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Tough call between Leonardo Abdiel Bernal and Jimmy *Lee Crooks. But Bernal gets the nod from me at #6.
* I’ll always give you the correct middle name…….except in Crooks’ case. Jimmy’s real middle name is “Dale”. But the name “Jimmy Lee Crooks” has such as easy, smooth and fitting flow. So much better than “Jimmy Dale Crooks”. So I will always be calling him Jimmy Lee Crooks.
It’s perfectly alright to call him whatever you come up with, Pugs. Baseball fans will always have two inherent and inalienable right…The first one is that all baseball fans have the absolute right to demand that a manager be fired…And the second one is that any baseball fan can come up with any nickname for any player on any team…Two of my favorites are “Crowbar”for the Cub’s CF’er which was coined by our very own, Rat. My other favorite is, “Willy Billiams” which was coined by my dad for the HOF Cub’s LF’er, Billy Williams…Haha!
Bernal for me at 6. Glad to see Baez got the 5 spot. I probably would have had Rodriguez higher, Matthews lower.
Looking ahead to when we get to the AA lefties, I have Mautz ahead of Henderson.
I’ll be curious to see who is rated the top from the 2025 draft who is not Doyle.
I have lots of uncertainties in the rankings this year, in large part due to the pitcher injury question.
#6 Crooks
Crooks edges Bernal for me. They are both really good prospects.
Bernal is playing at AA at age 21, rather than 22, plus Crooks was an old 22 that year. Crooks did hit much better there and held his own in Memphis this year as well. Crooks has been listed among the best defensive catchers in the minors though.
Crooks being a LH hitting catcher would be a good thing most of the time but Bernal being a switch hitter negates that. Bernal is massive too and may lose his agility as he ages.
For me it comes down to proximity. Crooks also made BPs top 100 list last year.
On the negative side, Crooks has a high K rate at Memphis which could lead to a 30% rate in the MLB.
Bernal showed some separation in his L/R splits, hitting LH pitching much better this year. That could make these two really good platoon partners down the line.
Looking ahead to when we get to the AA lefties, I have Mautz ahead of Henderson.
I think that should be an interesting comparison as well. I have Henderson ahead of Mautz, but they are in a tight group with some others. This would be the most exciting prospect group probably since 2017, or at least since 2021ish, if not for the injury run with guys like Hence, Roby, and Mathews’ command issue.
I guess I fell off the Earth and missed this thread.
Bernal is my pick at 6.
Like mentioned above, it’ll be hard to sort out the injured SP’s. Henderson and Mautz have to come off the board soon as well.
Looking ahead to when we get to the AA lefties, I have Mautz ahead of Henderson.
Both had marvelous seasons but Mautz, beginning on June 5th, didn’t have a Game Score under 52. That is super efficient. He got the call for playoff Game 3 and final game of their Championship season. His four September Game Scores were 69-61-63-60. That is some kind of pitching down the stretch. Superior.
Bernal is leading 10 to 6 over Crooks according to my count. I’m very anxious to see what Crooks does in 2026, but Bernal has been my guy for three years and I still think he has
All-Star potential. Pads’ post about Crooks’ progress and future expectation had to have helped his cause….definitely made me think some more.I am put off by Bernal’s .726 OPS this year. There was no forward progress over his brief AA stint at the end of the previous year. He was young for level, and if he moves up to AAA will even more so. It might be smart to let him hit his way out of AA if he can.
About 3.5 hours to go before we close the voting for #6. We’ve had 21 participants thus far. Keep up the good work!
blingboy
I am put off by Bernal’s .726 OPS this year. There was no forward progress over his brief AA stint at the end of the previous year. He was young for level, and if he moves up to AAA will even more so. It might be smart to let him hit his way out of AA if he can.
He really struggled through the second half. He had an .860 OPS through June, then had OPS of .639, .577, .492 OPS July/August/September. Being 6’0 and 245 lbs and catching through the summer may have taken it’s toll. He is from Panama though, so who knows. Fangraphs says he struggles with high velocity pitchers.
Your #6 prospect in the 2026 TCN Community Top 50 Prospect voting is…Leonardo Bernal, C.
1. JJ Wetherholt, IF
2. Liam Doyle, LHP
3. Quinn Mathews, LHP
4. Rainiel Rodriguez, C
5. Joshua Baez, OF
6. Leonardo Bernal, CVoting is now open for the #7 prospect. Voting will close at Noon CT/1 PM ET on Thursday, October 23rd.
If I may, I would like to fire off the opening salvo for Top prospect #7. Would Jimmy Lee Crooks please stand up.
#7 Crooks
Disappointing 2025 season, after his terrific 2024. But his overall track record (OPS+ over 120 everywhere except Memphis) is quite good, particularly at backstop.
Question is, will he develop better playing 6 days a week in AAA or 2-4 days a week in a time share with Pedro Pages? I think the answer is the former, but the club will likely choose the latter. Just a feeling I’ve got.
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