San Diego Padres: Three underrated prospects to watch in 2020

Ryan Weathers, LHP

Ryan Weathers was selected in the first round of the 2018 MLB Draft out of Loretto High School. The big lefty had a verbal commitment to play his collegiate baseball at Vanderbilt but chose to forego that in favor of starting up his professional career. Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com ranked Weathers as the 93rd best prospect in baseball prior to last year.

That was coming on the heels of seven starts after the draft split between Single-A and the Arizona Fall Leauge, posting a 3.44 ERA while striking out 18 batters in 18.1 innings. Flash forward to 2019, and he spent the entire year at Fort Wayne, posted a 3.84 ERA in 22 starts with 90 strikeouts in 96.0 innings.

I think what surprises me most about Weathers is his command and ability to limit walks despite just recently turning 20 years old. He’s likely to begin the year at High-A Lake Elsinore, and if he performs well there through the first half of the year, I could see a promotion to Double-A in the second half.

Weathers is projected to be ready for the big league rotation as soon as 2021, which would fall in line with the promotions I just mentioned. This season, he needs to develop a true out pitch, which scouts have noted that he currently lacks.

However, they speak highly of his fastball and its spin rate, which gives it that late tailing action. Assuming he remains healthy, look for Weathers to enter the conversation next offseason when MacKenzie Gore and Luis Patino are knocking at the door as well.

Ronald Bolanos, RHP

Ronald Bolanos is entering the “now or never” conversation, as the 23-year-old has taken quite a bit of time to develop through the Padres farm system. He was signed at age 19 as an international free agent in August 2016, which is several years older than most who come to the majors via this avenue.

However, Bolanos was a bit more established prior to signing, posting a 4.78 ERA in Cuba’s Seris Nacional. He’s a converted outfielder, hence the delay to sign and development. In his first professional season, he posted a 4.41 ERA in 14 appearances, including 11 starts for Single-A Fort Wayne. In those starts, he struck out 51 batters, but walked 34, in 69.1 innings.

The following year, he walked 50 batters in 125.0 innings for High-A Lake Elsinore and remained there for the start of 2019 as well. He finally broke through, posting the lowest WHIP of his career (1.12) while allowing a .193 batting average.

His improvements earned him a promotion to Double-A Amarillo, where his walks started to creep up again. In 15 appearances, including 13 starts, Bolanos posted a 4.23 ERA with 88 strikeouts and 30 free passes in 76.2 innings.

The big righty was promoted to the big leagues in September and struggled in five appearances, three starts, posting a 5.95 ERA but struck out 19 in 19.2 innings. He allowed 12 walks but also limited batters to a .230 average.

While the sample size isn’t there, he’s performed much better in relief, and I peg him for a future bullpen spot. If I were Bolanos, I would primarily focus on coming out of the ‘pen either at Double-A or Triple-A with the hope of cracking the Opening Day roster next season.

Accompanied by his devastating fastball and limited secondary pitches, a move to the bullpen makes perfect sense for Bolanos, and I think he would do well there.

Owen Miller, 2B/SS

I am not quite sure where Owen Miller fits long-term, but there is a lot to like about this kid. Selected in the third round of the 2018 MLB draft, Miller comes from a smaller school that has recently turned around its baseball program in Illinois State.

Miller left before the Redbirds posted a 36-26 record in 2019 and fell at the hands of the Louisville Cardinals in the NCAA Regionals. However, the Mequon, Wisconsin native posted remarkable numbers in 2018, including a .384/.433/.537 line with 15 doubles, one triple, six home runs, and 35 RBI with nearly a 1-to-1 walk to strikeout ratio.

He finished out the 2018 season with 75 games splits between the Padres short-season outfit and Single-A Fort Wayne. Combined, he posted a .336/.386/.460 line with 19 doubles, three triples, four home runs, and 33 RBI.

His defense has been questionable at third base and shortstop but posted a .980 fielding percentage at second in 48 minor league games.

Last year, he played for the Double-A Amarillo and posted a .307/.367/.441 line with 28 doubles, two triples, 13 home runs, and 68 RBI. As observed in the statistics, the power will come as Miller matures into his body.

He could stand to gain another 10-15 pounds of muscle, but again, I am not entirely sure where he plays right now. Second base is potentially an option next year, but I like to think that General Manager AJ Preller won’t rely on Miller being the savior for the position.

If anything and with a promising 2020, Miller could be fantastic trade bait to acquire other assets.