29. A. Jason Dubois, 1b/OF, .321/.422/.562 in 361 ABs at Daytona.
29. B. Kevin Collins, 1B. .342/.399/.668 in 187 ABs at Boise.
29. C. Brian Dopirak, 1B, 6-4, 225 , .253 in 79 ABs at Mesa. Scouted as one of the top power hitters of the 2002 draft - CW says he'll either flame out in AA or hit 40 homers...
29. D. Brandon Sing, 3B, .248/.348/.434 - 18 HR - in 440 ABs at Daytona.
These four guys all end up at #29 for different reasons. I'm one of the few people who actually tries to distinguish between guys who can just flat play (read: numbers), and guys who have great tools (read: scouts). On the numbers side, we have Collins and Dubois. Dubois just keeps hitting. Nobody seems to care much about him, but this year he moved from 1B to OF almost full time and seemed to handle himself well. I've seen him hit, and his swing does tend to get a little long, and we'll know at AA whether that's really true, but geez the guy can just flat mash. His .984 OPS was in the top 3 for players who played a full season in A ball. Scouts don't love him, but I don't care, he's exactly the kind of guy that is fun to root for, and if he succeeds next year, I might even be called smart for including him on this list (when I'm pretty sure nobody else will).
Collins is basically Dubois without the three years of success. He killed the ball at Boise this year with a whopping 1.067 OPS (!!), but that was in short season and the skeptics will point out that he was a little old for the league (he's 21). We'll see, but if he keeps hitting, who am I to say that the scouts don't like him?
Dopirak is the most highly regarded of these four and was a 2nd round pick of the Cubs last summer. Allegedly, he's got tons of raw power and is decent defensively at 1B, but marginal in the OF. The Cubs have had enough success with guys like Dubois that they could afford to take a flier on Dopirak to see if this 50 HR power ever develops. Until he plays at a bit more advanced level, and succeeds there, I'm gonna keep him on the back burner since I don't know much about him.
Sing is basically what Dopirak will probably be in a few years - a guy with tremendous power, but who can't seem to let everyone know whether or not he's going to be any good. He did slug 18 HRs this year, and his progression in HRs from year to year is nice, but he usually is pretty error prone at 3B and his BA has never been very good. That would be ok if he hit 30 HRs, but 18 is pushing the limit. He'll obviously face a huge challenge this year at AA, but if he can improve the BA into the .260-.270 range, and keep his decent walk rate, I can see him in the top 20 next year.
28. Matt Clanton, RHP, 6-2, 210. Only pitched in 1 inning at Boise at the end of the year
Clanton was a sandwich pick last year out of Orange Coast College. He has a strong pitching frame and flashes the makings of good velocity. Right now he's consistently around 90, but scouts think he projects well and could add a couple MPH as he gets older. His best pitch, when he can control it, is a sharp breaking curve that has the bite of a slider but is more of a 1 to 7 type of pitch. He also throws a changeup. He pitched in limited action last year and his ranking is based almost exclusively on his "hype." I look forward to actually getting to see him throw this Spring in Mesa.
27. J.J. Johnson, OF, .240/.298/.324 in 420 ABs at short A Lansing
What a difference a year makes. Last year, Johnson was in everybody's top 15 after two successful years in Mesa and Boise. Baseball America even named him one of the league's top prospects in its annual roundup. Maybe the cold weather didn't agree with him. I've seen him hit, and he has a nice, quick stroke. He is very athletic and plays an above average OF, after spending some time at 3B. Scouts love his "tools" and if it all works out, he's one of those guys people will say has a great "baseball body." Word is that he fell into a slump early last year, and he began swinging at everything to break out of it. It's too early to write him off, but he'll likely be back at Lansing this year. If he rebounds, he could easily move quickly.
26. Matt Craig, IF, 6-2, 200. Only .193/.252/.314 at Boise after being a 3rd round pick.
Struggled with wood in limited exposure at Boise, but is a switch hitter out of the University of Richmond. Has excellent baseball "smarts" (how does one define that anyway) and flashes a nice glove most of time. Played alot of 3B with the Cubs, where they feel he will make the most impact. If that's the case, he'll have to have a little more pop in his bat than he did in college. Still, he's athletic with soft hands and is worth giving a few years of development time before really figuring him out. Switch hitting infielders don't exactly grow on trees and the Cubs feel his gap power might translate to home run power as he gets older. Probably will return to Boise, but might scratch his way to Lansing.
25. John Leicester, RHP, 2-2, 4.61 ERA in 27 IP at AA, 2-3 3.97 in 81 IP at Daytona. Low Ks.
Slowly but surely creeping up my list. Here's a guy who was 0-11 his senior year in college, and the first scouting reports on him were that he threw 86-87 and has average stuff. I saw him almost two years ago and thought he had nice mechanics but really wasn't anything overly special. Then I saw him last spring and thought he had really improved his stuff and he had a great idea about pitching. In fact, last year I said "He’s one of those guys who might add 2 mph and just really jump on you." Then he goes to the AFL this year and reports are that he's up into the 92-94 range (!!), but was having severe control problems. #1 - it's a great sign that the Cubs sent him to the AFL. #2 - it's an even better sign that he continues to get better, bit by bit. #3 - it's still better that he's added so much velocity. Given that he has textbook mechanics and a good idea of how to setup hitters, he's a clear choice for sleeper on the bottom half of this list. He'll probably go back to West Tennessee to start the year, but I'll be watching very closely to see if this newfound velocity translates into better results.
24. Reynel Pinto, LHP, 3-3 5.51 ERA in 32 IP at Daytona, 7-5, 3.31 in 98 IP at Lansing, 92 Ks.
Pinto is one of those raw left handed arms that is tought to project. Reports are that he has decent breaking stuff and good whip on his fastball such that he projects to yet add some more velocity. What we know now is that he's young and has enough raw stuff to be on the radar screen. We'll know alot more this year if he's able to have two straight good years in terms of development (he was off the map almost completely last year).
23. Alfredo Francisco, 3B, .255 in 188 ABs at Mesa, but scouts rave about his body and his projectability
Francisco has received alot of hype since Baseball America saw him in the Spring and raved about some of his moon shots in batting practice and his athletic body. Unfortunately, his numbers didn't exactly bear out the hype. He's the prototypical guy that scouts love - he's still learning the game (ie raw), he has a great arm, he projects to have excellent power, and he already has above average speed. Some might even say he projects as a "five tool" player someday. Unfortunately, last year he played more like Quincy Carter than Sammy Sosa. He's still very, very young so he's allowed to do that for awhile, but hopefully he can hit better than .255 next year, which may be in Mesa again.
22. Sergio Mitre, RHP, 8-10, 2.83 in 158 IP at short A Lansing. 95 Ks.
I've had conflicting thoughts about Mitre since he was drafted in the 7th round out of a California JC 2 years ago. His best asset is a real plus sinker that moves hard and down in the zone. He is successful at peppering the zone in and out with this pitch and as a result gets tons of groundballs. When I saw him last Spring, his breaking stuff was just mediocre, but reports are that he improved them significantly down the stretch as he ended the year pitching very, very well. His velocity is not exceptional, 88-90, but it doesn't have to be with his movement. If his breaking stuff did improve, he should proceed through the minors a level a year, without too much variation in his numbers, making him a candidate to contribute with the Cubs in '04 or '05.
21. Felix Sanchez, LHP, 6-6, 4.15 in 119 IP at short A Lansing. 101 Ks.
Sanchez is the pitcher's version of Francisco. He also got tons of hype from Baseball America, including a mention for hitting 98 on the radar gun this spring in a spring game (I was actually there that day). He's left handed, and throws from a 3/4 slot so that he gets decent movement on the ball. The problem is that he pitches like he's a high school sophomore - a kid who is all arm and no brains - or somebody who just began pitching (which, actually, he did). His mechanics are horribly inconsistent, and his breaking stuff goes from very good to below average on a regular basis. The Cubs are also concerned about his makeup and would like to see him grow up a little this year, evidently he's a pretty loose cannon who doesn't seem to work all that hard or focus all that well. But his upside is clearly very, very high and he's got the kind of stuff where he could make a Juan Cruz type of jump if he starts putting it together. What's more likely, is that he'll put it together every 3rd time out and wow people with 10Ks in 5 IP, but then walk 5 guys in 2 IP the next time. For him, if he can put together the mental and mechanical side, his talent could take over, but I wouldn't expect that for another few years yet.
20. Aaron Krawiec, LHP, 6-6, 210, 7-10, 4.09 ERA in 159 IP at high A Daytona
Maddening inconsistency plagued Krawiec's first few years in the Cubs system, and few can forget the night he struck out 17 in 8 IP at Lansing a few years ago. He gave up 13 runs combined over his next two starts. His pluses are that he has loose and easy delivery from the left side and also adds some deception. He has excellent sink on his FB and flashes a plus change to RH hitters. When he's on, he works with alot of FBs around the zone and puts away hitter with his change or curve, which right now is his 3rd best pitch. Last year, Krawiec was much more consistent and seemed to be concentrating more on outs and less on strikeouts. He lasted longer in games, and though he gave up more hits, I'm betting the experience did him some good. There have been rumors that he picks at the zone too much and some nights umpires just don't give him the corners and he's forced to throw over the middle of the plate - something his 90 mph FB shouldn't be subjected to on a routine basis. Like most pitchers, command will make or break him, but the Cubs hope he's realized that every pitch doesn't have to be exactly perfect - just good enough, especially with his movement. Being left handed, he'll get plenty of chances and will face a test that Leicester and Wellemeyer handled decently well last year in AA. He's another guy that could move very fast if it clicks, but he's probably a year away from doing that.
19. Luis Montanez, SS, 6-2, 175 .265/.333/.353 in 487 ABs at high A Daytona.
Cubs #1 draft pick in 2000, Montanez has been a bit of a disappointment for such a high pick. Particularly disappointing last year were his power numbers - only 21 doubles and 4 HRs in almost 500 ABs. The good news is that his walk rate improved, even if slightly from last year and his OBA improved by about 20 points. He also has very soft hands and at least a decent arm from short. Many have speculated that he will end up at 3rd or 2nd because of his defense, and the Cubs played him at 2nd for 20+ games last year. I still hold out hope that he can make it at short, if only to improve his trade value or utility value. I like his approach at the plate, and I think his walk rate will continue to improve. It's not so much that he's not selective, it's just that he's aggressive in advantage counts and swings at alot of 3-1 and 2-0 pitches. The merits of that approach can be debated, but the big test will be this year at AA. Even if the Cubs move him to second, they still think he'll learn to lift the ball as he gets older, sending some of his deeper drives over the fence. A .270 20 HR middle infielder is pretty valuable, regardless of what numbers he put up in the minors, and I think there's a decent chance that will happen. Unfortunately, there's a better chance that the breaking balls in AA will make his head spin. He's still worth a shot, but after being on the top ten the past two years as a result of his "tools" and "hype" he's quickly fading and is exhibit D for why guys like Pie and Dopirak are not ranked higher. If his numbers this year are at least similar to this year's, against the better pitching of AA, I think it will show a slow but steady path on his way to a career as a utility player. Heck, Mike Benjamin still has a job.
18. Ricky Nolasco, RHP, 7-2, 2.48, 92K, 90 IP at Boise
Nolasco is a big of an enigma - his numbers obviously were excellent, but I found that sometimes he'd have 12 Ks in 6 IP and sometimes he'd have 2 Ks in 5 IP. To be honest, this is actually a good sign - learning to pitch without your best stuff is one of the toughest things a pitcher needs to learn to be successful, and my only concern is that it might happen a little too frequently to Nolasco. In his defense, he's been behind a number of strong prospects the past few years and pitched behind Andy Sisco at Boise last year. Just like most of the other pitchers in the Cubs system, if he were a part of the White Sox system, he'd probably be in the top 10 and clearly would have been ranked higher in earlier years for the Cubs when their system was much, much leaner. I'd like to see how Nolasco handles cold weather and a full season of A ball before I get too excited, but he is not one to be forgotten as one gets lost in the waves of arms the Cubs have in their sytem. Oh what an excellent problem it is to have when guys don't get enough attention.
17. Chadd Blasko, RHP, 6-6, 215
Great pitcher's body drafted as a supplemental pick last year out of Purdue. The thing that I like about him is that he has a heavy fastball with good sink, and as you've noticed, I have a soft spot for sinker ballers. Scouts say he has a "power" arm. I haven't seen him pitch yet, but I've read alot about him and really like his potential. So far, his biggest problems have been inconsistent mechanics and an inconsistent breaking ball. But at 6-6, 205, he's got a great frame and I have no doubts that the Cubs coaches can help to smooth his mechanics. His velocity has been as high as 96, but is more consistently 90-93. 90-93 with sink is better than a straight and flat 96 anyway. He hasn't done anything yet, and his spot on my ranking is based on his hype, but most reviews on him are very very positive and he's another guy I will be watching closely this Spring in Mesa.
16. Billy Petrick, RHP, 6-6, 220, 2-1, 1.71, 21 H and 35 K in 31 IP at Rookie Mesa
Petrick was one of the top long snappers in the nation in high school and had football scholarship offers from a number of schools, but thankfully chose the Cubs over football. He's still only 17, and at 6-6 220, he's got a tremendous pitching frame. His velocity is decent right now, but he might pull a John Leicester in a few years and suddenly start popping 94. His curve is inconsistent, but is very good when it's on. He is even more projectable in that his mechanics are still pretty raw - he looks like the kind of kid who just
picked up pitching a year or two ago after a coach noticed he had a good arm from the outfield. This may be true, I don't know, but the Cubs are very excited about his success last summer. He and Jones will form the core of what has the makings of being a ridiculously good rotation at Boise next year (seems like they do every year), along with Matt Clanton and Chad Blasko (not to mention Bobbie Browlie if he ever signs). At this point, he's too inexperienced to rank much higher but Petrick is a nice addition to the list of young arms the Cubs are accumulating.
15. Justin Jones, LHP, 6-4, 185, 3-1, 1.80, 31 H in 50IP, 53 K at rookie Mesa
At only 18 and drafted in the 2nd round out of high school last year, Jones was one of the many strong picks the Cubs added to the system in the early rounds. He is a very lanky 6-4 and could conceivably add 15-20 pounds as he grows up and fills out. Did I mention that he's left handed? He already has two plus pitches in a 90 mph FB with decent movement and a good sharp curve. He still needs work on a changeup, but so do all young pitchers not named Maddux. Jones is still really far away (despite those who have him their Cub Top 10), and like many prospects, he hasn't proven himself in back to back years yet. If he puts up these kind of numbers again next year, regardless of level, he'll probably crack the top 10, and if he were in another organization he'd be much higher. But for now he'll have to settle for being one of the youngest prospects in a very deep Cub farm system.
14. John Webb, RHP, 6-3, 190, 4-5, 4.52 in 51 IP at AA.
Webb is another of my grand sleepers. Two years ago he was in Baseball America's Top 10 Prospects List, then he was felled by arm surgery. Last year he rebounded with pretty decent numbers for a guy just off major surgery. His strengths are his command and his ability to get ground balls. He is around the plate most of the time and the Cubs are excited about his potential to pitch in the tall grass of Wrigley Field. His velocity this past year was nothing special, but that wasn't surprising given the surgery and it will be an excellent sign if he rebounds this year to the 88-90 range he was in before surgery. His ERA may have been high, but he still managed to allow less than 1 hit per inning (only 1.2 WHIP). He's fallen off the radar screen on almost everyone's prospect lists, but I think he's primed for a breakout year if his arm stays healthy. I may have him a bit high, but I was very, very impressed with the way he handled AA fresh off of surgery.
13. Jae-Kuk Ryu, RHP, 6-3, 175, 5-1, 3.57, 56K, 53IP, 45H at Boise, 7.11 ERA in 19 IP at Lansing, 21 Ks.
One of the fruits of the Cubs recent Korean presence thanks to Pacific Rim coordinator Leon Lee. Lee somehow fell out of graces with the organization last year and ended up as a hitting coach at AAA Iowa. Then this offseason he accepted a position coaching in Japan, so it is unclear what sort of continuing presence the Cubs have in Korea now that Lee is gone.
Anyway, back to Ryu. He has a lean body and throws 4-5 different pitches. His strengths mostly are: (a) he's 18, (b) he's got the makings of a power arm. Did I mention that he's only 18? Now you're noticing the trend. Last year he had an amazing tendency to both be hurt by his defense and also to fade late in games (though this was likely due more to pitch and inning limits rather than a problem with stamina), but the good news is that he rarely got hit in the first innings of most of his starts. I don't have the stats at hand, but I'd be willing to bet his K rate in his first 3 innings was over 9 per 9 IP, and his K rate after innings 1-3 was around 6 per 9 IP. Amazingly, he is said to have excellent command of all five of his pitches - a very advanced sign at such a young age. His splitter gets him alot of ground balls and at this point the biggest questions are whether he can adapt to the United States culture. He still hardly knows the language and that has led to some communication breakdowns in games. That's what is so tough about Asian players is the fact that there are so few of them here to give him a support network. If a player is from Latin America but doesn't speak English very well, it's usually ok because not only are there alot of Latin players in baseball, but many coaches now speak Spanish as well. I cannot imagine what it must be like for a shy kid who doesn't speak English to live in the United States, but I'm told he smiles alot and is trying very, very hard to learn more about the culture and language. If he can do that, the pitching part must seem easy. I think he'll struggle more than some want him to this year as he plays his first full season in cold weather, but I'll be looking more for how he reacts than how he pitches.
12. Steve Smyth, LHP, 4-4, 3.58 in 73 IP at AA, 3-2 5.81 at AAA, 9.35 ERA in 26 innings for the Cubs.
I think Smyth gets a bad rap. He had a pretty rough month pitching for the lifeless Cubs in August/September and suddenly people were calling him a bust and a chump. Let me make one thing clear: Steve Smyth is not a bust! He's had all of 26 innings in the major leagues - not exactly a good sample size. His numbers in AA (and in previous years) were simply too good to write off. His peripheral numbers in AA were excellent - 74 Ks and only 62 hits in 73 IP. Plus, this was his first year off of minor shoulder surgery, and nobody really knew what to expect from him. Unfortunately, he was bad-mouthed so much by the press and by Bruce Kimm that it's tough to know what sort of hit his psyche took. Smyth isn't flashy and rarely heats up over 90, but he's consistently high 80s and his FB has pretty good sink. He has a plus change and a sometimes above average breaking ball. Assuming his head is ok, Smyth will likely start in AAA, and I think he'll probably really step it up and have similar AAA numbers this year to his AA numbers last year. Knowing how much Jim Hendry loves left handers, if he succeeds this year, I won't be at all surprised if Zambrano or Cruz are made available - not now, but sometime during the season.
11. Felix Pie, OF, .321/.385/ .569 in 218 ABs at short season Mesa
Pie, whose name is pronounced Pee-ay, is another of the Cubs youngest players getting a great deal of media attention. His numbers at Mesa were very good, and he excited scouts and coaches with his defense, speed and his league leading 13 triples (!!). His walk rate is decent, and he had 33 extra base hits in only 218 at bats this year. It is almost impossible to project what guys like Pie will become given his age and the relatively low level of competition he's faced. I like Pie alot, but I think it's silly to include him in the top 10 when he really has only had a couple of good months of baseball so far in his career. I mean seriously, how many guys have the Cubs had who tore up rookie ball and scouts drooled over their tools? If you don't remember the name Earl Cunningham, then this list is probably teaching you alot, but if you do you probably understand my concern. Pie's upside IS huge, and scouts drool over his 5 tool potential. But, to me, I say let's let him prove it in a full year of competition before we call him the second coming of Sammy Sosa. Just look to JJ Johnson for what can happen when a player plays a full year in a cold climate. If Pie has another yearlike this one, I'll be happy to put him in the top 5 next year and write about how I didn't give him enough credit.
10. Matt Bruback, RHP, 9-7, 3.15 ERA in 174 IP at AA. 158 Ks. #40 on my list last year - this is exactly why Leiscester or Pinto could move quickly.
I think it's about time that somebody gave Matt some love. To do what he did at AA last year and hardly get noticed is just wrong. I know that he pitched in a pitcher's park and what is largely a pitcher's league, but so what? He was almost at a K per IP and he was remarkably consistent. He led all of AA in Ks with 158 , he was #2 in innings pitched (174) in AA, and #3 in ERA (3.16) in the SL. These are really very good numbers. If he has a weakness, it's that he's significantly less effective against LH hitters than RH hitters - to the tune of a .208/.286 vs .273/.383 split (BA and SLG). His progress last year is exactly why you have to still be thinking about a guy like Leicester - I mean, these numbers he put up at AA were better than the ones Juan Cruz put up in AA a few years ago. Last Spring I was fortunate enough to watch Alan Dunn, the Cubs AA pitching coach, work extensively with Bruback on side mounds. They focused less on mechanics and stuff and more on patterns of pitches and mentality. Whatever it was, it seemed to work. Bruback should be one of the few prospects in the Iowa rotation this year, and although the Cubs and scout watchers have largely ignored him until now, he'll force their hand if he puts up these kinds of numbers in AAA. I remember about 4-5 years ago when Miguel Batista was in the system, he threw 5-6 excellent games in a row for Iowa and even Ed Lynch noticed - Batista came up and pitched pretty well, and people stopped caring about whether he was a real prospect or what he had done in A ball 3 years earlier. There's a strong caveat that the Cubs have a pretty stacked rotation as it is, so Bruback's chance might end up in relief, but I hope he has the same fate as Batista this year.
9. Luke Hagerty, LHP, 6-7, 230 5-3, 1.13, 50K, 48 IP, 32 H at Boise.
Pitched in the shadow of last year's overall #1 pick Bryan Bullington last year at Ball State, Hagerty exploded onto the scene at Boise after signing. At 6-7, 230 he has a long and pretty lean body and one scouts love because they get to use words like "projectable" and "when he fills out" or "when he strengthens his trunk." 32 H in 48 IP with 50 Ks is really good. Allegedly his fastball is just average at 88-90, but he has what is usually a plus slider with tight spin and a good change that he uses against right handed hitters. His command of all three pitches is also pretty advanced, meaning he could move quickly the next couple of years. That's usually the advantage of drafting guys like Hagerty - their experience in college generally lends itself to much more polish and command. A guy like Justin Jones is still a great prospect, no doubt, but it'll certainly take him longer to move than Hagerty. He'll still just be 22 when next year rolls around and the Cubs are salivating over his size and body and his ability to throw the ball on a downward plane. The track record on tall college pitchers like this is pretty good, and I've heard more than one scout compare him to Mark Mulder (from Michigan State) of the As. Mulder moved very quickly through the ranks on his way to becoming one of the league's top pitchers and the Cubs hope Hagerty follows a similar path.
8. Francis Beltran, RHP, 6-5, 220 - 2-2, 2.59, 23 saves, 43 Ks in 41 IP at AA
Few pitchers have made as much progress over the past few years as Beltran. Two years ago I saw him in Spring Training as another guy with a nice arm but nothing overly special. He threw 90-92 but was pretty wild and tired quickly. At the time, the Cubs were trying him as a starter just to get some innings under his belt. At the end of last summer I saw Beltran pitch an inning against the Reds from the 3rd row behind home plate at Wrigley, and it's like our little boy is all grown up now. At 6-5, he's got a nice mound presence and is pretty physically imposing. What's more imposing were the three straight 96 mph heaters he blew by the first hitter of the inning. What was even more imposing was the nasty 87 mph slider he broke off on the next hitter after he had fouled off a fastball. Simply put, Beltran's stuff is filthy. He has a true, legit 95 mph fastball and a sharp slider to back it up with. When he first came up to the Cubs, he showed some typical rookie signs - couldn't control his fastball, didn't hold runners very well - basically he looked scared. But that night at Wrigley, that all seemed to be behind him, and I really think that the time he spent with the Cubs at the end of last season will give him an edge as he heads to Spring Training. To be totally honest, I think he has a real good shot of breaking camp in the Cubs pen, especially if the Cubs don't go and sign 38 middle relievers at the Winter Meetings. If they do, he can go to Iowa and close in the cold weather there. His control sometimes abandons him and as a reliever, his control will particularly be an issue. I happen to think that in the end he'll just end up being "wildly effective" - he may not hit his spots all the time with his fastball, but his movement and velocity will allow him to get away with it most of the time. At West Tennessee this year walked less than 2 per 9 IP while allowing less than 5 hits per 9. Now I wouldn't expect that in the big leagues, but there isn't any reason to think that he will suddenly walk 7 per 9 or allow 11 hits per 9. He certainly won't close this year, but he has the stuff to and might be an option in '04.
One note - these three guys are all pretty close - about as close as any three guys on the list, so they are pretty much interchangeable in terms of order. I consider #s 2-4 to be very close as well, but for different reasons. Check in tomorrow for the final installment. Email me here. Enjoy!
7. Angel Guzman, RHP, 6-2, 180, 6-2, 2.39 in 94 IP at high A Daytona, 74 K, 5-2 1.89 in 52 IP at low-A Lansing - 42 H and 49 Ks.
Guzman is a kid who burst onto the scene in rookie ball a few years ago, and then really caught everyone's eye last winter when he pitched very well against good competition in Latin America. His FB is only 89-91, not the 93-94 that somehow keeps getting reported, but he gets good movement and has pretty good deception for a right hander. Seeing him pitch for the first time, you might call him a "short-armer" since he doesn't have real long arm action like many pitchers do. The other thing I find interesting about him is that he takes a very, very short stride - it's really about as short as I have ever seen. Still, he's able to get excellent sink on the ball and he's smart about using his sinker and setting hitters up. He breezed through Lansing last year, and though he encountered a few struggles in Daytona, he was still largely effective. He has a good to very good change, but his breaking ball varies from below average to pretty good. If he can maintain his consistency with his sinker and improve his breaking stuff, there's no reason he can't continue to succeed. At 22, AA will obviously be quite a test (actually he's still 21 - happy birthday this saturday), but I tend to think that his sinker is the kind of pitch that should be able to carry him through the rough days when he can't find his other stuff. He seems to be remarkably durable and his change gives him a pitch with which to attack lefties. With a good spring, he might break camp in AA. If not, he'll go back to Daytona but would certainly end up in West Tennessee by year end. He'll make a great #3 starter in a few years.
6. Todd Wellemeyer, RHP, 6-3, 195, 3-3, 4.70 in 46 AA IP, 2-4 3.79 with 87Ks and only 63 H in 73 IP at high Daytona.
I debated the relative merits of Wellemeyer and Guzman for a long time knowing full well that everyone and their brother has Guzman ranked higher if not much, much higher. Having watched Wellemeyer for the past two years, I feel like I have a pretty good sense for the progress he's made as a Cub, and the results of his experience in the Arizona Fall League this year confirm that. In a league known for its hitting prospects, Wellemeyer cruised to the tune of 40 Ks in 34 IP to go with a 3.12 ERA and only 24 hits allowed. Scouts watching the league say that he was as good as any pitcher in the league. While Hee Seop Choi was hitting bombs left and right, many discounted it because there weren't many top pitching prospects in the AFL this year. We can't say that about Wellemeyer. His numbers this year at AA weren't exceptional, but he only started 8 times. Wellemeyer features two fastballs, a harder flatter one that can legitimately get dialed up to around 96, and a two seamer that has decent but not great movement at around 92. He has an excellent and deceptive changeup, and he throws two separate breaking balls - a bigger almost offspeed curve, and a sharp slider. If he has a weakness, it's with consistency with his breaking balls and then following that up with a well placed fastball. When he's on, he consistently overmatches hitters with high gas and great soft stuff away. He moves the ball around effectively and seems to be able to really gear up for tougher hitters. Scouts like his makeup and coaches like his attitude and bulldog mentality on the mound. Further, he seems to be able to maintain his velocity pretty deep into games - reports I saw of the AFL were that he was still throwing 94 or so in the 5th inning (he never went longer) which is a pretty good sign. All in all, Wellemeyer has the makings of a legit #2 rotation guy. Some feel he might be a strong relief pitcher, but I'd rather we saw pitchers with only two pitches go through that transition - Wellemeyer's arsenal is certainly good enough to use when facing hitters three and even four times. He'll probably go back to AA to start the year, but it wouldn't take much to get him to move up - an injury to Zambrano, a trade, whatever - Wellemeyer and Bruback are the closest to the majors of any of the Cub pitching prospects.
5. Brendan Harris, 3b/2b, .321/.345/.547 in 53 ABs at AA / .329/.395/.532 in 425 ABs at long A Dayton.
Another in the list of Cub prospects who "don't get no respect" - to borrow from Rodney Dangerfield. I guess the reason Harris isn't liked more is that he doesn't have that one tool that is amazing - he doesn't project to have 40 HR power, he isn't really, really fast, etc. My response is that he seems to mash pretty darn well - hence the disconnect between the "tools" and performance. Harris moved up to AA at the end of last year and never broke stride, easily stepping in as the team's top hitter during the AA playoffs. Some question whether he'll ever have enough power to play third, or whether he can play second well enough as a long term option. The reports I've seen are conflicting - some say he will continue developing his power, some say he won't. Either way, having a guy with a .550 slugging isn't a bad thing. Harris also has an excellent idea of the strike zone - with almost a .400 OBA average at A ball last year and only 50 some strikeouts. Players with that sort of hitting ability and batting eye don't take very long to move through the system, and it's easy to see why Harris is one of my favorite Cub prospects. He'll be deep in the top 10 of the BA list, and he didn't even make the top 10 of another Cub list I saw (a travesty), but different people focus on different things. I focus on the fact that Harris can play, he's improved every year, and his peripheral numbers suggest that he'll continue to get better as he matures. If he can pop 15-20 home runs next year, the organization may want to consider annointing him the 3rd baseman of the future (a dubious mantle for sure), espcially if Dave Kelton has to be moved to another position full-time.
One note on 2-4 - for all practical purposes, they are interchangeable, not in terms of upside or ability to contribute but in terms of overall value. So, a high ceiling lefty that throws 95 in rookie ball is about as valuable as a couple of guys in AA ball who are overcoming injury or an arm issue. If Sisco puts up the same numbers next year in full season, he'll be at the top of the list, bar none, because a dominant left handed starting pitcher is about the most valuable commodity in baseball. Still, that's assuming alot and we'll have to see. Here are the top 4:
4. David Kelton, 3B/1B/OF, 6-3, 205. .261/.332/.462 at AA. 20 HR, 79 RBIs.
Kelton's been on the radar for a number of years after being a third round draft pick. He had some major shoulder troubles in high school, but the Cubs drafted him for his bat and moved him over to third base. He's done nothing but hit since becoming a part of the organization. His swing is so true that Cubs coaches are basically on a hands off policy with the mechanics of his swing. Unfortunately, he's battled a severe case of the "yips" at third base, which resulted in a brief shift to left field in 2001 and most of a season at first base in 2002. The organization felt it would be best to allow him to focus exclusively on hitting, which hopefully would lessen the mental stress that built up after struggling at third. Defensively, his fielding is actually pretty good to good - he has above average range to his left and steady hands. This winter, he's back at third base in the Mexican Pacific League. Although he had 11 errors in 43 games, reports were that most of the errors were with the glove and not the arm, and Cubs officials are pretty excited about that. Offensively, Kelton has solid pop and good power to right center, projecting to be a 25-30 home run guy. Being a high school draftee, Kelton is still fairly young in the prospect world and will likely return to AA next year. GM Jim Hendry reportedly loves Kelton and probably hopes that he can become a fixture at 3rd for a long time in Wrigley. The horrors of being the third baseman of the future aside, Kelton clearly has the bat to do it. If he really does have Steve Sax disease, his future isn't as bright - first base is blocked in the organization and his bat would not be nearly as valuable to the Cubs in LF. Still, you find room for a guy who can mash, and while his arm will decide his future at 3rd base, his bat will make or break his future.
3. Andy Sisco, LHP, 6-8, 260, 7-2, 2.43, 101 K, 77.2 IP, 51 H.
Last year I had him at #22 with the comment "could jump or drop dramatically this year." Well, uh, he did real good and he jumped ALOT.
A 2nd round pick in 2001, Sisco signed for a little over a million dollars. He's 6-9 and has a football player's body - he was even recruited to play defensive end in college. 101 Ks in 59 innings is absolutely filthy. Sisco can crank it up to 96 but sits more comfortably at 93-94. Given his height, his fastball also has decent sink to it. He also throws a curve, change, and splitter. The splitter is the best of the three, but some Cub officials are worried that he doesn't pitch off his fastball enough, relying instead on his splitter. At his age, the Cubs were right to ban him from using it for awhile to allow him to figure out how to use the fastball to set up hitters for other pitches, not to mention forcing him to throw his change and curve. Clearly, Sisco is a high ceiling prospect - 6-9 lefties with 95 mph FBs just don't grow on trees. The Cubs will handle him with care this year, as he will probably go for his first taste of cold weather in Lansing. He's still a few years from Wrigley, but this will be a big test for Sisco, to see if he can put the ghost of Todd Noel behind him (Noel was a #1 pick who breezed through his stints in rookie ball but never really got it going after that, at least in part due to injuries). He'll likely be on a pretty strict pitch count at Lansing, but the Cubs will probably let him throw his splitter again, hoping he can learn how to use all of his pitches and not just two. From last year at this time until now, Sisco made more progress than anyone in the entire organization - bar none. It's unlikely and almost impossible for him to duplicate that kind of progress, but the Cubs will be satisfied with any progress at this point. I've seen at least one person say that Sisco has one of the highest ceilings of any pitcher in baseball. While BA will probably have him as the Cubs #1 or #2 prospect, after what I wrote about Pie, I couldn't do that. Still, given his amazing upside, his velocity, fact that he's left handed, and the kind of progress he made last year, I can still comfortably put him at #3.
2. Nic Jackson, OF, 6-3, 205, .290/.329/.443 in 131 ABs at AA.
About 3 months ago, Jackson had slipped to somewhere betwwen 8 and 10 on my list. He is an exciting player, no doubt, but he suffered a flukish Jermaine Dye (foul ball off his leg) type of injury early in the season last year. After thinking initially that it was just a bruise, it turned out that Jackson had a small fracture in his leg which cost him the rest of the season. He had started the year strong in AA, hitting .290 and playing a solid outfield, but the lost months were very key to a young guy in his first experience at AA. Luckily, Jackson healed enough to play in the Mexican Pacific League this winter and he put up some very solid numbers - .283/.359/.488 in 127 ABs. Beyond that, however, there were two things in particular that made Jackson jump to #2. First, he walked 16 times. That doesn't seem like alot, but it's much better than the rate Jackson had in previous years, and just might show that he's maturing and gaining a better command of the strike zone which had been one of his few weaknesses. The second is that he was 14 of 15 in stolen bases. Now generally, I don't care much about SBs - there is some literature to suggest that they aren't that helpful in run production, and I hate when guys who can hit get written off because they can't run. But with Jackson, the reason this is important is what this reflects about the health of his leg. I doubt his leg was bothering him too much if he kept running on the basepaths. Jackson was labeled the most exciting player in the Florida Atlantic League in 2001, and it's easy to see why. He's got a strong frame, a sweet swing from the left side, and he sort of glides as he runs. He has the makings of that rare power / speed combination that scouts love and could hit 20 HRs and steal 20 with a .300 average. He'll probably return to AA for a full year this year, but if he perform there like he did this winter, you'll hear trade talk about all the Cubs outfielders in order to make room for this guy.
1. Hee Seop Choi, 1B, 6-5, 235, .287/.406/.513 in 478 ABs at Iowa - 26 HRs, 96 RBIs.
Last year, Choi's wrist injury really, really scared me. He missed most of the year and it seemed to be one of those things that would never go away. Knowing how just a small twinge in your wrist can affect your swing, I dropped Choi to about #5 last year because of the injury. Luckily, my worry turned out to be unnecessary. When I saw Choi take some BP last spring, I noted that not only was he crushing balls to left and left center, but whereas most guys hit homers that barely clear the massive fences at Fitch Park, Choi's cleared them with ease. Combine the homers with a .400 OBA and you have yourself a #1 prospect. There has been alot of talk this winter about how better pitchers will be able to exploit his one weakness - inside heat, but I think this has been idle speculation that has spread because it was said by a couple of writers that people think are smart (ask me who). At every level, Choi has faced a steady diet of offspeed stuff and FBs in on his hands, and somehow he's managed to torch pitchers to the toon of his .919 OPS last year. Yes, major league pitchers are better than AAA guys, but lots of AAA guys are major league vets who basically survive by exploiting hitters' weaknesses. It may be that Choi will swing and miss at alot of inside fastballs this year, or at least get tied up by them, but he'll also take alot of them and yank some of them out of the yard. We'll see if Baker lets him play all that much with Eric "anybody can get alot of RBIs if they hit 4th in the order" Karros, but I really think he'll prove the worriers wrong this year. He has the kind of power and batting eye that could keep him at Wrigley longer than Mark Grace. Defensively, he'll make people think Fred McGriff was a statue. Choi won't win any gold gloves, but he should be above average in terms of range and scooping ability. Simply put, there aren't many teams that wouldn't want Choi manning first base for them this year, and if given 450 ABs, Choi will hit 20-25 HRs, and might even jack 30. Hopefully, he'll have some early success so we won't have to listen to Don Baylor talking about him earning the first base job anymore and he can just let him play. If he does, we won't talk about first base prospects in the organization for a long, long time.
Please leave me comments if anyone has any specific questions about any particular player or Email me here.
29. B. Kevin Collins, 1B. .342/.399/.668 in 187 ABs at Boise.
29. C. Brian Dopirak, 1B, 6-4, 225 , .253 in 79 ABs at Mesa. Scouted as one of the top power hitters of the 2002 draft - CW says he'll either flame out in AA or hit 40 homers...
29. D. Brandon Sing, 3B, .248/.348/.434 - 18 HR - in 440 ABs at Daytona.
These four guys all end up at #29 for different reasons. I'm one of the few people who actually tries to distinguish between guys who can just flat play (read: numbers), and guys who have great tools (read: scouts). On the numbers side, we have Collins and Dubois. Dubois just keeps hitting. Nobody seems to care much about him, but this year he moved from 1B to OF almost full time and seemed to handle himself well. I've seen him hit, and his swing does tend to get a little long, and we'll know at AA whether that's really true, but geez the guy can just flat mash. His .984 OPS was in the top 3 for players who played a full season in A ball. Scouts don't love him, but I don't care, he's exactly the kind of guy that is fun to root for, and if he succeeds next year, I might even be called smart for including him on this list (when I'm pretty sure nobody else will).
Collins is basically Dubois without the three years of success. He killed the ball at Boise this year with a whopping 1.067 OPS (!!), but that was in short season and the skeptics will point out that he was a little old for the league (he's 21). We'll see, but if he keeps hitting, who am I to say that the scouts don't like him?
Dopirak is the most highly regarded of these four and was a 2nd round pick of the Cubs last summer. Allegedly, he's got tons of raw power and is decent defensively at 1B, but marginal in the OF. The Cubs have had enough success with guys like Dubois that they could afford to take a flier on Dopirak to see if this 50 HR power ever develops. Until he plays at a bit more advanced level, and succeeds there, I'm gonna keep him on the back burner since I don't know much about him.
Sing is basically what Dopirak will probably be in a few years - a guy with tremendous power, but who can't seem to let everyone know whether or not he's going to be any good. He did slug 18 HRs this year, and his progression in HRs from year to year is nice, but he usually is pretty error prone at 3B and his BA has never been very good. That would be ok if he hit 30 HRs, but 18 is pushing the limit. He'll obviously face a huge challenge this year at AA, but if he can improve the BA into the .260-.270 range, and keep his decent walk rate, I can see him in the top 20 next year.
28. Matt Clanton, RHP, 6-2, 210. Only pitched in 1 inning at Boise at the end of the year
Clanton was a sandwich pick last year out of Orange Coast College. He has a strong pitching frame and flashes the makings of good velocity. Right now he's consistently around 90, but scouts think he projects well and could add a couple MPH as he gets older. His best pitch, when he can control it, is a sharp breaking curve that has the bite of a slider but is more of a 1 to 7 type of pitch. He also throws a changeup. He pitched in limited action last year and his ranking is based almost exclusively on his "hype." I look forward to actually getting to see him throw this Spring in Mesa.
27. J.J. Johnson, OF, .240/.298/.324 in 420 ABs at short A Lansing
What a difference a year makes. Last year, Johnson was in everybody's top 15 after two successful years in Mesa and Boise. Baseball America even named him one of the league's top prospects in its annual roundup. Maybe the cold weather didn't agree with him. I've seen him hit, and he has a nice, quick stroke. He is very athletic and plays an above average OF, after spending some time at 3B. Scouts love his "tools" and if it all works out, he's one of those guys people will say has a great "baseball body." Word is that he fell into a slump early last year, and he began swinging at everything to break out of it. It's too early to write him off, but he'll likely be back at Lansing this year. If he rebounds, he could easily move quickly.
26. Matt Craig, IF, 6-2, 200. Only .193/.252/.314 at Boise after being a 3rd round pick.
Struggled with wood in limited exposure at Boise, but is a switch hitter out of the University of Richmond. Has excellent baseball "smarts" (how does one define that anyway) and flashes a nice glove most of time. Played alot of 3B with the Cubs, where they feel he will make the most impact. If that's the case, he'll have to have a little more pop in his bat than he did in college. Still, he's athletic with soft hands and is worth giving a few years of development time before really figuring him out. Switch hitting infielders don't exactly grow on trees and the Cubs feel his gap power might translate to home run power as he gets older. Probably will return to Boise, but might scratch his way to Lansing.
25. John Leicester, RHP, 2-2, 4.61 ERA in 27 IP at AA, 2-3 3.97 in 81 IP at Daytona. Low Ks.
Slowly but surely creeping up my list. Here's a guy who was 0-11 his senior year in college, and the first scouting reports on him were that he threw 86-87 and has average stuff. I saw him almost two years ago and thought he had nice mechanics but really wasn't anything overly special. Then I saw him last spring and thought he had really improved his stuff and he had a great idea about pitching. In fact, last year I said "He’s one of those guys who might add 2 mph and just really jump on you." Then he goes to the AFL this year and reports are that he's up into the 92-94 range (!!), but was having severe control problems. #1 - it's a great sign that the Cubs sent him to the AFL. #2 - it's an even better sign that he continues to get better, bit by bit. #3 - it's still better that he's added so much velocity. Given that he has textbook mechanics and a good idea of how to setup hitters, he's a clear choice for sleeper on the bottom half of this list. He'll probably go back to West Tennessee to start the year, but I'll be watching very closely to see if this newfound velocity translates into better results.
24. Reynel Pinto, LHP, 3-3 5.51 ERA in 32 IP at Daytona, 7-5, 3.31 in 98 IP at Lansing, 92 Ks.
Pinto is one of those raw left handed arms that is tought to project. Reports are that he has decent breaking stuff and good whip on his fastball such that he projects to yet add some more velocity. What we know now is that he's young and has enough raw stuff to be on the radar screen. We'll know alot more this year if he's able to have two straight good years in terms of development (he was off the map almost completely last year).
23. Alfredo Francisco, 3B, .255 in 188 ABs at Mesa, but scouts rave about his body and his projectability
Francisco has received alot of hype since Baseball America saw him in the Spring and raved about some of his moon shots in batting practice and his athletic body. Unfortunately, his numbers didn't exactly bear out the hype. He's the prototypical guy that scouts love - he's still learning the game (ie raw), he has a great arm, he projects to have excellent power, and he already has above average speed. Some might even say he projects as a "five tool" player someday. Unfortunately, last year he played more like Quincy Carter than Sammy Sosa. He's still very, very young so he's allowed to do that for awhile, but hopefully he can hit better than .255 next year, which may be in Mesa again.
22. Sergio Mitre, RHP, 8-10, 2.83 in 158 IP at short A Lansing. 95 Ks.
I've had conflicting thoughts about Mitre since he was drafted in the 7th round out of a California JC 2 years ago. His best asset is a real plus sinker that moves hard and down in the zone. He is successful at peppering the zone in and out with this pitch and as a result gets tons of groundballs. When I saw him last Spring, his breaking stuff was just mediocre, but reports are that he improved them significantly down the stretch as he ended the year pitching very, very well. His velocity is not exceptional, 88-90, but it doesn't have to be with his movement. If his breaking stuff did improve, he should proceed through the minors a level a year, without too much variation in his numbers, making him a candidate to contribute with the Cubs in '04 or '05.
21. Felix Sanchez, LHP, 6-6, 4.15 in 119 IP at short A Lansing. 101 Ks.
Sanchez is the pitcher's version of Francisco. He also got tons of hype from Baseball America, including a mention for hitting 98 on the radar gun this spring in a spring game (I was actually there that day). He's left handed, and throws from a 3/4 slot so that he gets decent movement on the ball. The problem is that he pitches like he's a high school sophomore - a kid who is all arm and no brains - or somebody who just began pitching (which, actually, he did). His mechanics are horribly inconsistent, and his breaking stuff goes from very good to below average on a regular basis. The Cubs are also concerned about his makeup and would like to see him grow up a little this year, evidently he's a pretty loose cannon who doesn't seem to work all that hard or focus all that well. But his upside is clearly very, very high and he's got the kind of stuff where he could make a Juan Cruz type of jump if he starts putting it together. What's more likely, is that he'll put it together every 3rd time out and wow people with 10Ks in 5 IP, but then walk 5 guys in 2 IP the next time. For him, if he can put together the mental and mechanical side, his talent could take over, but I wouldn't expect that for another few years yet.
20. Aaron Krawiec, LHP, 6-6, 210, 7-10, 4.09 ERA in 159 IP at high A Daytona
Maddening inconsistency plagued Krawiec's first few years in the Cubs system, and few can forget the night he struck out 17 in 8 IP at Lansing a few years ago. He gave up 13 runs combined over his next two starts. His pluses are that he has loose and easy delivery from the left side and also adds some deception. He has excellent sink on his FB and flashes a plus change to RH hitters. When he's on, he works with alot of FBs around the zone and puts away hitter with his change or curve, which right now is his 3rd best pitch. Last year, Krawiec was much more consistent and seemed to be concentrating more on outs and less on strikeouts. He lasted longer in games, and though he gave up more hits, I'm betting the experience did him some good. There have been rumors that he picks at the zone too much and some nights umpires just don't give him the corners and he's forced to throw over the middle of the plate - something his 90 mph FB shouldn't be subjected to on a routine basis. Like most pitchers, command will make or break him, but the Cubs hope he's realized that every pitch doesn't have to be exactly perfect - just good enough, especially with his movement. Being left handed, he'll get plenty of chances and will face a test that Leicester and Wellemeyer handled decently well last year in AA. He's another guy that could move very fast if it clicks, but he's probably a year away from doing that.
19. Luis Montanez, SS, 6-2, 175 .265/.333/.353 in 487 ABs at high A Daytona.
Cubs #1 draft pick in 2000, Montanez has been a bit of a disappointment for such a high pick. Particularly disappointing last year were his power numbers - only 21 doubles and 4 HRs in almost 500 ABs. The good news is that his walk rate improved, even if slightly from last year and his OBA improved by about 20 points. He also has very soft hands and at least a decent arm from short. Many have speculated that he will end up at 3rd or 2nd because of his defense, and the Cubs played him at 2nd for 20+ games last year. I still hold out hope that he can make it at short, if only to improve his trade value or utility value. I like his approach at the plate, and I think his walk rate will continue to improve. It's not so much that he's not selective, it's just that he's aggressive in advantage counts and swings at alot of 3-1 and 2-0 pitches. The merits of that approach can be debated, but the big test will be this year at AA. Even if the Cubs move him to second, they still think he'll learn to lift the ball as he gets older, sending some of his deeper drives over the fence. A .270 20 HR middle infielder is pretty valuable, regardless of what numbers he put up in the minors, and I think there's a decent chance that will happen. Unfortunately, there's a better chance that the breaking balls in AA will make his head spin. He's still worth a shot, but after being on the top ten the past two years as a result of his "tools" and "hype" he's quickly fading and is exhibit D for why guys like Pie and Dopirak are not ranked higher. If his numbers this year are at least similar to this year's, against the better pitching of AA, I think it will show a slow but steady path on his way to a career as a utility player. Heck, Mike Benjamin still has a job.
18. Ricky Nolasco, RHP, 7-2, 2.48, 92K, 90 IP at Boise
Nolasco is a big of an enigma - his numbers obviously were excellent, but I found that sometimes he'd have 12 Ks in 6 IP and sometimes he'd have 2 Ks in 5 IP. To be honest, this is actually a good sign - learning to pitch without your best stuff is one of the toughest things a pitcher needs to learn to be successful, and my only concern is that it might happen a little too frequently to Nolasco. In his defense, he's been behind a number of strong prospects the past few years and pitched behind Andy Sisco at Boise last year. Just like most of the other pitchers in the Cubs system, if he were a part of the White Sox system, he'd probably be in the top 10 and clearly would have been ranked higher in earlier years for the Cubs when their system was much, much leaner. I'd like to see how Nolasco handles cold weather and a full season of A ball before I get too excited, but he is not one to be forgotten as one gets lost in the waves of arms the Cubs have in their sytem. Oh what an excellent problem it is to have when guys don't get enough attention.
17. Chadd Blasko, RHP, 6-6, 215
Great pitcher's body drafted as a supplemental pick last year out of Purdue. The thing that I like about him is that he has a heavy fastball with good sink, and as you've noticed, I have a soft spot for sinker ballers. Scouts say he has a "power" arm. I haven't seen him pitch yet, but I've read alot about him and really like his potential. So far, his biggest problems have been inconsistent mechanics and an inconsistent breaking ball. But at 6-6, 205, he's got a great frame and I have no doubts that the Cubs coaches can help to smooth his mechanics. His velocity has been as high as 96, but is more consistently 90-93. 90-93 with sink is better than a straight and flat 96 anyway. He hasn't done anything yet, and his spot on my ranking is based on his hype, but most reviews on him are very very positive and he's another guy I will be watching closely this Spring in Mesa.
16. Billy Petrick, RHP, 6-6, 220, 2-1, 1.71, 21 H and 35 K in 31 IP at Rookie Mesa
Petrick was one of the top long snappers in the nation in high school and had football scholarship offers from a number of schools, but thankfully chose the Cubs over football. He's still only 17, and at 6-6 220, he's got a tremendous pitching frame. His velocity is decent right now, but he might pull a John Leicester in a few years and suddenly start popping 94. His curve is inconsistent, but is very good when it's on. He is even more projectable in that his mechanics are still pretty raw - he looks like the kind of kid who just
picked up pitching a year or two ago after a coach noticed he had a good arm from the outfield. This may be true, I don't know, but the Cubs are very excited about his success last summer. He and Jones will form the core of what has the makings of being a ridiculously good rotation at Boise next year (seems like they do every year), along with Matt Clanton and Chad Blasko (not to mention Bobbie Browlie if he ever signs). At this point, he's too inexperienced to rank much higher but Petrick is a nice addition to the list of young arms the Cubs are accumulating.
15. Justin Jones, LHP, 6-4, 185, 3-1, 1.80, 31 H in 50IP, 53 K at rookie Mesa
At only 18 and drafted in the 2nd round out of high school last year, Jones was one of the many strong picks the Cubs added to the system in the early rounds. He is a very lanky 6-4 and could conceivably add 15-20 pounds as he grows up and fills out. Did I mention that he's left handed? He already has two plus pitches in a 90 mph FB with decent movement and a good sharp curve. He still needs work on a changeup, but so do all young pitchers not named Maddux. Jones is still really far away (despite those who have him their Cub Top 10), and like many prospects, he hasn't proven himself in back to back years yet. If he puts up these kind of numbers again next year, regardless of level, he'll probably crack the top 10, and if he were in another organization he'd be much higher. But for now he'll have to settle for being one of the youngest prospects in a very deep Cub farm system.
14. John Webb, RHP, 6-3, 190, 4-5, 4.52 in 51 IP at AA.
Webb is another of my grand sleepers. Two years ago he was in Baseball America's Top 10 Prospects List, then he was felled by arm surgery. Last year he rebounded with pretty decent numbers for a guy just off major surgery. His strengths are his command and his ability to get ground balls. He is around the plate most of the time and the Cubs are excited about his potential to pitch in the tall grass of Wrigley Field. His velocity this past year was nothing special, but that wasn't surprising given the surgery and it will be an excellent sign if he rebounds this year to the 88-90 range he was in before surgery. His ERA may have been high, but he still managed to allow less than 1 hit per inning (only 1.2 WHIP). He's fallen off the radar screen on almost everyone's prospect lists, but I think he's primed for a breakout year if his arm stays healthy. I may have him a bit high, but I was very, very impressed with the way he handled AA fresh off of surgery.
13. Jae-Kuk Ryu, RHP, 6-3, 175, 5-1, 3.57, 56K, 53IP, 45H at Boise, 7.11 ERA in 19 IP at Lansing, 21 Ks.
One of the fruits of the Cubs recent Korean presence thanks to Pacific Rim coordinator Leon Lee. Lee somehow fell out of graces with the organization last year and ended up as a hitting coach at AAA Iowa. Then this offseason he accepted a position coaching in Japan, so it is unclear what sort of continuing presence the Cubs have in Korea now that Lee is gone.
Anyway, back to Ryu. He has a lean body and throws 4-5 different pitches. His strengths mostly are: (a) he's 18, (b) he's got the makings of a power arm. Did I mention that he's only 18? Now you're noticing the trend. Last year he had an amazing tendency to both be hurt by his defense and also to fade late in games (though this was likely due more to pitch and inning limits rather than a problem with stamina), but the good news is that he rarely got hit in the first innings of most of his starts. I don't have the stats at hand, but I'd be willing to bet his K rate in his first 3 innings was over 9 per 9 IP, and his K rate after innings 1-3 was around 6 per 9 IP. Amazingly, he is said to have excellent command of all five of his pitches - a very advanced sign at such a young age. His splitter gets him alot of ground balls and at this point the biggest questions are whether he can adapt to the United States culture. He still hardly knows the language and that has led to some communication breakdowns in games. That's what is so tough about Asian players is the fact that there are so few of them here to give him a support network. If a player is from Latin America but doesn't speak English very well, it's usually ok because not only are there alot of Latin players in baseball, but many coaches now speak Spanish as well. I cannot imagine what it must be like for a shy kid who doesn't speak English to live in the United States, but I'm told he smiles alot and is trying very, very hard to learn more about the culture and language. If he can do that, the pitching part must seem easy. I think he'll struggle more than some want him to this year as he plays his first full season in cold weather, but I'll be looking more for how he reacts than how he pitches.
12. Steve Smyth, LHP, 4-4, 3.58 in 73 IP at AA, 3-2 5.81 at AAA, 9.35 ERA in 26 innings for the Cubs.
I think Smyth gets a bad rap. He had a pretty rough month pitching for the lifeless Cubs in August/September and suddenly people were calling him a bust and a chump. Let me make one thing clear: Steve Smyth is not a bust! He's had all of 26 innings in the major leagues - not exactly a good sample size. His numbers in AA (and in previous years) were simply too good to write off. His peripheral numbers in AA were excellent - 74 Ks and only 62 hits in 73 IP. Plus, this was his first year off of minor shoulder surgery, and nobody really knew what to expect from him. Unfortunately, he was bad-mouthed so much by the press and by Bruce Kimm that it's tough to know what sort of hit his psyche took. Smyth isn't flashy and rarely heats up over 90, but he's consistently high 80s and his FB has pretty good sink. He has a plus change and a sometimes above average breaking ball. Assuming his head is ok, Smyth will likely start in AAA, and I think he'll probably really step it up and have similar AAA numbers this year to his AA numbers last year. Knowing how much Jim Hendry loves left handers, if he succeeds this year, I won't be at all surprised if Zambrano or Cruz are made available - not now, but sometime during the season.
11. Felix Pie, OF, .321/.385/ .569 in 218 ABs at short season Mesa
Pie, whose name is pronounced Pee-ay, is another of the Cubs youngest players getting a great deal of media attention. His numbers at Mesa were very good, and he excited scouts and coaches with his defense, speed and his league leading 13 triples (!!). His walk rate is decent, and he had 33 extra base hits in only 218 at bats this year. It is almost impossible to project what guys like Pie will become given his age and the relatively low level of competition he's faced. I like Pie alot, but I think it's silly to include him in the top 10 when he really has only had a couple of good months of baseball so far in his career. I mean seriously, how many guys have the Cubs had who tore up rookie ball and scouts drooled over their tools? If you don't remember the name Earl Cunningham, then this list is probably teaching you alot, but if you do you probably understand my concern. Pie's upside IS huge, and scouts drool over his 5 tool potential. But, to me, I say let's let him prove it in a full year of competition before we call him the second coming of Sammy Sosa. Just look to JJ Johnson for what can happen when a player plays a full year in a cold climate. If Pie has another yearlike this one, I'll be happy to put him in the top 5 next year and write about how I didn't give him enough credit.
10. Matt Bruback, RHP, 9-7, 3.15 ERA in 174 IP at AA. 158 Ks. #40 on my list last year - this is exactly why Leiscester or Pinto could move quickly.
I think it's about time that somebody gave Matt some love. To do what he did at AA last year and hardly get noticed is just wrong. I know that he pitched in a pitcher's park and what is largely a pitcher's league, but so what? He was almost at a K per IP and he was remarkably consistent. He led all of AA in Ks with 158 , he was #2 in innings pitched (174) in AA, and #3 in ERA (3.16) in the SL. These are really very good numbers. If he has a weakness, it's that he's significantly less effective against LH hitters than RH hitters - to the tune of a .208/.286 vs .273/.383 split (BA and SLG). His progress last year is exactly why you have to still be thinking about a guy like Leicester - I mean, these numbers he put up at AA were better than the ones Juan Cruz put up in AA a few years ago. Last Spring I was fortunate enough to watch Alan Dunn, the Cubs AA pitching coach, work extensively with Bruback on side mounds. They focused less on mechanics and stuff and more on patterns of pitches and mentality. Whatever it was, it seemed to work. Bruback should be one of the few prospects in the Iowa rotation this year, and although the Cubs and scout watchers have largely ignored him until now, he'll force their hand if he puts up these kinds of numbers in AAA. I remember about 4-5 years ago when Miguel Batista was in the system, he threw 5-6 excellent games in a row for Iowa and even Ed Lynch noticed - Batista came up and pitched pretty well, and people stopped caring about whether he was a real prospect or what he had done in A ball 3 years earlier. There's a strong caveat that the Cubs have a pretty stacked rotation as it is, so Bruback's chance might end up in relief, but I hope he has the same fate as Batista this year.
9. Luke Hagerty, LHP, 6-7, 230 5-3, 1.13, 50K, 48 IP, 32 H at Boise.
Pitched in the shadow of last year's overall #1 pick Bryan Bullington last year at Ball State, Hagerty exploded onto the scene at Boise after signing. At 6-7, 230 he has a long and pretty lean body and one scouts love because they get to use words like "projectable" and "when he fills out" or "when he strengthens his trunk." 32 H in 48 IP with 50 Ks is really good. Allegedly his fastball is just average at 88-90, but he has what is usually a plus slider with tight spin and a good change that he uses against right handed hitters. His command of all three pitches is also pretty advanced, meaning he could move quickly the next couple of years. That's usually the advantage of drafting guys like Hagerty - their experience in college generally lends itself to much more polish and command. A guy like Justin Jones is still a great prospect, no doubt, but it'll certainly take him longer to move than Hagerty. He'll still just be 22 when next year rolls around and the Cubs are salivating over his size and body and his ability to throw the ball on a downward plane. The track record on tall college pitchers like this is pretty good, and I've heard more than one scout compare him to Mark Mulder (from Michigan State) of the As. Mulder moved very quickly through the ranks on his way to becoming one of the league's top pitchers and the Cubs hope Hagerty follows a similar path.
8. Francis Beltran, RHP, 6-5, 220 - 2-2, 2.59, 23 saves, 43 Ks in 41 IP at AA
Few pitchers have made as much progress over the past few years as Beltran. Two years ago I saw him in Spring Training as another guy with a nice arm but nothing overly special. He threw 90-92 but was pretty wild and tired quickly. At the time, the Cubs were trying him as a starter just to get some innings under his belt. At the end of last summer I saw Beltran pitch an inning against the Reds from the 3rd row behind home plate at Wrigley, and it's like our little boy is all grown up now. At 6-5, he's got a nice mound presence and is pretty physically imposing. What's more imposing were the three straight 96 mph heaters he blew by the first hitter of the inning. What was even more imposing was the nasty 87 mph slider he broke off on the next hitter after he had fouled off a fastball. Simply put, Beltran's stuff is filthy. He has a true, legit 95 mph fastball and a sharp slider to back it up with. When he first came up to the Cubs, he showed some typical rookie signs - couldn't control his fastball, didn't hold runners very well - basically he looked scared. But that night at Wrigley, that all seemed to be behind him, and I really think that the time he spent with the Cubs at the end of last season will give him an edge as he heads to Spring Training. To be totally honest, I think he has a real good shot of breaking camp in the Cubs pen, especially if the Cubs don't go and sign 38 middle relievers at the Winter Meetings. If they do, he can go to Iowa and close in the cold weather there. His control sometimes abandons him and as a reliever, his control will particularly be an issue. I happen to think that in the end he'll just end up being "wildly effective" - he may not hit his spots all the time with his fastball, but his movement and velocity will allow him to get away with it most of the time. At West Tennessee this year walked less than 2 per 9 IP while allowing less than 5 hits per 9. Now I wouldn't expect that in the big leagues, but there isn't any reason to think that he will suddenly walk 7 per 9 or allow 11 hits per 9. He certainly won't close this year, but he has the stuff to and might be an option in '04.
One note - these three guys are all pretty close - about as close as any three guys on the list, so they are pretty much interchangeable in terms of order. I consider #s 2-4 to be very close as well, but for different reasons. Check in tomorrow for the final installment. Email me here. Enjoy!
7. Angel Guzman, RHP, 6-2, 180, 6-2, 2.39 in 94 IP at high A Daytona, 74 K, 5-2 1.89 in 52 IP at low-A Lansing - 42 H and 49 Ks.
Guzman is a kid who burst onto the scene in rookie ball a few years ago, and then really caught everyone's eye last winter when he pitched very well against good competition in Latin America. His FB is only 89-91, not the 93-94 that somehow keeps getting reported, but he gets good movement and has pretty good deception for a right hander. Seeing him pitch for the first time, you might call him a "short-armer" since he doesn't have real long arm action like many pitchers do. The other thing I find interesting about him is that he takes a very, very short stride - it's really about as short as I have ever seen. Still, he's able to get excellent sink on the ball and he's smart about using his sinker and setting hitters up. He breezed through Lansing last year, and though he encountered a few struggles in Daytona, he was still largely effective. He has a good to very good change, but his breaking ball varies from below average to pretty good. If he can maintain his consistency with his sinker and improve his breaking stuff, there's no reason he can't continue to succeed. At 22, AA will obviously be quite a test (actually he's still 21 - happy birthday this saturday), but I tend to think that his sinker is the kind of pitch that should be able to carry him through the rough days when he can't find his other stuff. He seems to be remarkably durable and his change gives him a pitch with which to attack lefties. With a good spring, he might break camp in AA. If not, he'll go back to Daytona but would certainly end up in West Tennessee by year end. He'll make a great #3 starter in a few years.
6. Todd Wellemeyer, RHP, 6-3, 195, 3-3, 4.70 in 46 AA IP, 2-4 3.79 with 87Ks and only 63 H in 73 IP at high Daytona.
I debated the relative merits of Wellemeyer and Guzman for a long time knowing full well that everyone and their brother has Guzman ranked higher if not much, much higher. Having watched Wellemeyer for the past two years, I feel like I have a pretty good sense for the progress he's made as a Cub, and the results of his experience in the Arizona Fall League this year confirm that. In a league known for its hitting prospects, Wellemeyer cruised to the tune of 40 Ks in 34 IP to go with a 3.12 ERA and only 24 hits allowed. Scouts watching the league say that he was as good as any pitcher in the league. While Hee Seop Choi was hitting bombs left and right, many discounted it because there weren't many top pitching prospects in the AFL this year. We can't say that about Wellemeyer. His numbers this year at AA weren't exceptional, but he only started 8 times. Wellemeyer features two fastballs, a harder flatter one that can legitimately get dialed up to around 96, and a two seamer that has decent but not great movement at around 92. He has an excellent and deceptive changeup, and he throws two separate breaking balls - a bigger almost offspeed curve, and a sharp slider. If he has a weakness, it's with consistency with his breaking balls and then following that up with a well placed fastball. When he's on, he consistently overmatches hitters with high gas and great soft stuff away. He moves the ball around effectively and seems to be able to really gear up for tougher hitters. Scouts like his makeup and coaches like his attitude and bulldog mentality on the mound. Further, he seems to be able to maintain his velocity pretty deep into games - reports I saw of the AFL were that he was still throwing 94 or so in the 5th inning (he never went longer) which is a pretty good sign. All in all, Wellemeyer has the makings of a legit #2 rotation guy. Some feel he might be a strong relief pitcher, but I'd rather we saw pitchers with only two pitches go through that transition - Wellemeyer's arsenal is certainly good enough to use when facing hitters three and even four times. He'll probably go back to AA to start the year, but it wouldn't take much to get him to move up - an injury to Zambrano, a trade, whatever - Wellemeyer and Bruback are the closest to the majors of any of the Cub pitching prospects.
5. Brendan Harris, 3b/2b, .321/.345/.547 in 53 ABs at AA / .329/.395/.532 in 425 ABs at long A Dayton.
Another in the list of Cub prospects who "don't get no respect" - to borrow from Rodney Dangerfield. I guess the reason Harris isn't liked more is that he doesn't have that one tool that is amazing - he doesn't project to have 40 HR power, he isn't really, really fast, etc. My response is that he seems to mash pretty darn well - hence the disconnect between the "tools" and performance. Harris moved up to AA at the end of last year and never broke stride, easily stepping in as the team's top hitter during the AA playoffs. Some question whether he'll ever have enough power to play third, or whether he can play second well enough as a long term option. The reports I've seen are conflicting - some say he will continue developing his power, some say he won't. Either way, having a guy with a .550 slugging isn't a bad thing. Harris also has an excellent idea of the strike zone - with almost a .400 OBA average at A ball last year and only 50 some strikeouts. Players with that sort of hitting ability and batting eye don't take very long to move through the system, and it's easy to see why Harris is one of my favorite Cub prospects. He'll be deep in the top 10 of the BA list, and he didn't even make the top 10 of another Cub list I saw (a travesty), but different people focus on different things. I focus on the fact that Harris can play, he's improved every year, and his peripheral numbers suggest that he'll continue to get better as he matures. If he can pop 15-20 home runs next year, the organization may want to consider annointing him the 3rd baseman of the future (a dubious mantle for sure), espcially if Dave Kelton has to be moved to another position full-time.
One note on 2-4 - for all practical purposes, they are interchangeable, not in terms of upside or ability to contribute but in terms of overall value. So, a high ceiling lefty that throws 95 in rookie ball is about as valuable as a couple of guys in AA ball who are overcoming injury or an arm issue. If Sisco puts up the same numbers next year in full season, he'll be at the top of the list, bar none, because a dominant left handed starting pitcher is about the most valuable commodity in baseball. Still, that's assuming alot and we'll have to see. Here are the top 4:
4. David Kelton, 3B/1B/OF, 6-3, 205. .261/.332/.462 at AA. 20 HR, 79 RBIs.
Kelton's been on the radar for a number of years after being a third round draft pick. He had some major shoulder troubles in high school, but the Cubs drafted him for his bat and moved him over to third base. He's done nothing but hit since becoming a part of the organization. His swing is so true that Cubs coaches are basically on a hands off policy with the mechanics of his swing. Unfortunately, he's battled a severe case of the "yips" at third base, which resulted in a brief shift to left field in 2001 and most of a season at first base in 2002. The organization felt it would be best to allow him to focus exclusively on hitting, which hopefully would lessen the mental stress that built up after struggling at third. Defensively, his fielding is actually pretty good to good - he has above average range to his left and steady hands. This winter, he's back at third base in the Mexican Pacific League. Although he had 11 errors in 43 games, reports were that most of the errors were with the glove and not the arm, and Cubs officials are pretty excited about that. Offensively, Kelton has solid pop and good power to right center, projecting to be a 25-30 home run guy. Being a high school draftee, Kelton is still fairly young in the prospect world and will likely return to AA next year. GM Jim Hendry reportedly loves Kelton and probably hopes that he can become a fixture at 3rd for a long time in Wrigley. The horrors of being the third baseman of the future aside, Kelton clearly has the bat to do it. If he really does have Steve Sax disease, his future isn't as bright - first base is blocked in the organization and his bat would not be nearly as valuable to the Cubs in LF. Still, you find room for a guy who can mash, and while his arm will decide his future at 3rd base, his bat will make or break his future.
3. Andy Sisco, LHP, 6-8, 260, 7-2, 2.43, 101 K, 77.2 IP, 51 H.
Last year I had him at #22 with the comment "could jump or drop dramatically this year." Well, uh, he did real good and he jumped ALOT.
A 2nd round pick in 2001, Sisco signed for a little over a million dollars. He's 6-9 and has a football player's body - he was even recruited to play defensive end in college. 101 Ks in 59 innings is absolutely filthy. Sisco can crank it up to 96 but sits more comfortably at 93-94. Given his height, his fastball also has decent sink to it. He also throws a curve, change, and splitter. The splitter is the best of the three, but some Cub officials are worried that he doesn't pitch off his fastball enough, relying instead on his splitter. At his age, the Cubs were right to ban him from using it for awhile to allow him to figure out how to use the fastball to set up hitters for other pitches, not to mention forcing him to throw his change and curve. Clearly, Sisco is a high ceiling prospect - 6-9 lefties with 95 mph FBs just don't grow on trees. The Cubs will handle him with care this year, as he will probably go for his first taste of cold weather in Lansing. He's still a few years from Wrigley, but this will be a big test for Sisco, to see if he can put the ghost of Todd Noel behind him (Noel was a #1 pick who breezed through his stints in rookie ball but never really got it going after that, at least in part due to injuries). He'll likely be on a pretty strict pitch count at Lansing, but the Cubs will probably let him throw his splitter again, hoping he can learn how to use all of his pitches and not just two. From last year at this time until now, Sisco made more progress than anyone in the entire organization - bar none. It's unlikely and almost impossible for him to duplicate that kind of progress, but the Cubs will be satisfied with any progress at this point. I've seen at least one person say that Sisco has one of the highest ceilings of any pitcher in baseball. While BA will probably have him as the Cubs #1 or #2 prospect, after what I wrote about Pie, I couldn't do that. Still, given his amazing upside, his velocity, fact that he's left handed, and the kind of progress he made last year, I can still comfortably put him at #3.
2. Nic Jackson, OF, 6-3, 205, .290/.329/.443 in 131 ABs at AA.
About 3 months ago, Jackson had slipped to somewhere betwwen 8 and 10 on my list. He is an exciting player, no doubt, but he suffered a flukish Jermaine Dye (foul ball off his leg) type of injury early in the season last year. After thinking initially that it was just a bruise, it turned out that Jackson had a small fracture in his leg which cost him the rest of the season. He had started the year strong in AA, hitting .290 and playing a solid outfield, but the lost months were very key to a young guy in his first experience at AA. Luckily, Jackson healed enough to play in the Mexican Pacific League this winter and he put up some very solid numbers - .283/.359/.488 in 127 ABs. Beyond that, however, there were two things in particular that made Jackson jump to #2. First, he walked 16 times. That doesn't seem like alot, but it's much better than the rate Jackson had in previous years, and just might show that he's maturing and gaining a better command of the strike zone which had been one of his few weaknesses. The second is that he was 14 of 15 in stolen bases. Now generally, I don't care much about SBs - there is some literature to suggest that they aren't that helpful in run production, and I hate when guys who can hit get written off because they can't run. But with Jackson, the reason this is important is what this reflects about the health of his leg. I doubt his leg was bothering him too much if he kept running on the basepaths. Jackson was labeled the most exciting player in the Florida Atlantic League in 2001, and it's easy to see why. He's got a strong frame, a sweet swing from the left side, and he sort of glides as he runs. He has the makings of that rare power / speed combination that scouts love and could hit 20 HRs and steal 20 with a .300 average. He'll probably return to AA for a full year this year, but if he perform there like he did this winter, you'll hear trade talk about all the Cubs outfielders in order to make room for this guy.
1. Hee Seop Choi, 1B, 6-5, 235, .287/.406/.513 in 478 ABs at Iowa - 26 HRs, 96 RBIs.
Last year, Choi's wrist injury really, really scared me. He missed most of the year and it seemed to be one of those things that would never go away. Knowing how just a small twinge in your wrist can affect your swing, I dropped Choi to about #5 last year because of the injury. Luckily, my worry turned out to be unnecessary. When I saw Choi take some BP last spring, I noted that not only was he crushing balls to left and left center, but whereas most guys hit homers that barely clear the massive fences at Fitch Park, Choi's cleared them with ease. Combine the homers with a .400 OBA and you have yourself a #1 prospect. There has been alot of talk this winter about how better pitchers will be able to exploit his one weakness - inside heat, but I think this has been idle speculation that has spread because it was said by a couple of writers that people think are smart (ask me who). At every level, Choi has faced a steady diet of offspeed stuff and FBs in on his hands, and somehow he's managed to torch pitchers to the toon of his .919 OPS last year. Yes, major league pitchers are better than AAA guys, but lots of AAA guys are major league vets who basically survive by exploiting hitters' weaknesses. It may be that Choi will swing and miss at alot of inside fastballs this year, or at least get tied up by them, but he'll also take alot of them and yank some of them out of the yard. We'll see if Baker lets him play all that much with Eric "anybody can get alot of RBIs if they hit 4th in the order" Karros, but I really think he'll prove the worriers wrong this year. He has the kind of power and batting eye that could keep him at Wrigley longer than Mark Grace. Defensively, he'll make people think Fred McGriff was a statue. Choi won't win any gold gloves, but he should be above average in terms of range and scooping ability. Simply put, there aren't many teams that wouldn't want Choi manning first base for them this year, and if given 450 ABs, Choi will hit 20-25 HRs, and might even jack 30. Hopefully, he'll have some early success so we won't have to listen to Don Baylor talking about him earning the first base job anymore and he can just let him play. If he does, we won't talk about first base prospects in the organization for a long, long time.
Please leave me comments if anyone has any specific questions about any particular player or Email me here.
posted by Bryan at
10:32 AM
