Moises Ballesteros – Picture by Todd Johnson

The key to picking this award is selecting a position guy who will spend most of the 2024 season in the minors. So, Matt Shaw is probably out because if he’s mashing enough to win the award, he’s likely performing well enough for an MLB promotion. Same for PCA. Owen Caissie might be an option along with Kevin Alcantara or Moises Ballesteros. Then again, we might be staring at Jefferson Rojas when it is all said and done. It is going to be interesting to see who everybody selects today. Let’s get to it!

Last Year’s Winner: Owen Caissie

Greg Zumach

I don’t think it’s crazy to see either of Matt Shaw or Owen Caissie mash this year, but I could also squint and see a need where Shaw forces his way to Chicago. So let’s go with Caissie who really looks like he’s got the type of advanced approach that can feast against pitching. I’m going to say Caissie puts up a .278/.402/.533 season while keeping the K-rate south of 30%. He’s going to force his way to Chicago later in the year.

Greg Huss

I really want to pick Matt Shaw here. I’ve had the thought that we shouldn’t be calling for his promotion to Chicago until late-August at the earliest. But then again, if he’s posting a 135 wRC+ then the shouts will get louder that he doesn’t belong in the minors anymore. The player of the year typically goes to the prospect who simply puts up the strongest offensive numbers. It doesn’t matter that Jefferson Rojas logged above-average numbers at a super young age in a place where it’s difficult to hit. The award last year went to a dude who just HIT.

So let’s avoid the Myrtle Beach Pitcher’s Paradise and the players that’ll begin in cold weather South Bend. I think Moises Ballesteros is the most complete hitter in the system. His feel to hit is phenomenal, he’s showing more pop with every month, and he works deep counts without striking out too much. I’m keeping my eye on Mo Baller posting an OPS near .900 while playing in the upper minors.

Rich Biesterfeld

As several of my peers mentioned, the names Matt Shaw and Owen Caissie immediately came to mind here, but not sure they will be in the minor leagues for all of the 2024 season if they are hitting that well. So I decided to go in a slightly different direction and will offer up James Triantos as my candidate. James began the 2023 season on the IL following some minor surgery on his knee and that seemed to impact him early in his season, but his bat heated up as the season progressed. This earned him a call-up to AA Tennessee for the playoff push. James then parlayed that into a spot in the AFL with the Mesa Solar Sox where he earned the AFL Offensive Player of the Year award. I’m looking for him to continue that upward trend as he play this season for the Smokies.

Todd Johnson

I had about five names pop in my head immediately. Owen Caissie was the first name in my brain but I’m not sure how long he’s going to be in Iowa, especially if he gets off to a good start. Moises Ballesteros is another name that popped into my head pretty quickly as he should be in the minors all season long. Brian Kalmer was also considered as my dark horse pick, but I don’t think he can maintain the pace that he set last year. I really like Jefferson Rojas’ swing. It almost seems effortless. I like the fact that he can go the other way with power quite easily. I just don’t think he will put up the big home run or RBI totals. He will still become a top 100 prospect regardless.

However, I am rolling with Christian Franklin. I really love his short and compact swing and I see 20+ HRs this year. To get to Iowa, he’s really going to have to dominate the Southern League. I could see a wRC+ between 130 and 140 for him this spring at Tennessee. He’s ready to pick up right where he left off last year.