The Los Angeles Dodgers farm system appears to be as deep as it has been in many years with lists going as far as naming nine prospects in their top 100. With the 2023 season on the horizon, a number of their young talents could be making an impact at the Major League level this year.
A bit lower on the Dodgers’ backend prospects is ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel, who has five players ranked on his top 100 list for the 2023 season. Other rankings such as MLB Pipeline had six Dodgers featured, with nine appearing on the Baseball Prospectus Top 101.
McDaniel featured Diego Cartaya at No. 22, and also included Bobby Miller, Gavin Stone, Miguel Vargas and Dalton Rushing on his prospect rankings.
Dodgers prospects ranked by Kiley McDaniel for 2023
Diego Cartaya, No. 22
The Dodgers’ 2022 Branch Rickey Minor League Player of the Year is the second-ranked catching prospect according to MLB Pipeline. Cartaya hit .254/.389/.503 with 22 homers and 72 RBI in split time between Single-A Rancho Cucamonga and High-A Great Lakes last season.
Bobby Miller, No. 25
Miller recently received votes for the projected National League Rookie of the Year in an MLB Pipeline poll, and because of ace-level stuff, he’s on track to become an impactful pitcher for the Dodgers.
Last year wasn’t a statistically prolific year for Miller as he carried a 4.45 ERA, 1.20 WHIP in 91 innings between Double-A Tulsa and Triple-A Oklahoma City. But Miller’s 11.6 strikeouts per nine, 30.9% strikeout rate and .222 batting average allowed carry a lot of weight with how he projects.
Gavin Stone, No. 55
Stone was ranked as MLB Pipeline’s No. 10 right-handed pitcher, No. 56 overall on Baseball America’s rankings, and McDaniel slotting him in the mid-50s is just about on par with the rest.
Stone is one of the fastest risers in the Dodgers Minor League system after a combined 1.48 ERA and 1.12 WHIP in 121.2 innings pitched with the Loons, Drillers and OKC in 2022.
Miguel Vargas, No. 80
Vargas is set to lose his status as a prospect this season, as he takes on a larger role with the Dodgers. Also receiving votes in the projected NL Rookie of the Year poll, McDaniel is lower than most on Vargas after he batted .304/.402/.511 with 17 home runs, 82 RBI, 99 runs scored and 16 stolen bases in 112 games with OKC.
Dalton Rushing, No. 98
Just sneaking in McDaniel’s top 100 is the 21-year-old Rushing, the Dodgers’ second-round pick in the 2022 MLB Draft.
Although he appeared in just 28 games with Rancho Cucamonga last season, Rushing posted a .424/.539/.778 batting line with eight home runs, 30 RBI and 21 walks in 99 at-bats.
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