Williams, Sanchez & Austin Sweep the Big Three Top 100 Lists

Prospect season is winding down and last week Baseball America released its Top 100 Prospects list, effectively ending the big prospect season.  BA was the last of the big three to do their Top 100 list, following Keith Law of ESPN (subscription required) and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com.  Texas SS prospect Jurickson Profar topped all three lists.  By most accounts, Profar is an elite fielder who can also hit for power and average.  Mayo says "He makes things look very easy in the field, using unparalleled instincts to allow his already plus range and above-average arm play up."  All three rankings include Orioles pitching prospect Dylan Bundy and Cardinals outfield prospect Oscar Taveras in their top three, with Bundy being ranked 2nd by Mayo and BA while Law ranks Taveras 2nd.  Wil Myers, formerly of the Royals and now of the Rays, ranked 4th across the board.

As for the Yankees, Tyler Austin, Gary Sanchez, and Mason Williams were all ranked on all three lists and Slade Heathcott made Law's and BA's list.  The rankings were as follows:

	Law	Mayo	BA
Sanchez	18	36	57
Williams	35	41	32
Austin	52	75	77
Heathcott	57	N/A	63

As you can see, Sanchez was the highest ranked Yankee prospect on Law and Mayo's lists.  His power behind the plate is elite and he gets on base at a high enough percentage to make pitchers challenge him.  He's been compared to Jesus Montero since day 1 and, while he may not be the all around hitter  Montero is, he appears to be a good enough defender to stick behind the dish, (as opposed to Montero who is destined to be a 1B/DH).

Coming into prospect season, I wasn't sure if Heathcott would make any of the lists but his Arizona Fall League season really boosted his status. I try not to over value performances in the AFL because hitters always dominate, but it's hard to ignore a 1.106 OPS and .388 batting average. His defense is his calling card, but if he can consistently hit .307/.378/.470 like he did in Tampa this year, he'll find himself in the top 50 of all three lists next year.

Mason Williams is the epitome of the five tool player, thus his top ranking by BA.  Mason performed well in the New York Penn league in 2010 (/349/.395/.468) and Charleston last year (.304/.359/.489) before being promoted to High A Tampa.  He got only 83 at bats before a shoulder injury ended his season.  Mason was the only one of the four top prospects to not be invited to big league camp and the shoulder injury is believed to be the main reason why.  He is expected to be healthy for the start of the season.  It will be interesting to see, if the day ever comes, who starts in center field in the Bronx between Williams and Heathcott.  My guess is the honor will go to Slade.

Last but not least, Tyler Austin quietly outperforms all expectations.  He's one of those kids taken in the mid-rounds of the draft that gets his chance and makes the most of his opportunity.  Ever since appearing in the Gulf Coast League in 2011, Tyler has never had a season average less than .319 and an OPS less than .852.  He played in 4 levels last year (rookie, low A, high A, and the AA playoffs).  Even though he is less heralded than Williams and Sanchez, I'll put my money on him making it to the big leagues first.  He was my #1 prospect at the end of 2012 and I'm pretty sure he'll be #1 at the beginning of this season.

Additionally, Keith Law listed Jose Ramirez as one of ten guys who just missed the list.  About Ramirez, Law says "[Ramirez has] filled out quite a bit in the past three years, with more than 200 pounds on his 6-3 frame, and will work at 94-98 mph with big-time life and a hard mid-80s slider."  I found this particularly surprising and I must admit, if Keith Law thinks well of a prospect it makes me think I should, too.

For anyone who's interested, I'll be releasing my Top 25 prospect list at the end of March, prior to the start of the season.  One reason I wait so long is I wait to see the affiliate assignments, which play a major role in sorting the players out.  I can tell you these four will almost certainly be the top 4 on my list and Ramirez will most likely be in the 8 - 12 range.