Reds register 4 players ranked among MLB’s Top 100 prospects

MLB.com has just updated their prospect rankings and the Cincinnati Reds farm system is well represented with four players among the Top 100. Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo, Jose Barrero, and Matt McLain all made the cut, and Austin Hendrick dropped out of the Top 100.

None of the four players cited by MLB Pipeline should come as a surprise. Greene and Lodolo have been dominant on the mound this season, and the recently promoted Barrero has been among the best hitters in both Double-A and Triple-A this year. McLain was the Reds first-round draft pick this past July.

While it may be disappointing to see one of Cincinnati’s top young players (Hendrick) fall out of the Top 100, the power-hitting outfielder has only played in 55 games for Low-A Daytona this season. Hendrick is hitting just .217, but does have .387 on-base percentage. The 20-year-old has also sent six balls into the seats during his first professional season.

Hunter Greene leads the charge for the Reds farm system.

The Cincinnati Reds farm system is not among the Top 10, but they have one of the best young hurlers in the game. Hunter Greene, finally heathy, is on the verge of making his major league debut and has shown how dominant his fastball can be. In fact, MLB.com ranks his heater as the best among every prospect.

Nick Lodolo ranks just a few spots behind Greene at No. 32, and while the southpaw doesn’t have the same velocity on his fastball as his Louisville Bats’ teammate, Lodolo more than makes up for that with his control and mound presence. For my money, while Greene is the more highly-touted prospect, I believe Lodolo will have the better major league career.

Jose Barrero, formerly Jose Garcia, made his first major league start of the 2021 season on Wednesday afternoon versus the Chicago Cubs. Barrero has always been an advanced fielder, but it appears as though his bat has finally caught up to his glove.

While Kyle Farmer is likely to get the lion’s share of starts at shortstop for the remainder of this season, Barrero looks to be the shortstop of the future. Barrero played 80 games between Double-A Chattanooga and Triple-A Louisville this season and slashed .303/.378/.532.

Finally, Matt McLain, who had a heckuva debut for the Dayton Dragons earlier this month, come in at No. 99 according to MLB Pipeline. The 22-year-old shortstop fell into the Reds’ laps during the 2021 MLB Draft and the former UCLA Bruin has hit .357 in four games for High-A Dayton this season.

The Cincinnati Reds have some new faces among their Top 10 as well. Graham Ashcraft’s 2021 dominance has seen the right-hander jump to No. 7. Another 2021 draft pick, Jay Allen, starts his Reds’ career as the No. 6-ranked prospect in the team’s farm system. And, Elly De La Cruz, who wasn’t even on most scouts’ radars, is now ranked No. 10 according to MLB Pipeline.