Reds Top Prospect List from Baseball America includes Present and Future Dragons
DAYTON, OH —Baseball America, the trade publication for Minor League Baseball, has announced its annual list of top-10 prospects in the Cincinnati Reds organization. Selection to the top-10 prospect list is a notable achievement for any player among the approximately 175 minor leaguers in the Reds system. Three players included
DAYTON, OH —Baseball America, the trade publication for Minor League Baseball, has announced its annual list of top-10 prospects in the Cincinnati Reds organization. Selection to the top-10 prospect list is a notable achievement for any player among the approximately 175 minor leaguers in the Reds system.
Three players included among the Reds top-10 prospects played for the Dayton Dragons in 2021, while four others played at lower levels in the Reds system in 2021 and can be expected to play in Dayton in a future year.
Players who played in Dayton in 2021 that are featured on the list include shortstop Matt McLain (#5 prospect; Reds #1 draft pick in 2021), and starting pitchers Graham Ashcraft (#9 prospect) and Bryce Bonnin (#10 prospect).
McLain was selected by the Reds with the 17th overall pick of the 2021 draft out of UCLA. He appeared in 29 games with the Dragons and provided fans at Day Air Ballpark with a look at the skills that made him a top prospect. McLain stole 10 bases in his 29 games while batting .273 with three home runs. McLain improved after his first two weeks with the Dragons as he adjusted following a period of inactivity after the draft. In his last 19 games with Dayton, he batted .304 with 14 runs batted in.
Ashcraft opened the 2021 season with the Dragons and was the Reds Minor League Pitcher of the Month in June. With a fastball that reached 99 mph, Ashcraft put together a dominant stretch with the Dragons from May 30-June 17, firing 23 innings without allowing an earned run to earn a promotion to Double-A Chattanooga.
Bonnin, the Reds third round draft pick in 2020 out of Texas Tech, opened his professional career in 2021 and made three late-season starts with the Dragons, notching 20 strikeouts in just 11 innings. Bonnin is another hard thrower with a fastball that reached the high-90’s.
Meanwhile, there are four players on the Top-10 list who have yet to reach the High-A level with the Dragons and could do so in 2022 or beyond. Highest-rated among those prospects is infielder Elly De La Cruz, who is listed as the Reds #4 prospect. The list also includes outfielder Austin Hendrick at #6 (Reds #1 draft pick in 2020); outfielder Jay Allen at #7; and third baseman Rece Hinds at #8.
Baseball America also projects a Reds 2025 lineup, and it features McLain as the center fielder, Ashcraft as the team’s closer, with Hinds at first base, De La Cruz at third base, and Hendrick in right field.
They also identify Reds minor league players with the “best tools.” Hinds is listed as the “Best Power Hitter” and “Best Infield Arm” in the Reds organization. De La Cruz is ranked as the “Fastest Baserunner” and “Best Athlete”. Bonnin is listed as having the “Best Fastball.” Ashcraft is identified as the pitcher with the “Best Slider.” Additionally, Michael Siani, who spent the last two full seasons with the Dragons, is listed as the “Best Defensive Outfielder.”