Pipeline preview: Swanson, Espinoza among top prospects in action

May 5th, 2016

Here's a look at top prospects to watch in today's Minor League action:
Hitter to watch: Dansby Swanson (Braves' No. 1)
Swanson collected a season-high four hits and scored the go-ahead run in Double-A Mississippi's win against Tennessee on Wednesday. MLBPipeline.com's No. 6 overall prospect has hit safely in each of his four games for Mississippi, going 8-for-17 (.471) with three extra-base hits and six RBIs in that span. Overall, Swanson is hitting .358/.450/.568 with 17 runs scored and a Minor League-best 14 doubles this season in 25 games between the Class A Advanced and Double-A levels. On Thursday, the 22-year-old shortstop will square off against No. 73 overall prospect Duane Underwood (Cubs' No. 4) and Tennessee in a game that can be seen on MiLB.TV at 7:05 p.m. ET.
Pitcher to watch: Anderson Espinoza (Red Sox's No. 4)
Ranked No. 35 overall on the Top 100, Espinoza was excellent during his first four starts for Class A Greenville, allowing a combined five earned runs in 18 1/3 frames while piling up 20 strikeouts. The 18-year-old righty struggled in his last outing for the Drive, though, as he surrendered a career-high six earned runs in just 3 2/3 frames and failed to complete four innings for a second straight start. Espinoza will look to get back on track Thursday when he takes the mound against Augusta at 7:05 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV.
Duel of the day: Logan Allen (Padres' No 8) vs. Cody Reed (D-backs' No. 14)
Thursday's slate of top prospect pitching matchups features a potential duel from a pair of promising Class A left-handers in Allen and Reed, who will start for Class A Fort Wayne and Kane County, respectively. The Padres have been cautious with Allen's workload thus far as he eases into his first full pro season, but that hasn't stopped the 18-year-old southpaw from going 2-0 with a 1.80 ERA across 15 innings for the TinCaps. Reed, meanwhile, opened his full-season debut with back-to-back 11-strikeout games for the Cougars while allowing just six hits and one walk over 11 innings in that span. Fans can watch the two teenage lefties go head-to-head at 7:30 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV.
Thursday's Top 100 prospect probables

No. 32 Dillon Tate (Rangers' No. 4), Hickory at Rome (10:30 a.m. ET on MiLB.TV)
No. 35 Anderson Espinoza (Red Sox's No. 4), Greenville vs. Augusta (7:05 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV)
No. 66 Mark Appel (Phillies' No. 4), Lehigh Valley vs. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (7:05 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV)
No. 73 Duane Underwood (Cubs' No. 4), Tennessee vs. Mississippi (7:05 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV)
More top prospect probables

Conner Greene (Blue Jays' No. 2), Dunedin vs. Daytona (A Adv)
Jarlin Garcia (Marlins' No. 3), Jacksonville at Jackson (AA)
Jonathan Harris (Blue Jays' No. 4), Lansing vs. Quad Cities (A)
Jordan Guerrero (White Sox's No. 6) vs. Jacob Faria (Rays' No. 9), Birmingham at Montgomery (AA)
Kodi Medeiros (Brewers' No. 7) vs. Tyler Alexander (Tigers' No. 14), Brevard County vs. Lakeland (A Adv)
Sam Coonrod (Giants' No. 6), San Jose at Stockton (A Adv)
Chris Lee (Orioles' No. 8) vs. Chase Johnson (Giants' No. 14), Bowie at Richmond (AA)
Austin Voth (Nationals' No. 9), Syracuse at Buffalo (AAA)
Foster Griffin (Royals' No. 9), Lexington vs. Delmarva (A)
Tyler Wagner (D-backs' No. 9), Reno at Fresno (AAA)
Dillon Overton (A's No. 10), Nashville vs. Iowa (AAA)
Brett Lilek (Marlins' No. 11), Greensboro vs. Columbia (A)
Mike Soroka (Braves' No. 13), Rome vs. Hickory (A)
Chris Ellis (Braves' No. 14), Tennessee vs. Mississippi (AA)
Alec Mills (Royals' No. 14), Northwest Arkansas vs. Springfield (AA)
Clay Holmes (Pirates' No. 15), Altoona at Erie (AA)
Shawn Morimando (Indians' No. 16), Akron vs. Trenton (AA)
Raul Alcantara (A's No. 16), Midland vs. Corpus Christi (AA)
Chase De Jong (Dodgers' No. 18), Tulsa at Arkansas (AA)
Nick Pivetta (Phillies' No. 19), Reading at New Hampshire (AA)
Trey Ball (Red Sox's No. 19), Salem at Winston-Salem (A Adv)
Austen Williams (Nationals' No. 20), Harrisburg vs. Hartford (AA)
Jordan Montgomery (Yankees' No. 20), Trenton at Akron (AA)
Trevor Clifton (Cubs' No. 21), Myrtle Beach at Wilmington (A Adv)
Zach Lee (Dodgers' 22), Oklahoma City vs. New Orleans (AAA)
Tom Robson (Blue Jays' No. 22), Dunedin vs. Daytona (A Adv)
Ty Blach (Giants' No. 23), Sacramento at Albuquerque (AAA)
Justin Anderson (Angels' No. 24), Inland Empire vs. Lancaster
Seth Lugo (Mets' No. 24), Las Vegas at El Paso (AAA)
Michael Mader (Marlins' No. 25), Jupiter at Palm Beach (A Adv)
Zack Godley (D-backs' No. 26), Mobile vs. Chattanooga (AA)
Brooks Pounders (Royals' No. 29), Omaha at Memphis (AAA)
Casey Shane (Indians' No. 29), Lake County at Clinton (A)
John Means (Orioles' No. 30), Frederick at Potomac (A Adv)