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Monday, March 27, 2006
 
top prospects: mariners
ok this is it. the last one. the last team on the list. the seattle mariners.


1. Jeff Clement, c
2. Adam Jones, of/ss
3. Kenji Johjima, c
4. Chris Snelling, of
5. Matt Tuiasosopo, ss
6. Asdrubal Cabrera, ss/2b
7. Shin-Soo Choo, of
8. Emiliano Fruto, rhp
9. Clint Nageotte, rhp
10. Rob Johnson, c


there's not that much. last year was pretty good, with hernandez reed and betancourt, but they need a lot more young talent to build a contender.

they don't have it.


Career Batting Statistics for Jeff Clement:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 USC NCAA 0 0 NCA 209 37 43 21 9 .150 .794 .181 .298
2004 USC NCAA 0 0 NCA 200 43 39 10 13 .177 .805 .143 .293
2005 USC NCAA 0 0 NCA 233 57 43 15 17 .197 .815 .168 .348
2005 Everett Nwes 0 Sea A 12 3 2 0 1 .200 .833 .100 .273
2005 Wisconsin Midw 0 Sea A 114 13 25 6 5 .102 .781 .124 .319


jeff clement had patience and power in college, but his contact was not great. we'll see if he gets it. he's 33rd on the top 100. that seems high to me.


Career Batting Statistics for Adam Jones:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 Azl Mariners Ariz 18 Sea Rk 110 15 19 0 6 .120 .827 .066 .284
2003 Everett Nwes 18 Sea A 14 1 3 0 1 .067 .786 .091 .462
2004 Wisconsin Midw 19 Sea A 517 38 124 11 30 .068 .760 .104 .267
2005 Inland Empir Cali 20 Sea A 276 37 64 8 25 .118 .768 .156 .295
2005 San Antonio Tex 20 Sea AA 230 25 48 7 13 .098 .791 .110 .298


adam jones is a shortstop/centerfielder, which means he can play anywhere. he's young for his level, and he's on the threshold of breakout in all three skills, so it looks like he's gonna make it.

the thing to remember when you see mediocre numbers like this is that youth makes a big difference.


Career Batting Statistics for Kenji Johjima:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
1995 Fukuoka Jap 19 0 Int 12 1 4 0 0 .077 .667 .000 .167
1996 Fukuoka Jap 20 0 Int 58 4 9 4 2 .065 .845 .122 .241
1997 Fukuoka Jap 21 0 Int 439 27 62 15 26 .058 .859 .109 .308
1998 Fukuoka Jap 22 0 Int 399 35 67 16 19 .081 .832 .105 .251
1999 Fukuoka Jap 23 0 Int 494 39 61 17 34 .073 .877 .118 .306
2000 Fukuoka Jap 24 0 Int 304 33 48 9 24 .098 .842 .129 .310
2001 Fukuoka Jap 25 0 Int 536 37 55 31 18 .065 .897 .102 .258
2002 Fukuoka Jap 26 0 Int 422 38 41 25 18 .083 .903 .113 .293
2003 Fukuoka Jap 27 0 Int 558 68 50 34 41 .109 .910 .148 .330
2004 Daiei Jap 28 0 Int 426 71 45 36 26 .143 .894 .163 .338
2005 fsh jap 29 0 int 413 49 32 24 26 .106 .923 .131 .309


kenji johjima had a great career in japan. how do we translate his skills to the majors?

well, the patience and contact, both well above average, will be similar. they'll come down, but not too much. the power, on the other hand, will come down a lot. japanese parks are small, and they play with aluminum bats. i would expect a .110 .860 .100 wal con pow, which is still pretty solid. something like a .280/.330/.420 avg/obp/slg would result. which doesn't communicate his value because of the high contact.

this is what i wrote in january.


Career Batting Statistics for Chris Snelling:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
1999 Everett Nwes 17 Sea A 265 33 24 10 18 .111 .909 .116 .306
2000 Wisconsin Midw 18 Sea A 268 40 34 9 14 .130 .873 .098 .305
2001 San Bernardi Cali 19 Sea A 453 66 63 7 39 .127 .861 .118 .336
2002 San Antonio Tex 20 Sea AA 89 16 11 1 11 .152 .876 .154 .326
2002 Seattle Mari AL 20 Sea MLB 27 2 4 1 0 .069 .852 .043 .148
2003 San Antonio Tex 21 Sea AA 189 13 30 3 14 .064 .841 .107 .333
2003 Tacoma PCL 21 Sea AAA 68 7 12 3 2 .093 .824 .089 .269
2004 Azl Mariners Ariz 22 Sea Rk 32 10 3 0 5 .238 .906 .172 .312
2005 Tacoma PCL 23 Sea AAA 250 40 43 8 19 .138 .828 .130 .370
2005 Seattle Mari AL 23 Sea MLB 29 5 2 1 2 .147 .931 .111 .276


chris snelling was on the fast track to superstardom. he dominated high-a at the age of 19. then, in 2002, he made the majors, and tore his knee up. he's had multiple combacks and injuries since. he still has skills. he still may make it.

in 2004 he was my number 50 prospect.

look! he's in wikipedia!

jesus, everything's in wikipedia. the sabermetric stuff has predictable errors.


Career Batting Statistics for Matt Tuiasosopo:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2004 Azl Mariners Ariz 18 Sea Rk 70 19 14 4 7 .213 .800 .196 .412
2004 Everett Nwes 18 Sea A 102 14 36 2 7 .121 .647 .136 .248
2005 Wisconsin Midw 19 Sea A 410 53 96 6 24 .114 .766 .096 .276


despite his great name, matt has a lot of improvement to make to have a shot at the majors. hitting for contact and hitting for power. need more both. both need more. need both more.


Career Batting Statistics for Asdrubal Cabrera:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2004 Everett Nwes 18 Sea A 244 23 43 5 19 .086 .824 .119 .272
2005 Wisconsin Midw 19 Sea A 195 31 32 4 15 .137 .836 .117 .318
2005 Inland Empir Cali 19 Sea A 228 15 47 1 21 .062 .794 .122 .284
2005 Tacoma PCL 19 Sea AAA 23 1 4 0 1 .042 .826 .053 .217


another shortstop with a great name. this time it's the first name. i'm guessing there's an accent on the u. i don't really know though. hitting-wise, this kid's a lot better than matt. tuiasosopo. his older brother is a football player.

enough about the tuiasosopos. asdrubal cabrera played high a-ball last year at a very young age and performed reasonably well. the problem is he's unlikely to develop power. but he plays good defense.

he might make it.


Career Batting Statistics for Shin-Soo Choo:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2001 Wisconsin Midw 19 Sea A 13 2 3 0 0 .133 .769 .000 .462
2002 Wisconsin Midw 20 Sea A 421 83 98 6 32 .165 .767 .118 .302
2002 San Bernardi Cali 20 Sea A 39 11 9 1 6 .220 .769 .233 .308
2003 Inland Empir Cali 21 Sea A 416 53 84 9 31 .113 .798 .120 .286
2004 San Antonio Tex 22 Sea AA 520 58 97 15 24 .100 .813 .092 .315
2005 Tacoma PCL 23 Sea AAA 430 70 97 11 26 .140 .774 .111 .282
2005 Seattle Mari AL 23 Sea MLB 18 3 4 0 0 .143 .778 .000 .056


shin-soo choo does not have the contact, or the power, to succeed in the majors.

good name, though. just a normal korean name, but it sounds cool in english.

i have no idea how normal a name it is in korea.


Career Pitching Statistics for Emiliano Fruto:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2002 Wisconsin Midw 18 Sea A 111.2 101 6 55 99 .112 .773 .018 3.55
2003 Inland Empir Cali 19 Sea A 78.2 80 5 38 83 .107 .737 .021 3.78
2003 Tacoma PCL 19 Sea AAA 4.0 1 0 2 2 .133 .846 .000 0.00
2004 San Antonio Tex 20 Sea AA 68.1 77 6 37 56 .116 .801 .027 5.66
2005 San Antonio Tex 21 Sea AA 66.2 56 6 22 63 .079 .754 .031 2.56
2005 Tacoma PCL 21 Sea AAA 11.0 11 1 11 12 .200 .727 .031 13.09


can i let a name like "emiliano fruto" go by without commenting on it? i mean, that's a great name!

pitching-wise, he ain't so great. he throws difficult pitches, though. maybe he can get some control together, and have some success.

ok no more talking about names.


Career Pitching Statistics for Clint Nageotte:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2000 Azl Mariners Ariz 19 Sea Rk 50.0 29 0 28 59 .135 .670 .000 2.16
2001 Wisconsin Midw 20 Sea A 152.1 141 10 50 187 .077 .687 .024 3.13
2002 San Bernardi Cali 21 Sea A 164.2 153 10 68 214 .095 .669 .023 4.54
2003 San Antonio Tex 22 Sea AA 154.0 127 6 67 157 .102 .733 .014 3.10
2004 Tacoma PCL 23 Sea AAA 80.2 78 9 35 63 .099 .803 .035 4.46
2004 Seattle Mari AL 23 Sea MLB 36.2 48 3 27 24 .146 .848 .022 7.36
2005 Azl Mariners Ariz 24 Sea Rk 3.0 0 0 0 6 .000 .333 .000 0.00
2005 Tacoma PCL 24 Sea AAA 34.0 21 2 22 35 .152 .715 .023 2.65
2005 Seattle Mari AL 24 Sea MLB 4.0 6 0 1 1 .053 .944 .000 6.75


nageotte's kind of a weird name. not that weird, but kinda. it's not really cool or anything, just kinda weird.

whoops i broke my rule.

clint nageotte was my number 23 prospect in 2004. since then, it seems like he's had arm trouble.

i'm not really sure why i had him rated that high. his strikeouts are not great, and he has control issues.

oh. it was that retarded 2002. well, at this point he's got to be a longshot. it doesn't look like he has what he had.


Career Batting Statistics for Rob Johnson:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2004 Azl Mariners Ariz 21 Sea Rk 27 4 7 0 1 .129 .741 .050 .222
2004 Everett Nwes 21 Sea A 78 6 10 1 4 .071 .872 .074 .234
2005 Wisconsin Midw 22 Sea A 309 23 31 9 20 .069 .900 .104 .272
2005 Inland Empir Cali 22 Sea A 74 10 14 2 3 .119 .811 .083 .314


rob johnson??? that's the craziest name i've ever heard! where did they come up with that?

rob johnson was drafted out of saddleback college in 2004. he really improved his stock there, because he was drafted in the 41st round in 2002, and the 18th round in 2003. why am i talking about this? because there's nothing else to talk about. he made good contact in the midwestern league, but he's 22 so that's not really anything special. power doesn't seem likely.

we need more data.

the mariners need more prospects. and with that we are done with the three-month odyssey that began three months ago. two and a half. close enough. we have systematically analyzed the entire minor leagues. the top ten prospects of each system. as rated by baseball america. whatever we're done woohoooooooooooooo!

now i can concentrate on my top 50, and then the season starts.

woohooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
 
top prospects: rangers
28 down, 2 to go! the rangers have some stuff, but it's not very exciting, especially since they traded adrian gonzalez.


1. Edison Volquez, rhp
2. John Danks, lhp
3. Thomas Diamond, rhp
4. Joaquin Arias, ss
5. Eric Hurley, rhp
6. Ian Kinsler, 2b
7. Armando Galarraga, rhp
8. Jason Botts, of
9. Taylor Teagarden, c
10. John Mayberry Jr., of


gonzalez isn't a rookie, though, so it wouldn't have helped their list.


Career Pitching Statistics for Edison Volquez:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2003 Arizona Rang Ariz 20 Tex Rk 27.0 24 1 11 28 .095 .733 .013 4.00
2004 Stockton Cali 21 Tex A 39.2 31 6 14 34 .085 .773 .052 2.95
2004 Clinton Midw 21 Tex A 87.2 82 8 27 74 .073 .786 .030 4.21
2005 Arizona Rang Ariz 22 Tex Rk 2.0 2 0 0 2 .000 .750 .000 0.00
2005 Bakersfield Cali 22 Tex A 66.2 64 9 12 77 .043 .708 .048 4.18
2005 Frisco Tex 22 Tex AA 58.2 58 6 17 49 .068 .791 .032 4.14
2005 Texas Ranger AL 22 Tex MLB 12.2 25 3 10 11 .137 .825 .058 14.21


volquez pitched great in the california league last year. they brought him up to the majors and he was a little overmatched. he has good control; it's the other two areas that are questionable. the contact and the home runs. maybe that's just a matter of him getting a handle on his changeup. if this is the best guy in the system though, it's not a good sign.


Career Pitching Statistics for John Danks:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2003 Arizona Rang Ariz 18 Tex Rk 13.0 6 0 4 22 .082 .511 .000 0.69
2003 Spokane Nwes 18 Tex A 12.0 12 0 7 13 .127 .729 .000 9.00
2004 Stockton Cali 19 Tex A 55.0 62 5 26 48 .103 .789 .028 5.24
2004 Clinton Midw 19 Tex A 49.2 38 4 14 64 .070 .658 .033 2.17
2005 Bakersfield Cali 20 Tex A 57.2 50 5 16 53 .067 .762 .029 2.50
2005 Frisco Tex 20 Tex AA 98.1 117 12 34 85 .076 .794 .037 5.49


this guy isn't very good either. at least he's left-handed. but he doesn't seem to have the mojo that's typical of most lefties. i'm talking about home runs allowed. lefties tend to be good in that department, but danks is just decent. damn. danks is just decent in that department.

he's decent in strikeouts too. his only real strength is control. that's nice and all, but you need more to make the majors.

it could be that the home runs are due to him hanging the curveball and he'll get over that.


Career Pitching Statistics for Thomas Diamond:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2002 U. of New Or NCAA 19 0 NCA 37.0 47 0 25 44 .137 .722 .000 5.84
2003 U. of New Or NCAA 20 0 NCA 69.0 50 3 42 96 .140 .626 .019 3.39
2004 U. of New Or NCAA 21 0 NCA 113.2 87 8 45 138 .095 .678 .028 2.38
2004 Spokane Nwes 21 Tex A 15.1 13 0 5 26 .078 .559 .000 2.35
2004 Clinton Midw 21 Tex A 30.2 18 1 8 42 .068 .618 .015 2.05
2005 Bakersfield Cali 22 Tex A 81.1 53 3 31 101 .095 .660 .015 1.99
2005 Frisco Tex 22 Tex AA 69.0 66 8 38 68 .122 .751 .039 5.35


diamond has pretty stellar strikeout rates but a little trouble with control. i'd put him ahead of those other two guys, but not by much. he'll probably pitch in the majors, but won't dominate.


Career Batting Statistics for Joaquin Arias:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2002 GCL Yankees GCL 18 Nyy Rk 204 12 16 0 13 .056 .922 .069 .300
2003 Battle Creek Midw 19 Nyy A 484 29 44 3 20 .057 .909 .052 .266
2004 Stockton Cali 20 Tex A 505 36 53 4 28 .067 .895 .071 .300
2005 Frisco Tex 21 Tex AA 505 18 46 5 31 .034 .909 .078 .315


arias has made a steady progression through the minors. the problem is he has no power. he still could be good enough with contact and defense.


Career Pitching Statistics for Eric Hurley:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2004 Arizona Rang Ariz 18 Tex Rk 15.1 20 1 4 15 .057 .773 .020 2.35
2004 Spokane Nwes 18 Tex A 28.1 31 6 6 21 .049 .819 .063 5.40
2005 Clinton Midw 20 Tex A 155.1 135 11 59 152 .089 .747 .024 3.77


hurley. that's an appropriate name for a pitcher. eric has shown some potential but not much more. he'll have to step it up if he wants to make it.


Career Batting Statistics for Ian Kinsler:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2002 Arizona Stat NCAA 20 0 NCA 63 2 10 0 2 .031 .841 .038 .230
2003 U. of Missou NCAA 21 0 NCA 200 31 27 6 17 .134 .865 .133 .335
2003 Spokane Nwes 21 Tex A 192 24 34 1 16 .111 .823 .108 .277
2004 Clinton Midw 22 Tex A 226 28 36 11 31 .110 .841 .221 .402
2004 Frisco Tex 22 Tex AA 272 47 47 8 21 .147 .827 .129 .299
2005 Oklahoma PCL 23 Tex AAA 533 62 89 23 30 .104 .833 .119 .274


ian kinsler is apparently the starting second baseman in the majors. he'll be fine, i think. by which i mean replacement level. he's getting kinda old, but he's still got time to be somebody. he sure tore up the midwest league two years ago.

i talked about him in the famous rookies to watch article. it wasn't famous; it was just an article.


Career Pitching Statistics for Armando Galarraga:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
1999 San Joaquin VSL 17 Mtl Rk 43.1 49 4 28 31 .135 .827 .027 4.98
2000 Cagua VSL 18 Mtl Rk 46.1 49 0 22 47 .105 .750 .000 5.24
2002 GCL Expos GCL 20 Mtl Rk 3.2 1 1 0 1 .000 .917 .091 2.45
2003 GCL Expos GCL 21 Mtl Rk 15.0 13 0 5 7 .079 .879 .000 1.80
2004 Savannah SAL 22 Mtl A 110.1 104 14 31 94 .067 .784 .041 4.65
2005 Potomac Caro 23 Wan A 80.0 69 7 23 79 .069 .744 .030 2.48
2005 Harrisburg East 23 Wan AA 76.1 80 10 21 58 .064 .812 .040 5.19


armando galarraga is a pitcher who's old for his level and has never dominated. it looks like he had some injury problems in there. he's a longshot.


Career Batting Statistics for Jason Botts:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2000 GCL Rangers GCL 20 Tex Rk 164 36 29 6 12 .180 .823 .133 .319
2001 Savannah SAL 21 Tex A 393 73 88 9 26 .157 .776 .115 .309
2002 Charlotte FSL 22 Tex A 404 89 99 9 27 .181 .755 .118 .254
2003 Stockton Cali 23 Tex A 284 46 59 9 16 .139 .792 .111 .314
2003 Frisco Tex 23 Tex AA 196 24 45 4 12 .109 .770 .106 .263
2004 Frisco Tex 24 Tex AA 480 86 125 24 28 .152 .740 .146 .296
2005 Oklahoma PCL 25 Tex AAA 514 75 152 25 38 .127 .704 .174 .286
2005 Texas Ranger AL 25 Tex MLB 27 3 13 0 0 .100 .519 .000 .296


jason botts has bop but he ain't got smack. sorry, that was retarded. what i mean to say is jason botts has power but he can't hit the ball. he could be usable for a couple of years, but doesn't figure to go beyond that.


Career Batting Statistics for Taylor Teagarden:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 U. of Texas NCAA 0 0 NCA 213 29 43 5 16 .120 .798 .124 .315
2004 U. of Texas NCAA 0 0 NCA 269 57 46 10 18 .175 .829 .126 .273
2005 U. of Texas NCAA 0 0 NCA 226 46 41 7 23 .169 .819 .162 .333
2005 Spokane Nwes 0 Tex A 97 25 32 7 9 .205 .670 .246 .281


taylor teagarden is a patient hitter with power potential. it remains to be seen whether he can make enough contact to move through the minors. as a plus-defense catcher, though, he won't need much.


Career Batting Statistics for John Mayberry:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 Stanford U. NCAA 0 0 NCA 194 14 29 4 12 .067 .851 .097 .299
2004 Stanford U. NCAA 0 0 NCA 222 36 35 16 13 .140 .842 .155 .333
2005 Stanford U. NCAA 0 0 NCA 239 35 35 8 18 .128 .854 .127 .303
2005 Spokane Nwes 0 Tex A 266 36 71 11 16 .119 .733 .138 .253


john mayberry was decent at spokane. the stanford numbers look good but we've seen eye-popping stanford numbers before that didn't work out. it looks like he needs to work on contact. we'll have more information next year.

that's the rangers. the problem is they have no stars. i actually think ian kinsler is their best prospect. but he's not that good. the rangers have some problems. maybe their new young gm can turn it around. if he's given enough time.

one more and i'm done!
 
top prospects: athletics
oakland has had a productive farm system in recent years, but it's pretty barren at the moment. the top guy is good, though.


1. Daric Barton, 1b
2. Javier Herrera, of
3. Cliff Pennington, ss
4. Travis Buck, of
5. Kevin Melillo, 2b
6. Santiago Casilla, rhp
7. Craig Italiano, rhp
8. Shane Komine, rhp
9. Vince Mazzaro, rhp
10. Kurt Suzuki, c


the major-league team is stocked with good young players, so they don't really have any needs.


Career Batting Statistics for Daric Barton:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 Johnson City App 18 Stl Rk 175 39 48 4 10 .182 .726 .110 .291
2004 Peoria Midw 19 Stl A 316 77 44 13 23 .196 .861 .132 .313
2005 Stockton Cali 20 Oak A 296 65 49 8 18 .180 .834 .105 .318
2005 Midland Tex 20 Oak AA 214 35 30 5 21 .141 .860 .141 .316


i said the top guy was good, and he is. daric barton makes great contact, with good power and great patience. he destroyed double-a at the age of 20, which is young for that level. he's gonna be a good one.


Career Batting Statistics for Javier Herrera:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 Azl Athletic Ariz 18 Oak Rk 61 9 19 2 4 .129 .689 .143 .230
2004 Vancouver Nwes 19 Oak As 259 27 56 11 19 .094 .784 .148 .331
2005 Kane County Midw 20 Oak A- 363 59 110 13 20 .140 .697 .130 .275
2005 Sacramento PCL 20 Oak AAA 12 3 1 1 1 .200 .917 .182 .417


javier herrera has serious contact issues. the midwest league is not that difficult to hit in, and he struck out 110 times in 363 at-bats. he's got some patience, but he needs to improve a lot to project as a major-leaguer.


Career Batting Statistics for Cliff Pennington:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 Texas AM U. NCAA 19 0 NCA 243 22 27 2 16 .083 .889 .083 .340
2004 Texas AM U. NCAA 20 0 NCA 260 33 18 5 11 .113 .931 .066 .339
2005 Texas AM U. NCAA 21 0 NCA 216 38 25 7 17 .150 .884 .126 .363
2005 Kane County Midw 21 Oak A 291 41 47 3 15 .123 .838 .074 .276


pennington did well enough in the midwest league. if he can develop power, he could be something special.


Career Batting Statistics for Travis Buck:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 Arizona Stat NCAA 19 0 NCA 241 46 28 4 16 .160 .884 .094 .326
2004 Arizona Stat NCAA 20 0 NCA 228 52 34 9 17 .186 .851 .134 .373
2005 Arizona Stat NCAA 21 0 NCA 289 34 35 6 27 .105 .879 .130 .382
2005 Vancouver Nwes 21 Oak A 36 5 8 2 1 .122 .778 .107 .361
2005 Kane County Midw 21 Oak A 124 19 19 1 13 .133 .847 .133 .341


travis buck was also effective at kane county. he has solid skills in every area. it looks like the thinness of the oakland farm system will be temporary.


Career Batting Statistics for Kevin Melillo:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2002 U. of South NCAA 20 0 NCA 157 27 20 3 12 .147 .873 .109 .280
2003 U. of South NCAA 21 0 NCA 231 42 54 12 16 .154 .766 .158 .317
2004 U. of South NCAA 22 0 NCA 180 15 38 9 8 .077 .789 .120 .307
2004 Vancouver Nwes 22 Oak A 95 14 16 2 13 .128 .832 .190 .340
2005 Kane County Midw 23 Oak A 285 56 40 8 21 .164 .860 .118 .286
2005 Stockton Cali 23 Oak A 91 13 18 9 8 .125 .802 .233 .400
2005 Midland Tex 23 Oak AA 133 14 23 7 10 .095 .827 .155 .282


melillo had contact issues in college, but was able to work out of that in the pros. he's still got work to do though. and he's a little on the old side. he'll probably be a backup at the major-league level.


Career Pitching Statistics for Jairo Garcia:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2000 Dominican At Dsl 17 Oak Rk 47.0 33 2 29 56 .143 .678 .017 3.26
2002 Azl Athletic Ariz 19 Oak Rk 59.0 56 5 17 66 .068 .717 .030 2.44
2002 Vancouver Nwes 19 Oak As 12.1 15 1 7 16 .119 .692 .028 7.30
2003 Kane County Midw 20 Oak A- 42.1 40 0 19 28 .102 .832 .000 2.55
2004 Kane County Midw 21 Oak A- 30.0 16 0 6 49 .054 .538 .000 0.30
2004 Midland Tex 21 Oak AA 18.0 10 0 15 32 .190 .500 .000 1.50
2004 Sacramento PCL 21 Oak AAA 13.2 10 1 9 21 .150 .588 .033 3.95
2004 Oakland Athl AL 21 Oak MLB 5.2 5 3 9 5 .290 .773 .176 12.71
2005 Midland Tex 22 Oak AA 16.2 9 1 9 30 .132 .492 .034 1.08
2005 Sacramento PCL 22 Oak AAA 48.1 45 6 20 73 .095 .616 .051 4.47
2005 Oakland Athl AL 22 Oak MLB 3.0 2 0 1 1 .083 .909 .000 3.00


santiago casilla used to be jairo garcia. jairo garcia was young. santiago casilla is not. but he does have some ridiculous contact percentages. he'll probably be effective in the majors.


Career Pitching Statistics for Shane Komine:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
1999 U. of Nebras NCAA 18 0 NCA 78.0 84 6 37 79 .104 .752 .025 3.58
2000 U. of Nebras NCAA 19 0 NCA 124.0 90 6 31 159 .063 .656 .020 2.25
2001 U. of Nebras NCAA 20 0 NCA 131.0 129 8 36 157 .065 .699 .022 3.37
2002 U. of Nebras NCAA 21 0 NCA 96.0 62 6 30 115 .079 .671 .026 2.34
2002 Visalia Cali 21 Oak A 25.2 23 2 20 22 .167 .780 .026 5.96
2003 Kane County Midw 22 Oak A 54.1 45 1 9 50 .041 .760 .006 1.82
2003 Midland Tex 22 Oak AA 103.1 108 6 30 75 .067 .821 .017 3.75
2004 Midland Tex 23 Oak AA 94.1 103 10 28 65 .068 .832 .031 4.77
2005 Azl Athletic Ariz 24 Oak Rk 8.1 10 0 7 11 .167 .686 .000 9.72
2005 Stockton Cali 24 Oak A 8.2 10 0 3 11 .077 .694 .000 4.15
2005 Midland Tex 24 Oak AA 31.1 27 5 7 33 .055 .727 .057 3.16


we have no data on craig italiano, so we can't talk about him. shane komine, on the other hand, had a good run in the texas league last year. but he's getting old, and he doesn't have much of a track record. his college numbers look good.


Career Batting Statistics for Kurt Suzuki:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2002 California S NCAA 18 0 NCA 51 14 6 1 1 .215 .882 .044 .392
2003 California S NCAA 19 0 NCA 145 25 11 2 10 .147 .924 .090 .350
2004 California S NCAA 20 0 NCA 261 60 25 16 21 .187 .904 .157 .413
2004 Vancouver Nwes 20 Oak A 173 28 25 3 13 .139 .855 .108 .294
2005 Stockton Cali 21 Oak A 446 75 61 12 31 .144 .863 .112 .277


we also don't have data on vince mazzaro. i think these guys are recent draftees who haven't played yet. we'll see how they do as their careers wind on.

kurt suzuki actually looks pretty good. really really good, actually. he raked last year at stockton. more walks than strikeouts is always a good sign. and he had some power. his college numbers are retarded. and he's a catcher.

you know, i get the suspicion that oakland's farm system isn't as thin as they say it is. maybe after i finish my top 50, i'll take a deeper look.
Friday, March 24, 2006
 
top prospects: angels
the twins were the second best. the angels are the best.


1. Brandon Wood, ss
2. Howie Kendrick, 2b
3. Erick Aybar, ss
4. Jeff Mathis, c
5. Jered Weaver, rhp
6. Nick Adenhart, rhp
7. Kendry Morales, 1b
8. Alberto Callaspo, 2b
9. Joe Saunders, lhp
10. Tommy Mendoza, rhp


i mean, this is ridiculous. the top five here all have legitimate star potential. and the other guys could make it, too.


Career Batting Statistics for Brandon Wood:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 Azl Angels Ariz 18 Ana Rk 80 6 15 0 10 .070 .813 .154 .308
2003 Provo Pio 18 Ana Rk 163 18 48 5 15 .099 .706 .174 .278
2004 Cedar Rapids Midw 19 Ana A 480 51 117 11 35 .096 .756 .127 .251
2005 Rancho Cucam Cali 20 Laa A 538 55 128 43 55 .093 .762 .239 .321
2005 Salt Lake PCL 20 Laa AAA 19 0 6 0 3 .000 .684 .231 .316


brandon wood had 101 extra-base hits in 2005. did you see that? 101 extra-base hits. 98 of them were at rancho cucamonga. just because it's a funny name doesn't mean he didn't get 98 extra-base hits there.

he may have trouble with contact but there's so much power here it's hard to imagine he'll take too long. the hitting numbers remind me of david wright. which, of course, is a good thing.


Career Batting Statistics for Howie Kendrick:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2002 Azl Angels Ariz 19 Ana Rk 158 13 11 0 10 .076 .930 .068 .318
2003 Provo Pio 20 Ana Rk 237 30 28 3 23 .112 .882 .124 .368
2004 Azl Angels Ariz 21 Ana Rk 12 1 0 0 1 .077 1.00 .083 .250
2004 Cedar Rapids Midw 21 Ana A- 316 18 41 10 30 .054 .870 .145 .367
2005 Rancho Cucam Cali 22 Laa A+ 283 21 42 12 29 .069 .852 .170 .384
2005 Arkansas Tex 22 Laa AA 191 13 20 7 22 .064 .895 .170 .342


this kid rakes. his contact/power combo is incredible. you'd like to see some patience, but the talent is there.

that's some keystone combo they had there at rancho. and then at arkansas when kendrick moved up.


Career Batting Statistics for Erick Aybar:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2002 Provo Pio 18 Ana Rk 274 32 43 4 21 .105 .843 .108 .326
2003 Cedar Rapids Midw 19 Ana A 499 30 54 6 40 .057 .892 .103 .308
2004 Rancho Cucam Cali 20 Ana A 578 39 66 14 36 .063 .886 .098 .330
2005 Arkansas Tex 21 Laa AA 543 43 51 9 39 .073 .906 .098 .303


erick aybar is a switch-hitter with incredible contact who played double-a at the age of 21. he steals a ton of bases, and it looks like he'll develop power. his speed and contact will get him on base. so will his power. and he's a shortstop.


Career Batting Statistics for Jeff Mathis:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2001 Provo Pio 18 Ana Rk 80 13 13 0 9 .140 .838 .134 .299
2002 Cedar Rapids Midw 19 Ana A 499 48 75 10 44 .088 .850 .127 .287
2003 Rancho Cucam Cali 20 Ana A 382 40 74 11 31 .095 .806 .136 .323
2003 Arkansas Tex 20 Ana AA 97 13 16 2 11 .118 .835 .160 .284
2004 Arkansas Tex 21 Ana AA 430 54 100 14 27 .112 .767 .124 .223
2005 Salt Lake PCL 22 Laa AAA 431 43 85 21 29 .091 .803 .145 .276
2005 Los Angeles AL 22 Laa MLB 3 0 1 0 0 .000 .667 .000 .333


not only do they have top prospects, but they're middle infielders and catchers. jeff mathis is a catcher who played in triple-a at age 22 and hit 21 home runs. he's on the threshold of breakout in all skills. in 2004 he was my number 7 prospect.


Career Pitching Statistics for Jered Weaver:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2002 Long Beach S NCAA 19 0 NCA 92.0 80 4 32 74 .082 .792 .014 4.40
2003 Long Beach S NCAA 20 0 NCA 133.1 87 7 20 144 .039 .704 .020 1.96
2004 Long Beach S NCAA 21 0 NCA 144.0 81 8 21 213 .039 .585 .027 1.62
2005 Rancho Cucam Cali 22 Laa A 33.0 25 3 7 49 .053 .605 .040 3.82
2005 Arkansas Tex 22 Laa AA 43.0 43 5 19 46 .099 .733 .040 3.98


in 2004 at long beach state, jered weaver struck out 213 batters in 144 innings. he walked 21. in 2005, he went straight to high-a and struck out 49 batters in 33 innings. with 7 walks. the angels figured that was enough and sent him to double-a.

and he's the number 5 prospect.


Career Pitching Statistics for Nick Adenhart:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2005 Azl Angels Ariz 0 Laa Rk 44.0 39 0 24 52 .123 .696 .000 3.68
2005 Orem Pio 0 Laa Rk 6.0 3 0 0 7 .000 .667 .000 0.00


nick adenhart must be talented if he's this high on this list. but we have no data, so we can't say anything.


Career Batting Statistics for Kendry Morales:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2002 Industriales Cuba 19 0 Int 352 38 57 21 25 .097 .838 .156 .324
2003 Industriales Cuba 20 0 Int 202 42 24 9 15 .172 .881 .135 .391
2004 Estrellas de Dsl 21 0 Rk 25 0 3 0 1 .000 .880 .045 .280
2005 Rancho Cucam Cali 22 Laa A 91 9 11 5 3 .090 .879 .100 .344
2005 Arkansas Tex 22 Laa AA 282 19 43 17 12 .063 .848 .121 .306


kendry morales beat the shit out of the ball for the industriales of cuba. with the angels, he basically went straight to double-a. if that age is right, he'll make it.


Career Batting Statistics for Alberto Callaspo:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2002 Provo Pio 19 Ana Rk 302 19 14 3 26 .059 .954 .101 .338
2003 Cedar Rapids Midw 20 Ana A 520 45 28 2 42 .080 .946 .089 .327
2004 Arkansas Tex 21 Ana AA 548 47 25 6 30 .079 .954 .069 .285
2005 Arkansas Tex 22 Laa AA 355 29 17 10 9 .076 .952 .056 .297
2005 Salt Lake PCL 22 Laa AAA 215 11 13 1 23 .049 .940 .119 .316


alberto callaspo makes incredible contact. he needs a little power to make it. note that he's another second baseman.


Career Pitching Statistics for Joe Saunders:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2002 Virginia Tec NCAA 21 0 NCA 97.0 103 5 22 102 .053 .741 .017 2.88
2002 Provo Pio 21 Ana Rk 32.1 40 1 11 21 .074 .847 .009 3.62
2002 Cedar Rapids Midw 21 Ana A 28.2 16 2 9 27 .081 .735 .027 1.88
2004 Rancho Cucam Cali 23 Ana A 105.2 106 13 23 76 .052 .820 .037 3.41
2004 Arkansas Tex 23 Ana AA 39.0 51 5 14 25 .077 .851 .035 5.77
2005 Arkansas Tex 24 Laa AA 105.2 107 9 32 80 .070 .811 .026 3.49
2005 Salt Lake PCL 24 Laa AAA 55.0 65 3 21 29 .084 .874 .015 4.58
2005 Los Angeles AL 24 Laa MLB 9.1 10 3 4 4 .095 .895 .088 7.71


joe saunders. i'm not really sure why he's on this list. he's old, he doesn't have any strikeouts, and his control is not great. it's good, but not great. he's left-handed, but there's just not much here.


Career Pitching Statistics for Tom Mendoza:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2005 Azl Angels Ariz 0 Laa Rk 52.1 42 1 13 56 .061 .719 .007 1.55
2005 Rancho Cucam Cali 0 Laa A 10.0 4 0 0 12 .000 .647 .000 0.00


tom mendoza is apparently young with a good fastball. good luck, tom!

and that's ten. the angels probably have the best farm system in baseball, with that top five. plus kendry morales. i don't know how deep they are, but that star potential is retarded.
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
 
top prospects: twins
the twins are full of prospects, all the time. they ooze them. who do they have this time?


1. Francisco Liriano, lhp
2. Jason Kubel, of
3. Matt Moses, 3b
4. Glen Perkins, lhp
5. Anthony Swarzak, rhp
6. Denard Span, of
7. Matt Garza, rhp
8. Jay Rainville, rhp
9. Trevor Plouffe, ss
10. Kyle Waldrop, rhp


not quite as loaded as they usually are. the top two are good, though.


Career Pitching Statistics for Francisco Liriano:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2001 SalemKaizer Nwes 17 Sf A 9.0 7 2 1 12 .029 .647 .091 5.00
2002 Hagerstown SAL 18 Sf A 80.0 61 6 31 85 .093 .718 .028 3.49
2003 Azl Giants Ariz 19 Sf Rk 8.1 5 1 6 9 .167 .700 .048 4.32
2003 San Jose Cali 19 Sf A 0.2 5 0 2 0 .222 1.00 .000 54.00
2004 Fort Myers FSL 20 Min A 117.0 118 6 43 125 .084 .733 .017 4.00
2004 New Britain East 20 Min AA 39.2 45 4 17 49 .094 .701 .035 3.18
2005 New Britain East 21 Min AA 76.2 70 6 26 92 .080 .693 .029 3.64
2005 Rochester IL 21 Min AAA 91.0 56 4 24 112 .068 .660 .018 1.78
2005 Minnesota Tw AL 21 Min MLB 23.2 19 4 7 33 .072 .633 .070 5.70


francisco liriano made the majors at the age of 21, and in 23 innings, struck out 33 and walked 7. is there any scouting to do here? he's ready. altogether last year he struck out 237 in 191 innings. with 57 walks. his con has gotten better every time he's moved up.


Career Batting Statistics for Jason Kubel:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2000 GCL Twins GCL 18 Min Rk 79 11 9 0 5 .122 .886 .071 .282
2001 GCL Twins GCL 19 Min Rk 126 21 14 1 14 .143 .889 .134 .331
2002 Quad City Midw 20 Min A 427 42 48 17 30 .090 .888 .124 .321
2003 Fort Myers FSL 21 Min A 433 49 54 5 24 .102 .875 .077 .298
2004 New Britain East 22 Min AA 139 20 19 6 18 .126 .863 .200 .377
2004 Rochester IL 22 Min AAA 354 35 40 16 28 .090 .887 .140 .343
2004 Minnesota Tw AL 22 Min MLB 61 6 9 2 2 .090 .852 .077 .300


the last we have is 2004, when jason kubel was about to put a hurtin on the american league. .887 con and .140 pow. that sort of thing will combine for a high average. in double-a that year he conned .863 and powed .200. he basically tore through the system. if he's fully healthy, he's gonna be good.


Career Batting Statistics for Matt Moses:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 GCL Twins GCL 18 Min Rk 67 5 9 0 6 .069 .866 .103 .385
2004 GCL Twins GCL 19 Min Rk 4 0 0 0 0 .000 1.00 .000 .250
2004 Quad Cities Midw 19 Min A 112 13 25 3 7 .104 .777 .115 .223
2005 Fort Myers FSL 20 Min A 267 31 59 7 17 .104 .779 .115 .306
2005 New Britain East 20 Min AA 187 17 51 6 10 .083 .727 .118 .210


matt moses is young for his level, and left-handed. it's entirely possible that he's still a good prospect despite these low contact numbers. we'll have to see.


Career Pitching Statistics for Glen Perkins:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2003 U. of Minnes NCAA 20 0 NCA 105.1 100 5 23 117 .052 .719 .017 2.91
2004 U. of Minnes NCAA 21 0 NCA 111.1 89 6 21 113 .047 .733 .019 2.83
2004 Elizabethton App 21 Min Rk 12.0 8 0 4 22 .083 .500 .000 2.25
2004 Quad Cities Midw 21 Min A 48.1 33 2 12 49 .063 .725 .016 1.30
2005 Fort Myers FSL 22 Min A 55.0 41 2 13 66 .059 .680 .014 2.13
2005 New Britain East 22 Min AA 79.0 80 4 35 67 .099 .789 .016 4.90


glen perkins had a good performance in high-a last year, but he was 22. he was in college the year before though. he's got good control. needs to show he can handle double-a.


Career Pitching Statistics for Anthony Swarzak:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2004 GCL Twins GCL 18 Min Rk 48.0 46 1 6 42 .031 .779 .007 2.62
2005 Beloit Midw 20 Min A 91.1 81 7 32 101 .083 .715 .028 4.04
2005 Fort Myers FSL 20 Min A 59.0 72 3 11 55 .042 .779 .015 3.66


anthony swarzak had a lot of strikeouts last year. the data here is limited, but it looks like he's got a shot.


Career Batting Statistics for Denard Span:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 Elizabethton App 19 Min Rk 207 27 34 1 6 .115 .836 .040 .271
2004 GCL Twins GCL 20 Min Rk 16 3 3 0 2 .158 .813 .154 .375
2004 Quad Cities Midw 20 Min A 241 37 49 0 7 .133 .797 .036 .267
2005 Fort Myers FSL 21 Min A 187 23 25 1 6 .110 .866 .043 .339
2005 New Britain East 21 Min AA 269 30 41 0 11 .100 .848 .048 .285


denard span appears to have the contact and speed necessary to slap-and-run. could be a leadoff-centerfield type.


Career Pitching Statistics for Matt Garza:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2003 Fresno State NCAA 0 0 NCA 43.1 63 8 31 21 .138 .891 .047 9.55
2004 Fresno State NCAA 0 0 NCA 90.0 103 12 34 77 .084 .794 .041 4.90
2005 Fresno State NCAA 0 0 NCA 108.1 110 5 37 120 .078 .724 .016 3.07
2005 Elizabethton App 0 Min Rk 19.2 14 3 6 25 .076 .658 .063 3.66
2005 Beloit Midw 0 Min A 56.0 53 5 15 64 .064 .710 .032 3.54


matt garza. good strikeouts, good control. good prospect.


Career Pitching Statistics for Jay Rainville:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2004 GCL Twins GCL 18 Min Rk 34.1 39 1 3 38 .021 .732 .010 1.83
2005 Beloit Midw 19 Min A 88.1 83 14 27 77 .072 .779 .052 3.77
2005 Fort Myers FSL 19 Min A 54.0 54 7 6 35 .027 .838 .039 2.67


jay rainville pitched in high-a at 19. that makes him a prospect.


Career Batting Statistics for Trevor Plouffe:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2004 Elizabethton App 18 Min Rk 240 22 34 4 9 .084 .858 .063 .283
2005 Beloit Midw 19 Min A 473 54 78 13 18 .102 .835 .078 .223


trevor plouffe is a young shortstop who plays good defense. looks like he's got some power potential.


Career Pitching Statistics for Kyle Waldrop:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2004 GCL Twins GCL 18 Min Rk 38.0 32 1 4 30 .027 .795 .009 1.42
2004 Elizabethton App 18 Min Rk 25.0 21 1 3 25 .030 .740 .014 3.24
2005 Beloit Midw 19 Min A 151.2 182 17 23 108 .035 .830 .032 4.98


kyle waldrop is a young pitcher with good control. he's got some work to do with strikeouts and home runs.

that's the twins. everyone on the list is a legitimate prospect. two could be superstars. and this is a down year. if things work out that didn't work out last year, the twins could take the division.
Sunday, March 19, 2006
 
top prospects: royals
the royals. the royals are fucked. sorry about the language. it's necessary though, to communicate the magnitude of the situation.


1. Alex Gordon
2. Billy Butler, of/3b
3. Justin Huber, 1b
4. Chris Lubanski, of
5. Jeff Bianchi, ss
6. Luis Cota, rhp
7. Chris McConnell, ss
8. Mitch Maier, of
9. Donnie Murphy, 2b
10. Shane Costa, of


they're never gonna win. their best player is david dejesus. i'm a big fan of david dejesus, but if he's your best player, you got problems.

don't fuck with dejesus.


Career Batting Statistics for Alex Gordon:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 U. of Nebras NCAA 19 0 NCA 216 40 34 7 15 .156 .843 .121 .319
2004 U. of Nebras NCAA 20 0 NCA 215 57 34 18 23 .210 .842 .227 .365
2005 U. of Nebras NCAA 21 0 NCA 255 70 38 19 26 .215 .851 .253 .372


alex gordon won the golden spikes award last year. he was obviously a crusher.


Career Batting Statistics for Billy Butler:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2004 Idaho Falls Pio 18 Kc Rk 263 61 63 10 25 .188 .760 .175 .373
2005 High Desert Cali 19 Kc A 382 48 80 25 32 .112 .791 .189 .348
2005 Wichita Tex 19 Kc AA 112 7 18 5 9 .059 .839 .149 .312


billy butler is young, and he's already made double-a. it looks like he'll have all the skills.


Career Batting Statistics for Justin Huber:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2001 Kingsport App 19 Nym Rk 163 30 42 7 12 .155 .742 .157 .314
2001 St. Lucie FSL 19 Nym A 6 0 2 0 0 .000 .667 .000 .000
2002 St. Lucie FSL 20 Nym A 102 17 18 3 3 .143 .824 .071 .270
2002 Capital City SAL 20 Nym A 334 68 81 11 24 .169 .757 .138 .291
2003 St. Lucie FSL 21 Nym A 185 26 30 9 15 .123 .838 .155 .284
2003 Binghamton East 21 Nym AA 194 26 54 6 13 .118 .722 .136 .264
2004 St. Lucie FSL 22 Nym A 48 6 8 2 2 .111 .833 .100 .250
2004 Binghamton East 22 Nym AA 237 58 57 11 17 .197 .759 .156 .271
2004 Norfolk IL 22 Nym AAA 16 3 3 0 2 .158 .813 .154 .312
2005 Wichita Tex 23 Kc AA 340 56 70 16 25 .141 .794 .152 .343
2005 Omaha PCL 23 Kc AAA 113 18 33 7 7 .137 .708 .175 .274
2005 KC Royals AL 23 Kc MLB 79 6 20 0 3 .071 .747 .051 .218


huber has patience, which is a good indicator for improvement. he's gonna need some improvement to be effective in the bigs. he has trouble with contact. he has power, though.


Career Batting Statistics for Chris Lubanski:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 Arizona Roya Ariz 18 Kc Rk 221 20 50 4 10 .083 .774 .082 .326
2004 Kane County Midw 19 Oak A 4 0 2 0 0 .000 .500 .000 .000
2004 Burlington Midw 19 Kc A 45 2 5 0 4 .043 .889 .100 .273
2005 High Desert Cali 20 Kc A 538 43 131 28 44 .074 .757 .177 .301


chris lubanski had 72 extra-base hits in a hitter's park. that's good, but not great, power. the question is can he develop contact.


Career Batting Statistics for Jeff Bianchi:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2005 Arizona Roya Ariz 18 Kc Rk 103 19 22 6 11 .156 .786 .210 .408


jeff bianchi is young. young is good.


Career Pitching Statistics for Luis Cota:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2004 Idaho Falls Pio 18 Kc Rk 48.0 61 5 21 40 .093 .805 .030 5.81
2005 Burlington Midw 20 Kc A 148.0 143 10 63 137 .097 .767 .022 4.01


luis cota didn't dominate in the midwest league. he'll have to improve if he's gonna make it.


Career Batting Statistics for Chris McConnell:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2004 Arizona Roya Ariz 18 Kc Rk 125 18 19 3 5 .126 .848 .075 .339
2005 Idaho Falls Pio 19 Kc Rk 282 38 34 6 25 .119 .879 .125 .331


those are good numbers in the rookie league. chris mcconnell is young.


Career Batting Statistics for Mitch Maier:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2001 U. of Toledo NCAA 19 0 NCA 163 13 23 3 12 .074 .859 .107 .444
2002 U. of Toledo NCAA 20 0 NCA 222 25 25 14 18 .101 .887 .162 .362
2003 U. of Toledo NCAA 21 0 NCA 199 37 9 9 18 .157 .955 .142 .448
2003 Arizona Roya Ariz 21 Kc Rk 206 20 25 2 20 .088 .879 .122 .350
2004 Wilmington Caro 22 Kc A 172 17 29 3 11 .090 .831 .098 .259
2004 Burlington Midw 22 Kc A 318 27 51 4 27 .078 .840 .116 .300
2005 High Desert Cali 23 Kc A 214 13 43 8 27 .057 .799 .205 .336
2005 Wichita Tex 23 Kc AA 325 17 47 7 26 .050 .855 .119 .255


mitch maier showed contact and power last year, but he's getting a little old. he destroyed the ball at toledo.


Career Batting Statistics for Donnie Murphy:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2002 Burlington Midw 19 Kc A 125 15 31 0 9 .107 .752 .096 .225
2002 Spokane Nwes 19 Kc A 109 9 17 0 12 .076 .844 .130 .303
2003 Burlington Midw 20 Kc A 511 74 78 5 35 .126 .847 .092 .313
2004 Wilmington Caro 21 Kc A 487 54 95 10 36 .100 .805 .117 .255
2004 KC Royals AL 21 Kc MLB 27 0 7 0 3 .000 .741 .150 .185
2005 Wichita Tex 22 Kc AA 215 17 32 10 14 .073 .851 .131 .313
2005 KC Royals AL 22 Kc MLB 78 9 23 1 5 .103 .705 .109 .156


donnie murphy has shown balanced hitting skills. combine that with the fact that he plays middle infield, and he's a solid prospect.


Career Batting Statistics for Shane Costa:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2001 California S NCAA 19 0 NCA 129 17 12 0 14 .116 .907 .120 .380
2002 California S NCAA 20 0 NCA 234 43 18 4 29 .155 .923 .153 .365
2003 California S NCAA 21 0 NCA 273 35 26 5 31 .114 .905 .146 .374
2003 Arizona Roya Ariz 21 Kc Rk 89 10 7 1 10 .101 .921 .134 .386
2003 Wilmington Caro 21 Kc A 7 3 1 0 1 .300 .857 .167 .143
2004 Wilmington Caro 22 Kc A 449 43 43 7 24 .087 .904 .076 .307
2005 Wichita Tex 23 Kc AA 283 32 23 8 20 .102 .919 .108 .282
2005 Omaha PCL 23 Kc AAA 16 0 1 0 1 .000 .938 .067 .188
2005 KC Royals AL 23 Kc MLB 81 6 11 2 2 .069 .864 .057 .235


shane costa makes great contact. he just needs a little power.

the royals have one great prospect, alex gordon, one good prospect, billy butler, and a lot of decent prospects. most of the guys on the list have legitimate shots at the majors. but it doesn't matter. there's no way they'll be good enough to contend anywhere in the foreseeable future.
Saturday, March 18, 2006
 
top prospects: tigers
dave dombrowski. wherever he goes, he builds a strong farm system. now he's got the tigers. they used to be crap. how are they now?


1. Justin Verlander, rhp
2. Joel Zumaya, rhp
3. Cameron Maybin, of
4. Brent Clevlen, of
5. Wilkin Ramirez, 3b
6. Humberto Sanchez, rhp
7. Jordan Tata, rhp
8. Tony Giarratano, ss
9. Jeff Larish, 1b
10. Kevin Whelan, rhp


i'm supposed to say something here. i mean, i can't just launch right into the player analysis.

how are you?


Career Pitching Statistics for Justin Verlander:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2002 Old Dominion NCAA 19 0 NCA 113.0 83 2 43 137 .092 .675 .007 1.91
2003 Old Dominion NCAA 20 0 NCA 116.1 94 2 43 139 .088 .686 .007 2.40
2004 Old Dominion NCAA 21 0 NCA 105.2 90 8 43 151 .096 .629 .031 3.49
2005 Lakeland FSL 22 Det A 86.0 70 3 19 104 .055 .683 .013 1.67
2005 Erie East 22 Det AA 32.2 11 1 7 32 .060 .706 .013 0.28
2005 Detroit Tige AL 22 Det MLB 11.1 15 1 5 7 .093 .857 .024 7.15


justin verlander killed everyone at old dominion. then he didn't have anyone to play baseball with. that was silly.

yeah. in his first season of professional baseball, justin verlander skipped straight to high-a. then he pitched in double-a, and was unchallenged. then he pitched in the majors.

what do you want me to say. he's good.


Career Pitching Statistics for Joel Zumaya:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2002 GCL Tigers GCL 17 Det Rk 37.1 21 2 11 46 .076 .654 .023 1.93
2003 West Michiga Midw 18 Det A 90.1 69 3 38 126 .101 .629 .014 2.79
2004 Lakeland FSL 19 Det A 115.2 90 10 58 108 .117 .753 .030 4.36
2004 Erie East 19 Det AA 20.0 19 6 10 29 .112 .633 .120 6.30
2005 Erie East 20 Det AA 107.1 71 8 52 143 .117 .636 .032 2.77
2005 Toledo IL 20 Det AAA 44.0 30 2 24 56 .129 .654 .019 2.66


joel zumaya is young, and he strikes people out. by the boatload. but he's got a little problem with walks. he's got enough juice to be effective anyway.


Career Batting Statistics for Cameron Maybin:


yep, that's right. we have no data on cameron maybin. he was drafted out of high school last year. he's apparently very talented.


Career Batting Statistics for Brent Clevlen:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2002 GCL Tigers GCL 18 Det Rk 105 8 24 3 5 .071 .771 .099 .330
2003 West Michiga Midw 19 Det A 484 76 111 12 29 .136 .771 .110 .260
2004 Lakeland FSL 20 Det A 425 48 127 6 29 .101 .701 .117 .224
2005 Lakeland FSL 21 Det A 496 70 118 18 32 .124 .762 .132 .302


so far, the detroit farm system is looking pretty thin. brent clevlen repeated a level, and he still has trouble making contact. and his power is only good, not great. the one thing in his favor is he's reasonably patient. patient hitters often show improvement. but he's got a long way to go.


Career Batting Statistics for Wilkin Ramirez:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 GCL Tigers GCL 17 Det Rk 201 14 51 5 13 .065 .746 .120 .275
2005 West Michiga Midw 19 Det A 498 42 143 16 23 .078 .713 .110 .262


what happened to him in 2004? did he get hurt, or is that year missing? we get our data from the baseball cube. occasionally there are errors.

but anyway what can we say about this 2005 season? it's terrible. low patience, terrible contact. . . . decent power, but terrible contact. why is he a prospect?

i guess baseball america's doing that thing they do where if there are no good prospects in the upper levels they pick some young guys. you might as well. young players improve, sometimes by a lot. all we can do with wilkin is wait and see.


Career Pitching Statistics for Humberto Sanchez:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2002 Oneonta NYPL 19 Det A 32.1 29 1 21 26 .143 .794 .010 3.62
2003 West Michiga Midw 20 Det A 116.0 107 3 78 96 .146 .789 .008 4.42
2004 Lakeland FSL 21 Det A 105.1 103 9 51 115 .109 .726 .030 5.21
2004 Erie East 21 Det AA 12.2 10 1 6 15 .111 .688 .030 2.13
2005 Erie East 22 Det AA 64.2 72 10 27 65 .092 .756 .050 5.57


ok, this is not a good farm system. humberto sanchez is decent, but not great. his stuff is not dominant, and his control is not good. and he's had some trouble with the long ball. i don't think he's gonna make it.


Career Pitching Statistics for Jordan Tata:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2002 Sam Houston NCAA 20 0 NCA 77.0 92 6 37 40 .103 .876 .021 5.38
2003 Sam Houston NCAA 21 0 NCA 75.1 93 4 32 62 .091 .806 .016 5.62
2003 Oneonta NYPL 21 Det A 73.1 64 1 20 60 .066 .789 .004 2.58
2004 West Michiga Midw 22 Det A 166.1 167 7 68 116 .093 .826 .013 3.35
2005 Lakeland FSL 24 Det A 155.0 138 12 41 134 .064 .778 .026 2.79


what a surprise, he's not very good. the control is pretty good, but the strikeouts are not. and he's old. 24 in a-ball.

a few years ago i was like "with dave dombrowski, the tigers will definitely contend." but has he lost it? what's going on, exactly? is it bad luck?

i wish i knew. i wish i knew.

no, don't say it's ok. it's not ok.


Career Batting Statistics for Tony Giarratano:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2001 Tulane U. NCAA 18 0 NCA 265 41 37 3 14 .134 .860 .075 .352
2002 Tulane U. NCAA 19 0 NCA 173 22 27 2 8 .113 .844 .068 .238
2003 Tulane U. NCAA 20 0 NCA 275 27 33 8 20 .089 .880 .116 .336
2003 Oneonta NYPL 20 Det A 192 14 22 3 15 .068 .885 .106 .328
2004 West Michiga Midw 21 Det A 166 27 22 1 7 .140 .867 .056 .285
2004 Lakeland FSL 21 Det A 204 17 38 5 11 .077 .814 .096 .376
2005 Erie East 22 Det AA 349 37 75 3 25 .096 .785 .102 .266
2005 Detroit Tige AL 22 Det MLB 42 5 7 1 0 .106 .833 .029 .143


tony giarratano is, as they say in the streets, not very good. he lacks contact, and power. he's a shortstop, so he can get away with not mashing, but his hitting is terrible. his defense is good, but his hitting is terrible.

this is gettin kind of fun, trashing prospects.


Career Batting Statistics for Jeff Larish:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2002 Arizona Stat NCAA 19 0 NCA 130 29 19 3 7 .182 .854 .090 .328
2003 Arizona Stat NCAA 20 0 NCA 240 84 42 18 20 .259 .825 .192 .372
2004 Arizona Stat NCAA 21 0 NCA 239 36 50 7 17 .131 .791 .127 .308
2005 Arizona Stat NCAA 22 0 NCA 253 64 60 23 19 .202 .763 .218 .324
2005 GCL Tigers GCL 22 Det Rk 19 5 5 0 1 .208 .737 .071 .222
2005 Oneonta NYPL 22 Det A 64 15 6 6 3 .190 .906 .155 .297


no, it's never fun.

where were we? this guy sucks. he couldn't even make contact in arizona, in college. ha! what a piece of crap!

i like that 2003 line: 84 walks, 240 at-bats. somehow his contact went down as he got older. how'd that happen?

finally, we get to piss on kevin whelan.


Career Pitching Statistics for Kevin Whelan:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2004 Texas AM U. NCAA 0 0 NCA 8.2 7 0 4 11 .108 .667 .000 4.15
2005 Texas AM U. NCAA 0 0 NCA 31.0 21 1 20 40 .149 .649 .014 2.90
2005 Oneonta NYPL 0 Det A 12.0 2 1 6 19 .136 .500 .053 2.25
2005 West Michiga Midw 0 Det A 12.1 4 0 2 22 .047 .463 .000 0.73


he's, like, never played, or something. what the hell?

the numbers we have are ridiculous. cons of .463 and .500. 12 innings is not a meaningful sample size, but it's still a lot of strikeouts.

so that's something.

wow, what a disappointment. i can no longer go around saying dave dombrowski is good. i have to say he sucks. this is really getting me down. i mean, have we no heroes any more? what is the world coming to?

i have to go before i start crying.

too late.
 
top prospects: white sox
the world series champions. they're not gonna repeat. why'm i hatin? they got lucky last year. to win the division. they won more games than they should have. whatever that means. the rotation is good, but not great. the closer is good, but not great. the lineup is bad. and one of these days, ozzie guillen is gonna implode.


1. Bobby Jenks, rhp
2. Brian Anderson, of
3. Ryan Sweeney, of
4. Josh Fields, 3b
5. Jerry Owens, of
6. Robert Valido, ss
7. Ray Liotta, lhp
8. Lance Broadway, rhp
9. Francisco Hernandez, c
10. Sean Tracey, rhp


you all know what i'm doing. these are the top ten prospects from baseball america.


Career Pitching Statistics for Bobby Jenks:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2000 Butte Pio 19 Ana Rk 52.2 61 2 44 42 .167 .808 .011 7.86
2002 Rancho Cucam Cali 21 Ana A 65.1 50 4 46 64 .158 .740 .022 4.82
2002 Arkansas Tex 21 Ana AA 58.0 49 2 44 58 .165 .740 .012 4.66
2003 Azl Angels Ariz 22 Ana Rk 4.0 2 0 0 5 .000 .643 .000 0.00
2003 Arkansas Tex 22 Ana AA 83.0 56 2 51 103 .143 .662 .010 2.17
2004 Azl Angels Ariz 23 Ana Rk 3.1 2 0 3 5 .200 .583 .000 8.10
2004 Rancho Cucam Cali 23 Ana A 3.2 5 0 7 3 .304 .813 .000 19.64
2004 Salt Lake PCL 23 Ana AAA 12.1 19 1 6 13 .097 .768 .023 8.76
2005 Birmingham Sou 24 Chw AA 41.0 34 1 20 48 .113 .694 .009 2.85
2005 Chi White So AL 24 Chw MLB 39.1 34 3 15 50 .090 .671 .029 2.75


pretty obvious choice for top prospect. he made the majors, and struck out 50 kids in 39 innings. ok, some of em weren't kids. but he's good. control is a little iffy. but he's got the stuff.


Career Batting Statistics for Brian Anderson:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2002 U. of Arizon NCAA 20 0 NCA 162 28 31 5 4 .147 .809 .069 .275
2003 U. of Arizon NCAA 21 0 NCA 235 26 42 14 20 .100 .821 .176 .366
2003 Great Falls Pio 21 Chw Rk 49 10 10 2 3 .169 .796 .128 .388
2004 WinstonSalem Caro 22 Chw A 255 32 44 8 26 .111 .827 .161 .319
2004 Birmingham Sou 22 Chw AA 186 22 30 4 12 .106 .839 .103 .270
2005 Charlotte IL 23 Chw AAA 448 44 115 16 27 .089 .743 .129 .295
2005 Chi White So AL 23 Chw MLB 34 0 12 2 1 .000 .647 .136 .176


we talked about this guy in january. he's not ready yet. he may never be.


Career Batting Statistics for Ryan Sweeney:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 Bristol App 18 Chw Rk 67 8 10 2 3 .107 .851 .088 .313
2003 Great Falls Pio 18 Chw Rk 34 2 3 0 2 .056 .912 .065 .353
2004 WinstonSalem Caro 19 Chw A 517 47 65 7 25 .083 .874 .071 .283
2005 Birmingham Sou 20 Chw AA 434 42 53 1 25 .088 .878 .068 .298


ryan sweeney is young and makes good contact. also he's left-handed. doesn't seem that fast, though, so he'll have to develop power. that's a longshot.


Career Batting Statistics for Josh Fields:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2002 Oklahoma Sta NCAA 19 0 NCA 108 17 22 3 12 .136 .796 .174 .383
2003 Oklahoma Sta NCAA 20 0 NCA 235 27 46 12 13 .103 .804 .132 .358
2004 Oklahoma Sta NCAA 21 0 NCA 247 50 45 10 22 .168 .818 .158 .362
2004 WinstonSalem Caro 21 Chw A 259 20 74 7 16 .072 .714 .124 .285
2005 Birmingham Sou 22 Chw AA 483 68 142 16 27 .123 .706 .126 .252


josh fields. josh fields has some power. but not really a lot. and his contact is a problem. i don't think he's gonna make it.

the only good thing you can say is he's progressed quickly. that can mean a lot. it would have to, in this case.

if he's gonna make it, he'll have to do a lot of hard work with contact. the power would slip. then, hopefully in 2007, he could put it together, and get some experience in 2008. in the show. then maybe in 2009 he could start producing. that would give him a solid four or five year peak.

the contact, though. that's the problem.


Career Batting Statistics for Jerry Owens:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 Vermont NYPL 22 Mtl A 8 0 2 0 0 .000 .750 .000 .125
2004 Savannah SAL 23 Mtl A 420 49 59 1 19 .104 .860 .055 .292
2005 Birmingham Sou 24 Chw AA 524 54 72 2 27 .093 .863 .064 .331


ok. jerry owens. ba seems to consistently underrate this type. the lefty contact-hitting speedster. but it can work. i gotta say owens is a better prospect than anyone but jenks. that's more a result of a crappy farm system, but owens could make it. i give him better than 50%. by make it, i mean play through arbitration.


Career Batting Statistics for Robert Valido:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2003 Bristol App 18 Chw Rk 220 22 28 6 17 .091 .873 .120 .307
2004 Kannapolis SAL 19 Chw A 458 41 59 4 25 .082 .871 .073 .252
2005 WinstonSalem Caro 20 Chw A 516 25 64 8 35 .046 .876 .095 .288


he stole 52 bases in winston-salem. he got caught five times. so that's good. and his defense is good. and his contact is good. and he's young. these things are enough to make him a quality prospect.

the bad things are patience and power. patience is just a matter of being smarter at the plate. it really is. don't give me that bullshit about it's hard to tell if a pitch is a strike. just take it. take the pitch. first pitch, take it. second pitch, unless it's right down the middle, take it. see? then maybe it's 2-0. then maybe you'll walk. when you swing, you're doing the pitcher a favor.

there's a little bit of power here, but i would say he'll never be a 3 or 4 hitter. he might make it though. he's young.


Career Pitching Statistics for Ray Liotta:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2002 Tulane U. NCAA 19 0 NCA 42.0 56 2 20 23 .099 .874 .013 7.50
2004 Great Falls Pio 21 Chw Rk 63.2 59 1 28 65 .101 .740 .005 2.54
2005 WinstonSalem Caro 22 Chw A 49.2 46 1 16 37 .076 .810 .006 1.45
2005 Kannapolis SAL 22 Chw A 115.1 108 5 35 107 .072 .764 .014 2.26


big lefty with mojo. decent contact rates. good control. ray liotta is almost definitely gonna make it.

the ceiling isn't that high because he's not a strikeout pitcher. but if you throw strikes and limit home runs, you can play in any league.


Career Pitching Statistics for Lance Broadway:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2005 Texas Christ NCAA 22 0 NCA 117.0 83 2 35 151 .075 .652 .007 1.62
2005 WinstonSalem Caro 22 Chw A 55.0 68 4 20 58 .079 .751 .023 4.58


lance broadway was a killer in college. then he went straight to high-a and continued to dominate. a little unlucky with the hits.

i think he's got a good shot.


Career Batting Statistics for Francisco Hernandez:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl AAB W K HR 23 WAL CON POW AVG
2004 Bristol App 18 Chw Rk 184 15 32 5 14 .075 .826 .125 .326
2004 Kannapolis SAL 18 Chw A 12 0 3 0 1 .000 .750 .111 .333
2005 Great Falls Pio 19 Chw Rk 215 22 25 6 19 .093 .884 .132 .349
2005 Kannapolis SAL 19 Chw A 155 16 29 3 5 .094 .813 .063 .222


he's a switch hitter. and he's a little guy. you don't see that too much with a catcher. but he looks good. a bit like dioner navarro. except navarro is only two years older, and he's in the majors.

hernandez doesn't project to have the same success as navarro, but he's got a good shot. contact is strong, and power is possible. he's at least a few years away. he's young.


Career Pitching Statistics for Sean Tracey:
Year Team Lg. Age Org Lvl IP H HR BB SO WAL CON HRP ERA
2002 U. of Califo NCAA 21 0 NCA 106.0 101 4 44 96 .095 .771 .012 4.50
2002 Bristol App 21 Chw Rk 65.2 57 4 19 50 .070 .803 .020 3.02
2003 Great Falls Pio 22 Chw Rk 92.0 90 5 22 74 .057 .798 .017 3.72
2003 Kannapolis SAL 22 Chw A 41.2 51 4 46 28 .207 .841 .027 9.50
2004 WinstonSalem Caro 23 Chw A 148.1 108 5 69 130 .111 .765 .012 2.73
2005 Birmingham Sou 24 Chw AA 163.2 154 13 76 106 .105 .836 .024 4.07


sean tracey is no good. it's hard to believe he's the number 10 prospect. he doesn't strike people out, and he walks people. you just can't succeed if you do that. you have to either strike people out, or not walk people. or both. it's nice that he limits home runs, but it's not enough. what is he, a sinkerballer?

so that's the white sox. their system's not that good, but they got some guys who could make it. no stars, though.

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