San Diego Padres Top 30 Prospects 2023 Preseason

April 2, 2023

The San Diego Padres have graduated a handful of prospects to the majors, including Luis Campusano, Robert Suarez, and Adrian Morejon, but have used most of their top prospects and young talent in trades to acquire Juan Soto, Blake Snell, Jake Cronenworth, Austin Nola, and Josh Hader, among others.

The farm, as a result, has dried up a bit, particularly in terms of impact depth. But it’s not an empty cupboard, thanks in large part to early picks in the last two drafts and the club’s international efforts.

Ages as of July 1, 2023

RANK AGE PLAYER POS OFP
1 20 Jackson Merrill SS 60

Merrill has the athleticism to stick at short and lead with a potential 70-grade hit tool.

RANK AGE PLAYER POS OFP
2 19 Dylan Lesko RHP 50

Lesko has a devastating changeup with no ceiling and a chance at a plus fastball and average curveball.

RANK AGE PLAYER POS OFP
3 17 Ethan Salas C 50

Salas, the top prospect in the most recent international class, starts his pro career with average or better tools across the board, except for speed, where he’s still above-average for a catcher.

RANK AGE PLAYER POS OFP
4 18 Samuel Zavala OF 50

Zavala’s left-handed swing is simple and loud but packs at least gap power and projects better contact rates than he’s shown thus far.

RANK AGE PLAYER POS OFP
5 22 Adam Mazur RHP 45

Mazur’s stuff is above average, led by a plus slider among a legitimate four-pitch mix.

RANK AGE PLAYER POS OFP
6 19 Robby Snelling LHP 45

At 6-foot-3 and 210 pounds, Snelling projects to add a bit of velocity to his mid-rotation profile. He’ll need to continue throwing strikes and develop and better tertiary weapon.

RANK AGE PLAYER POS OFP
7 23 Eguy Rosario OF 45

Rosario relies on polish and instincts to drive average tools and athleticism. He’s the quintessential spark plug.

RANK AGE PLAYER POS OFP
8 19 Victor Lizarraga RHP 40

Lizarraga is mostly projection at this point, but his 6-foot-3, 180-pound frame screams for it.

RANK AGE PLAYER POS OFP
9 21 Henry Williams RHP 40

Williams has a real chance at four average or better pitches, including a slider that projects to miss bats.

RANK AGE PLAYER POS OFP
10 24 Jay Groome RHP 40

Groome is a large left-hander with a long injury history and no plus pitches, but touches 95 mph and may end up with three big-league secondaries and average command.
[ninja_tables id=”19713″]

Rankings, OFPs by Joe Doyle.
Player notes by Jason A. Churchill.

Joe Doyle
Follow Joe

You may also like

2024 MLB Draft: Top 300 Prospects

2024 MLB Draft: Top 300 Prospects
{"email":"Email address invalid","url":"Website address invalid","required":"Required field missing"}

SPONSORS