#15 CLARKE ELLIOTT - OF / OAKLAND ATHLETICS
Elliot was drafted in the 2nd Round (CB) out of the University of Michigan where in his JR year he hit .337 with 16 HR's and 19 SB's. The Big 10 is a mid-level conference in the NCAA but he led the 2021 Cape Cod League in batting average and on-base percentage. To add to the contact tool, Elliott more than tripled his HR output from 2021 to 2022 at Michigan so he looks to be growing into more in-game power. He only played in 1 game in the Complex League for the A's so there isn't much to go on outside of NCAA numbers. There’s a possibility of a hit/speed/power combo here but he’ll have to produce offensively as his future defensive home is in a corner OF spot. Elliott only has a 1st Chrome Prospect card in this release with autos hopefully dropping in 2023 Bowman.
#14 GABRIEL RINCONES - OF - PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES
Rincones was drafted in the 3rd round out of Florida Atlantic University where in his JR season he hit .346 with 19 HR's and 17 2B's pushing his ISO to a whopping .312. He attended St. Petersburg College and transferred to FAU in 2022. His last appearance with a wooden bat was in 2020 where he hit .313 in the Florida Collegiate Summer League. There isn’t a ton of athleticism in the tank but Rincones could have a big enough bat to justify his low defensive ceiling in left field. He’s a guy who I may have pushed a bit further up the list if he had repeated these numbers over a larger sample size but he’s yet to make his professional debut in the MiLB. Rincones’ 1st Chrome Autos are sitting pretty consistently around $10-$12 right now.
#13 NATE FURMAN - OF - CLEVELAND GUARDIANS
Furman was a 4th round selection out of UNC Charlotte. He has an exceptional hit tool and has never hit below .300 in 2 Conference USA seasons or across 3 competitive collegiate summer leagues (including the Cape Cod League). The downside to Furman is his lack of power. Between his FR and SO year at UNC Charlotte he only hit 3 HR's. What he lacks in power he makes up for in speed having racked up 46 stolen bases in his two years with the 49ers. Furman looks to be an old school lead of hitter prototype that gets on base and steals bags at will. He kind of reminds me of a Sal Frelick type guy but with a bit less juice. The lack of in-game power doesn’t play well in the current state of the hobby so you can buy Furman 1st Chrome Autos for around $5.
#12 RYAN CERMAK - OF - TAMPA BAY RAYS
Cermak was drafted in the 2nd round out of Illinois State University. The Missouri Valley Conference isn't exactly a baseball powerhouse but Cermak was good for a .340 BA and .356 ISO in his JR season. He's never played in a competitive collegiate wooden bat league and his K#’s in his professional debut are a giant red flag. Aside from his contact issues, he's a superior athlete with plus arm strength and high defensive upside in CF. If he can learn to handle a wooden bat and cut down his K rate in 2023, he could be a big sleeper out of this release. Although it's a small sample size - I still can't get over those current K#'s. Cermak comes with a bit of risk as well as some significant upside. His 2022 Bowman Draft 1st Autos have settled right around the $10 mark.
#11 STERLIN THOMPSON - OF/3B - COLORADO ROCKIES
Thompson was a 1st round Compensation pick out of the University of Florida where he showed off his hit tool with a .354 BA, 11 HR’s and 16 2B's in the SEC. He also hit .391 in the Florida Collegiate Summer League, silencing any doubt that he can't handle the wood. There aren't a ton of tools outside of the bat here but he has played both infield and outfield in his first professional season making it easier for him to climb the ladder in Colorado. He hit for a ton of average between the Complex League and Low A but he had rough K/BB ratios and really bad GB/FB rates (these are the two reasons he’s outside of my Top 10). I'd really like to see something besides a high batting average transpire here unless he plans on putting up DJ LeMahieu type numbers in the show. Sterlin Thompson autos are on the higher end of this list going inside the $15-$20 range.
TOP 15 SLEEPER PROSPECTS IN 2022 BOWMAN DRAFT
#10 DOMINIC KEEGAN - C - TAMPA BAY RAYS
Keegan was drafted in the 4th round out of Vanderbilt University where he hit for both average and power during his JR and SR year. He hit .371 during his SR in the toughest conference in all of NCAA baseball (SEC) and also showed his ability to hit for average and power with a wooden bat in the Cape Cod Baseball League in 2021. He had a quality start to his professional debut hitting 2 2B's and 4 HR's across 46 PA's between the CPX League and Low A. Keegan spent all 12 games behind the plate for the Rays in 2022 but has experience at 1B if his backstop skills aren't good enough to translate in the MLB. He’s also the only true catching prospect ranked in the Tampa Bay Rays Top 30 making his path to the MLB very apparent. Keegan autos are dirt cheap in this release and I haven’t seen many sales eclipse $10.
#9 CADE DOUGHTY - INF - TORONTO BLUE JAYS
Doughty was Toronto's 2nd Round Compensatory Pick in the 2022 Draft hailing from LSU. He hit .289 with a .269 ISO in his JR year with 15 HR's and 19 2B's. Doughty doesn't have exciting athleticism but he's got a lot of defensive upside having experience in the SEC at 3B, 2B, and SS. He also had success in two NCAA summer leagues where he hit .429 and .280 with the wood. He made quite an impression during his professional debut in Low A where he hit .272 with 6 HR’s in only 119 PA’s. Doughty is one of many high floor prospects in this checklist and with his advanced hit tool and approach he could rocket through the Toronto Blue Jays system that is very limited with infielders. His autos are selling right around the $10-$12 dollar mark right now.
#8 SAL STEWART - 3B - CINCINNATI REDS
Stewart was drafted in the 1st round (CB-A) out of Westminster Christian HS. He’s one of the more physically developed HS players on this checklist standing close to 6’3” and 215 pounds. The video I’ve seen shows me easy raw power to all sides of the field (which is the brightest tool next to his + arm strength). Aside from his natural raw power, Stewart displayed his hit tool with a .292 BA in the Complex League at the age of 18. He's an average athlete at best with a 3B ceiling but he's in an organization that holds some of the Top Tier infielders in all of Minor League Baseball. A slide to 1B may be in the cards here but he posted excellent K#'s while hitting for average and a bit of power in his professional debut. When I was drafting up my information and comps for this video last week, Stewart was eliminated based on his price. I saw an auto for sale yesterday and when I re-checked his comps, I saw 2 recent sales under $20.
#7 BRENNER COX - OF - WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Cox is one of the more interesting prospects on this list. He was one of the top HS athletes selected in the 2022 Draft and like Jay Allen from 2021 Draft had offers to play baseball and football at the D1 level. Being a 2 sport athlete - summer football workouts kept him from attending large scale summer showcases which may have hurt his draft stock as he fell to the 4th round. He's a big kid standing at 6'3" with excellent speed and enough arm and athleticism to stick in CF. His professional debut, however, showed some areas that need improvement including a 30+ K% and a near 3.00 GB/FB rate. Based on the K#'s he looks to be a bit more raw than many of the baseball only HS draftees. His youth will allow him time to polish up his numbers but until we get a larger professional sample size, he’s one of the more risky players on this list. Brenner Cox 1st Chrome Autos are sitting right around $15 right now.
#6 CHASE MEIDROTH - 2B - BOSTON RED SOX
Meidroth was drafted in the 4th round out of the University of San Diego. In his JR year he hit .329 with a .215 ISO while walking more than he struck out. He had a solid summer in the Cape Cod League hitting .286 with a sub 1 K/BB ratio across 84 PA’s. He transitioned his success in the Cape quickly into his professional debut where he hit for average and power with incredible K#'s. Meidroth didn’t get much playing time in college until his junior year making his sample size rather small compared to other college bats but his performance has been steady. The biggest downside here is the abundance of infield talent in the Red Sox organization and abundance may be a bit of an understatement. He’s buried underneath prospects like Marcelo Mayer, Nick Yorke, Matthew Lugo and 2022 1st and 2nd Rounders, Mikey Romero and Cutter Coffey. Meidroth will have to make quite a bit of noise in 2023 to garner a higher ceiling than any of the players ranked above him. The long term looks bleak here but for $10, a small window of success in the MiLB isn’t totally out of the cards.
#5 IGNACIO ALVAREZ - 3B/SS - ATLANTA BRAVES
Ignacio aka “Nacho” Alvarez is another unique prospect on this list as he was drafted out of Riverside Community College at age 19. He was an impact bat that led the Riverside Tigers to a 2022 California Community College State Championship. I actually had to visit the Riverside Community College baseball page to get a peak at his 2022 stats. Nacho hit .370 with .212 ISO and put up 21 multi-hit games at the age of 18. He didn’t show off the power numbers in his professional debut but he hit just under .300 with some of the best K#’s on this entire checklist at the age of 19. There are 2 big unknowns here that pertain to Alvarez with one being his defensive ceiling and the other his in-game power. Between the CPX League and Low A, Alvarez played 18 games at 3B and only 10 at SS. His arm is his plus defensive tool and he may not possess the athleticism to handle SS. Power is the other question mark as he only posted a .107 ISO with a wooden bat in 2022. Even if he moves to 3B, which he most likely will, Nacho will be able to maximize his raw power, in game, if he holds on to his double plus approach in the future.
#4 JACOB MELTON - CF - HOUSTON ASTROS
Melton was drafted in the 2nd round out of Oregon State University where he hit .360 with 17 HR's, 21 SB's, and 22 doubles pumping his ISO up to .311. He finished the season as the PAC-12 Player of the Year and had a solid start to his professional career hitting .261 with 4 HR's across 2 levels. Melton has a speed/hit/power ceiling offensively and has the athleticism to stick in CF. He’s a well built 6’3'' lefty bat who uses all sides of the field. I read a lot of reports that “there was too much movement in his swing” but once his front foot gets down he stays connected very well. Four out of Houston’s 6 top prospects are outfielders right now, but Melton’s 5 tool ceiling could accelerate him up that list in 2023. Melton was a second round steal and has a much higher ceiling than many of the prospects on this checklist. He’s also a player that will be overlooked in this release since he is a 1st Chrome Prospect card only.
#3 TREY LIPSCOMB - 3B - WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Lipscomb was taken in the 3rd round out of the University of Tennessee where we haven't seen many hitters have success post draft in the last few years. He had a blowout year in the SEC in 2021 where he hit .355 with a .362 ISO. He was also good for 22 HR's and 19 2B's in his senior year. His power hasn't quite translated into professional ball yet and his near 5 K/BB rate and 3+ GB/FB rate make me a bit less optimistic. Another strike against Lipscomb is that he’s one of the oldest players on the 2022 Draft Checklist. He'll turn 23 during the 2023 season and the hobby gets quite stingy around that age. You are betting on the bat here alone as there isn't much upside anywhere else. His average speed and athleticism may allow him to stick at 3B but there isn’t much of a defensive ceiling here. Lipscomb put together one of the best offensive seasons in college baseball’s most difficult conference. He has a large offensive ceiling but a low floor elsewhere making him a bit of a risk. His autos are running right around the $15 mark as of January 2023.
#2 CHANDLER SIMPSON - OF - TAMPA BAY RAYS
Simpson was drafted in the 2nd round out of Georgia Tech. He led the nation in batting average at .434 playing in the ACC which was one of the Top 3 ranked conferences in 2022 power rankings. His speed is lightning in a bottle which allowed him to steal 27 bases for the Yellow Jackets this past season. Simpson has 2 ELITE tools but his power #'s are way below average. He's only hit 1 HR in 4 NCAA seasons and 2 Collegiate Summer League seasons. His defensive ceiling on the infield is low, but he’s been getting reps in the OF with the Rays where his ceiling is much higher. I think Simpson’s ceiling is a lead-off hitter who plays excellent defense in CF with the ability to put a lot of pressure on pitchers and catchers on the bases. He’s not going to grow into any more power, but the hit and speed tools are real. The road to the show isn’t very easy in Tampa but if Simpson continues to hit, he could ascend towards the top of the organizational ranks in 2023. Value you wise, Simpson’s autos are some of the cheapest on this list sitting around $7.
#1 CAYDEN WALLACE - 3B - KANSAS CITY ROYALS
Wallace was drafted in the 2nd round out of the University of Arkansas where he hit .298 with 16 HR's and 20 2B's as a sophomore in the SEC. He's one of the bigger power bats on this checklist and has shown the ability to hit for average with great K#'s across competitive collegiate summer leagues, the SEC, and in his professional debut with the Royals. He's most likely a 3B but the bat could carry him a long way in the Kansas City system. Scouts note that he can get a bit pull happy at times but he reduced his Pull% from 66% to 37% after his promotion to A ball. I'd like to see what Wallace can do in the upper minors and I should have my wish granted in 2023 where he will most likely begin the year in A+ or AA. He’s one of the youngest college bats on the 2022 checklist which would make him age appropriate in AA in 2023. He’s the top ranked infielder and 3rd highest ranked prospect in the Royals organization. Depending on how he handles AA arms, we could very well see a late season peak of Wallace at the MLB level. I’ve seen his autos going in the $20-$30 range making him one of the most expensive players on this list.
There really weren’t many players in the $5-$10 range in this release so I had to bump up the cutoff to $20. As I always try to mention in my Sleeper Prospect content, I don’t foresee any of these players becoming MLB superstars. I do, although I think they are a bit undervalued for their performance and skill set. I gathered all of my comps for these players on January 15th and please be aware that these numbers are always subject to change over time.