Wednesday's top Spring Training prospect performers

March 24th, 2022

Here's a look at Wednesday’s top performers at Spring Training from each team's Top 30 Prospects list.

Giants: Joey Bart, C (MLB No. 31)
Bart launched his first home run of the spring in the fifth inning, a towering two-run shot to left that tied the game at 2. The 25-year-old struck out looking in his only other plate appearance and was lifted in the sixth inning. Bart was the No. 2 overall selection in the 2018 Draft and is set to take over at catcher for San Francisco with the retirement of Buster Posey in the offseason. Last year at Triple-A, Bart smacked 10 homers and 15 doubles with a .294/.358/.472 slash line.

Blue Jays: Orelvis Martinez, SS/3B (MLB No. 38)
The hype around Martinez continues to grow as the 20-year-old continues to mash homers. The second-ranked Blue Jays prospect destroyed a hanging breaking ball well out of the park for a solo shot in the eighth inning, his second long ball of the spring. Martinez clobbered 28 home runs in his time at High-A and Single-A last season, bursting onto the scene as one of the highest-rising prospects on Pipeline’s Top 100 Prospects list.

Guardians: Gabriel Arias, INF (MLB No. 73)
Arias recorded his second consecutive multihit game with a 2-for-3 day at the plate and is now 5-for-9 with a double to start Spring Training. His first base knock came off Clayton Kershaw in the second and he came around to score two batters later. Arias is competing for a middle infield spot in the Guardians’ Opening Day lineup after roping 29 doubles and 13 home runs with an .802 OPS for Triple-A Columbus in 2021.

Reds: Elly De La Cruz, 3B/SS (MLB No. 76)
De La Cruz replaced fellow Top 100 prospect Matt McLain at shortstop in the sixth inning and left a major impact on the game. The 20-year-old slugged a go-ahead grand slam in the eighth to give the Reds a late 12-8 lead. De La Cruz played his way onto the Top 100 Prospects list in 2021 with 18 doubles, nine triples, eight home runs and a .874 OPS in 61 games. Signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2018, De La Cruz has a well-rounded game and projects as a five-tool player that could quickly rise through Cincinnati’s system as he matures.

Padres: MacKenzie Gore, LHP (MLB No. 86)
Through two spring starts, Gore has flashed the dominance that made him the third overall pick in the 2017 Draft and top-ten prospect in years past. The lefty shut down the Angels on one hit over three scoreless innings with five strikeouts and is yet to allow a run over five innings in Spring Training. Gore is entering his sixth year of professional baseball but is still just 23. He reached Triple-A for the first time last season and after battling back from injuries, is set to re-establish himself as one of the premier young pitchers in baseball this year.

Astros: Pedro Leon, SS/OF
Leon got the start in center field and smashed his first home run of the spring, a two-run shot off of Adam Wainwright in the second inning. The 23-year-old carries lofty expectations after signing for $4 million in the 2020 international class, the largest sum any player received that year. Leon reached Triple-A in his first Minor League season and excelled against Double-A pitching, hitting nine homers with an .802 OPS in 52 games for Corpus Christi last year.

Dodgers: Miguel Vargas, 3B/2B/1B
Vargas teed off of 2020 American League Cy Young winner Shane Bieber for a three-run blast in the second inning. The 22-year-old is now 3-for-7 with a double and home run so far in Spring Training, continuing the momentum of his breakout season in 2021. At High-A and Double-A, Vargas hit a career-best 23 home runs and batted .319 with a .906 OPS in 542 plate appearances. Vargas has a career batting average of .316, batting over .300 in each of his three Minor League seasons.

Phillies: Francisco Morales, RHP
Morales recorded a save by striking out the side on 22 pitches, allowing a hit and a walk in the process. Signed out of Venezuela for $720,000 in 2016, Morales’ arsenal features a fastball that can reach 98 mph and a slider that misses bats at up to 88 mph. The 22-year-old struggled as a starter for Double-A Reading in 20221but the ability to strike batters out is clear as he fanned 117 over 91 2/3 innings for a K/9 of 11.5. With two plus pitches and lofty strikeout totals, Morales’ future may be as a reliever for a Philadelphia team that had the sixth-highest bullpen ERA in 2021.

Rangers: Bubba Thompson, OF
Thompson’s scorching start to spring continued with his second Cactus League roundtripper. The two-run shot came in the seventh inning and lifted the 23-year-old’s average to .500 (4-for-8) with two homers, four RBIs, four runs and a stolen base in five games. The 26th overall selection in the 2017 Draft is coming off a breakout campaign last year with Double-A Frisco. Thompson set career highs across the board, batting .275/.325/.483 with 48 extra-base hits, 16 homers, 52 RBIs and 25 stolen bases in 104 games.

Tigers: Ryan Kreidler, SS
Kreidler replaced Javier Báez at shortstop in the seventh inning and made the most of his lone at-bat of the day, crushing a grand slam to left-center field that gave the Tigers a one-run lead in the seventh. The 24-year-old showcased his developed power last year in his first full season, swatting 22 homers with 23 doubles and an .803 OPS between Double-A and Triple-A. Kreidler is regarded as a standout defender as well, giving Detroit a well-rounded option in the infield as they look to contend for a spot in the playoffs this season.

White Sox: Romy Gonzalez, SS
Gonzalez’s homer wasn’t nearly enough in Chicago’s loss to Texas, but it continued a strong start for the 25-year-old. Gonzalez played the entire game at third base and reached safely twice, adding a walk to his ledger after going deep in the third inning. The University of Miami product made his Major League debut in 2021 and batted .250 with three doubles in 32 at-bats. That came after he slugged a career-high 24 homers while batting .283/.364/.532 with 61 RBIs and 24 stolen bases in 93 games across two Minor League levels.