We are nearing completion of the Athletics Nation Community Prospect list for the end of the 2023 season. Junior Perez won the latest round of voting and takes the 23rd spot on the list. Right-hander Cole Miller won the latest nomination and joins the voting for the next round.
Here is a look at the complete list:
- Tyler Soderstrom, C/1B
- Zack Gelof, 2B
- Mason Miller, RHP
- Lawrence Butler, OF
- Darrel Hernaiz, INF
- Denzel Clarke, OF
- Daniel Susac, C
- Jacob Wilson, INF
- Max Muncy, INF
- Joey Estes, RHP
- Luis Morales, RHP
- Henry Bolte, OF
- Joe Boyle, RHP
- Colby Thomas, OF
- Freddy Tarnok, RHP
- Royber Salinas, RHP
- Steven Echavarria, RHP
- Brett Harris, INF
- Gunnar Hoglund, RHP
- Ryan Cusick, RHP
- Cooper Bowman, INF
- Myles Naylor, 3B
- Junior Perez, OF
Here is the process:
- Five nominees will appear on the ballot. The one who receives the most votes earns the top spot in the CPL while the remaining four players move on to the next ballot where they are joined by the next nominee.
- In the comments, commenters will nominate a player to be put onto the ballot for the next round. After the first nomination for a player has been put in, all other votes for that player will come from Rec’ing that comment. The player with the most Rec’s earns the nomination.
- The format for the comment should be “Nomination: Player Name”.
- If a prospect is traded, his name will be crossed out, and all other players will be moved up a space. If a prospect is acquired, a special vote will be put up to determine where that players should rank.
Brady Basso
Scouting grades: Fastball: 50 | Curveball: 55 | Cutter: 50 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 50 | Overall: 40
A 6-foot-2 southpaw, Brasso still has the repertoire to give him the chance to start. In his first season back, he’s been 92-95 mph with his fastball, filling up the strike zone consistently with his heater. He has a wipeout mid-70s curve and a Zito-esque breaker could be an out pitch, but he throws his mid-80s cutter even more, and while it doesn’t miss bats at the same rate as the curve, it’s generates groundball contact along with a fair share of swings-and-misses.
His fourth pitch is his changeup, and while it’s below-average right now, he’s shown some improvement with the offspeed offering and needs to commit to throwing it more consistently. He’s thrown strikes with all of his pitches in his return to the mound, and while he’s more control over command, his solid mechanics should improve the further removed from surgery he gets. He’s gone from forgotten arm to a guy who could land on the 40-man roster during the offseason.
Brennan Milone
(Note: There isn’t much out there in the way of an updated scouting report for Milone. This article is from after he was drafted.)
If Milone’s name sounds familiar, it’s because he was one of the top high school prospects in the country going into the 2019 draft. He had a strong commitment to South Carolina that he honored. His freshman season was cut short by the pandemic and he struggled in 2021, both at USC and in the Cape Cod League. He transferred to Oregon for this season, where he had a strong season at the plate (.950 OPS). Milone mostly played first base and DH’d for Oregon, but he was a shortstop in high school and Kubota said the A’s believe Milone can still play elsewhere in the infield. Kubota chalked Milone’s struggles in 2021 up to being rusty after the pandemic-shortened season.
Milone is a tad old for Low-A, but is nevertheless walking about as much as he’s striking out there, though he’s hard to place defensively.
Jack Perkins
Scouting grades: Fastball: 60 | Curveball: 50 | Cutter: 50 | Control: 40 | Overall: 40
Perkins has an intriguing power arsenal that potentially gives him the chance to start. He throws his fastball in the 93-97 mph range and backs it up with a hard 82-84 mph breaking ball that’s a bit of a hybrid offering. It tends to have more curve shape than slider, but can have different characteristics depending on when you see it, and it misses a ton of bats. His cutter, which tops out at 91 mph, gives hitters another look.
The right-hander threw more strikes as part of the Hoosiers rotation in 2022, but the walk rate was still too high to think of him as a legitimate starting pitching prospect. He’s made more strides on that front so far as a pro, and if that trend continues, his good raw stuff gives him the chance to potentially pitch in the back of a rotation.
Kyle McCann
Hit 30/40 | Game Power 35/50 | Raw Power 60/60 | Speed 30/30 | Field 40/45 | FV 40
Baseball America Scouting Report from 2021
The A’s labeled McCann as one of their biggest risers at the alternate site, a welcome development after he struggled mightily in his pro debut. Massive all-fields power is McCann’s calling card, albeit with limited contact. He has a tendency to get pull-happy at times and projects as no more than a below-average hitter. It was strides he made defensively that impressed the A’s the most. He showed an increased attention to detail and a willingness to improve his blocking, mobility and receiving. Those developments lead the A’s to believe he could still develop into an adequate defensive catcher. He also plays an average first base right now.
2023 Season
Hit .270/.351/.474 with 17 home runs and a 97 wRC+ in 97 games for Las Vegas, but struck out 125 times in 388 plate appearances which equates to a 32.3% strikeout rate.
Cole Miller
Scouting grades: Fastball: 55 | Slider: 50 | Changeup: 50 | Control: 45 | Overall: 45
The 6-foot-6 Miller has a loose, though not super-fast arm, one that delivered a consistently better repertoire this past spring. His fastball has excellent movement down in the zone and he was up to 96 mph with the pitch. His slider has also gotten better with more consistent action as an 81-84 mph short, hard breaking ball. He has feel for a low-80s changeup as well.
There’s belief that Miller could have a plus heater and two above-average secondary offerings in the future, with the chance to become a durable innings-eater in a big league rotation. He’s around the strike zone and is super-competitive on the mound. The fact that his father, Mike, played in the NFL doesn’t hurt in terms of dreaming of what he can do athletically.
Vote in the comments below for your favorite by Rec’ing his “Vote: (Player Name): comment and post your nomination for the next round