Jose

Salas

Baseball America had Salas as the game’s No. 93 prospect when the Twins got him from the Marlins in the Luis Arraez deal four years ago, but he’s been very disappointing since and he hit just .199/.279/.376 between High-A and Double-A at age 23 last season. He is, however, off to a really nice start in Venezuela, having batted .407 with 10 RBI through nine games. Salas qualified for minor league free agency at the conclusion of the season, so he’s auditioning for everyone this winter.

Salas was one of the top-ranked prospects in Miami’s system after batting .267/.356/.421 in 61 games in Low-A and .230/.319/.340 in 48 games in High-A as a 19-year-old last season. He’s probably going to wind up at second or third and he’s never going to hit for big-time power, but he’s a nice prospect with a solid chance of turning into a regular. He’ll likely open 2023 back in High-A, with a midseason promotion to Double-A possible.

That’s presumably the top prospect of the two. Salas, a switch-hitting infielder, was a big international signing in 2019, and he hit .250/.339/.384 with 33 steals for two A-ball teams as a 19-year-old last season. He’s probably not a long-term shortstop, but he’s quite promising.