Pretty interesting read on Ben Orloff... although he probably doesn't consider himself to be a particularly interesting guy. cchooks.com: Don't Sleep on the Anteater
So who among the top prospects are likely candidates to get good time at the big level later in the year? I'm hoping to see Villar, Cosart, Singleton and Springer all get good looks. Would certainly motivate me to watch this team more.
Villar and cosart are probably an injury away at this point. Springer I'd like to see up but I don't see him coming up before September. At this point he's putting up numbers that necessitate the Astros being cautious about service time and super two status. Singleton I don't see up before September unless he absolutely mashes.
I don't see Springer getting the call soon (Sept. Maybe). I feel like he will struggle if we call him up. Wallace has shown he can hit in AAA, I just wish he could hit in the majors.
Monday Stories <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>System sweep (5-0) on Memorial Day!</p>— Jeff Luhnow (@jluhnow) <a href="https://twitter.com/jluhnow/status/339174066709737472">May 28, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> Big days from some top guys. Recap Oklahoma City 4, Iowa 3 The Redhawks avoided the sweep and finished their long roadtrip 5-8. A 4-run 3rd proved to be enough for the Redhawks to get the victory. Jake Elmore drew a walk with the bases loaded in the 3rd to put OKC on the board first. Brett Wallace then beat out a 2-run infield single, and Elmore would score the final run as Fernando Martinez grounded into a double play. Ross Seaton, although he allowed 3 runs, allowed 3 hits (solo homer) in 5 1/3 innings. He walked 2 and struck out 1. The Redhawks bullpen threw 3 2/3 scoreless without allowing a hit to close it out. Alex Sogard, despite walking 3, went 1 2/3 and struck out 1. Rhiner Cruz had a 1-2-3 8th with a strikeout, and Jose Valdez recorded save #10 with a 1-2-3 9th, striking out 1. Now that the Big 12 has shut up shop, with OU advancing to the NCAA Tournament, the Redhawks can return home. They will finish out the month of May by welcoming Omaha to Bricktown for 4 beginning tomorrow at 7:05. Jarred Cosart will take on Chris Dwyer. Corpus Christi 14, Arkansas 4 Down 4-1? No problem. The Hooks scored 2 unanswered TDs to take 2 of three from the Travelers. They're 5-1 against the state of Arkansas this season. Nick Tropeano finally gets his 1st win at the Double-A level, although he struggled early. Tropeano stopped the bleeding himself, as he went 5 innings and allowed 4 runs on 8 hits (solo homer), walked 2, and struck out 3. Bobby Doran tagged in and finished it off, allowing 2 hits and striking out 2 over 4 scoreless. Today belonged to the Hooks outfielders. Domingo Santana went 4-5 with a solo shot (8) in the 3rd and scored 3 times. He finished a triple shy of the cycle. Michael Burgess finished 2-5 with 2 homers (6). The first was a solo shot in the 2nd that put the Hooks on the board. The other came in the 3rd, and was a 2-run shot that gave Corpus a 5-4 lead, a lead that they would not relinquish. Also homering in the 3rd was some guy named George Springer. He finished 3-6, and in addition to his 3rd-inning blast, delivered the fatal blow in the 5th with a grand slam. The 2 blasts give him 15 on the season, and he retakes sole possession of the Minor League home run lead. Erik Castro finished 2-4 with a double and a 2-run single in the 4th. Jonathan Meyer hit an RBI double in the 5th. Burgess then struck out on a wild pitch, but he was able to reach, and Castro scored. It was a particularly embarrassing at-bat, as all 3 pitches were breaking balls that were well out of the zone. Meyer scored the final run as Enrique Hernandez reached on an error. After beating up on the Arkansas clubs at home, the Hooks will look to do the same as they go on a roadtrip to Arkansas. First up... 3 with Northwest Arkansas. David Martinez and Mike Foltynewicz will be tomorrow's pairing in the opener, and they will be opposed by Noel Argüelles. First pitch will be at 7:00 PM. Lancaster 6, Rancho Cucamonga 4 The Jethawks won their 6th straight by taking the opener. A little tense, as the Quakes had designs on a comeback. All 4 of their runs were scored in the final 2 frames: 3 in the 8th, 1 in the 9th. The Jethawks matched them tit-for-tat, though, as they scored 3 in the 8th and 1 in the 9th. Joe Sclafani put Lancaster on the board first with a 2-run double in the 5th. It would remain 2-0 until the 8th, when Raoul Torrez hit an RBI single, and thanks to an error, Brandon Meredith was also able to score on the play. Torrez finished 3-4 with a run scored and a steal (2, 3 season). Delino DeShields had a perfect day at the plate, going 4-4 with an RBI single, a run scored, and a walk. He was caught stealing for the 8th time, but I agree... the steals will come. He's also been a much more efficient stealer in the past. Preston Tucker had an RBI single in the 8th, scored a run, and walked twice. Aaron West, fresh off the DL, threw 5 innings of 1-hit ball, walking 1 and fanning 4. Blair Walters tagged in, and after 2 good innings, ran into trouble in the 8th. He struck out the first 2 guys he faced in the inning, but then after 2 straight walks, Noel Cuevas blasted him. Travis Ballew came on and struck out Chris Jacobs to end the threat. Walters went 2 2/3 and allowed 3 runs (all on the homer) on 2 hits, walked 3, and struck out 5. Ballew withstood a solo shot with 1 out in the 9th from O'Koyea Dickson to get the save. That was the only hit he allowed, and 3 of his 4 outs were of the strikeout variety. In the middle game of this series, TBA and his partner will take on Garrett Gould. First pitch will be at 7:05 Pacific. Quad Cities 11, Clinton 4 After Clinton put up 1 in the 6th to get to within 6-4, the River Bandits finished the game on a 5-0 run to end the game and take 3 of 4 from the LumberKings. Everyone had a hit today. Miles Hamblin finished 2-4 with a solo shot (1) in the 1st and an RBI single in the 5th. Jobduan Morales went 3-5 with an RBI double in the 7th and an RBI single in the 8th. Brian Blasik had an RBI groundout in the 8th. Jordan Scott was 1-2 with 3 walks and 3 runs scored. The last person to get a hit was Terrell Joyce. His was a 2-run single to more or less end the game in the 8th. Austin Elkins was 3-6 with a run scored. Carlos Correa had a big afternoon, as he went 3-6 with a double, 4 RBI, and 2 runs scored. His first RBI came on a force play in the 3rd. The double came in the 5th and brought Jordan Scott home. And, his final 2 RBI came on a single in the 6th. His triple slash line now reads .284/.406/.411. Still concerned? Anyone? Yeah. Thought so. Vince Velasquez allowed 3 runs on 6 hits and walked 2 in 5 innings. Jamaine Cotton shook off a home run fro Tyler Marlette to throw 3 good innings. The homer was the only run he allowed. He allowed 3 other hits and struck out 3. John Neely worked around a hit to finish it out in the 9th. The River Bandits return home for a pit stop, in the form of a 3-game series with Kane County. Dan Minor and Lance McCullers will take the mound for the first game, and their opponent for Kane County will be Dillon Maples. The big news for tomorrow is that Jonathan Singleton is expected to make his season debut for the River Bandits. First pitch is at 7:00. CAN'T WAIT. Three Stars 3. Delino DeShields, 2B, Lancaster 4-4, RBI, R, BB I like that he's finding consistency at the plate. Again, the steals will come. 2. Aaron West, P, Lancaster W(2-1), 5 IP, H, BB, 4 K West, after a terrible start, has looked pretty good in his limited time in uniform this month. Now the key for him is to stay healthy. I hear that helps with consistency. 1. Corpus Outfielders Michael Burgess, LF George Springer, CF Domingo Santana, RF Burgess: 2-5, 2 HR (6), 3 RBI Springer: 3-6, 2 HR (15), 5 RBI Santana: 4-5, solo HR (8), 3 R Burgess has really busted out after looking like he was overwhelmed to start the season. He's got some big power potential, and his numbers suggest an annual 15-20 homer hitter. Springer could flirt with a 40-40 season across levels. I know everyone's wanting to see him in Houston. If he keeps this up... he might even force Jeff Luhnow's hand. And service time be damned, I'd like to see him at MMP too. Santana's flirting with a .900 OPS, and he's the 2nd-youngest position player in the Texas League. I think he'll regain his spot in the Astros' top 10 with a 20+ homer season. Yeah, I think he'll easily clear 125 strikeouts this season, but I also think he'll walk and hit enough to offset that. Honorable Mentions Carlos Correa, SS, Quad Cities: I shall ask again. Are you still concerned? Yup, that's what I thought. OKC bullpen: Despite Alex Sogard's 3 walks, they absolutely shackled the Cubs. Erik Castro, 1B, Corpus Christi: He's been locked in this month. The leap from Lancaster to Corpus has doomed many a prospect's hopes. Castro is trying not to be one of those guys. Bobby Doran, P, Corpus Christi: Honestly, 2 rough outings this month has inflated Doran's line. I honestly would like to see the tandem system ended by the middle of June, though... Travis Ballew, P, Lancaster: Despite allowing the homer... good God. The 3 strikeouts today give him 35 in 20.1 innings. Hope he gets a shot at Corpus at some point this season. Goat Organization sweep! So, no goats, but if there was one... it'd probably be Telvin Nash for his hat trick. At least this hasn't been a regular occurrence. I like that he's drawing walks at a dramatically higher rate this year, so that's a positive. Right?????
Calling him up at this point would start his MLB service clock (duh). Players have to accrue 6 years of service before they're eligible for free agency. So if you called him up now he'd be eligible for free agency at the end of the 2019 season. But he doesn't have to be added to the 40-man roster (/become Rule V eligible) for another two seasons (the 4th Rule V draft after being drafted). So say the organization kept Springer in the minors through the end of 2014 (and off the 40-man roster), he'd be in the organization's control until 2020 or possibly 2021. It becomes a game of: would Springer on the ML team now be worth more than an extra year or two of his prime (27-32)?
Ask and ye shall receive: Spoiler 1. Oscar Taveras, OF | St. Louis Cardinals (age 20) Current level: Triple-A (Memphis) Preseason ranking: 2 Taveras hasn't had a huge start in Triple-A this year, hitting for average but not power with a poor walk rate, although he won't turn 21 until mid-June, and the raw hit and power tools are beyond any doubt. Whenever the Cardinals have an opening in their outfield, he's ready, as soon as he gets over a recent ankle injury that has had him on the shelf for a couple of weeks. 2. Byron Buxton, CF | Minnesota Twins (age 19) Current level: Low Class A (Cedar Rapids) Preseason ranking: 22 Buxton was the top prospect on my board in last year's amateur draft, and his huge April (.392 BA/.510 OBP/.584 SLG) seemed to justify that ranking in striking fashion. His May hasn't been as torrid, but the raw ability that made him such a commodity out of high school -- 80-grade speed on the 20-80 scouting scale, a very quick bat, a plus arm, the potential for plus-plus defense in center -- is accompanied by more present baseball skill than I realized last spring. He's already 19, so a late-season promotion to high-A wouldn't be too aggressive if he continues to rake. 3. Xander Bogaerts, SS | Boston Red Sox (age 20) Current level: Double-A (Portland) Preseason ranking: 5 Still just 20 years old, Bogaerts has been playing solid shortstop for Portland with a solid walk rate but isn't yet generating the power expected from his explosive swing. I have little doubt that will come in time and still believe he has a better-than-even chance to stay at short. 4. Christian Yelich, OF | Miami Marlins (age 21) Current level: Double-A (Jacksonville) Preseason ranking: 6 A foot injury started his season late, but after a slow couple of weeks, Yelich has returned to mashing, hitting .284/.356/.636 since the start of May with patience and a high contact rate, as well as solid defense in center. He has one of the best swings in the minors and could see the big leagues this summer given what's (not) ahead of him in Miami. 5. Francisco Lindor, SS | Cleveland Indians (age 19) Current level: High Class A (Carolina) Preseason ranking: 7 Lindor doesn't quite have the star potential of the guys above him, but he's going to be a very good big leaguer for a very long time. He will play this entire season at age 19 and ranks in the top 10 in the high-A Carolina League in OBP, while providing plus defense at short and value on the bases. He probably won't have the power to end up a superstar, but he could be an Elvis Andrus-type player who's extremely valuable without ever becoming an MVP contender. 6. Miguel Sano, 3B | Minnesota Twins (age 20) Current level: High Class A (Fort Myers) Preseason ranking: 11 There are so few guys in the minors who project to hit 30 to 35 homers a year -- without some huge caveat such as, "He might strike out 200 times a year" -- that Sano ends up in the top 10 here despite questions about his position (he's still hanging in there at third base) and ultimate size. I don't think he'll be in the majors before late 2014, at the earliest, but the probability of his becoming an above-average big league regular is very high now. 7. Wil Myers, RF | Tampa Bay Rays (age 22) Current level: Triple-A (Durham) Preseason ranking: 4 Myers has had one of the worst starts of any player on this list, striking out nearly a third of the time while hitting for very little power, something I discussed in April when I saw Durham play. He's actually been worse since that series, maintaining that low contact rate with declining results when he does put the ball in play. 8. Taijuan Walker, RHP | Seattle Mariners (age 20) Current level: Double-A (Jackson) Preseason ranking: 9 Walker is repeating Double-A after last year's two-level jump to avoid the hitter-friendly Cal League, and the results have been just adequate so far, although everything that has made Walker a top prospect for two-plus years is intact -- the big fastball, the incredible athleticism, the easy delivery. He's added a spike curveball this year, a move that makes no sense to me given that he already had a good curveball and that Mike Mussina is the only major league starter I know of who could command a spike. I'd like to see Walker go back to fastball-curveball-change and focus on commanding what he's got. 9. Archie Bradley, RHP | Arizona Diamondbacks (age 20) Current level: Double-A (Mobile) Preseason ranking: 29 Bradley always had ace-quality stuff, with a fastball up to 98 mph and a curveball from hell, but his control troubles last year appear to be behind him. He has walked just more than 10 percent of hitters this year after walking more than 14 percent of them last year. Diamondbacks fans should be gritty -- I mean, giddy -- over the prospect of a rotation with Bradley, Pat Corbin, Tyler Skaggs, Wade Miley and Daniel Hudson by Opening Day of 2015. 10. Addison Russell, SS | Oakland Athletics (age 19) Current level: High Class A (Stockton) Preseason ranking: 10 A minor back injury led to a slow start for Russell, whom the A's promoted aggressively to high-A at age 19 this spring, but he's starting to return to form now, showing solid plate discipline and the ability to square up better quality pitching. He projects as an impact bat at shortstop, where impact bats are hard to come by. 11. Dylan Bundy, RHP | Baltimore Orioles (age 20) Current level: Has not played (injury) Preseason ranking: 3 Bundy was in the top three in all of baseball coming into this spring, but the uncertainty around his elbow injury decreases his value, at least for the time being. I've heard that Buck Showalter wanted Bundy to improve his time to the plate, which could have caused Bundy to alter his mechanics and hurt himself, but the injury could just as easily be the result of overuse in high school. The latest on Bundy is that he is set to resume throwing in a couple of weeks after receiving a platelet-rich plasma injection to deal with soreness in his right forearm. 12. Gerrit Cole, RHP | Pittsburgh Pirates (age 22) Current level: Triple-A (Indianapolis) Preseason ranking: 8 You know, Gerrit, it's time we talk about what it means to have "plus stuff." It doesn't mean you light up the radar gun. It doesn't mean you buckle scouts' knees with your slider. It means every now and then you need to miss a bat. So maybe do that a little more and walk guys a little less, and we'll see you in the big leagues. 13. Aaron Sanchez, RHP | Toronto Blue Jays (age 20) Current level: High Class A (Dunedin) Preseason ranking: 19 He's on the shelf right now with a minor muscle pull, but Sanchez's plus stuff, including a fastball up to 99 mph with minimal effort, is producing better results already than it did last year, a step forward similar to Archie Bradley's, where the performance is catching up to the scouting reports. 14. Jameson Taillon, RHP | Pittsburgh Pirates (age 21) Current level: Double-A (Altoona) Preseason ranking: 20 If you want to argue that Taillon is better than Cole, I won't strongly dispute it. Cole has more weapons and does it a little easier, but Taillon is very physical and will show two plus pitches of his own, with just a year's difference between the two. 15. Zack Wheeler, RHP | New York Mets (age 22) Current level: Triple-A (Las Vegas) Preseason ranking: 15 Wheeler missed one start in May with a sore clavicle but returned last week to throw five innings at Iowa and isn't expected to have further problems. He has top-of-the-rotation stuff, and after a few wild outings early in the year, including one in which he walked six guys, he has walked just five in his past four outings. 16. Gary Sanchez, C | New York Yankees (age 20) Current level: High Class A (Tampa) Preseason ranking: 18 Although there's still some question of whether he will remain a catcher long term, I think he's going to stay there, as he's enough of an athlete to become an adequate backstop in time -- and his bat will be MVP-caliber for that position. 17. Anthony Rendon, 3B | Washington Nationals (age 22) Current level: Double-A (Harrisburg) Preseason ranking: 17 Rendon didn't embarrass himself in 25 at-bats in Washington last month and continues to hit well with an outstanding approach in Double-A. I still don't get why the Nationals are taking a guy who's had three traumatic ankle injuries and experimenting with him at second base, and if they leave him at third, he can take over when Ryan Zimmerman has to move off the position. 18. Mike Zunino, C | Seattle Mariners (age 22) Current level: Triple-A (Tacoma) Preseason ranking: N/A The third overall pick in last June's draft, Zunino, like Myers, has struggled to start the season, although in his defense he's the only position player from his draft class who's in Triple-A right now. I thought he might be up by late June, but Labor Day seems like a more realistic target now. 19. Carlos Correa, SS | Houston Astros (age 18) Current level: Low Class A (Quad Cities) Preseason ranking: 24 Correa was the No. 1 pick last June, one spot ahead of Buxton. If you're an Astros fan dismayed to see Buxton's crazy start in low-A, bear in mind that Correa is nine months younger than Buxton and performing extremely well (.274/.402/.400) for someone so young and who has yet to grow into his frame and tap into his power potential. 20. Kyle Zimmer, RHP | Kansas City Royals (age 21) Current level: High Class A (Wilmington) Preseason ranking: 27 Zimmer looked dominant earlier in the season but has slowed a little to where he's looking just very good. It's a tiny sample, but seeing that he's allowed six homers already in nine starts isn't great, since he pitches in a big ballpark and his stuff is good enough that A-ball hitters shouldn't square him up like that. 21. Jorge Soler, OF | Chicago Cubs (age 21) Current level: High Class A (Daytona) Preseason ranking: 42 The power is already showing up thanks to Soler's tremendous bat speed, and he's drawn more walks (18 in 173 PAs) than I would have guessed given how long he had gone without facing live pitching before last summer. He's been only fair in right field and his arm has looked average, both disappointments relative to what I saw from him last year. 22. Gregory Polanco, OF | Pittsburgh Pirates (age 21) Current level: High Class A (Bradenton) Preseason ranking: 55 Scouts seem mixed on whether he'll stay in center or not, but even if he doesn't, he brings a lot of skills to the table offensively and would be very good in a corner. If he does stay in center, he has some star potential because of his bat. 23. Garin Cecchini, 3B | Boston Red Sox (age 22) Current level: High Class A (Salem) Preseason ranking: Unranked Cecchini is a high-IQ player with a good feel for hitting but no plus tools who just missed my preseason top 100 and now looks like he clearly should have made it, hitting .365/.475/.615 and translating that ability to hit into above-average power production. There's absolutely some randomness/sample-size stuff at work here, but the early reports from scouts are glowing -- it's hard not to write up a player positively when he goes 8-for-10 in a three-game series. 24. Michael Wacha, RHP | St. Louis Cardinals (age 21) Current level: Triple-A (Memphis) Preseason ranking: Unranked Multiple scouts have told me they've seen an above-average breaking ball from Wacha this year, which was the main concern about him coming out of Texas A&M last June. (That said, I still don't get why he fell to the 19th pick.) There are rumors he will be called up to start for St. Louis on Thursday, but even if he has to wait, he could step into the Cardinals' rotation this summer and be a league-average starter as soon as next year. 25. Taylor Guerrieri, RHP | Tampa Bay Rays (Age 20) Current level: Low Class A (Bowling Green) Preseason ranking: 47 The Rays have handled him very gently, but Guerrieri is flashing ace stuff -- fastball up to 97 mph, a hammer breaking ball -- while showing very good control for a 20-year-old in his first full season of pro ball. He has been facing 18-to-21 hitters in most starts but has yet to walk more than two guys in any outing. He's also killing worms like it's a mission, with a groundout/air out rate above 3.5. Also considered: Robert Stephenson, RHP (Cincinnati Reds); Yasiel Puig, OF (Los Angeles Dodgers); Billy Hamilton, CF (Cincinnati Reds); Tyler Skaggs, LHP (Arizona Diamondbacks); Corey Seager, IF (Los Angeles Dodgers).
Well, somebody had to be it. I'm not down on him much. Would be nice to see him showing a bit more pop, but it is a growth process.
Thanks, somewhat surprised that Springer didn't make the top 25 but good to see Correa getting some respect, and like Law said, Buxton is playing great, but he's also older and more developed than Correa so comparing the 2 is unfair at this point.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>@<a href="https://twitter.com/qcriverbandits">qcriverbandits</a> lineup v @<a href="https://twitter.com/kccougars">kccougars</a> Hernandez-8 Correa-6 Hamblin-3 Singleton-DH Ruiz-5 Ovando-9 Morales-2 Elkins-4 Scott-7 Minor/McCullers-1</p>— QC River Bandits (@QCRiverBandits) <a href="https://twitter.com/QCRiverBandits/status/339521539559006208">May 28, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
I'm not. He has all these tools, but is closing in on his 24th birthday, and still shows the same strikeout concerns. Still a great prospect. Singleton could have made it if he was playing.
