New faces emerge in A’s Top 30 Prospects list

OAKLAND — The A’s were active at last year’s non-waiver Trade Deadline, dealing Ben Zobrist and Scott Kazmir in separate deals for prospects, and they could very well pursue a similar strategy in the coming days. And if this season has shown anything, those types of future pieces can quickly become fixtures of the present. 

Amid injuries and ineffectiveness to others, Sean Manaea, Oakland’s top preseason prospect, found a spot in the rotation by the end of April, and after being called up on July 15, Ryon Healy is the team’s starting third baseman following a strong 2016 SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game showing. Righty Daniel Mengden enjoyed a promising start to his career before a recent slide led to a demotion Monday, and lefty Dillon Overton makes another spot start Saturday against the Indians.

• A’s Top 30 Prospects list

The A’s farm system has taken on a different look at the midseason point. Manaea has graduated from MLBPipeline.com’s Top 100 Prospects list, leaving behind shortstop Franklin Barreto (No. 55) and first-round Draft pick A.J. Puk (No. 80) as the team’s two representatives.

The ranking of baseball’s top prospects is done by MLBPipeline.com Draft and prospect experts Jonathan Mayo, Jim Callis and Mike …

continue reading in source mlb.mlb.com