This list of Cuban baseball prospects, still producing talents endlessly, focuses on establishing a long-term value. Therefore, many of these players are more linked to the future than to an immediate impact. I’ve been working on this list since August 2014, extracting reports and doing scout work, conversations with trainers, and records of coaches, sabermetric assessments and estimated projections of talent. Here I only consider U-23 players (with the exception of Luis Y. La O and Dariel Crespo) and residents in Cuba; however Pinar del Rio´s Vladimir Gutierrez and Lazaro Alonso still appear in this work, as they played until January 2015 in Cuba. Some of the players ranked among the top 10 in the list do have tools to succeed in baseball in the near future.
25- Alfredo Rodriguez (SS). Isla de la Juventud. (20) 1,74 m / 82kg
Alfredo Rodriguez was born in Havana. He has limited power and seems to be a hitter with an average no higher than .270. But his glove and speed (7 SB) put it in this list. He needs many at-bats yet, but is an interesting player.
24- Lazaro Hernandez (3B). Artemisa. (21) 1.87m / 90kg
Hernández needs to work with his swing and contact. He totals 188 K in 222 games since joining the league at 18. He has delayed his progression and depends on his bat as he is at best an average runner and defender.
23- Yadier Echevarría (RHP). Las Tunas. ( 19) 1.78m / 66kg
His lethal weapon is the sinker . His fastball reaches 89-90 mph but his average is 86-87 mph. He can become a great bullpen pitcher, his release angle makes difficult to distinguish his pitches and he forces right-handed batters hitting many groundballs as he pitches very low in the inner zone.
22- Dairon Blanco (OF). Camaguey. (21) 1.83m / 77kg
Blanco is a great defensive player. His ability to reach walks has gone up (OBP . 394). He has limited power and could be a special leadoff hitter if becoming a more aggressive runner.
21- Yankiel Mauri (RHP). Santi Spiritus. ( 18) 1.87m / 72kg
Perhaps Mauri does not have many innings pitched to be included in a list of prospects but his evaluation as bullpen pitcher has been positive. He has power in his fastball (92mph) and needs better control for his breaking balls and improve his WHIP (1.36).
20- Raidel Orta (RHP). Industrial 18 years 1.75m / 70kg
Orta is a natural starter with great projection in Cuban baseball. His walk rate is normal for an 18 years old pitcher. However, his slider is mature and consistent and his fastball reaches 90 mph. Perhaps there is no an 18 years old pitcher RHP with the talent of Orta in Cuba.
19- Jesus Balaguer (RHP). Industriales (20) 1.89m / 80kg
Maybe Balaguer comes to be a workhorse rather than an ace. His fastball is strong (93mph) and his height will propitiate his fastball to be faster over time. By now he is a bullpen pitcher with control problems, (23 BB in 27.2 IP). His rivals only hi t for .205.
18- Dariel Crespo (C). Artemisa (22) 1.92m / 79kg
There is not a young catcher in Cuba with Crespo´s impact and talent. He is tall and has an athletic body. He has limited power but produces extra-base hits. His defensive tools are good, highlighting his arm. He comes from a promotion of talented players like Jorge Soler, Andy Ibanez and Gourriel Jr.
17- Yordan Alvarez (IF / OF). Las Tunas. (17) 1.91m / 81kg
He has a fairly short swing at the moment, seeking more contact than power. Alvarez should begin to demonstrate power in the coming seasons when refining his mechanics and lengthening his swing. Until now he chooses pitches very well and his defensive is top quality.
16- Darien Núñez (LHP). Las Tunas. ( 21) 1.85m / 83kg
Nunez has a powerful fastball of 94 mph. His lack of control problems have been insurmountable so far ( WHIP 1.62). His future depends on improving this condition. His rivals only hit .238, but Nunez’s mechanics on the mound is very inefficient because he does not lift the right foot enough to propel himself and this subtracts control and balance to his body. 202 BB in 271.0 IP seems much imbalance.
15- Julio P. Martínez (CF). Guantánamo. ( 18) 1.73m / 71kg
Martinez will shine in Cuban or foreign baseball. This year he has averaged an offensive line of 323/383/443. Hs reach in the CF is above average, his arm is strong, and still needs to grow as a runner. His swing is compact and produces many extra-base hits and has good contact.
14- Pedro Durán (LHP). Industriales (19) 1.75m / 82kg
Duran is a talent that has not yet found his pitching role. He can succeed at any role (starter or reliever) because his tools support this. He has a fastball stable at 88 mph, good curve and is developing a kind of change up. He must solve his control problems but has weapons to succeed.
- Guillermo Aviles (IF / OF). Granma (21) 1.83m / 87kg
His progress has been slow but effective, because he was not used regularly until last season. He is patient at home plate and takes many walks. His projection is the one of a player with more than 15 HR and 60 RBI per season. His defense and speed on bases is limited.
- Luis Daniel Serrano (3B). Santi Spiritus. (20) 1.87m / 92kg
Serrano is the Cuban prospect of greater power along with Lazaro Alonso. He destroyed pitchers with 284/351/625 and 27 RBI and OPS of 976. In just 88 at-bats he hit nine homers in 2014. He was the player ” ridiculously unelected” in the round of reinforcements. He is a hitter to be placed in the middle of the batting order. If improving his area of choosing pitches, we will see a player with great value in short term. …
11- Randy Arozarena (Utility player) Pinar del Río. (19) 1.78m / 62kg
I was watching Arozarena since last season and he is a kind of underrated player. But coaches say his line of work will led him to take more value than the one he currently has. Defensively he is useful at CF / LF / 2B and SS. He is fast (9 SB in 14 attempts) and chooses pitches well (20 BB / 16 K). He runs from HOME to 1B in 3.60 seconds and his power seems to be limited. He could steal more than 25 bases per year in the future with an on-base percentage of 400 or more.
10- Livan Moinelo (LHP). Pinar del Río. (18) 1.75m / 63kg
There is not in Cuba a lefty with Moinelo´s aura and he is only 18. His fastball reaches 90mph, and the high and descending curve destroys left-handed batters while he has developed a change up / sinker effective versus right-handed hitters. His rivals hit only .221 and he has 45 K in 41.1 IP with 5 BB, this shows his good pitching command. He successfully participated in the 2015 Caribbean Series and if improving his fitness, he could have a promising future.
9- Yaisel Sierra (RHP). Holguin (22) 1.84m / 72kg
Sierra reaches 96 mph with his fastball averaging 92-93 mph. He would be better positioned in this list if having eradicated the rate of walks. He needs a third effective pitch and improve the command of his slider.
8- Lazaro A. Alonso (1B / LF). Pinar del Rio. (19) 1.90m / 83kg
Alonso is a player of power and speed. He has been seen to play in Asia by some scouts. He has an arm and defense above average. His swing is long and overloaded but has weakness when facing external pitches by lefties. Playing every day he could be an impact player with AVE of .300 per season and 25 HR or more. His pitches’ choosing is quite mature for his age, which would help him to take walks. He has averaged an offensive line of 299/436/494 in 38 games in a season as a rookie.
7- Luis Yander La O ( IF). Santiago de Cuba. (22) 1.84m / 84kg
This player is an exception in the list. Now he is 23 and 2 months, still I decided to include him given his value and impact. His strength is the speed of legs, arms and swing. He has limited power (only 5 HR in 5 seasons and SLU of 410), yet he is a versatile defender of the infield, a runner with projection of more than 30 SB per season and player with OBP above 400. He chooses well in the area (only 4 K and 23 BB), hitter of drive lines to the opposite field.
6- Jose Adolis Garcia (OF). Ciego de Ávila. (22) 1.85m / 76kg
The brother of Adonis is a 5 tool player. He has a sweet and full of power swing, speed on the bases, displacement in the outfield, a healthy arm and produces runs in extreme situations. His offensive line shows 372/411/543. He needs taking more walks and put his speed on the bases.
5- Cionel Perez (LHP). Matanzas. (19) 1.77m / 66kg
Perez is a lefty with power and that makes him even more valuable. His fastball has reached 95mph, averaging 90-92mph frequently. He needs a better command with the slider (80-82 mph). Rivals only hit .222 with 69 K in 80 IP. If improving his rate of walks, Cionel could become an ace. He needs a slower pitch for greater variation in his repertoire.
4- Norge Luis Ruiz (RHP). Camaguey. (21) 1.76m / 80kg
Norge Luis Ruiz is a powerful pitcher. He has a 96 mph fastball and stable at 92mph. He has developed a change up that makes him effective against left-handers. At his young age, he needs a dominant pitch for accompanying his fastball. He is projected as a winning pitcher with ERA below 2.50 (2.49 in 3 seasons), a devourer of innings on the rise although prone to lack of control.
3- Lourdes Y. Gourriel (Utility player) Industriales (19) 1.92m / 83kg
Lourdes Y. Lourdes has had a meteoric rise from one season to another . His hitting mechanics has changed making significant adjustments to his balance of legs. At his young age, his swing speed and power seem work of maturity. He’s a good runner with 70 on a scale of 80 and he is limited as a defender but not in UZR or ability to play many positions. He is projected as a player of 15 HR / 15 SB and great producer of runs. He has an overstepped potential………
2- Hector Mendoza (RHP). Isla de la Juventud. (20) 1.90m / 80kg
Mendoza was in Japan in 2014 and the Asian discipline has helped him a lot. He is a possible closer with a 98mph fastball and a violent slider above 84mph. His rivals only bat for .228 in Cuba with 1 HR in 4 seasons. His ability to maintain the ball inside the stadium will provide him more value in the near future.
1- Vladimir Gutiérrez (RHP). Pinar del Río. (19) 186m / 78kg
He was the Rookie of the Year in Cuba in 2014. His fastball has reached 96 mph, but the criterion is that his speed will increase given his young age and muscle mass of his arm will become stronger. He has developed a fast curve of 80-82mph and excellent command in addition to a changeup that he will try to refine and will be vital against left-handers. He has an unusual and different release angle. His tools include the strength and development to become an ace pitcher.
Authors
Francys Romero,
Francys
