Minor League Baseball All-First Half Team
An IBWAA writer selects his top players at each position for the first half of the minor league season
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Pregame Pepper
Did you know…
. . . So far in 2024, 141 players have made their major league debuts in the season. To this point, pitching dominates the debut leaderboard in bWAR, though outfielder Jackson Merrill of San Diego tops the debut crop with a 2.1 bWAR. Second through eighth on the list are all pitchers, led by Pittsburgh’s Paul Skenes (1.9).
. . . In 2024, brothers Blaze and C.J. Alexander have both made their respective MLB debuts. Both were originally drafted in the 2018 draft, with Arizona picking Blaze in the 11th round out of high school in Florida, and the Atlanta Braves selecting C.J. out of community college in Florida.
Leading Off
Minor League Baseball All-First Half Team
By Benjamin Chase
We are now past the halfway point of the minor league baseball season. It has been a very interesting season so far, with injuries and promotions to top prospects coming into the season affecting the performances we’ve seen in the minors from those players. Let’s put together a team of the top players in the minor leagues to this point of the season:
Catcher - Agustin Ramirez, New York Yankees
The Yankees have a deep system of catchers, and Ramirez is the one to be most excited about - at least on the offensive side of the game. While he still has work to do in his catching skills, Ramirez has been a monster on offense, one of the few players who reach the halfway point of the season on pace for a 30 HR/30 SB season. Also considered: Adrian Del Castillo, Arizona Diamondbacks; Cooper Ingle, Cleveland Guardians; Joe Mack, Miami Marlins; Blake Mitchell, Kansas City Royals.
First Base - Deyvison De Los Santos, Arizona Diamondbacks
De Los Santos spent the majority of spring training with the Cleveland Guardians as a Rule 5 pick last December but was returned to Arizona at the end of spring. He transitioned from third to first and has concentrated solely on hitting, and the 21-year-old is raking in Triple-A, leading all of the minors in home runs as of this writing with 23. Also considered: Xavier Isaac and Tre’ Morgan, Tampa Bay Rays; C.J. Kayfus, Cleveland Guardians.
Second Base - Luke Keaschall, Minnesota Twins
Second base was probably the toughest spot to select a player because the best performers with notable time at the position have also played other positions. Keaschall, like Campbell, has split his time between second and center field, but Keaschall is more likely to get the majority of his future big league career at second, so he’s the choice. Also considered: Kristian Campbell, Boston Red Sox; Brooks Lee, Minnesota Twins; Kevin McGonigle, Detroit Tigers.
Third Base - Coby Mayo, Baltimore Orioles
Even though Mayo is one of the elite prospects coming into the season who has performed to his expected level, even he has succumbed to the injury bug this year. Even with time missed to injury, Mayo has pounded 20 home runs and is one of the most explosive bats still in the minor leagues. Also considered: Otto Kemp, Philadelphia Phillies; Charles McAdoo, Pittsburgh Pirates; Shay Whitcomb, Houston Astros.
Shortstop - Jacob Wilson, Oakland Athletics
Wilson, whose father Jack played a dozen years across three MLB organizations, already had a stellar reputation as a defensive shortstop when he was selected sixth overall last summer. This year, when he’s been healthy around multiple injuries over the season, Wilson has shown off elite bat-to-ball skills. He’s hitting .446 this season and hitting the ball well into gaps, among the minor league leaders with 19 doubles despite missing time. Also considered: Brooks Baldwin, Chicago White Sox; Alex Freeland, Los Angeles Dodgers; Marcelo Mayer, Boston Red Sox; Carson Williams, Tampa Bay Rays.
Outfield - James Wood, Washington Nationals; Lazaro Montes, Seattle Mariners; Chandler Simpson, Tampa Bay Rays
Wood makes his major league debut today after his incredible performance to open the season in Triple-A had moved him to the top of multiple top prospect lists. Montes is the minor league RBI leader and is a burgeoning power hitter, something Seattle desperately needs. Simpson has simply kept running - after stealing 94 bases last year to tie for the minor league lead, he leads all of baseball with 54 stolen bases (in just 63 attempts).
Also considered: Henry Bolte and Colby Thomas, Oakland Athletics; Matthew Lugo, Boston Red Sox; Emmanuel Rodriguez, Minnesota Twins; Braiden Ward, Colorado Rockies.
Starting Pitchers - Quinn Mathews, St. Louis Cardinals; Zebby Matthews, Minnesota Twins; Matt Wilkinson, Cleveland Guardians; George Klassen, Philadelphia Phillies; Brad Lord, Washington Nationals
Interestingly, two guys with the same last name (but different spelling) have had similar paths to being the top guys on this list. Mathews was a star at Stanford, but the lefty saw his velocity tick up multiple notches coming into this season and has ridden that to an elite year while Matthews was a guy with excellent control, but he’s taken that to another level with just four walks in 69 innings. Wilkinson, affectionately known as Tugboat, could struggle in the upper levels, but his two-pitch mix has been excellent thus far. Klassen was arguably the guy with the most electric stuff at last summer’s MLB draft combine, and the Phillies have helped him control his raw stuff just enough to lead the minors in ERA. Lord has jumped up three levels this season for the Nationals and is now on the cusp of the majors in Triple-A.
Also considered: Kohl Drake, Texas Rangers; Jaden Hamm, Detroit Tigers; Logan Henderson, Milwaukee Brewers; Chayce McDermott, Baltimore Orioles; Austin Peterson, Cleveland Guardians; Noah Schultz, Chicago White Sox; Ian Seymour, Tampa Bay Rays; Brandon Sproat and Jonah Tong, New York Mets.
Relief Pitcher - Welinton Herrera, Colorado Rockies
Often left-handed minor league relievers are considered roster fodder as many of the top lefty relievers are guys who make it to the majors still pitching in the rotation before transitioning to the ‘pen. There are rare examples of guys who are so dominant that they can work in relief the entire way up the system. Herrera was promoted to High-A Spokane after dominating Single-A Fresno to the tune of a 64/9 K/BB ratio over 36 innings. Also considered: Craig Yoho and K.C. Hunt, Milwaukee Brewers; Zach Agnos, Colorado Rockies; and Lucas Wepf, Los Angeles Dodgers.
So which ones are correct or incorrect in your eyes? Did any players that you felt should be mentioned get left out? Drop a note below or on social media!
Benjamin Chase is a co-editor of the Here’s the Pitch newsletter. He also writes about the game on his Medium account, Chasing Baseball Greatness. Ben is the co-host of the Pallazzo Podcast prospect show each week. You can find him on most social media platforms under the username biggentleben.
Timeless Trivia
Blaze and C.J. Alexander became the 449th set of brothers to play in the majors when they debuted this season, with 40 having debuted in the same season.
How many of those 40 brother pairs that debuted in the same season include at least one brother that finished his career in the Hall of Fame?