Dodgers Prospects: The Incredible 2016 Draft In Retrospect

In some of the latest Dodgers news there have been some prominent names mentioned from the 2016 draft. This article will take a look at some of the key players from that draft and what their status is in terms of being with the Dodgers.

Draft Overview

The Dodgers ended up with 20th pick in the first round after factoring in teams losing their own first round picks due to free agent compensation rules. The Dodgers were awarded the 32nd pick in the draft as compensation for losing Zack Greinke to the Diamondbacks as a free agent. They were also awarded the 36th pick since they did not sign Kyle Funkhowser in 2015.

The Complete List

Data from MLB.

Notables

Gavin Lux

Lux was not on many of the big-time publications lists as someone who would go as high as the 20th pick. MLB Pipeline had him as the 33rd ranked player available. His debut season in 2016 saw him slash .296/.375/.399 (AVG/OBP/SLG) across two teams. He did not hit a home run. His second season saw a decent size drop-off as he slashed just .244/.331/.362 and ended up with 7 home runs. After the 2017 season he was still ranked at the Dodgers’ #9 prospect but some were wondering if it was a mistake to draft him so high.

In 2018 everything changed for Gavin Lux. First off, it just seems that he filled out to begin his 20 year old season so there looked to be more physical strength. I saw him hit a leadoff homer in July and it was a dead center shot. He ended up getting promoted to AA during the season and finished off with a slash across two teams .324/.399/.514 with 15 home runs. This brought him into the top prospect realm.

2019 has seen a continued growth with Lux as he started in AA. He ended up dominating AA while slashing .313/.375/.521 and was promoted to AAA in late June. Since then he has made AAA look like a joke. As of this writing he is slashing .457/.537/.876 – yes, those are video game numbers. He is now ranked as the #1 prospect for the Dodgers and should be with the Dodgers by September at the latest.

Will Smith

Many things have been written about the new starting catcher for the Dodgers. He was the 32nd pick in the draft after MLB Pipeline had him as the 110th ranked pick.

Did you know: the Dodgers drafted Will Smith with the compensation pick for losing Zack Greinke

— Tim Rogers 2080 ??subscriber: (@TimRogers2080) August 1, 2019

Will Smith transitioned to catching from being an infielder in college. However, he still played a bit of 3rd base during his minor league career. He went through three levels in his first professional season and made it to AA by the end of 2017. In 2018 he played a lot of the season in AA before a late season promotion to AAA. It was in AAA that he struggled a lot as he batted only .138, which prompted some doubts.

Going into 2019 there weren’t many questions about his defense but the end of the 2018 season his offense was in question. He answered those questions resoundingly in 2019 as he crushed 20 home runs in AAA with a slash of .269/.381/.605. With those numbers he earned a couple of promotions to fill in for some injuries. He was finally brought up to stay on July 26th and is now the number one catcher.

Dustin May

The Dodgers did draft Dustin May with the 101st pick while MLB Pipeline had him as the 166 best prospect. He was a risky draft pick in the 3rd round as it looked like he would go to school. Instead the Dodgers were able to give him the signing bonus he wanted and snagged him. When he started with the Dodgers he threw in the low 90s with great control. However, he was 6′ 6″ and was listed at 180 pounds as an 18 year old. That leaves a lot of room for improved velocity.

Each season his velocity has crept up while he has maintained his control. He primarily throws three pitches very well; fastball, curveball and cutter along with a decent changeup. Now his fastball can reach 98 MPH. Every year he keeps making improvements and people notice. First, he was thought of as a lower end starter, then a third or fourth starter and now he is thought of as an elite prospect. The incremental growth has led him to make his Major League debut on August 2nd.

Other Notables

• Jordan Sheffield – He has had some control issues and is now in the bullpen. He is currently in AA and is one of the better relievers. He could be a future closer for the Dodgers.
• Mitchell White – White has great “stuff” but has struggled quite a bit in AAA. He is still highly regarded.
• DJ Peters – He is a very large man who is an excellent athlete. Even in AAA he still plays an excellent center field. His major issues has been making consistently contact. Since his promotion to AAA his strikeouts have come down a lot and could lead to a promotion in September.
• Tony Gonsolin – For his first two professional seasons he was a reliever and most had never heard of him. He wasn’t a top prospect at all. In the spring of 2018 he turned into a starter and became dominant. He is now a consensus top 4-6 prospect with the Dodgers and has already made his Major League debut.
• Cody Thomas – We interviewed him last season while he was with the High-A Quakes. He is starting to get noticed more as he has been having a good season in AA.
• Brayan Morales – The fastest player in the organization, he is still in High-A. He is one of the best athletes I’ve ever seen.
• Brandon Montgomery – He is an infielder and is now learning to pitch to be a two-way player. With the way rosters are going he told me it could give him a better chance at moving forward.
• Steve Berman – Berman has had some injury issues that have held him back but he can hit. He is currently in AA.

Final Thoughts

After this weekend, the 2016 draft will have produced 3 Major Leaguers already with more knocking on the door. There is an excellent chance that players such as Will Smith, Tony Gonsolin, Dustin May, Gavin Lux and maybe DJ Peters could factor into the post-season. Smith is already turning into a “LEGEND” and Gonsolin looked great in his last 4 inning relief appearance. May is getting an audition over the next few weeks and Lux could be promoted at any time. This draft class could be historic.