Battle of the Prospects: Cubs vs Red Sox Part II

Welcome to the final part of the two part Battle of the Prospects: Cubs vs Red Sox

In part one (Found Here), I thought the Cubs marquee names shined a bit brighter than the Red Sox marquee names. We’ll see if the Red Sox have enough depth advantage to overcome that.

All of my rankings are for fantasy purposes.

 

13. Duane Underwood, RHP Cubs, age 20
2014 was a big year for Underwood.  Both his fastball and curve took a big step forward, he’s got high end stuff but with inconsistent command, profiles more as a three or Four.

Headed for A+ to start 2015

14. Garin Cecchini, 3B Red Sox, age 23
Cecchini is a line drive hitter with average power and below average speed.  He could hit .280/.350/.440 with 12-16 home runs, five to 10 stolen bases.

He’s ready for a big league trial but is blocked in Boston.

15. Brian Johnson, LHP Red Sox, age 24
A command and control lefty, that will eat innings, likely a number four starter in the bigs.

He will spend most of 2015 in Triple-A, could see Boston at some point.

16. Pierce Johnson, RHP Cubs, age 23
Johnson has two potential plus pitches in his fastball and curve, he also throws an average change-up. He profiles as a back-end starter or reliever because of his lack of command.

Johnson likely returns to Double-A to start 2015.

17. Dan Vogelbach, 1B Cubs, age 22
Vogelbach is probably best suited as a DH, but he’s an average hitter with plus power and he’s had a good contact rate throughout the minors.  He’s got .275/.360/.460 potential with 23-28 home runs.

He’ll likely begin 2015 in Double-A.

18. Michael Chavis, 2B-3B Red Sox, age 19
Chavis was the Red Sox first of two first round picks in 2014, he was heralded as one of the top prep bats in the country, with a potential plus bat, plus raw power and above average speed.  He could shoot up the prospect lists next year.

Chavis likely starts 2015 in Lowell, Short Season A ball.

19. Michael Kopech, RHP Red Sox, age 18
Kopech was the other Red Sox first round pick in 2014.  His fastball sits 93-96 and touches 98 which is rated as potential plus, plus pitch.  Kopech also throws a slider with plus potential and a potential average curve and change-up.  He has a ceiling as a number two starter, but he has a long way to go developmentally.

Low-A Greenville in 2015

20. Eloy Jimenez, RF Cubs, age 18
Jimenez was the top rated prospect on the July 2nd signing day 2013.  At 6’4, Jimenez projects to have plus or even plus, plus power to go with at least an average hit tool.  There’s a long way to go but the Cubs could have something special here.

Likely goes to short season A ball, Boise to start 2015

21. Gleyber Torres, SS Cubs, age 18
Torres is a very polished player, he projects as a plus hitter with a line drive approach and average power/speed.  He’s got a lot in common with Francisco Lindor both offensively and defensively, and I could see him rocketing up prospect lists in 2015.

The Cubs might get aggressive and place Torres at their new full season A ball home, “South Bend Silver Hawks” which is pretty advanced for an 18 year old.

22. Trey Ball, LHP Red Sox, age 20
The Red Sox first round pick in the 2013 draft.  Ball was a two-way player in high school and was new to pitching when the Red Sox drafted him.  Has potentially two plus pitches in the fastball and change-up and an average curve. Number three starter stuff but still very raw and has a long way to go.

A+ to start 2015.

23. Carson Sands, LHP Cubs, age 19
Sands dropped to the fourth round in the 2014 draft because teams were worried he wouldn’t sign.  He has three above average or better pitches and profiles as a number three starter.

Sands likely starts 2015 in South Bend ( Low A).

24. Jake Stinnett, RHP Cubs, age 22
Despite being a college senior, Stinnett was rather new to pitching when the Cubs took him in second round of the 2014 draft.  He projects to have three above average or better pitches and he profiles as a mid rotation arm.

A return to Boise (short season A ball) to start 2015 wouldn’t shock me.

25. Billy McKinney, CF Cubs, age 20
McKinney projects as an average hitter, with fringe average power and above average speed, and we could see a .270/.330/.420 with 10-14 home runs and 12-18 stolen bases. Likely a 4th OF.

McKinney likely begins 2015 in double-A.

26. Deven Marrero, SS Red Sox, age 24
A fringe average hitter with below average power and average speed, we can expect .260/.320/.360.  Marrero projects as a better real life player than fantasy in part because he’s a gold glove caliber shortstop.

Marrero likely returns to triple-A to start 2015.

The Cubs have the marquee names and were able to match the Red Sox in depth at least until this point. I suspect the Red Sox would get the better of it if i were to go another 10 players, but that wouldn’t change the overall result.

The Cubs are my pick for the top farm system in baseball with the Red Sox in second followed by the Twins in third

Questions/comments look for me on Twitter @ashevillesoxfan or leave a comment below.  As always thanks for reading.