Arizona Complex League Scouting Notebook: Part 1
As the Arizona Complex League wraps up its season next week, I thought I would take some time to compile my scouting notes (in two parts) for the players I’ve been able to watch over the course of the last couple months. The Complex League is a unique baseball experience that offers outstanding access and a wide variety of ages and skillsets, from big leaguers on rehab assignments to teenagers making their professional and/or stateside debuts. Truly, the only problem with the ACL is the constant threat of sunburn and heat stroke - which my pale self (knock on SPF 1,000) has miraculously managed to avoid thus far.
Below are the first part of my notes from my time watching the ACL this season.
Dodgers @ Mariners - 6/9 - Box Score
M’s bats were the stars of this early season showdown, including Lazaro Montes (Future Stars Series’ No. 13 org prospect) and Michael Arroyo (No. 5).
Montes fills out every bit of his listed 230-pound frame and it’s easy to see why the Cuba native has been appropriately nicknamed, “Baby Yordan.” The raw power is enormous but the 18-year-old is still clearly learning how to channel more fluid movements at his size. After slashing .282/.452/.555 in 37 Complex league games, Montes was promoted to High-A Modesto. If he continues to cut his strikeout rate and maintain his current walk level in the California League, Montes could very well find himself as a top ten prospect in the organization come spring time.
While the aforementioned Montes is power over hit, second baseman Michael Arroyo displays arguably the best hit tool in the system outside of Cole Young and could eventually develop fringe average power. Arroyo is a fluid mover with good rhythm in his load and quick hands that produce consistent hard contact. The Colombia native also has outstanding recognition of the strike zone for his age, which will only continue to help him as he moves up levels in the organization. This game was one of just four that Arroyo spent at the Complex level, as he was promoted to Single-A Modesto the following week. In 38 contests with the Nuts, the 18-year-old has held his own, slashing .255/.379/.423 with two home runs and an 11.5 percent walk rate.
Angels @ Giants (Orange) - 6/13 - Box Score
A matchup of two rehabbing starters, big leaguer Ross Stripling for the Giants and since-traded Ky Bush (FSS No. 11 White Sox prospect) for the Angels.
The 23-year-old Bush is high-waisted with long levers and every bit of his listed 6'6" height. He is a pretty fluid athlete for his size, offering a repeatable medium-effort delivery out of a high 3/4 arm slot. His FB sat 90-92, T93. Really comfortable locating on the inner half with the fastball to both LH and RH. Flashed an SL with good depth in the low 80s and a true 12-6 CB at around 75-77 that he stayed on top of well. Didn't see a CH in game but in warmups looked to be at least an average offering.The command fell off a cliff after the first two innings and stuff also seemed to suffer. Granted, this was a rehab assignment so I'll take it with a grain of salt. I'd be very curious to see some of the data on him moving forward, especially since a bunch of reports in the past had him topping out at 96 with the FB. Right now, I don't see enough present FB value to project his ceiling as anything more than a 4 at this point, or light 3 in an absolute best-case scenario.There's a lot to dream on with the size and some of the offspeed stuff but if he's not locating, especially with the FB, it won't be pretty.
For the Giants, one player who caught my eye was right-hander Alix Hernandez. The 19-year-old Venezuela native was part of the Giants’ 2022 international free agent class and there’s enough to suggest he’s worth keeping an eye on over the next year or two. Hernandez has a slight, wiry frame and sat mostly 90-92 with the fastball, topping out at 93. He has a quick arm and low-effort delivery and it seems he could tap into some more velocity by utilizing his lower half a bit more. Hernandez’s calling card, however, is a 76-78 mph slider with good depth + tilt and an elite spin rate. The slider without a doubt has the makings of a potential plus to double-plus offering in the future. There are some inconsistencies with the release point and overall command, but that’s to be expected with a teenager making his stateside debut. The surface metrics don’t look great (4.86 ERA, 4.66 BB/9), but he currently leads the Complex league with a remarkable 33.2 percent strikeout rate. Hernandez is certainly worth a follow in the Giants’ system and could turn into a valuable backend bullpen piece or better if he’s able to hone the command.
Reds @ Guardians - 7/20 - Box Score
With many of the players I came to see out of the lineup, I wasn’t able to stay long for this showdown for Goodyear bragging rights (is that a thing?), but did get a quick look at 19-year-old Venezuelan right-hander Kendeglys Virguez.
Virguez had a forgettable outing in the box score but has an athletic frame with long arm action, sitting 90-92 with the fastball and topping out at 95 with some ASR. Fastball command was his biggest issue on this day, consistently missing inside to RHB and altering his mechanics too much when he needed to throw a strike. The slider came in at 76-78 but is only a fringe offering at this point. The arm talent is certainly there but Virguez will need to improve his poor control before he’s on any sort of prospect radar.
Stay tuned for more scouting notes in part two of my trip through the Arizona Complex League later this week.
