After Kris Bryant promotion, what 3 MLB prospects are next in line?

With Kris Bryant of the Chicago Cubs set to make his Major League debut on Friday, the MLB top prospects are the next ones in line to geek out about.

With a lot of fanfare and uproar, the Chicago Cubs have officially called up top prospect Kris Bryant to make his Major League debut on Friday. Bryant will bat fourth and play third base during the 2:20pm tilt against the San Diego Padres.

For Bryant and the Cubs, it was a quick end to what was a tumultuous ending to spring training. After putting on a show during Spring Training by hitting .425 with a Cactus League leading 9 home runs, there was a lot of back and forth between the Cubs and Bryant’s agent Scott Boras as to whether he should begin the year with the team or in the minors. The Cubs opted for the latter, which bought them an extra year of service time, essentially delaying Bryant’s free agency by another year.

To Kris Bryant’s credit, he responded well. During his 7 game stint with Triple-A Iowa, the big third baseman slashed a solid .321/364/.679 with 3 home runs and 10 RBI. On top of a 2014 season that saw Bryant swat a minor league leading 43 home runs and 110 RBI, the Cubs had seen enough to know that he was ready to become their third baseman now.

That said, now that the drama of the Kris Bryant call-up is behind us, that led me to wonder what other top prospects could be next in line?

More from Chicago Cubs

Carlos Correa – SS – Houston Astros

The 1st pick of the 2012 MLB Draft, Correa has made a steady climb through the minors to this point. Like Bryant, Carlos Correa also got a long look during spring training. In 43 plate appearances, the young shortstop hit a solid .326/.370/.488 in the Arizona heat. However, he’s also played just 7 games at Double-A or higher, and all of those have come this season.

With the Astros having signed Jed Lowrie this past winter, they’re prepared to give Correa the time he needs to develop and that likely won’t involve a call-up to the big club in 2015 unless it comes in September when rosters expand. However, Correa becomes more interesting to watch in regards to the 2016 season, when he can possibly make the climb to Triple-A this summer. A strong spring next March could put the Astros in a similar situation to the one the Cubs faced this spring.

Noah Syndergaard – SP – New York Mets

Syndergaard was the prized jewel of the 2012 trade that sent R.A. Dickey to the Toronto Blue Jays, and he’s been on an accelerated climb to the Mets rotation ever since. Blessed with a fastball he can dial up to 98, a power curve, and control that you look for in young pitchers, Syndergaard is the projectable pitcher that every organization wants. Throw out the 4.60 ERA he posted at Triple-A last season and the 4.50 mark he’s floating there right now, as nobody can pitch in Las Vegas and keep their runs allowed down.

There was some thought that Syndergaard should have gotten the call to the rotation when Zack Wheeler was forced in Tommy John surgery, but that nod went to Dillon Gee instead. However Gee has struggled in 2 starts, allowing 13 hits and 9 earned runs over 10.1 innings of work. If he can’t straighten it out, the Mets could make the move to Syndergaard quickly, especially since his service time window has also passed.

Carlos Rodon – SP – Chicago White Sox

While the Kris Bryant drama was unfolding at Wrigley Field, the South Side has its own questions to deal with in regards to top pitching prospect Carlos Rodon. The first round pick for the ChiSox in 2014, Rodon was impressive this spring, tossing 17.2 innings with a 3.06 ERA and 21 strike-outs against 5 walks. Needless to say, there was some call to put the rookie into the rotation to start the season. However, service time again trumped needs and Rodon started the season at Triple-A.

In two outings (10 IP), the lefty has a 3.60 ERA, but has struck out 13 batters. However, most of that was built off of a solid debut, where he fanned 9 and allowed just 2 hits and a single earned run in 5 innings on April 11. Unfortunately, he followed that up with a bit of a rougher outing, allowing 3 to score and fanning 4 on April 16th. The White Sox will give him a few more starts to make sure he’s ready, but with John Danks (6.97 ERA) calling to be pulled from the rotation, the ChiSox may look to make some headlines of their own soon.

More from FanSided

Home/Chicago Cubs