Minor League Notables & Draft Pick Tracker
35+ write-ups on nightly notables across all four levels & our draft pick tracker rolls on
LOW-A — ARMS
Jesus Tillero | RHP | Los Angeles Dodgers | Ontario Tower Buzzers
6 innings. 2 hits. 0 earned runs. 5 strikeouts. 2 walks. 67 pitches.
The Pitching Savant delivered another statement line. Consider me excited. Six innings, two hits, zero runs on 67 pitches — efficient, clean, and utterly dominant in terms of contact quality suppression. The Tower Buzzers won 6-5 over the 66ers in a game that wasn’t decided until late, and Tillero handled his assignment with exactly the kind of composure you’d expect from a profile that generates this kind of movement data. He didn’t need 90 pitches to get through six. That is the profile.
Through 2 outings on the season, Tillero is at: 11IP 4H 0ER 2BB 13K with a .114 Average against. We were here first.
I included Tillero in My Guys: ProspectTilt’s favorite pitching targets outside consensus Top 100s. And I’ve been clamoring about him for nearly 2-3 years now. Here is what I wrote:
This wouldn’t be a list with at least one lower minors Dodgers farmhand. And who is it? Jesus Tillero. I’ve been writing about Tillero for over 2-3 years now and he somehow still happens to be 19 years old. It feels like I get older and they stay the same age. I don’t know how that works. If you’re familiar with ProspectTilt, then you know we’ve touted Hector Rodriguez as the Hitting Savant. Well, we’re now touting Jesus Tillero as the Pitching Savant. Here’s my take on Tillero:
Don’t bet against the Dodgers pitching factory. Tillero has been a name I’ve been firmly in on for a long time — a pitching savant who people within multiple organizations rave about. Here is what I wrote about Tillero in February of 2024:
Tillero was signed out of Venezuela as one of the top pitchers in the 2023 international class. There are conflicting reports on his fastball as some have it as high as him sitting mid-90s while others have him sitting low 90s, touching 95. Let me tell you this, though. This kid is for real. He has an exceptional feel for his fastball with incredible vertical break for someone his age. It’s already an MLB-caliber pitch. He’s a pitching savant as someone this young to be able to command his pitches while also having a fastball/curveball combination that’s both good in shape and effective in games is rare.
You know it’s a good thing when people within an organization rave about someone but you know it’s a great thing when people from different organizations are talking about them and raving about their plus makeup and stuff. Phrases like, “This kid is not real” get thrown around a lot when it comes to Tillero. That’s something I want to hear when it comes to targeting a player. Tillero is on my short-list of arms who haven’t debuted state-side to make a big impact in 2024. He’s only 17 as of this writing so the runway is still long but that’s never stopped anyone from speculating on a special talent. Keep tabs on Tillero and make sure you’re the one who’s adding him before your league-mates even hear about him.
Edgar Colon | RHP | Cincinnati Reds | Daytona Tortugas
6 innings. 1 hit. 1 earned run. 10 strikeouts. 1 walk. 77 pitches.
11th round prep arm from 2024 averaging 96.2 through 6 innings and topping at 98.5 with a handful of pitches showing incredible ride? Consider me intrigued. He wasn’t 97 in the 1st and then 94 in the 6th inning, either. He maintained velocity throughout the night. His final three 4-seamers on the night were 96.9, 96.0, and 95.0. Ten strikeouts in six innings on 77 pitches. The single hit allowed was a home run — the only blemish on a performance that otherwise saw him carve through the Flying Tigers lineup with authority. One hit, one run, ten punch outs. Consider me intrigued. Did I say that already? I think my intrigue-level deserved another mention. That’s a dominant start at any level. Colon had the second-best individual pitching line on the entire Low-A slate tonight and deserves full attention in the Reds system.
Mason Peters | LHP | Seattle Mariners | Inland Empire 66ers