Seven Cincinnati Reds prospects set for Arizona Fall League play

With minor league seasons wrapping across the continent, it’s time to turn our baseball eyes to Arizona Fall League play once again. The annual fall showcase for top prospects (and filler!) is set to begin on October 3rd, and with no postseason play (again) on the docket for the big league Cincinnati Reds, this might well be the best way to keep the pulse of the future of the organization in quality off-season play.

The Reds will send seven prospects to participate this year, and they’ll do so as members of the Glendale Desert Dogs. A quick perusal of the full roster shows that they’ll be teaming up with members of the Milwaukee Brewers, Los Angeles Dodgers, Minnesota Twins, and Chicago White Sox as respective parent clubs, pooling quite the bit of talent at Camelback Ranch.

Leading the charge for the Reds will be the recently acquired Noelvi Marte, perhaps the centerpiece of the deal that sent Luis Castillo to the Seattle Mariners. He’ll be joined by fellow highly regarded position players Matt McLain and Rece Hinds, both of whom have been bonking baseballs for AA Chattanooga of late.

Former second round pick Christian Roa highlights the four pitchers of the Reds contingent, doing so fresh off a rather sterling finish to his season with Chattanooga after 17 start with High-A Dayton. Vin Timpanelli, Jake Gozzo, and Sam Benschoter round out the arms the Reds are shipping west, as the club officially announced earlier today.

The full Desert Dog roster can be found here.

For more on the start of AFL play and the other rosters, here’s a primer from MLB.com.