Underrated slugger T.J. Hopkins has been overshadowed by other Reds prospects

There's been a lot of attention focused on two of the Cincinnati Reds top prospects - Matt McLain and Christian Encarnacion-Strand.

Both have been terrific in Triple-A so far this season. Depsite the fact that Encarnacion-Strand got a late start to the season due to injury, the former Minnesota Twins farmhand is off to a great start with the Louisville Bats.

But there's another player who's been hitting the cover off the ball lately, and his name is T.J. Hopkins. While both McLain and Encarnacion-Strand look to be fixutre in the Cincinnati lineup for years to come, down sleep on Hopkins.

Underrated slugger T.J. Hopkins has been overshadowed by other Reds prospects.

Matt McLain, Elly De La Cruz, and Christian Encarnacion-Strand have received the majority of the hype lately, but nobody is hotter than T.J. Hopkins. The former ninth-round draft pick has been hitting for power and average.

Since April 19th, Hopkins has slashed .410/.540/.795 and has a 19.6-percent walk-rate. According to FanGraphs, during that 12-game stretch, Hopkins has a wRC+ of 235. That's even 71 points higher than his 164 wRC+ for the season.

Hopkins has primarily been a corner outfielder for the Louisville Bats this season, with more than half of his start coming in either left or right field. Hopkins has also seen time as the team's designated hitter and has also started a game in center field.

With so many young prospects coming up through the Cincinnati Reds farm system, you can't afford to overlook TJ Hopkins. Most of the team's outfield is comprised of solid outfield options at the moment. TJ Friedl has impressed, as have Jake Fraley and Stuart Fairchild; both of whom have shown above-average pop from time to time.

If T.J. Hopkins continues to mash down at Triple-A Louisville, it's only a matter of time before he gets to showcase his stuff at the big league level.