When Athletics Nation voted on our Community Prospect List last winter, the top two spots went to left-handed pitchers Jesus Luzardo and A.J. Puk. Both possess elite talent, enough to place them in the Top 50 of virtually every national prospect list, but unfortunately they missed the beginning of the year to injuries. On Tuesday, they got back on the mound for High-A Stockton for their season debuts.
During the spring, the 21-year-old Luzardo looked like a candidate to force his way onto the A’s Opening Day roster. A meteoric 2018 had seen him blow through High-A, dominate Double-A, and even get a taste of Triple-A, giving him an argument as the best lefty pitching prospect in the entire sport, and then he spent the Cactus League piling up zeroes against anyone who faced him.