#1 Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (TOR – 3B)
It may seem unfair to compare any teenager to Hall of Famers, but it is frankly ridiculous to compare him to anyone else. In fact, when you put his minor league stats from the same ages and leagues up against the top prospects in the last century, Vlad Jr. blows them all away from Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez to Mike Trout and Bryce Harper. Assuming health, his upside profiles similarly to Miguel Cabrera or Albert Pujols with multiple batting titles, on-base percentages constantly over .400 and over 30 homers each season.
#2 Eloy Jimenez (CWS – OF)
Eloy is a hulk with plus plus power and a fringe plus plus hit tool. Players like that don’t come around often, and while he has a different build that Manny Ramirez, that comparison comes to mind every time I see Jimenez play. The 21-year-old has a legitimate chance at a Triple-Crown someday if he continues progressing toward his ceiling.
#1 Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (TOR – 3B)
It may seem unfair to compare any teenager to Hall of Famers, but it is frankly ridiculous to compare him to anyone else. In fact, when you put his minor league stats from the same ages and leagues up against the top prospects in the last century, Vlad Jr. blows them all away from Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez to Mike Trout and Bryce Harper. Assuming health, his upside profiles similarly to Miguel Cabrera or Albert Pujols with multiple batting titles, on-base percentages constantly over .400 and over 30 homers each season.
#2 Eloy Jimenez (CWS – OF)
Eloy is a hulk with plus plus power and a fringe plus plus hit tool. Players like that don’t come around often, and while he has a different build that Manny Ramirez, that comparison comes to mind every time I see Jimenez play. The 21-year-old has a legitimate chance at a Triple-Crown someday if he continues progressing toward his ceiling.
#3 Forrest Whitley (HOU – SP)
Now that Walker Buehler is off in the majors dominating hitters, Whitley is the consensus top pitching prospect in baseball. It is no mystery why the Astros allowed Charlie Morton to walk this off-season. It’s because Whitley is MLB ready and has the stuff to potentially produce as an ace from day one in Houston. Don’t be surprised if we are looking at an annual Cy Young contender in Whitley.
#4 Jordan Adell (LAA – OF)
A few years ago the Angels gambled by taking the extremely raw Adell 10th overall. He had severe holes in his game, but has blossomed into a future superstar. If he continues to mature into his unbelievable tools, Adell will likely be the top prospect in baseball this time next year and may end up the second coming of a Carlos Beltran like fantasy monster.
#5 Fernando Tatis Jr. (SD – SS)
If this list were for real baseball rather than fantasy baseball, Tatis would be all the way up at #2. He is a true five-tool talent that should offer plus defense at shortstop with a rare power/speed combo. Since he’ll be playing half his games in San Diego, however, the ceiling for his homers, RBIs and runs are all limited to mere human numbers. With that said, we could be looking at another fantasy player similar to Francisco Lindor down the road.
