2023 Second Base Prospect Rankings

Welcome to my positional prospect rankings series for 2023. The offseason is always a fun time, especially in the world of dynasty and prospect rankings. This is the time of year when we have additional time to dissect our rankings in many different ways and dive deeper into prospect profiles to see if we have them ranked appropriately. The two most beneficial ways to break them down are by team and position. Chris Clegg and I are posting our Top 20 prospect rankings for every MLB team this offseason and I’ll be going position by position as well, continuing with my top Second Base Prospect Rankings here today. Leading the way is a breakout prospect from 2022.

Player Notes

• When it comes to prospects, the second base position is one where there’s no clear-cut, consensus #1 name. For me, that crown sits atop the head of Baltimore’s Connor Norby. A second-round selection in 2021, Norby fully broke out in 2022 with 29 home runs and 16 steals across 121 games and a .279/.360/.526 slash line. He also showcased a sound approach at the plate while trimming his groundball rate and really taking advantage of his pull-side pop. Norby projects as a plus hitter capable of hitting .280+ annually and his above-average raw power is getting slept on a bit. If everything breaks right, we could have an Ozzie Albies type of player, or somewhere in that range.
• One of the fab four prep bats from this year’s draft class, Termarr Johnson has the skills to take a firm grasp of the #1 spot at this position and run with it once Norby graduates. Johnson was one of the top pure hitters in the entire class and can really pack a punch from the left side despite his smaller 5’7 frame. Johnson has shown the ability to barrel up pitches with regularity and is very advanced with his approach. However, how much of that game power he ultimately gets to is the question, along with how his speed plays as he matures. The upside is here for a 20+ homer, 10 steal player that posts high AVGs and OBP as well.
• For this position, Edouard Julien is one of the toughest to rank right now given the pros and cons. The pros are a patient approach with a nice blend of contact and power that led to a .300/.441/.490 slash line along with 17 home runs and 19 steals in 508 Double-A plate appearances. But is Julien too passive? There’s a fine line when it comes to passivity with hitters and Julien is certainly flirting with it at the moment. Drawing walks at a high clip is certainly positive, but being too passive can limit a player’s upside in fantasy and cause the strikeout rate to rise higher than it should given the additional 2-strike counts. Julien also struggled to the tune of a .210/.373/.276 slash line against southpaws this past season. There’s plenty of talent and upside in this profile, but we can’t ignore the red flags either.

Edouard Julien drives this one to the wall in left, but just another WTP shot tonight. #MNTwins pic.twitter.com/84Hs704HV3

— Eric Cross (@EricCross04) November 3, 2022

• A heel injury limited Nick Gonzales to only 74 games in 2022, and outside of his .382 OBP, you could say that his performance regressed from 2021. Gonzales racked up seven homers and six steals while hitting .264 with a .435 SLG and .171 ISO. Those aren’t bad numbers by any means, but Gonzales’ struggles against high fastballs really limited him and that was apparent in my live looks out in the Arizona Fall League in November. Are these issues going to completely derail his career? Probably not. However, I’m adjusting my expectations for him moving forward. He’s more of a sell than a buy in dynasty leagues right now.

Nick Gonzales smokes a double to deep center. #LetsGoBucs pic.twitter.com/uWGvdhESa1

— Eric Cross (@EricCross04) October 16, 2021

• Another second base prospect that was limited in 2022 was Nick Yorke. After a breakout 2021 campaign, various ailments limited Yorke to 373 plate appearances and an unimpressive .232/.303/.365 slash line. How much of that was due to the time he missed? Probably a decent amount. Did we go too high in our rankings of him following 2021? Most likely. I’m still a believer in Yorke being a solid bat that can hit .270+, but the power and speed don’t project highly for me. If he can get to 15-18 home runs and 10+ steals, then Yorke could fit in as a solid MI type for fantasy. But that’s also likely his ceiling. All in all, Yorke is a buy for me in dynasty leagues, but make sure to keep your expectations in check.
• Despite being in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization, Michael Busch still feels a bit undervalued. Maybe it’s because he just turned 25 and that’s apparently the magical threshold which makes a prospect less intriguing for fantasy purposes. But we can’t forget that Busch was a collegiate bat drafted in 2019 that lost an entire year due to the COVID cancelled 2020 season. Since then, Busch has put together back to back solid seasons. In 2021, Busch slashed .267/.386/.484 with 20 home runs and a 14.1% walk rate in 107 games. He then followed that up with 32 home runs and an 11.5% walk rate in 142 games this past season with a .274/.365/.516 line. Busch projects around an average hitter, but the above-average pop and on-base abilities give Busch plenty of value, especially in OBP leagues. In AVG formats, he’s around a top 75 prospect, but that pushes closer to the Top 50 in OBP formats. Expect Busch to debut early in the 2023 season.
• Without question, my favorite prospect target at this position entering 2023 is Carlos Jorge from the Cincinnati Reds. For starters, Jorge is a plus runner that has run wild in the low minors with 54 steals in 89 games while only being caught nine times. It’s only rookie ball, but Jorge can definitely be a 20+ steal threat at the highest level, maybe approaching 30. As for his bat, that’s where Jorge gets undervalued. The AVG dipped to .261 in 2022, but many evaluators have projected him as an above-average or plus hitter and I’m 100% on board with it. Jorge’s swing is quick from the left side and direct to the ball with sneaky raw power. Jorge posted a .529 SLG and .268 ISO last season and projects to add more bulk to his 5’10 frame as well. Add in Great American Ballpark to all of this and the final product could see Jorge approaching or exceeding 20-homers annually depending on how much strength he adds moving forward. There’s a lot to like here in Jorge’s profile and I have a strong feeling he’s going to hit his way into my Top 25 overall by the end of 2023.

Carlos Jorge may only be 5-10, 160lb. but this could be the most effortless HR I’ve seen this year in the minors.

The 18-year-old just flicks this hanging CB down the RF line for his 5th of the year. #Reds #ATOBTTR pic.twitter.com/m3EmZxOlrK

— Ian Smith (@FlaSmitty) July 30, 2022

• If we’re just looking at the profile by itself with no outside factors, it’s easy to say that Jace Jung was one of the most advanced hitters in the 2022 draft class. However, I’m not loving this landing spot in Detroit whatsoever given how pitcher-friendly Comerica Park has been, especially limiting power. With Jung’s contact skills and approach, hitting .280+ with a .350+ OBP is certainly possible. However, with his power sitting around average and not much speed in the profile, how much of a fantasy asset will he be given his future home ballpark limiting his power even further? At this point, I’m not sure we can expect more than 12-15 HR and 5-8 SB.
• FYPD Targets: Termarr Johnson (PIT), Jace Jung (DET), Cade Doughty (TOR), Robert Moore (MIL), Luke Gold (DET)
• Redraft Targets (In Order): Connor Norby, Michael Busch, Curtis Mead, Edouard Julien, Enmanuel Valdez (All only in BestBall or DC formats)

2023 Second Base Prospect Rankings

Other positions can be found here, along with our overall prospect rankings, dynasty rankings, and team prospect rankings.

Media Credit: Ian Smith