Let the kids play: Prospects go off on Sunday

April 1st, 2019

Sometimes it takes prospects a while to get used to life at the Major League level and other times the transition seemingly comes with ease. While it’s still early in the season and the sample size is admittedly small, several prospects have wasted little time proving they belong in the Majors.

Prior to Sunday, only nine pitchers in history had thrown five or more innings and allowed one run or less, one walk or less and two hits or less while striking out seven or more in their Major League debuts. Then, Chris Paddack (Padres) and Trent Thornton (Blue Jays) both did so on Sunday afternoon.

Paddack, the Padres’ No. 5 prospect (No. 33 in MLB) took the mound amid plenty of fanfare and anticipation and certainly didn’t disappoint.

The right-hander retired the first 10 batters he faced and struck out six of seven from the second to the fourth inning. Paddack didn’t give up a hit until the fifth inning and left the game having allowed one run on two hits over five innings. He also struck out seven.

Blue Jays’ No. 15 prospect Thornton, whom the organization acquired from the Astros in November, also put together a strong debut. The right-hander gave up a hit to the lead-off man, then promptly struck out four in a row.

It turns out that was just a sign of things to come for Thornton, who struck out eight and yielded just two hits over five scoreless frames.

Here’s how other top prospects performed on Sunday:

• No. 2 overall prospect Fernando Tatis Jr. (Padres’ No. 1) went 0-for-4 at the plate, but helped out fellow prospect Paddack in the third inning with a nice defensive play in the third inning.

• No. 4 overall prospect Victor Robles (Nationals’ No. 1), who spent three months on the injured list with a hyperextended elbow last season, is starting the year healthy and taking advantage of the opportunity. The 21-year-old put together another multihit performance, his second in as many days, and is 5-for-11 through three games. Robles went 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles and has already accumulated four extra-base hits.

• No. 50 overall prospect Pete Alonso (Mets’ No. 1) continued his strong start with another multihit performance. After going 2-for-4 against the Nationals, Alonso has hits in all three games he’s played and is 6-for-12 with three doubles and three RBIs.

Astros’ No. 4 prospect Josh James cruised through two innings of relief work. James retired all six batters he faced and finished emphatically as he struck out the final four.

• Blue Jays’ No. 28 prospect Elvis Luciano also made a historic debut. Luciano, 19, became the first player born in the 2000s to make his Major League debut when he entered the game in the seventh inning. The right-hander threw 1 1/3 scoreless innings, walked one, struck out one and gave up one hit. Luciano and Thornton weren’t the only prospects to make an impact in Toronto’s 4-3 loss to Detroit. Rowdy Tellez (Blue Jays’ No. 21) was called upon to pinch-hit in the eighth and came through in a big way with a game-tying, three-run homer.

Marlins’ No. 5 prospect Sandy Alcantara began the game with a 94.8 mph fastball and continued to bring the heat all game. The right-hander began his 2019 campaign with eight scoreless frames as he led the Marlins to a 3-0 win over the Rockies. Alcantara, whose fastball topped out at 99.3 mph, struck out six and surrendered just four hits in the outing.