If you love prospects, then it doesn’t get any better than the Arizona Fall League. With six teams comprising players from all 30 organizations, the AFL offers top prospects an opportunity to refine their skills long after the end of the minor league season.
For some players, the competition in the AFL is superior to anything they’ve previously experienced as a professional. For others, it’s a chance to prove to their organization that they’re ready to be challenged at the highest level.
[RELATED: Fall Stars Game: Giants SS prospect Arroyo gets nod at 2B]
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Then, of course, there are the reclamation prospects, guys who were once highly touted but have since dropped off the major-league radar as a result of injuries, poor performance or stunted development. With these prospects, teams use the AFL to gauge whether or not they’re deserving of a spot on the 40-man roster, especially with the Rule V draft roughly a month away.
Ray Black, RHP, San Francisco Giants
A seventh-round draft pick in 2011, Black missed all of 2014 due to Tommy John surgery but made up for it in a big way this past season, posting a 2.88 ERA with 51 strikeouts in 25 innings (18.4 K/9) at High-A San Jose.
[REWIND: Oft-injured Black hopes to keep 103 mph fastball on the field]
San Francisco Giants
The 25-year-old right-hander has been the talk of this year’s Fall League thanks to his ability to light up the radar gun, sitting 98-101 mph in each outing and topping out at 103 mph (or 104, depending upon whom you ask) in his outing Monday. The results have been equally impressive, as he’s already accrued 12 strikeouts in seven innings (seven appearances). Although Black’s strike-throwing ability still leaves something to be desired, he has proven he can get by on sheer velocity, and his slider can be nasty as well when he’s not getting around the side of it.
READ MORE AT Rotoworld.com