It’s been a sluggish year for the Arizona Fall League in 2021, most Boy Scouts agree.
Compared to previous years, pitching talent was suspect as major league teams sought to limit the workload of their top pitchers after a missed year in 2020. Some of the most notable names among hitters ready to play this fall either left early. with an injury (Spencer Torkelson) or did not play in the Fall League (Riley Greene, CJ Abrams).
Still, several players have opened the eyes of evaluators as the AFL returned to action this fall after a year-long hiatus imposed by the pandemic. As baseball says goodbye to fall and heads into an uncertain winter, The Athletic spoke to several scouts who covered the fall league about who they loved. Here are the 10 players who impressed the most.
1. C Gabriel Moreno, Blue Jays
“He’s a future superstar,” a scout said of Moreno. That billing seems appropriate, given that the 21-year-old Venezuelan ranked Keith Law’s fifth-best prospect in July. Moreno certainly lived up to that hype in the fall. After destroying Double-A pitchers for most of the season, the right-handed hitter hit .329 / .410 / .494 with 11 doubles in 100 home plate appearances. He walked 13 times, equaling his strikeout total. Just a little offense from a catcher is a plus these days, but Moreno feels he’s a good hitter, not just a good hitter for his position.
The scouts saw a good approach to the plate. He’s not intimidated by the count of two strokes, shortening a bit while maintaining the strength of his wrists.
