The Alamo Short Stacks have been scrambling to fill their final two Keeper spots after Gavin Lux and Brendan Rodgers suffered season-ending injuries early in Spring Training. The club took a big step in that direction Monday evening, finalizing a deal with the Mission Viejo Maulers to land closer Ryan Pressly (2/$6) and outfielder Josh Lowe (Minors) in exchange for left-hander MacKenzie Gore (Minors) and shortstop Cristian Hernandez (Minors).
Pressly turned in another quality season in 2022 and carries the third highest projected 2023 total for a reliever by CBS, only trailing new Stacks teammate Emmanuel Clase and Asti Grape Stompers closer Ryan Helsley.
Pressly made 50 appearances for the Astros during the 2022 campaign, logging a 2.98 ERA and a 2.31 FIP in 48.1 innings of work. He also added 65 strikeouts against just 13 walks while registering a career-high 33 saves. Those saves project to continue as the Astros boast a strong lineup and a deep bullpen of setup options who should hold leads the offense can generate.
Lowe was set to by the Stacks final pick in the 10th Round of the 2021 Reserve Draft before the Honolulu Hammerheads took the outfielder with the pick just before their selection. Funny enough, the Stacks would go on to select Cristian Hernandez who is moving to the Maulers in Monday's deal.
Lowe, 25, is a well-seasoned minor leaguer with lots of production fueled by a friendly Durham Athletic Park, but he has exactly 200 major league plate appearances over the past two season with little to write home about. Some of the limitation are the typical contract stalling techniques Tampa Bay is well known for, but some of Lowe's issues are of his own doing. He has had some issues in the field, which is not a good thing for a team that puts a premium on outfield defense. Lowe has also had a very similar issue to his older brother Nathaniel in struggles with good velocity up in the zone. The power numbers in Triple-A should not be the focus as much as the walk rate and his stolen base prowess as that is where his value truly lies. Lowe is 84 of his last 95 in stolen base attempts (88%) and has a top 50 home-to-first speed just .01 behind Oneil Cruz.
He's been one of the standout performers in camp for the Rays, leading off on most days while launching three home runs with three steals and a 1.049 OPS with the Stacks hopeful he can play his way into an early season activation. Lowe faces a deep depth chart in the Rays outfield with Randy Arozarena, Jose Siri and Manuel Margot penciled in as starters with Luke Raley off the bench.
For the Maulers, a move of Pressly seemed like a foregone conclusion given his age (34) and current rebuild. MacKenzie Gore headlines the return, just as he did for the Nationals in their return for Juan Soto. Gore got off to an impressive start in the majors with the Padres in 2022, with a 1.50 ERA, a 2.20 FIP, 17 walks, 57 Ks, and a .200/.279/.241 line against in his first nine games, eight starts, and 48 IP for the Padres before elbow issues sidetracked his season. He was fully recovered in late September, allowing for a fully healthy off-season that the Nationals and Maulers will hope leads to a full workload in 2023.
Hernandez drew repeated physical comparisons to a young Alex Rodriguez and Manny Machado as an amateur in the Dominican Republic, and some scouts considered him the best prospect in the 2020 international class. The Cubs signed him for $3 million in January 2021 and believed he has more upside than any international player they've landed in at least a decade -- including Willson Contreras, Eloy Jimenez and Gleyber Torres. He debuted in the Rookie-level Dominican Summer League at age 17, batting .285/.398/.424 with five homers and 21 steals in 47 games in 2021.
He posted a 30% strikeout rate in his stateside debut in 2022 with a .261/.321/.357 line at age 19, continuing to show a smooth swing with incredible power for his age and position. Much like the GM Chris Ferraro's previous acquisition of Orelvis Martinez from the Stacks, there's substantial bust risk here but the ceiling remains huge which plays well for the rebuilding Maulers.
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