Live from The Arizona Fall League: October 29, 2024
Chris breaks down his live looks from the Arizona Fall League.
We are live from Arizona and had a good two games on Monday. We will have film from every game so be sure to follow me on X or I would love for you to subscribe to the Dynasty Dugout YouTube and follow along there as well.
Let’s get to what I saw in yesterday’s action.
Arizona Fall League Recap: 10/29/24
Mesa
Denzel Clarke, OF, OAK, 24
Clarke is an incredible athlete and has tools for days. Contact has been a bit of a question throughout his career but he made significant strides in the second half of the regular season.
In Monday’s game, Clarke collected four hits including a home run and a triple, ending the day just a double shy of the cycle. His triple left the bat at an absurd 117.1 mph and the home run left the bat at 107 mph.
Clarke is surging up prospect rankings and it is not just because of his AFL performance. The data has been strong and the improved contact skills are impressive.
Moises Ballesteros, C, CHC, 20
Mo Baller does it again, mashing his fifth AFL home run on a 106 mph exit velocity. Ballesteros has an impressive 84 percent contact rate this fall league with an in-zone mark at 94 percent.
The biggest concern is the catching ability. Ballesteros has allowed quite a few stolen bases during the AFL and while he allowed two more on Monday, he did throw out Jac Caglianone. There have been questions surrounding his ability to stick behind the dish for a while now, and I dont think those have eased up. The next question is, where does he play in the field? At 5’7”, Ballesteros would become the shortest first baseman in MLB by four inches, with Ty France and Josh Naylor checking in at 5’11”.
Ballesteros has strong contact skills and some sneaky good power. If he can maintain catcher eligibility, it would go a long way for his dynasty value.
Surprise
Carter Jensen, C, KC, 21
Jensen is one of my favorite catching prospects in the game, and he has remained quite underrated. Jensen blasted his third fall home run and had three batted balls north of 102 mph on Monday. Jensen’s home run traveled an impressive 411 feet with an exit velocity of 108 mph. He has 16 batted balls so far in the AFL with an impressive 96 mph average exit velocity and a max of 115. All while showing strong contact and low chase rates.
Austin Deming, INF, HOU, 24
Deming is a player I have seen a ton after he spent the end of 2023 and most of 2024 in Asheville, and he has always looked strong. He mashed 19 home runs and added 24 doubles while slashing .262/.348/.464 between High-A and Double-A this year. Despite the bigger frame at 5’11”/213, Deming moves extremely well and makes plays in the field.
Collecting two hits on Monday, Deming’s single and double both left the bat with exit velocities north of 105 mph.
Scottsdale
Josue Briceño, C/1B, DET, 20
Well, I did not catch a Briceño home run last night, which seems to happen every other day at this point. While he collected two hits, one of a spinner off the end of the bat that went down the third base line and Briceño beat out. The other was a hooked line drive that landed between second and first base for a hit.
Briceño has seven home runs and two triple so far this fall while slashing .442/.500/.923 in 58 trips to the plate. He is a massive human being and probably bigger than his listed 6’4”. At this point, he is a first baseman. Briceño’s performance has him as the front runner for AFL MVP.
Thayron Liranzo, C, DET, 21
Liranzo put on a nice showing on defense and offense on Monday night. He collected three hits, a smoked double from the right side that bounced off the wall in center field where it is 430 feet deep. Liranzo also smoked two singles on line drives with impressive bat speed from the left side.
The catching ability was more impressive than anything to be. Liranzo has quick instincts behind the plate and a cannon of an arm. He registered a 1.8 second pop-time which was extremely impressive. He looks like a long term power hitting catcher to me.
In nine games in Arizona, Liranzo is slashing .424/.487/.758 with a home run and eight extra base hits.
Salt River
Garrett Martin, OF, NYY, 24
Martin has been scorching hot through three weeks of AFL play. He mashed his third AFL home run on Monday and has six extra base hits while slashing .282/.388/.615. Slugging hasn’t been an issue for him – his 6-foot-3, 215 pound frame generates plenty of pop – but his hit tool has been questionable as a pro. He has a career .213 batting average and 28.8% strikeout rate through his first 105 games, primarily in High-A.
He does have a 75 percent contact rate and an 87 percent in-zone mark so far this fall league and is showing good plate discipline, chasing less than 20 percent of pitches out of the zone. Martin is a prospect I am watching closely in the Yankees system as the power upside is super intriguing.