Diego Cartaya enters BA’s Top 100 prospects list

If you’ve been following me on Twitter the last few days, you’d notice I’m fully aboard the Diego Cartaya hype train. He’s been fantastic for the Quakes over the last week, and appears to be catching the eyes of people everywhere.

The recent hype is nothing new for Cartaya. He’s been a highly touted prospect in the Dodgers’ system for years.... even though he is still only 19 years old.

Baseball America dropped their latest edition of their Top 100 prospect rankings, with the 19-year-old catcher cracking the list, coming in at No. 96.

Cartaya was Venezuela’s top player in the 2018 international signing class and signed with the Dodgers for $2.5 million on July 2. After starting at the Dodgers’ Dominican Summer League, he then went to the Rookie-level Arizona League at only 17. In 2020, he was one of the youngest players added to a 60-man player pool. He spent last summer at the alternate training site.

It isn’t just Baseball America praising the teenager. He was included yesterday in the daily prospect notes on Fangraphs. Here’s what they had to say:

Kept back in Extended to start the year, Cartaya debuted on May 25 and has a hit in every game he’s played in, homering four times already. We’ll watch how his strikeouts trend over the course of the season, but if they’re in an acceptable range, he’s a near lock to be on the Top 100 list at some point in the next six months because his other attributes (power, impact arm strength, field general) are all very impressive for a teenager.

Dodgers links

• Speaking of Cartaya, the OC Register talked with him about getting acclimated to the Unites States
• Dodgers still waiting for season to take off as they enter soft part of schedule
• Dodgers co-owner eyes $15 million for famed W.C. Fields estate
• Why the Dodgers’ oversized bet on Trevor Bauer might spin out of control
• Dodgers Digest dropped their draft big board