. I’ve already written about the catchers, first basemen and of the second basemen. Today, it’s the freshmen at the hot corner.

Actual Weighted Runs Created (wRC+) Results
151 — Miguel Sano, Twins
136 — Kris Bryant, Cubs
130 — Jung-Ho Kang, Pirates
128 — Maikel Franco, Phillies
116 — Matt Duffy, Giants

Marc’s Top 5
1. Kris Bryant, Cubs
2. Kyle Kubitza, Angels
3. Miguel Sano, Twins
4. Yasmany Tomas, D-Backs
5. Jake Lamb, D-Backs

Honorable Mentions
Colin Moran, Astros
Joey Gallo, Rangers

The 2015 might one day be known as ‘The Year of the Third Basemen’ considering how many impressive rookies took to the hot corner in 2015.

Sano spent most of the year as the Twins’ designated hitter but since he’s a natural third baseman I’ve included him here (He spent nine games at the position in ’15). The rookie doesn’t have quite as well rounded of a game as Kris Bryant but the power is prodigious and he should develop into a 30+ home run guy (if not 40+). The big question with Sano, though, is whether or not he can trim the strikeout rate that surpassed 35% in 2015. His BABIP of almost .400 (because he hits the ball so damn hard) shield the effects of the K-rate. How hard does he hit the ball? He was third in the Majors in percent of hard hit balls behind Giancarlo Stanton of the Marlins and Greg Bird of the Yankees.

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