Prospects who could be impact callups — 1 for each team
We’ve already seen several noteworthy callups in this young season. The biggest came when the Orioles promoted the best prospect in baseball, Jackson Holliday, on April 10. The Dodgers summoned fellow Top 100 prospect Andy Pages on Tuesday to bolster their outfield.
When Justin Steele strained a hamstring on Opening Day, the Cubs quickly turned to former Top 100 prospect Ben Brown, who shook off a rough big league debut to allow just one run over his first two starts. Nick Nastrini joined the White Sox on Monday and already looks like their No. 2 starter after one outing.
Who’s next? We identify impact callup candidates for each organization below, highlighted by 17 Top 100 prospects:
AMERICAN LEAGUE EAST
Blue Jays: Ricky Tiedemann, LHP (No. 1/MLB No. 27)
It’s been a rocky trio of Triple-A starts for Tiedemann, who was still being considered by Toronto as a Major League option late in the spring. He walked four over 1 2/3 innings during a cold April 5 outing in Worcester and has allowed five earned runs total through eight frames in his first three starts. But the talent is still undeniably there, particularly with his mid-90s fastball and low-80s sweeper. If he can iron out his command and stay healthy, Tiedemann could help a Jays pitching staff that ranks 23rd in the Majors with a collective 4.64 ERA.
Orioles: Coby Mayo, 3B/1B (No. 3/MLB No. 28)
Holliday is up, so who’s next? It could be Heston Kjerstad or it could be Mayo, they currently stand No. 1 and 2 among all Top 100 players in total bases this season. What Mayo is doing, at age 22, in Triple-A has been very impressive (.348/.403/.652), though it’s not so easy to figure out how the Orioles can get his bat into the big league lineup. But if he keeps hitting like this, they’re going to have to sort it out.
Rays: Junior Caminero, 3B/SS (No. 1/MLB No. 4)
Now that a brief quad strain is behind him, Caminero is back doing what he does best – crushing the ball. He hit a 425-foot homer in his return to the Triple-A Durham lineup on April 14, and he has at least one hit in each of his first five games with the Bulls for a .318/.400/.636 slash line. The right-handed slugger’s power would instantly translate
if he returned to the bigs, but unfortunately for him, Isaac Paredes continues to mash at third base for Tampa Bay. Should the Rays’ infield depth be tested, Caminero should get the call to keep the team afloat in the AL East.
