The Dynasty Digest: August 6, 2024
Chris Clegg breaks down all of yesterdays action from the DSL to the Majors.
A dreaded Monday has come and gone. There was no minor league baseball on Monday except from the DSL. Sadly, there are just two more weeks until there is no minor league baseball at all. It is hard to believe we are at this point of the season, but it is the home stretch. Let’s talk about all the talk MLB players and then hit on the DSL standouts.
MLB Standouts
Elly De La Cruz, SS, CIN
When De La Cruz is hot, there are few, if any, hitters better than him in the game. A four-hit day on Monday included two home runs and two doubles. In his five batted balls, four of them left the bat with an exit velocity north of 108 mph, with the highest checking in at 113.3 mph.
De La Cruz now has 20 home runs and 57 stolen bases on the year, which is quite crazy. He is pacing for 80 stolen bases and 29 home runs. Sure, you are going to get plenty of strikeouts, but still, what Elly has done this year as a 22-year-old is impressive.
Jesús Sánchez, OF, MIA
Sánchez would not let Elly out do him on the exit velocity or home run distance side of things on Monday night. He popped the longest home run hit in 2024 that traveled 480 feet with an exit velocity of 116.4 mph. Additionally, Sánchez added two more batted balls hit harder than 106 mph.
While not quite the electric factor that De La Cruz is, Sánchez still manages to but up solid numbers. He is about as consistent as they come, hitting 13 or 14 home runs in each of the last four seasons. All those seasons include missed time as well, but Sanchez is sure to hit career-high home runs, considering he already is just two off that mark.
Shohei Ohtani, DH, LAD
It's just another day at work for Ohtani, who continues to do what he does best: be one of the best hitters in professional baseball. Blasting his 34th home run of the year, Ohtani took another step clear of Marcell Ozuna for the second-most home runs in the game this year, trailing Aaron Judge’s mark of 41.
He added a double that left the bat at 117.1 mph and had another long flyout with an exit velocity of 113 mph. There is not much analysis needed here; Ohtani is the best player in the game. He is pacing to hit 40 home runs for the second straight year and has already stolen 32 bases. It will also be his second straight season with an OPS north of 1.000 if that mark holds.
Sean Manaea, LHP, NYM
Where did the 2024 version of Sean Manaea come from? After twirling a gem in which he struck out ten batters over seven scoreless innings, his ERA is down to 3.30 across 22 starts and 120 innings pitched.
The 32-year-old lefty reinvented himself this year with the Mets and has rewarded the team with his best season to date. A lot of this stems from his sweeper, which he is using significantly more this season. It currently has a 43 percent whiff rate, which is the third-highest mark among starting pitchers this season.
Is the success sustainable beyond the year? That is still to be determined. But he does have an opt-out that he could exercise after the stellar performance. If not, he will be back with the Mets on a $14 million deal.
Ty France, 1B, CIN
France was DFA’d by the Mariners in late July before finding a new home in Cincinnati. It has been a rough go for France this year, but maybe he is finding his footing in his new home. He turned in a three-hit performance on Monday, including a home run and double. Of the four batted ball events, France had three hard hits, and his lowest exit velocity was checked in at 94.1 mph.
Being in a much better-hitting environment in Great American Ballpark might pay dividends and help him get his confidence back.
David Festa, RHP, MIN
Most seemed quick to write off Festa after his first two MLB starts, which is typically happens when a prospect comes and does not perform right away. He went back down to Triple-A and in three starts since, has looked incredible. Festa turned in five scoreless innings on Monday which included nine strikeouts and 14 whiffs, which was good for an impressive 39 percent mark.
Over his last three starts, Festa has allowed a total of three earned runs in 14.1 innings with 22 strikeouts. The arsenal is good, don’t miss the boat here with Festa.
Tyler Fitzgerald, SS, SF
The player everyone wants to hear about is Tyler Fitzmagic. This guy just has not stopped hitting, and I am buying it. He led off Monday’s game with a solo home run and added another single. A third batted ball was a deep lineout that traveled 350 feet and had an xBA of .470.
Since rejoining the team in late June, Fitzgerald has 11 home runs across 81 plate appearances with a .351/.407/.865 slash line. Sure, it has come with a 28 percent strikeout rate and a rather high BABIP, but Fitzgerald has hit the ball hard and at ideal launch angles.
His 21.6 percent barrel rate over this stretch ranks eighth in baseball, and Fitzgerald has paired it with a 49 percent hard-hit rate and a near 91 mph average exit velocity. Pair that with a 99th-percentile sprint speed, and Fitzgerald shows he is capable of stealing bases if he ever gets on first.
I don’t really see this as a fluke. Sure, it is not sustainable at this level, but there is no reason he could not be a solid regular moving forward, even with below-average contact rates. Let’s see how the rest of the season shakes out.
MiLB Pitchers
We don’t highlight DSL pitchers often, but there were certainly several worth talking about.
Adrian Heredia, RHP, BAL, 19, DSL
Being a little older for the DSL, we expect a player like Heredia to dominate, and that is exactly what he has done. On Monday, Heredia turned in six near-perfect innings, allowing just one hit and striking out 11 batters.
Over his last seven starts, Heredia has allowed just three earned runs with 41 strikeouts in 29.2 innings. It is really hard to say if the performance will translate when he comes stateside, but just store this name in the back of your mind or watchlist in case it does.
Christian Lopez, LHP, CIN, 18, DSL
When looking at DSL arms, this is the kind of guy I want to see performing. A left-handed arm who was still 17 years old to begin the season and has been rather good. Lopez tossed four innings on Monday and struck out nine batters while allowing just two hits. He did walk three which is a little bit of a concern, but he limited the damage despite the base runners.
Having a 6’2” frame at his age is also something to factor in. During the season, Lopez had a 1.86 ERA in 38.2 innings pitched, with 52 strikeouts and 13 walks. Again, he is someone just to keep an eye on, especially if he comes stateside to pitch in the ACL next year.
MiLB Hitters
Alessander De La Cruz, OF, COL, 18, DSL
De La Cruz may be a repeater of the Dominican Summer League and is a bit older for the level which does give some pause, but his performance has been good. Three more hits on Monday, including a home run pushed his slash line to .322/.409/.556 on the year. His home run total now sits at seven to pair with 15 doubles and 2 triples. The extra-base hit rate is quite solid with 24 in 46 games.
The strikeout rate has been cut in half from last year, dropping from 34 percent to 17.7 percent this year. I am still a bit skeptical of any DSL repeater, but De La Cruz has been one of the better performers there.
Eduardo Beltre, OF, MIN, 17, DSL
Beltre continues to be one of the top DSL hitters after another home run on Monday brought his total to nine on the year. The contact rates are respectable and Beltre rarely chases out of the zone. This has led to a .330/.469/.650 slash.
The damage is done when Beltre makes contact as he has an absurd .558 wOBAcon paired with a 90th percentile exit velocity of 104.5 mph, which is already above the MLB average. Beltre is 17 years old.
Beltre received a $1.5 million bonus this January so he is far from a pop up, but the performance has been stellar. The contact rates I mentioned are good enough, checking in at 72 percent overall and 82 percent in-zone. The chase rate below 20 percent is also very impressive.
We always want to see how a player performs stateside, but it is hard to argue that Beltre should not have as much helium as any DSL prospect.
Shoutout Geoff Pontes for the DSL data!
Joswa Lugo, SS, LAA, 17, DSL
Lugo was the Angels’ top international signee in January, receiving a $2.3 million bonus. He was also one of the younger players in the class, being 16 at the time of signing. Despite being young, Lugo has a strong 6’3” frame that helps him get to easy power, but he should fill out more and only add to it. The gap-to-gap hard-line drives will eventually turn into more home runs.
Lugo has gotten off to a strong start in his professional career. After a home run and five RBI on Monday, Lugo has three on the year, but has 11 doubles and three triples to pair with them. The slash line sits at .327/.395/.494 with a 24 percent strikeout rate. Lugo is pretty aggressive, so it will be interesting to see how his game translates as he moves up.