I was going through the list of remaining Minor League free agents this weekend and jotted down some names of players I’ve had in-person coverage of in the past. The following players are guys that have a trait in their game that stuck out and/or appealed to me. I didn’t dig into any of their recent data other than what is on their Baseball Reference page, this is more a pure scouting notes exercise. The players are in no particular order. Let’s dive into some names:
Zack Brown, RHP, MIL
Brown was in my Spring Training coverage in 2020 where I got to see multiple multi-inning outings from him. He was coming off a rough season in 2019, but I later found out many of the Brewers PD staff attributed that to some personal issues he was working through, which I later confirmed from someone outside the organization.
Brown sat 91-95 that Spring Training and showed both a two and four-seam heater. I projected him for fringe-average command over the heaters. His CB (80-85) had short 12/6 shape that showed solid teeth to it and his ability to land it in the zone was inconsistent. Brown’s CH (85-89) was thrown with proper arm speed and showed late bottom action as it approached the zone. It was primarily a chase offering for him that spring but the late action allowed it to be effective against ML hitters.
Brenan Hanifee, RHP, BAL
I saw Hanifee in-person last at the end of the 2019 season while he was pitching for Frederick (A+). Hanifee doesn’t posses’ bat-missing stuff by any means, but he has plus tail and sink on his two-seamer that can generate weak contact. Supplementing the movement on his sinker, I had Hanifee down for plus deception as well due to his ability to hide the ball throughout his arm circle and the overall funky characteristics of his delivery.
Outside of the sinker, the secondary arsenal didn’t blow me away and I had his slider projected to be the be the only one that reaches an average (50-grade) level. I had his changeup as a 30 at the time and projecting it to be a 40-grade pitch at best in the future. Hanifee is interesting to me primarily due to his sinker movement and is worth taking a flyer on in my eyes.
Seuly Matias, OF, KC
I’ve seen a LOT of Matias over the years being assigned Kansas City’s system every year I was with the Angels. Matias, who will be in his age-24 season in 2023 has legitimate 80-grade raw juice in his bat which is almost the sole reason he’s on this list. His production outside of pre-game batting practice has been largely disappointing as he’s posted a .219/.308/.453 slash line over nearly 2,000 Minor League plate appearances.
Matias is prone to chasing out of the zone, especially breaking balls, and there’s significant swing and miss in his stroke (624/161 career K/BB). However, Matias having elite raw-power in his bat is just something that can’t be taught and would be worth a club taking a shot on in hopes of producing a little more contact and/or in-game power production.
Shea Spitzbarth, RHP, DET
I saw Spitzbarth for several outings during his time with the Dodgers, most recently near the end of the 2019 season when he was with Tulsa (AA). Spitzbarth worked with a four-seam fastball that sat 90-94 with solid-average carry through the zone that missed bats in the upper quadrants of the zone. The control was far ahead of his command and I had him projected to have 45 future command of the heater at the time.
Spitzbarth’s bread-and-butter secondary pitch was his deep 12/6 shaped curveball that featured significant bite and tightness. He showed advanced feel for landing the offering in the zone and was the most effective offering in his mix that I had projected to be a 55-grade pitch. His changeup didn’t do much for me, ranging between 82-85 and showing slight arm side fade to it. For me, it was a future below-average offering. I haven’t laid eyes on Spitzbarth in-person since, but he could be used as pitching depth in AAA that could have some low-leverage success in a small sample bursts best case scenario.
Andrew Young, 2B, WSH
I always have love for my Midwest junior-college players, Young being one of them as a Neosho CC alum before transferring to Indiana State. Young had a couple brief stints at the ML level with the Dbacks in 2020 and 2021 where he accumulated 138 PA’s. Young is an infielder that is best suited for 2B due to his below average range and quick-twitch ability. He’s capable of handling the hot corner with his defensive chops, but not SS.
Young has a generic, medium frame that has above average raw juice in his bat, mostly to the pull side. When I last saw him in 2019, Young had a compact stroke with loft in the path and he showed average bat speed. Young struggled against breaking balls during my looks and is something that was exposed even more during his brief ML stints. He’ll take his walks which allows him to bring some on-base ability to the table. Has shown me enough on the offensive side of the ball that I’d take a flyer on him as a Minor League free agent.
Dauris Valdez, RHP, CHC
Valdez is an XL-sized frame right-hander who has a very loud arsenal that he has had plenty of issues harnessing in prior years. Back in 2019, I had a few looks at Valdez and he sat 97-101 in all of those outings with his fastball. His four-seamer showed plus ride through the zone, but I had him down for 20 present command which hindered the effectiveness of the pitch.
Valdez’s best secondary offering was his slider that ranged between 83-87 at the time and had two-plane break with some late tilt to it at its best. His ability to create consistent shape and tightness on the offering varied as the breaking ball often times backed up on him. The other secondary pitch was his changeup that ranged from 88-92 and had a hint of fade to it. His feel for the offering was poor and it primarily served as a chase offering.
Given Valdez’s elite fastball velocity that has some other desired traits as well, along with the fact 2023 will only be his age 27 season is more than enough reason to take a flyer on him as a Minor League free agent in my eyes.
Eric Stamets, SS, TOR
Let me start by saying Stamets is a 20 hit, 20 game-power bat on the offensive side of the ball. It should then go without saying that Stamets is not on this list for his bat, but rather his defensive chops. Stamets was the everyday SS for the 2014 Arkansas Travellers (Angels AA at the time), a squad that I was the Video Coordinator for. Since that time, I’ve seen Stamets sporadically during my Minor League coverage.
Stamets is a very sure-handed defender at shortstop who has average range for the position. He has average arm strength, but a very quick release which allows the tool to play up. Although Stamets isn’t the most vocal teammate, he is someone all of his teammates think very highly of and sets a good example for younger players on how to go about their business on a daily basis. For me, Stamets is someone who a club would sign, be their everyday AAA shortstop and be capable of filling in as a bench defensive replacement in emergency situations at the ML level.
Pedro Castellanos, 1B/OF, BOS
I had Boston’s organization in my 2019 coverage which is where my looks at Castellanos come from. He was playing 3B every day then, but it was evident he’d have to come off that position in the future which he has since done in favor of 1B and the corner OF spots. Average athlete, plus arm strength overall.
Castellanos showed above-average raw power during all of his BP’s with his steep path, but once game time rolled around that stroke was more flat and had less intent behind them. He was vulnerable to chasing breaking balls out of the zone but did show some bat-to-ball ability even if it didn’t result in loud contact much. Castellanos’ raw power gives a club something to tinker with and dream on.