A's Jesús Luzardo ranked MLB's No. 4 prospect in ESPN's top 100 list

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MLB Opening Day is just around the corner, which means every outlet is coming out with top prospect rankings. This time, ESPN's top 100 list gave a lot of respect to A's pitcher Jesús Luzardo.

This appears to be the highest the 22-year-old has been placed, as he lands at the No. 4 overall spot.

The A's lefty is far removed from Tommy John surgery, and is ready to compete immediately in the big leagues, as ESPN's Kiley McDaniel notes.

"With his squat frame, elbow surgery in the past and two spikes in stuff," McDaniel writes. "Luzardo is an unlikely candidate for the title of top pitching prospect in the game, but he's big-league-ready, and he shoves (scout-speak for "pitches aggressively and well"), so what else do you need?"

We got just a small taste of what Luzardo brings to the table last season, when he came out of the bullpen and pitched in 12 innings, facing 46 batters. He struck out 16 and boasted a 1.50 ERA and 0.667 WHIP. 

McDaniel also ranked southpaw A.J. Puk at the No. 20 spot, describing how he regained his velocity from when he was a freshman at Florida and letting us see what he was capable of as well.

Puk went 2-0 (if you care about pitcher wins) last season, and in 11 1/3 innings struck out 13 with a 3.18 ERA out of the bullpen.

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Catcher Sean Murphy, who looks like the guy to be starting behind the dish on Opening Day, ranked No. 61 on McDaniel's list. 

McDaniel noted Murphy's raw power as a plus  (.321 ISO in 2019), but mentioned he does not have a lot of speed, which is fine for a catcher.

In 20 games last season, Murphy slashed .245/.333/.566 with four home runs and eight RBI. 

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Puk and Murphy both spoke to NBC Sports California this offseason and said, they don't pay much attention to these prospect lists.

Murphy said those who write the lists "don't write the lineup cards."

Regardless, the trio of A's prospects look like they'll be keepers for years to come.

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