No. 4: Right-handed pitcher Adonis Medina
The two pitchers in this part of the list both have the potential to be impact players at the major-league level. The first of these two is 20-year-old Adonis Medina.
Last year in short-season Williamsport, Medina showed a strong fastball and ground-ball rate but wasn’t able to strike many guys out and walked far more batters than would be hoped for a guy who relies on getting ground ball outs.
This season, that narrative shifted as Sanchez more than doubled his strikeout rate in Low-A Lakewood, collecting 10 strikeouts per nine innings. In addition, his walk rate lowered from nine percent to 7.4 percent. He ultimately finished the year with a 3.01 ERA, 3.34 fielding-independent pitching, and 1.19 WHIP in 22 starts.
That large jump in strikeouts came from a major improvement in his secondary pitches. Medina’s changeup went from being around average to being a consistent plus pitch. His slider continues to flash plus and is consistently a good offering. His command is still a little shaky, but he showed improvement this year and he has more than enough stuff to work with.
After a full season in Low-A, Medina should start the year in High-A Clearwater and potentially get a chance to test Double-A Reading by the end of the year.