2019 Community Prospect Rankings: Jose Israel Garcia is #19!

The slick-fielding shortstop from Cuba finally cracked our CPR. We are nearing the end of our annual rankings, and there are two prospects left to decide who cracks our top 20. First, the dinger mashing Ibandel Isabel who, like the rest of the Reds farm system, came over from the Los Angeles Dodgers via trade. Second is Lyon Richardson,

the Reds’ second round pick in 2018 who was a flame thrower out of high school. Vote early and often, Reds fans.

Ibandel Isabel, 23, 1B/LF

Highest 2018 Level: A+ (Daytona)

Eye-Poppingest Fact: 36 HR in 443 PA

Most Worrisome Fact: 161 K vs. 38 walks

Alias(es): Princess Isabel, Aye-Aye, BOOM

Ibandel Isabel was the freakish surprise of the 2018 season. Not only was he traded by the Dodgers, like pretty much everyone else on this list, but he was traded for one of the most volatile relievers in probably all of professional sports, Ariel Hernandez. The hilarious thing is that Ibandel Isabel might be one of the most volatile hitters in all of minor league baseball. Like Hernandez only striking batters out and walking everyone and their mother, Isabel either hits dingers real far or knocks you over with the wind of his whiffs. He’s really that simple. Dude just hits the ball hard and strikeouts. He doesn’t really have a spot on the field which limits his value, and he doesn’t take a lot of walks. But, that power, hell yeah.

Ibandel Isabel also took home the Reds Minor League Player of the Year Award. This guy is just freakish. He hit 35 home runs and struck out 36.3% of the time. I’m also going to pop some stats I just read from Doug Gray and redsminorleagues.com. Isabel hit more home runs of 400+ feet (21) than any other Reds prospect had total home runs. He also went a two month stretch where he didn’t hit a double, or any extra base hit, other than a home run. That’s like some Adam Dunn territory without the walks.

It’s really difficult to see Ibandel Isabel making it with his skill set but that power is super fun. There was a point where you just expected him to hit home runs. It was just normal. That’s fun and baseball is supposed to be fun.

Lyon Richardson, 19, RHP

Highest 2018 Level: Rookie League (Greeneville)

Eye-Poppingest Fact: Good athlete, fastball that touches 98 mph

Most Worrisome Fact: 7.14 ERA in 29.0 IP; 5.0 BB/9

Alias(es): Iron Lyon Zion, Interpol

Remember when the Cincinnati Reds drafted Nick Senzel, managed to sign him for a bit under the recommended slot value, and rolled those savings into an over-slot contract for their next pick, Taylor Trammell? Well, they pulled a similar move just last summer with Jonathan India in the 1st round and Lyon Richardson in the 2nd round, inking the latter to sign the projectable high school righty from Florida.

So far, the early results haven’t been great. Richardson struggled in his 11 starts in Greeneville, his 7.14 ERA and 1.828 WHIP indicative of just how hittable his stuff was. On top of that, he issued 16 walks in just 29 IP - and had 6 wild pitches - suggesting that there’s still a lot he needs to be able to harness to improve.

As Doug Gray noted in his 2018 season recap, scouts noticed that Richardson and his stuff often looked ‘tired’ on the mound, and while he’d been able to hit 98 mph in his prep days, he was working only in the low 90s for much of his time in Greeneville. Hopefully, that’s just an example of a kid making a transition to pro ball for the first time, and a fresh start in 2019 will have his best stuff return. That paired with a curveball that looks like hit could be a pitch he can lean on should help make his second season go much, much smoother than his first. There’s a ton of upside here, but we’ve certainly not yet seen it play out, albeit in very, very limited action.