American League
● Joey Cantillo bolsters Guardians’ pitching stockpile PAGE 75
● Twins teenage outfielder Yasser Mercedes lives up to lofty expectations PAGE 78
● Rangers third baseman Cody Freeman paves a new path to Texas PAGE 79
PAGE 76 Drafted by the Angels in the first round this year, Zach Neto is a sound defensive shortstop with an unorthodox leg kick at the plate.
Unheralded Denoyer Opens Orioles’ Eyes
The Orioles’ preference for position players with high draft picks has forced their scouts and analysts to cast a wide net to find potential major league pitchers.
How wide? One of the best to emerge so far is 24-year-old righthander Noah Denoyer, an undrafted free agent signed in 2019 after the analytics team identified him as a potential target in the summer college Northwoods League.
Scout Ryan Carlson agreed and found Denoyer too impressive to pass up.
Now, Denoyer has showcased potential MLB stuff in the Arizona Fall League after a breakout year in the minors in which he struck out 99 in 71.2 innings with a 2.89 ERA and a 0.91 WHIP between High-A Aberdeen and Double-A Bowie.
“I think there’s enough to be a spot starter or a long man at the very least,” one scout who saw him pitch twice in the AFL said.
In six appearances in Arizona, he struck out 21 in 20 innings with a 4.50 ERA. But with a mid-90s fastball, a sweepy slider and an effective splitter highlighting a four-pitch mix, Denoyer would have been an attractive Rule 5 draft option. Instead, Baltimore protected him on its 40-man roster.
Denoyer’s ascent has been as improbable as his signing. He pitched at San Joaquin Delta (Calif.) JC in 2017 but hurt his elbow in the Northwoods League that summer, necessitating Tommy John surgery.
He got back on the mound in 2019 and was set to pitch in the Northwoods League again before committing to Oklahoma State for the 2020 season. But Carlson was too impressed by the 6-foot-5 Denoyer’s build, velocity and feel for his secondaries to let him join the Cowboys.
After losing the 2020 season to the pandemic, Denoyer pitched well in his first full pro season in 2021, fanning 81 in 71.2 innings between Low-A Delmarva and Aberdeen.
—JON MEOLI
Bleis Hints At Five-Tool Upside In FCL
When the Red Sox signed Miguel Bleis to a $1.5 million bonus out of the Dominican Republic in January 2021, he arrived with a sky-high sense of five-tool possibility.
Over the course of the 2022 Florida Complex League season, he did nothing to diminish that perception.
In 40 games, the 18-year-old hit .301/.353/.542 with five home runs and 18 stolen bases in 21 attempts. Had he not experienced lower-back tightness in early August, he would have been promoted to Low-A Salem by the end of the year.
Beyond the numbers, Bleis registered upper-end exit
