The Farmhands of the Week are back for a third season! A great resource for dynasty/keeper league players to find some under the radar prospects or breakouts before they happen. These ‘Farm Freebies’ can help rebuild your minor league system in no time!
Here are the Farmhands of the Week for April 15 thru April 21, 2019:
Hitters
AAA
| Name | Age | Level | Org | Rank | Team | Pos | H | TB | AB | HR | RBI | R | BB | K | SB | AVG | SLG |
| Ty France | 24 | AAA | SD | NA | ELP | 3B | 16 | 42 | 28 | 7 | 17 | 13 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0.571 | 1.500 |
| Seth Brown | 26 | AAA | OAK | NA | LV | RF | 10 | 29 | 32 | 6 | 10 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0.312 | 0.906 |
| Jacob Wilson | 28 | AAA | WAS | NA | FRE | 2B | 10 | 25 | 27 | 4 | 14 | 9 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0.370 | 0.925 |
| Ryan Mountcastle | 22 | AAA | BAL | 2 | NOR | SS | 10 | 24 | 27 | 4 | 11 | 8 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0.370 | 0.888 |
| Kevin Cron | 26 | AAA | ARI | NA | RNO | 1B | 10 | 21 | 22 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0.454 | 0.954 |
| Josh Naylor | 21 | AAA | SD | 11 | ELP | 1B | 9 | 21 | 30 | 3 | 7 | 11 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0.300 | 0.700 |
| Nicky Lopez | 24 | AAA | KAN | 8 | OMA | SS | 10 | 20 | 28 | 2 | 5 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0.357 | 0.714 |
My god, is something going on with the baseballs at AAA?? To be fair to Ty France, he also slugged .532 in 25 games at AAA last season. But this year he has been on a different planet. This week saw his batting average on the season climb to .440. He posted THREE multi-homer games this week, bringing his slugging average up to a robust .920. The Padres have been playing him at 1B, 2B, and 3B for the Chihuahuas this season, hopefully offering him some additional paths to MLB playing time for the big club this year. 2B playing time seems especially open right now with the team sending Luis Urias back down to AAA after a rough run in the MLB. France should be owned in all dynasty/keeper formats, and you should have your eye on his call-up in your redraft leagues as well as he will become a good FAAB target if he’s getting playing time.
AA
| Name | Age | Level | Org | Rank | Team | Pos | H | TB | AB | HR | RBI | R | BB | K | SB | AVG | SLG |
| Drew Waters | 20 | AA | ATL | 8 | MIS | OF | 12 | 21 | 32 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 0.375 | 0.656 |
| Pavin Smith | 23 | AA | ARI | 17 | JXN | 1B | 9 | 19 | 26 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0.346 | 0.730 |
| Connor Lien | 25 | AA | ATL | NA | MIS | CF | 7 | 19 | 18 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0.388 | 1.055 |
| Cody Thomas | 24 | AA | LAD | NA | TUL | CF | 7 | 19 | 23 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 0.304 | 0.826 |
| Omar Estevez | 21 | AA | LAD | 19 | TUL | 2B | 12 | 19 | 21 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0.571 | 0.904 |
This is Connor Lien’s 4th consecutive season playing for the AA Mississippi Braves. He was a 12th round prep selection by the Braves in 2012. Man, I love rooting for organizational depth players like this to finally figure some stuff out and ride it to the MLB. Lien hit safely in all 5 games he played in this week and walked as much as he struck out (3 times each). The Farm is rooting for him to continue his improvement in 2019.
A-Advanced
| Name | Age | Level | Org | Rank | Team | Pos | H | TB | AB | HR | RBI | R | BB | K | SB | AVG | SLG |
| Seth Beer | 22 | A-Adv | HOU | 10 | FAY | OF | 9 | 22 | 23 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0.391 | 0.956 |
| Dermis Garcia | 21 | A-Adv | NYY | NA | TAM | 3B | 8 | 22 | 24 | 4 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0.333 | 0.916 |
| Chris Sharpe | 22 | A-Adv | PIT | NA | BRD | CF | 11 | 21 | 23 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 0.478 | 0.913 |
| Jancarlos Cintron | 24 | A-Adv | ARI | NA | VIS | 2B | 11 | 19 | 21 | 1 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.523 | 0.904 |
| Luis Liberato | 23 | A-Adv | SEA | NA | MOD | CF | 9 | 19 | 22 | 3 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 0.409 | 0.863 |
Houston’s first-round choice is picking up in 2019 right where he left off in his 2018 professional debut. He hit a scalding .391 this week with 3 HR while also only striking out 3 times. He’s also played 7 games in LF as well as 7 games at 1B for Fayetteville so far this season. If he can continue to play well enough in the OF to retain 1B/OF eligibility when he hits the big leagues, his future fantasy value just takes another little bump.
A-Full
| Name | Age | Level | Org | Rank | Team | Pos | H | TB | AB | HR | RBI | R | BB | K | SB | AVG | SLG |
| Will Benson | 20 | A-Full | CLE | 25 | LC | RF | 8 | 24 | 18 | 5 | 12 | 7 | 2 | 9 | 1 | 0.444 | 1.333 |
| Chris Betts | 22 | A-Full | TB | NA | BG | C | 8 | 20 | 20 | 4 | 10 | 10 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 0.400 | 1.000 |
| Reed Rohlman | 24 | A-Full | KAN | NA | LEX | OF | 11 | 20 | 25 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0.440 | 0.800 |
| Jerar Encarnacion | 21 | A-Full | MIA | NA | CLI | RF | 9 | 19 | 25 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 0.360 | 0.760 |
| Trey Cabbage | 21 | A-Full | MIN | NA | CR | 3B | 7 | 18 | 18 | 3 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0.388 | 1.000 |
Cleveland’s power-hitting prospect set the minors on fire this week with a 4 HR game against South Bend on April 18. He’s pushed his 2019 OPS to 1.256 with a big week. He’s also stolen 4 bases to go with his 6 HR on the year. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention, he’s 6’5″ 225 and built like an NFL edge rusher. And he’s still just 20 years old.
Pitchers
AAA
| Name | Age | Level | Team | W | L | SV | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | K | ERA | WHIP |
| Lucas Sims | 24 | AAA | LOU | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11.2 | 11 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 23 | 3.21 | 1.07 |
| Tyler Beede | 25 | AAA | SAC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 15 | 2.70 | 0.80 |
| Mitch Keller | 23 | AAA | IND | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11.1 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 13 | 0.81 | 1.44 |
| Elieser Hernandez | 23 | AAA | NO | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9.2 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 13 | 0.00 | 1.20 |
| Cal Quantrill | 24 | AAA | ELP | 2 | 0 | 0 | 11.2 | 11 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 12 | 2.41 | 1.25 |
When you look at the top pitching performers in AAA this week, it’s hard to believe that they are using the high flying MLB ball in AAA. But juiced ball or not, these 5 pitchers had dominating stuff this week. Lucas Sims, a former 1st round pick of the Atlanta Braves who is trying to work his way back with the Reds, was particularly tough. He posted a stellar 23:1 K:BB ratio in 11.2 innings of work this week. If he can keep up his solid performance, there’s a good chance that Sims will see more time at the MLB level this season.
AA
| Name | Age | Level | Team | W | L | SV | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | K | ERA | WHIP |
| Michael Gibbons | 25 | AA | BNG | 2 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 14 | 2.70 | 1.00 |
| Tanner Tully | 24 | AA | AKR | 1 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 12 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 3.00 | 1.08 |
| Sean Poppen | 25 | AA | PNS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 11 | 0.00 | 1.20 |
| Joey Wentz | 21 | AA | MIS | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9.4 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 2.87 | 1.28 |
| Emerson Martinez | 24 | AA | FRI | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 3.60 | 1.60 |
| Trey Supak | 22 | AA | BLX | 1 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 0.00 | 0.46 |
Supak is a big (6’5″, 240) righty out of Texas who isn’t afraid to pitch to contact. This week, he scattered 5 hits across 2 starts, walked 1 batter, and allowed 0 earned runs. He’s now posted a stellar 1.52 ERA and .141 batting average against in 4 starts on the season. A 2014 pick of the Pirates, Supak might be on a path for a late-season callup to Milwaukee depending on the Brewers’ situation in the stretch run.
A-Advanced
| Name | Age | Level | Team | W | L | SV | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | K | ERA | WHIP |
| Bryan Abreu | 22 | A-Adv | FAY | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9.2 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 18 | 3.91 | 1.09 |
| Parker Mushinski | 23 | A-Adv | FAY | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 1.29 | 0.71 |
| Jason Bahr | 24 | A-Adv | DE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11.1 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 13 | 2.43 | 1.08 |
| Ryan Lillie | 22 | A-Adv | DBT | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 10 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 12 | 3.27 | 1.18 |
| Kutter Crawford | 23 | A-Adv | SAL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9.3 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 11 | 1.94 | 1.40 |
| Tarik Skubal | 22 | A-Adv | LAK | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0.00 | 0.50 |
A lefty out of Texas Tech, Mushinski was stellar in two appearances for Fayetteville this week. On Easter Sunday, Mushinski mowed down 9 batters while allowing 0 walks in a 4-inning start against the Carolina Mudcats. Mushinski was primarily a reliever in college, but the Astros appear committed to trying to stretch him out this season against the competition in the Carolina League. His 13.8 K/9 ratio in 2019 is something to keep a watchful eye on.
A-Full
| Name | Age | Level | Team | W | L | SV | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | K | ERA | WHIP |
| Joe Ryan | 22 | A-Full | BG | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 12 | 1.80 | 0.80 |
| Ofelky Peralta | 22 | A-Full | DEL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 1.50 | 0.67 |
| Freddy Pacheco | 21 | A-Full | PEO | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0.00 | 0.20 |
| Chase Cohen | 21 | A-Full | BEL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 11.2 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 1.61 | 0.80 |
| Sean Hjelle | 21 | A-Full | AUG | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10.2 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 2.65 | 0.78 |
| Joan Adon | 20 | A-Full | HAG | 1 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 1.80 | 1.20 |
Tampa Bay’s 7th Round selection out of D2 Cal State Stanislaus (go Warriors). Don’t let his ERA fool you. Ryan has been tough to hit this season (.174 batting average against) and has put together an excellent 22:7 K:BB ratio in just 12.2 innings for the Bowling Green Hot Rods this year. Ryan’s arsenal features a fastball that can reach 97 to go with a potential plus changeup. He also throws a curve and slider. This offseason, FanGraphs described his arm as ‘ultra loose‘.
