ESPN continued it’s unveiling of their Top 100 Prospect list today. Prospects rankings from 41-60 was released this morning and the Cincinnati Reds landed their 3rd prospect on the list. Right handed pitchers Robert Stephenson (99) and Luis Castillo (94) appeared on the list earlier this week. Outfielder Jesse Winker comes in ranked at #49 overall.
Winker ranked as the #41 prospect on the ESPN list, but fell eight spots after hitting .303/.397/.384 for the Louisville Bats this past season.
He hit .320/.415/.403 after his return (from a wrist injury), rarely striking out. Although the power was still down from the previous year, a .400 OBP and 30-35 doubles will make you an everyday player in left field.
The lack of power in 2016 for Jesse Winker has left some wondering about the future for the left fielder. He only hit three home runs for the Bats in 106 games. That’s not going to be enough to secure a big league job as a corner outfielder. Of course, we’ve seen him hit for far more power than that in the past. We also know that he was dealing with a wrist injury during the season – which we also know hampers power output.
Keith Law doesn’t see a ton of power in Jesse Winker’s future, saying he could get to 15 home runs. Personally, I think there’s more in there than that unless the wrist injuries over the last few years have caused some sort of long-term issue.
Ray Chang to play in WBC
We wrote about Ray Chang retiring to take a job with Major League Baseball in China two weeks ago. Before he goes, his last hurrah will come in the upcoming World Baseball Classic as the shortstop for Team China. Jon Paul Morosi wrote up a nice piece on Chang for MLB.com that goes into how he just missed out on being called up to the Majors with the Twins in 2011, a chance he would never end up getting. It’s a pretty good read, so go check it out.