Carson Palmquist, LHP (No. 14)
Palmquist and Trystan Vrieling provided one of the better starting pitching duels in the minors thus far on Friday night at TD Bank Ballpark; Palmquist allowed just one walk and four hits through six scoreless innings while striking out a whopping ten Somerset Patriots batters.
Drafted out of the University of Miami in the third round back in 2022, the 22-year-old lefty has ascended through the system quickly. He used a funky delivery and lower slot to sit between 91-93 on the radar gun, and kept hitters off-balance with a plus curveball that crossed the plate between 75-79.
Juan Mejia, RHP
Mejia was extremely fascinating to watch this past week but isn’t exactly a secret anymore. The 23-year-old righty reliever is on the Rockies 40-man roster and was also at the Arizona Fall League at the tail end of 2023 as he’s continuing his climb to the big leagues.
While it’s been a slow start for him statistically, the stuff is there; he flashed 96-98 on the gun on Tuesday with a wipeout slider. The stuff wasn’t quite as sharp on Friday, but he still blew through a 1-2-3 frame with ease.
Adael Amador, INF (No. 1)
Amador emerged as the consensus top prospect in Colorado’s system after he sailed through three levels last year as a 20-year-old. It’s early, but that progress has come to a bit of a halt. Listed at six foot and 200 pounds, the frame feels smaller than that, and he’s struggled against Double-A pitching to start the year, hitting just .114 in his first 35 AB’s. He does have eight stolen bases already, however, and there’s a lot of upside here as a switch hitter.
Benny Montgomery, OF (No. 12)
Drafted at No. 8 overall back in 2021, Montgomery has someone who stayed under the true top-tier prospect radar. That may change. The 21-year-old is off to a solid start in his Double-A debut with Hartford, hitting .283 with two homers and ten RBI over his first three weeks, and showed some solid tools during his trip to Somerset; he barreled up several balls during the series and handled both corner outfield spots with relative ease.
Sterlin Thompson, OF/INF (No. 5)
A comp round pick at No. 31 overall in 2022, Thompson is proving to be a steal thus far for Colorado, flashing strong bat-to-ball skills with significant power. He missed a home run by inches in Somerset and settled for a triple, and played both first base and corner outfield spots thanks to a bat that’s kept him in the lineup. He’s a big, 6-foot-3, 200-pound left-handed hitter with some upside.
Zac Veen, OF (No. 6)
Veen missed a few games during the series thanks to feeling a bit under the weather, but still made an impact reflective of someone who’s finally through an injury-riddled 2023 campaign. Still just 22 years old, the 2020 first-rounder delivered with a two-hit day on Tuesday, including a pull side double that showed his seemingly effortless speed.
Yanquiel Fernandez, OF (No. 3)
Another premium lefty bat in a system that seems to have more than a few, the Cuban-born outfielder showed significant power numbers over the last two years to sail through the lower levels of the Rockies org., hitting 46 between 2022 and 2023. This year? Just one thus far, but it came in Somerset when he showed oppo power with a homer that just got out of the yard down the left-field line.
Warming Bernabel, INF (No. 24)
Bernabel lost his 40-man roster status just before the start of this season when he was designated for assignment, but remained in the system as one of their second or third-tier prospects. Still just 21 years old, he’s had a slow start to his year hitting just .200 over the first three weeks. He went hitless in four of the five games he played versus Somerset.
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