Second Baseman
Last week we took a look at who was hot and cold through the first month of the season at Triple-A. Now we get to back our position-by-position breakdown featuring second baseman. Known as the Keystone, being strong up the middle is important to the success of a team in MLB. It is also important to the fates of your fantasy teams as the middle infield is a great place to get potential five-tool players at often overlooked spots.
Luis Urias (SD) –The 5’8”, 20-year-old second baseman is coming off a 2017 campaign that saw him play exclusively at Double-A San Antonio and over 118 games he posted a .296/.398/.380 line with three homers, 77 runs, 38 RBI, and seven steals. Now that’s not an overwhelming line to be sure, however keep in mind that San Antonio’s home park is the most pitcher-friendly park in the Texas league and drains power from all types. In 2016 for example, in 123 games between High-A and Triple-A El Paso, Urias combined for six homers and now in the first 27 games at Triple-A El Paso this year he’s already hit three bombs. El Paso, for comparison is a reasonably fair park in the Pacific Coast League. Since the start of his pro career (2014 rookie ball), Urias has 174 walks and 156 Ks, with a career double-digit walk rate. Urias overall is a toolsy-top-of-the-order bat who will hit about a half dozen homers a year while stealing 15 bases and hitting over .300 with the potential for a +.400 OBP.
ETA: 2019
Keston Hiura (MIL) – The Brewers landed the Cal-Irvine prospect with the ninth overall pick in the 2017 June draft after being enamored with his NCAA D-I leading .442 average as a Junior. Since overcoming a minor elbow issue, he has been a fast riser through the system, already playing rookie ball, A-ball, and now into High-A to start 2018 where Hiura is off to a very solid start. In 29 games for the Carolina Mudcats he is slashing .281/.323/.463 with four homers, 18 runs, 12 RBI, and a steal with eight doubles and a triple as well. The downside so far for him has been his lack of walks. In 71 career games he has just 18 total walks compared to 67 strikeouts. Hiura has adequate defense to remain at second long term while his bat continues to carry him through the system, however there are scouts that believe he is ultimately destined for a spot in left field. One thing’s for sure however, the power is there to hit 20+ homers annually with a .280+ average and likely slot in as a number two or number five hitter in the order.
ETA: 2019
Jahmai Jones (LAA) – Jones was a two-sport star in high school prior to being drafted in 2015 by the Angels in the second round. With a dad and brother who made it to the NFL he has the athleticism to play in spades but in Jones’ case he also has the baseball IQ to go with it. The Angels have moved him slowly, only reaching Advanced-A Inland Empire for the last part of last year and to start 2018. Last season was his first “full” season in pro ball, playing 127 games between Class-A and High-A while compiling a .282/.348/.446 slash line with 14 homers, 86 runs, 47 RBI, and 27 steals. In fact 2017 was his second-straight year with 20 or more steals. Prior to 2018 he had been playing center field, given his speed, but now the Angels have moved him to second base, a position he played in high school, but it’s been a rough transition with five errors already (equal to his total all of last year). A 25-game hit streak speaks to his consistency as a hitter while he grows into his raw power at still just 20 years old and the speed is there already.
ETA: 2019
Isan Diaz (MIA) – Diaz, 21 years old, has been in pro ball since the D-Backs drafted him in the CBB round at 70th overall in the 2014 draft. Since then he was been dealt to two different organizations for major leaguers, Jean Segura (going to MIL) and Christian Yelich (going to MIA). Diaz’s breakout campaign came in 2016 when he slashed .264/.358/.469 with 20 homers, 75 RBI, 71 runs, 11 steals and 72 walks to boot. Milwaukee moved him to High-A in the Carolina League in 2017 and his numbers dropped a bit but he still put up 13 homers and nine steals in 110 games after a broken wrist shortened his season. Now with Miami and in the Southern League at Double-A Jacksonville, Diaz is off to a slower start than normal with a .189/.323/.330 slash (.233 BABIP and .309 wOBA) with three homers, 15 runs, 10 RBI, and a steal in 29 games. The Marlins have moved Diaz to second base full-time after splitting time between short and the keystone in previous years and his defense is a better fit at second. Ultimately he profiles as a .260 hitter with 25-home run pop and 10-15 steals hitting likely fifth or sixth in the lineup everyday.
ETA: 2019
Shed Long (CIN) – Long was drafted out of high school in the 2013 draft at 375th overall (12th round) by Cincinnati as a catcher. After two stints at rookie ball in 2013 and 2014, he progressed to A-ball where he also got out from behind the plate and into the middle infield, which immediately unleashed his bat. Since his debut at A-ball in 2015, he has only hit under .280 once, last year in a 42-game stretch at Double-A when he was hampered by a wrist ailment. So clearly he can hit for average but he also has pop with a 15 home run season in 2016 and 16 in 2017 despite playing 28 fewer games in 2017 than the year prior. Long, 5’8” and 184 lbs., does have decent speed despite his catcher background as he stole 21 bags in 2016, nine last year, and five already in 2018 in 28 games. Defensively he’s adequate enough that it won’t hinder his playing time but he will need to work on his career 20% K-rate, though he does bring a double-digit BB-rate as well. The .308/.383/.439 line at Double-A Pensacola should have him moving to Triple-A Louisville shortly and then onto Great American Ballpark where he should be a .280 hitter with 15-20 dinger power and 15-20 steals upside.
ETA: 2019
Garrett Hampson (COL) –Hampson was first noticed as a 10-year-old when he won his division of the Pitch, Hit & Run competition at the All-Star Game in Detroit in 2005. Since then he went to Long Beach State and was drafted by Colorado in the third round of the 2016 draft. Once he turned pro, the former shortstop in college was moved to second base for Colorado. After a swing change, to reduce the number of can-of-corn pop outs he had in college, his offense has really taken off and led to a .301/.404/.441 line with two homers, 44 RBI, 43 runs, and 36 steals in 68 games at Low-A. In 2017 he upped his game while moving to High-A with a line of .326/.387/.462, eight homers, 113 runs, 70 RBI, and 51 steals in 127 games. Now in 2018, Hampson has reached Double-A Hartford (and one of my favorite mascots, the Yard Goats) and is putting up very good numbers once more with a .292/.389/.460 line with three homers, 21 runs, 12 RBI, and 15 steals in 30 games. He hits balls to all fields and has a 19.5% line drive rate, 46% ground ball rate, and 34.5% fly ball rate which all should play well in Coors Field where he can use his speed to turn singles into doubles in the expansive outfield that the ballpark is known for.
ETA: 2019