Carding Baseball America's MLB Prospects Hot Sheet (top five for April 22)

Here's a look at the top five players on this week's Baseball America Top MLB Prospects Hot Sheet and their seasons so far. It's a little something to help those who might want to dabble with prospecting -- some basics on their baseball cards alongside a highlight line from those more scouting-minded. We may not do this every week, but we'll check in on BA's top crop from time to time for the remainder of the season.

1. Ty France, 2B-3B-1B, Padres — Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas
Baseball America’s highlight line: "In a loaded Padres system, it was France who led the organization in total bases, runs and RBIs last year and tied for the lead in home runs. That performance got him put on the 40-man roster in the offseason, and he’s now on the verge of mashing his way to his major league debut. France extended his hit streak to 14 games during his incredible week, capped by hitting back-to-back homers twice with Josh Naylor on Sunday."
CARDBOARD BASICS
Approximate card total (so far): Only MiLB team sets 
First Chrome auto: Still to come
One auto to consider: Still to come
Buzz’s card take: He's been in the minors since 2015 after he was a 34th-round pick, but hasn't appeared on anything more than minor-league team sets despite hitting 22 homers with 96 RBI in 137 games between Double-A San Antonio and Triple A El Paso last season. The 24-year-old is on pace for a career year with nine homers in 18 games this season and that should get him a cardboard look soon.

Keep reading for the rest of the top five ...

2. Drew Waters, OF, Braves — Double-A Mississippi Braves
Baseball America’s highlight line: "While fellow 20-year-old outfielder Cristian Pache is hitting .309/.361/.618 ... Waters — born a month after Pache — is right there with his teammate at .333/.389/.515 through 15 games. The 22 strikeouts are high, but if Waters gets a fastball in his hot zone early in the count, he's up there doing damage with an aggressive approach."
CARDBOARD BASICS
Approximate card total (so far): 300
First Chrome auto: 2017 Bowman Draft 
One auto to consider: 2016 Leaf Metal Perfect Game
Buzz’s card take: About a third of his autos can be found in the 2016 Leaf release, while his 2017 ink arrives in a number of prospect brands as a pro. He's a Top 100 prospect across the board but the Braves have plenty of talent on the roster -- so it's a good thing he's just 20. In three MiLB seasons, he's hit .293 with 14 homers and 71 RBI in 179 games. (Nine homers last season.) The stats look promising but not gaudy, while as you might tell by the highlight line it seems others get attention. Same overlooked approach might apply on cardboard here and there. 

--

3. Will Benson, OF, Indians — Low-A Lake County Captains
Baseball America’s highlight line: "[He hit] four home runs — yes, four home runs — on April 18. Benson endured a rough 2018 season with Lake County, batting .180/.324/.370 with 152 strikeouts in 123 games last year. Through his first 13 games back there, he's hitting .340/.426/.830, albeit with a 39 percent strikeout rate that remains concerning."
CARDBOARD BASICS
Approximate card total (so far): 300
First Chrome auto: 2016 Bowman Draft
One auto to consider: 2015 USA Baseball
Buzz’s card take: You saw this guy right here on The Buzz last week. The batting average and strikeouts are beyond concerning ... they're bowling-shoe ugly. But maybe this is his year it all changes?

--

4. Trey Supak, RHP, Brewers — Double-A Biloxi Shuckers
Baseball America’s highlight line: "Back in Double-A after 16 starts there last season, Supak looks like he won't need much more time in the Southern League. Through his first four outings, Supak has a 1.52 ERA and a 15-6 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 23.2 innings."
CARDBOARD BASICS
Approximate card total (so far): 160
First Chrome auto: 2014 Bowman Draft
One auto to consider: 2014 Panini Prizm Perennial Draft Picks
Buzz’s card take: Get in the way-back machine for this one -- he's got fewer than 50 different certified autos to go around and they're in just three 2014 releases and one later MiLB set -- the ones noted above, Elite Extra Edition, and 2015 Topps Heritage Minor League. That's it. The former second-round pick is 23 years old and has a 20-23 record with a 3.32 ERA and 343 strikeouts in 385-plus innings over six seasons. The stats aren't awful and this year looks pretty solid. There could be some flips here if he keeps playing well in the Brewers organization.

--

5. Ryan Mountcastle, 3B-1B, Orioles — Triple-A Norfolk Tides
Baseball America’s highlight line: "Mountcastle continues to show he is a pure hitter capable of changing a game with one swing. That’s taken on particular importance because he’s moved from third base to first base this year on account of his well below-average arm."
CARDBOARD BASICS
Approximate card total (so far): 500
First Chrome auto: 2015 Bowman Draft 
One auto to consider: 2014 Leaf Valiant
Buzz’s card take: This former first-round pick has been in the minors five seasons but he's progressed and had some OK stats in spring training when he hit .282 with 10 runs, a homer and five RBI in 20 games. For his MiLB career, he's hit .289 with 49 homers and 208 RBI in 415 games. He's considered a Top 100 prospect in MLB with Baseball Prospectus putting him at 51 and Baseball America putting him at No, 90 before this season. The stats here aren't super-flashy but there's a lot of cardboard to look at here vs. other guys on this week's list.

--

Follow Buzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz or send email to BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com. 

>> Click here to buy cards on BlowoutCards.com.