Prospect Watch Recap
Ricky Tiedemann & Gavin Cross Edition
We get back into our list of prospect follows with two top-of-the-organization-level players that I watched this week. We head to the Toronto and Kansas City prospect lists with Ricky Tiedemann and Gavin Cross. Let’s get into it …..
Ricky Tiedemann, New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Double-A, Blue Jays)
April 25 v Hartford (Colorado), Apr. 30 start canceled (inclement weather)
2.1 IP, 58 P (35 S), 3 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 4 BB, 5 K
The command was off some today, 4 BB
Dominant in the 2nd inning (10 pitches - 9 strikes, K the side)
Gave up 3 hits but was not it hard
Walks caused the issues during the outing
Even with some command struggles, still K’s 5 in 2.1 IP
His fastball was touching 98 in the first inning and the announcers noted the velocity was 93-94 later in the appearance
Generally a tough start with flashes of the dominance we have seen previously in the second inning. A 20-year-old pitcher is going to have a day where the command isn’t there and even with that, he struck out 5 of the 7 outs he was on the mound for. Easily Ricky’s worst start of the season to date but not anything to get too concerned about.
Additional Game Note: Canadian🍁Prospect Follow Damiano Palmegiani had quite the game going 2 for 4, 2 HR, 2 R, 3 RBI, BB, K
Gavin Cross, Quad Cities River Bandits (High-A, Royals)
Dates/Games Watched: 04/27, 04/28 v Lansing (Oakland/LV)
04/27 - 0 for 4
04/28 - 1 for 4, 2B, R, K, BB, SB
Very aggressive at the plate during both looks
Showed a good knowledge of the zone while showing a very aggressive approach. If the pitch was in or close to the zone Gavin was attacking and swinging.
Showed some power in his 4th AB with a well-hit ball to RF where the fielder made an outstanding play to save an XBH
Went opposite field for a double in the 04/28 game exhibiting some ability to go to all fields
While early in the season, the strike-out percentage is a bit of an eye-opener. With the K% sitting over 30%, there needs to be some refinement in approach to get that to reasonable levels. Gavin has above-average hit and power tools and some approach refinement should allow them to be displayed more often in games. Cross is currently on track to be manning the KC outfield by 2025 and there has been nothing to change that at this time. Seeing where that K% is later on this season will be a bit of a barometer if there have been successful adjustments made.
Another fun prospect and profile on tap for this week. Junior Caminero (TB) is up on the schedule of our Prospect Follows. Caminero is the #4 prospect in the Rays system by Prospects Live with Baseball America putting him at #8.
I had scheduled Tink Hence (St. Louis) for this week as well but they’re currently on the injured list. He hasn’t pitched since the middle of April but according to John Denton of MLB.com Hence could be activated soon.
Time to wrap it up for the day. Thank you for checking in and I’ll be talking with you all again in a while. Until then, you know what to do - Keep It 80 Grade.