All-Prospect Team For May

An all-star team comprised of prospects, based on their performance in the minors during the month of May. Monthly all-prospect team archives available here.

Park-adjusted OPS+ and ERA+ are new additions this year. Both are calculated by Baseball America in the style of the familiar Baseball-Reference.com index statistics. Park factors for the 2015 season are used in all cases.


CubsC Willson Contreras • Cubs
Triple-A Iowa (Pacific Coast)

On the heels of a breakout 2015 season that included a Southern League batting title, Contreras has proven with his play at Iowa that he is no one-hit wonder. An incredible month of May pushed his average to .335 and on-base percentage to .423, both of which ranked among the best in the Pacific Coast League at the end of May. Contreras also hit more extra-base hits (17) than any minor league catcher during the month.

AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS+
105 21 34 7 2 8 25 15 18 2 2 .324 .419 .657 199

Rays1B Casey Gillaspie • Rays
Double-A Montgomery (Southern)

A switch-hitter and 2014 first-round pick, Gillaspie said that hitting .191 in the Arizona Fall League last season (and losing seven weeks to a broken hand) convinced him to improve his body and defensive play. The extra work paid off in May, when he led all minor league first basemen in OPS (1.031) and finished the month ranked among the Southern League leaders for home runs (nine), on-base percentage (.431), slugging (.561) and walks (38).

AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS+
88 19 27 8 0 6 16 20 21 1 0 .307 .429 .602 202

Red Sox2B Yoan Moncada • Red Sox
High Class A Salem (Carolina)

Padres prospect second baseman Carlos Asuaje hit .378 at Triple-A El Paso in May, but he did so without the secondary skills demonstrated by Moncada, who drew 19 walks, struck 13 extra-base hits and stole 15 bases (in 17 tries). The 21-year-old Cuban sensation ranks second in the minors with 31 steals and stands as the most dynamic power-speed prospect in the game.

AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS+
94 23 26 9 1 3 14 19 27 15 2 .277 .402 .489 157

Yankees3B Miguel Andujar • Yankees
High Class A Tampa (Florida State)

The powerful Dominican third baseman may be repeating the Florida State League, but he is doing so without as many rough edges as he showed last season. The 21-year-old Andujar, who signed for $750,000 in 2013, already has more home runs this season (nine) than he hit in 130 games at Tampa in 2015 (eight). Plus, his improved walk-to-strikeout ratio (0.54) and fielding percentage (.943) indicate that he’s playing more in control.

AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS+
111 16 34 5 1 5 21 10 15 0 1 .306 .364 .505 158

AstrosSS Alex Bregman • Astros
Double-A Corpus Christi (Texas)

The No. 2 overall pick in the 2015 draft has demonstrated the fine contact skills and batting eye in pro ball that brought him renown at Louisiana State—but few could have expected this level of power production. Bregman said he focused on developing flexibility and lifting inside pitches in the offseason, and the results have been staggering. He led all minor league shortstops with a .319 isolated slugging percentage in May.

AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS+
94 23 29 9 0 7 21 15 9 1 0 .309 .414 .628 202

IndiansOF Clint Frazier • Indians
Double-A Akron (Eastern)

Just three minor league batters bettered Frazier’s .475 on-base percentage in May, and batting No. 2 in the order for Akron on a regular basis seems to have helped him unlock his full potential. The 2013 High School Player of the Year is on pace to improve his OBP (.400), strikeout rate (19.7 percent), isolated slugging percentage (.219) and walk-to-strikeout ratio (0.62) for a third straight season.

AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS+
80 23 28 8 1 3 12 18 19 4 1 .350 .475 .588 206

CubsOF Eloy Jimenez • Cubs
Low Class A South Bend (Midwest)

The powerfully-build, Dominican-born Jimenez has delivered on his power potential all season in the Midwest League. The 19-year-old right fielder, the No. 1 prospect on the 2013 international market, ranks among the MWL leaders for average (.330), home runs (eight), RBIs (35) and slugging (.539) through the end of May.

AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS+
110 17 40 8 0 7 23 7 26 2 1 .364 .407 .627 210

GiantsOF Austin Slater • Giants
Double-A Richmond (Eastern)

Slater led all minor league batters (with at least 80 plate appearances) in May with a .411 average and 1.152 OPS. The 23-year-old has built an impressive hitting résumé in pro ball after the Giants selected him in the eighth round of the 2014 draft out of Stanford. Slater hit .346 in his pro debut and then .294 in 2015 as he spent the second half in Double-A. This season, he hit .317 to lead the Eastern League, which earned him a June 2 promotion to Triple-A Sacramento.

AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS+
73 13 30 7 1 3 16 14 15 4 0 .411 .494 .658 248

DodgersRHP Chase DeJong • Dodgers
Double-A Tulsa (Texas)

An extreme flyball pitcher with solid-average velocity and breaking stuff, DeJong located his pitches exquisitely in the Texas League in May, striking out a batter per inning and allowing opponents to hit just .140. The 2012 second-rounder out of high school allowed just two home runs in five starts last month after being bombed for six in five starts during April. The Dodgers acquired DeJong last July when the Blue Jays shipped him to Los Angeles for $1 million in international bonus money, which Toronto applied to their signing of Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

W L ERA GS IP H R ER HR SO BB SO/9 BR/9 AVG ERA+
4 1 1.20 5 30 14 4 4 2 30 9 9.0 6.9 .140 299

TwinsLHP Tyler Jay • Twins
High Class A Fort Myers (Florida State)

The former Illinois reliever and the sixth overall pick in the 2015 draft, Jay has excelled in the Fort Myers rotation, where he has recorded plenty of strikeouts (26.6 percent), induced a high rate of groundballs (51.4 percent) and avoided walks (6.8 percent). His 94 mph fastball, double-plus slider and bulldog mentality will continue to serve him well when he advances to Double-A this season.

W L ERA GS IP H R ER HR SO BB SO/9 BR/9 AVG ERA+
3 2 0.84 5 32.1 20 3 3 0 38 7 10.6 7.5 .180 397

GiantsLHP Adalberto Mejia • Giants
Double-A Richmond (Eastern)

The 6-foot-3 Dominican lefthander has authored 16 1/3 straight scoreless innings in the Eastern League, where he returned for a third straight season after missing most of 2015 with a drug suspension and a shoulder injury. Mejia mixes three quality pitches—low-90s heat, slider and changeup—and misses enough bats to profile as a starter.

W L ERA GS IP H R ER HR SO BB SO/9 BR/9 AVG ERA+
2 1 0.74 5 36.2 23 5 3 1 28 7 6.9 7.6 .178 472

AthleticsRHP Daniel Mengden • Athletics
Triple-A Nashville (Pacific Coast)

The Athletics acquired Mengden last July in the Scott Kazmir trade with the Astros, and after an intense offseason workout regimen, he has zoomed to 5-0, 0.99 through 10 starts this season, with 8.5 strikeouts and 2.7 walks per nine innings. His May performance was particularly noteworthy because he showed no signs of slowing down after a promotion from Double-A Midland, where he made four starts in April.

W L ERA GS IP H R ER HR SO BB SO/9 BR/9 AVG ERA+
3 0 1.12 6 40.1 26 6 5 2 32 7 7.1 7.8 .183 340

DodgersLHP Julio Urias • Dodgers
Triple-A Oklahoma City (Pacific Coast)

While Urias has run up a 9.39 ERA through his first two big league starts—on the road against the Mets and Cubs, mind you—the 19-year-old decimated Triple-A competition in May, recording 23 scoreless innings with 21 strikeouts and just 10 hits allowed. He has shown the tools to succeed in the majors, including a mid-90s fastball, a mid-80s slider and a mid-70s curve, so now all Urias must do is refine his command.

W L ERA GS IP H R ER HR SO BB SO/9 BR/9 AVG ERA+
2 0 0.00 4 23 10 0 0 0 21 5 8.2 6.3 .147 Inf.

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