Jacob Wilson heads stacked Midland Rockhounds roster

Three of Oakland’s top five prospects will be heading to Texas

The final Oakland Athletics minor league roster dropped Wednesday morning, and it was the most exciting of the bunch as the Midland RockHounds feature a slew of Oaklands brightest prospects. Three of the system’s top five players and ten of the top 30 will be featured on the opening day roster, including Oakland’s only top 100 prospect by MLB Pipeline in Jacob Wilson

The Midland infield is overflowing with prospects, with Jacob Wilson expected to be their top player while manning the shortstop position. The 2023 sixth overall pick put together a strong showing in High-A Lansing in his professional debut, posting a 135 wRC+ in 23 games. Wilson is currently ranked by MLB Pipeline as the 65th-best prospect in baseball and the top prospect in Oakland’s system. He will be joined by two back end top 30 guys in Cooper Bowman and Brennan Milone. Milone had a fantastic first full season after being drafted in the sixth round in 2022, hitting 17 home runs across two levels and finishing with a 136 wRC+ in 52 High-A games. He was an on base machine, ranking fifth in the system with a .398 OBP. Cooper Bowman came over from the Yankees via trade in 2022, and he posted a solid campaign with Midland last season with a 111 wRC+. Unfortunately he only played 68 games due to injury.

Outfielder Denzel Clarke is the third-ranked prospect in Oakland’s system, and he has received rave reviews for his athleticism and the progress he made at the plate in 2023. While strikeouts continue to plague Clarke, his swing decision improved throughout last year and he managed a 130 wRC+ along with 12 home runs in 64 Double-A games. 2022 third round pick Colby Thomas will be playing alongside Clarke, and he too is coming off of a big year in 2023. Thomas peaked in High-A Lansing, where his contact rate began to cause concern but his power and speed combination allowed him to still find success. Thomas hit ten home runs and had a 134 wRC+ in 54 games, but will need to improve on his 29.5% strikeout rate and 4.6% walk rate in order to get on base enough to keep advancing levels. Behind the plate Daniel Susac is taking his second crack at Double-A, hoping to improve on a difficult albeit short slump to end the season at the level. Susac had a 128 wRC+ in 99 High-A games last season although the A’s surely hope to see more power production from him this year.

Midland’s pitching staff will feature four top 30 prospects, the most notable of these being Royber Salinas. Fangraphs even gave Salinas a top 100 nod, although MLB Pipeline has him as a more conservative 16th in the system. The 22 year old Salinas had health trouble in 2023, but was electric when he was on the mound with a 30.9% strikeout rate in 67 1⁄₃ innings. Salinas will need to improve his walk rate, but has the raw stuff to be an impact arm for Oakland. Gunnar Hoglund has a chance to be the system’s biggest breakout, or comeback if you prefer, as he seems to be finally healthy and ready to hopefully live up to his first round billing. Reports on his velocity have been positive, and if he can turn in a good performance he could find himself pushing for a major league role later this year. Brady Basso put up a solid 19 innings in Double-A last year in his return from Tommy John surgery, and the A’s are hopeful he can put it all together in 2024. Ryan Cusick is a former first round pick who has faced injuries and velocity issues that have significantly impacted his stock, but still got a top 30 nod from Pipeline after putting up a 6.10 FIP in 94 ¹⁄₃ Double-A innings last year.

Midland opens their season on Friday, and on a side note I would like a word with the person who decided not to put the roster graphic in alphabetical order.