Minor League Ball released its list of the top 175 prospects Monday, and as has been the case with Baseball America, ESPN’s Keith Law and FanGraphs, John Sickels named Kris Bryant the top prospect in baseball.
Minor League Ball also ranked Addison Russell (5) and Jorge Soler (7) in the top seven. The Cubs have three of the 10 prospects in baseball that Sickels handed an ‘A’ grade to in his pre-season ranking.
Minor League Ball’s top 10 prospects for 2015: 3B Kris Bryant (Cubs), SS Carlos Correa (Astros), RHP Lucas Giolito (Nationals), LHP Julio Urias (Dodgers), SS Addison Russell (Cubs), OF Byron Buxton (Twins), OF Jorge Soler (Cubs), SS Corey Seager (Dodgers), LHP Daniel Norris (Blue Jays) and RHP Tyler Glasnow (Pirates).
John Sickels defines ‘Grade A’ prospects as elite, players that have “a chance of becoming stars or superstars.”
Kris Bryant and Addison Russell are widely considered among the five best prospects in the game and Jorge Soler has been ranked within the top 15 consistently the entire off-season.
C Kyle Schwarber (19, A-), RHP C.J. Edwards (52, B+), OF Albert Almora (108, B), RHP Pierce Johnson (126, B), OF Billy McKinney (135, B) were also ranked in Minor League Ball’s list. Sickels defines ‘Grade B’ prospects as players that “have a good chance to enjoy a successful career. Some of those players turn out to be stars, some don’t, most end up spending several years in the majors, at the very least in a marginal role.”
Five players also received honorable mentions, or as Sickels phrased it, in the picture for spots 150-175 but did not end up in the final top 175 … LHP Carson Sands, SS Gleyber Torres, RHP Duane Underwood, 1B Dan Vogelbach, RHP Jen-Ho Tseng.
• Minor League Ball – Top 175 MLB Prospects for 2015
Kris Bryant retained his spot as the top prospect in baseball according to Minor League Ball. Sickels ranked Bryant No. 1 in his mid-season ranking last July. The Cubs placed six players in the top 75, and two of those players are no longer considered prospects after losing their rookie status. Kris Bryant (1), Addison Russell (5), Javier Baez (15), Jorge Soler (24), Arismendy Alcantara (34) and Albert Almora (57) made Minor League Ball’s 2014 mid-season list.
Most publications rank the Cubs’ system at the top or near the top of the organizational rankings. The Cubs position player prospects garner a majority of the attention, but there are quality arms in the system that will move up the prospect rankings if the same amount of progress is made this season as was made in 2014.
John Sickels top 10 Cubs prospects for 2015 are Kris Bryant, Addison Russell, Jorge Soler, Kyle Schwarber, C.J. Edwards, Albert Almora, Pierce Johnson, Billy McKinney, Duane Underwood and Jen-Ho Tseng.
Chicago Cubs Online released our ranking of the Top 21 Prospects for 2015 prior to the start of the Cactus League season. Click here if you missed the in depth write-ups on the top players in the Cubs system.
2015 Cubs Prospect Rankings
- Baseball America Names Kris Bryant No. 1 Prospect, Six Cubs Land in Top 100 List
- FanGraphs Ranking of Top 200 Prospects Includes 11 Cubs, Kris Bryant Tops List
- Cubs Land Seven Players in Baseball Prospectus’ Top 101 Prospect List
- Baseball America’s Top 31 Cubs Prospects for 2015
- Compiling the Cubs Prospects Lists
- FanGraphs Ranks the Top 31 Prospects in Cubs System
- Baseball Prospectus: 2015 Top 10 Cubs Prospects
- Minor League Ball’s Top Cubs Prospects for 2015
- Baseball America’s Top 10 Cubs Prospects for 2015
- Keith Law’s Top 10 Cubs Prospects for 2015
2015 Organizational Rankings
- Baseball Prospectus Ranks Cubs System the Best in the Game
- Cubs System Ranked No. 1 by Baseball America
- Cubs Retain No. 1 Spot in Keith Law’s Farm System Rankings
- Cubs Top The Sporting News Organizational Rankings