From ESPN’s annual ranking of the top 100 prospects in baseball, released today:
Profar is the best prospect in the minors this year thanks to an incredible combination of tools, skills, and baseball instincts rarely found in players who play in the middle of the field. His feel for the game is unusual for a player of any age, much less a teenager, and should put another nail in the coffin of the old saw that American-born players have better instincts.
He has an outstanding approach at the plate that allowed him to make the two-level jump from low Class A to Double-A without losing much production, and he showed more power this year than I expected; his frame isn’t big but he stays upright through contact better now and he does get plenty of hip rotation to drive the ball. At short he has superlative actions with a plus-plus arm and plenty of range in both directions, so there’s never been a question about his position.
A good defensive shortstop who posts OBPs around .400 and hits 15-20 homers a year is a player around whom you can build your roster, and who should help keep the Rangers in contention for the next decade.
The Rangers had three other prospects in the top 100: third baseman Mike Olt (71), pitcher Cody Buckel (90), and pitcher Martin Perez (93).
