Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Season 15 - Top 10 Prospects

Please keep in mind that my advanced scouting is different that yours. Please also keep in mind that I wrote this for fun and to discuss. Please don't take it personally if "your" guy didn't make the top 10. Originally I wanted to make the list only guys that were called up this season, but there were some entries for guys that were "September callups" last season that are eligible rookies this season that I decided to include. Thanks to everyone for sending in entries!

1.
Ronnie Magee
Seattle
Huskies
Age: 25B/T: S/R
Born: San Rafael, CA
Position(s): C
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Seattle drafted Magee with the 11th pick in the first round in Season 11. Love Mr. Magee. I also have a crush on power hitting catchers that won't hurt you too bad defensively. They are ridiculously hard to find (and they should be). I bet there are some teams that drafted before Seattle that wish they had chosen (or seen) Magee. Having Magee in the bigs now also allowed Seattle to trade another top Catcher, Hooks Cheney, to Louisville and acquire a couple good prospects.

What I said about him when he was drafted: "Holding out right now"

2.
Neil McCallum
Iowa City
Hawkeyes
Age: 23B/T: R/R
Born: Glendale, AZ
Position(s): C
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McCallum was drafted with the 37th pick in Season 11's draft by Iowa City. How in the world did he drop so low??? There have to be a ton of teams that wish they had taken the plunge on McCallum. He is probably the steal of Season 11's draft. He is a great hitting, slightly above average defensive catcher. A really nice piece to the puzzle as the Hawkeyes continue to rise from hitting the cellar under the previous regime.

What I said about him when he was drafted: N/A - Didn't review after first round

3.
John Lewis
Louisville
Cardinals
Age: 25B/T: R/R
Born: Jackson, NJ
Position(s): P (SP3)
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Lewis was the 20th pick in Season 12's draft. Lewis is the first of two starting pitchers in the top 10. He isn't quite a top of the rotation type talent, but will be a solid #2. Good splits and pitches will allow him to do very well for the Cardinals. He will definitely help Lousiville as they try to get to 70 wins this season.


What I said about him when he was drafted: "Really like this pick and am surprised he fell to #20. Really good splits especially his vR and solid control with a couple good pitches in his repetoire. Good piece to keep the rebuild project in Louisville going."

4.
Tony Velez
Charlotte
Tar Heels
Age: 21B/T: L/L
Born: Fantino, DO
Position(s): P (SP5)
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Velez was acquired by Charlotte as an IFA in Season 12 to the tune of $13.8 Million. The Tar Heels are pretty excited about Velez. Although his splits aren't fantastic, his combination of control with an absolutely dominating first pitch will hopefully lead him to doing some good things for the Heels. He'll slot in with several other young arms in the starting rotation.

What I said about him when he was drafted: N/A - IFA

5.
Brent Bukvich
Chicago
Blue Demons
Age: 25B/T: L/L
Born: San Antonio, TX
Position(s): P (ClA)
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Buckvich was the #2 pick in Season 11. I really like Bukvich. He is going to be a great closer for a long time. The STA/DUR combo is really solid and he should be able to be one of those "two inning" closers" on some occasions that are hard to find. His control, splits, and pitches are all top notch.

What I said about him when he was drafted: "Shutdown closer who should be ready sooner than later. There always seems to be a debate on if it makes sense to use such a high pick on a guy that will only pitch 100 - 120 Innings or so, but the Blue Demons got themselves a guy that can closer down the last two innings of a game and its hard to pass that up."

6.
Dustin Lefebvre
Louisville
Cardinals
Age: 22B/T: S/R
Born: Rockford, IL
Position(s): P (SP5)
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Lefebvre was the 22nd pick in Season 11. Lefebvre is the second pitcher from the Cardinals to make the top 10. Not quite the prospect that Lewis is, Lefebvre will still do some good things in the middle of the rotation with solid splits and pitches. Personally, I've had up and down luck with 3 pitch starting pitchers which is one of the reasons he slides down a bit in these rankings. That being said, he'll certainly help a ton as gerald does his best to get to 70 wins as he works to continue turning the franchise around.

What I said about him when he was drafted: "Another solid SP prospect goes off the board. The only question mark is sometimes SP's that only use three pitches can struggle from time to time, but there are plenty of examples of it working."

7.
Einar Chavez
Boise
Broncos
Age: 25B/T: R/R
Born: Donna, TX
Position(s): 2B/1B/LF/DH
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Chavez was the 9th pick in Season 12. If Chavez was a better defender, than he would be higher on this list. As he currently stands, he is extremely borderline as a 2B, but if Boise tried to move him to the OF, that would really dilute the lineup because his bat isn't that good. Sticky situation. I think abes will "live" with sub par defense at 2B so he can have a "plus" bat for that position.

What I said about him when he was drafted: "Solid selection and will be ready in a season or two. Always nice to find a solid 2B defender with some pop in his bat that can also make some noise on the basepaths."

What abesmem said about him when he was drafted: "Very, very happy with Chavez at number 9. I had him rated as 2 overall. He basically can do it all. He should hit for both avergae and power and can deal with lefties and righties. He should be in the majors within 2 seasons."

8.
Wandy Reynoso
Seattle
Huskies
Age: 22B/T: L/L
Born: Lynn, MA
Position(s): P (SuA)
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Reynoso was selected with the 18th pick in Season 12's draft. If his splits were higher, he'd skyrocket up this list, but everything else looks really good to be a great reliever for Seattle. He is a similar prospect to Bukvich, but Buckvich's splits are higher.

What I said about him when he was drafted: "Pretty good relief prospect here. Should be able to eat up a good amount of innings and still be efficient with his projections. Would be a great closer prospect if his second pitch was a bit better."

9.
Chico Melo
Detroit
Wolverines
Age: 24B/T: R/R
Born: Changuinola, PA
Position(s): 3B
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Melo was signed as an IFA in Season 9 for $12.7 Million and has spent the last 6 seasons in Detroits farm system. His vR isn't great and will hurt his production at the plate. That being said, he has solid power, his splits aren't awful, and will field the position extremely well.

What I said about him when he was drafted: N/A - IFA

10.
Fred O'Neill
Iowa City
Hawkeyes
Age: 22B/T: R/R
Born: Cicero, NY
Position(s): RF/1B/LF/DH
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O"Neill was originally drafted with the 26th pick in Season 11's draft by Huntington, but has since been traded several times. I went back and forth on whether to include him in the top 10, but in the end think he'll make a big enough impact to warrant being included. He has a ton of power, hits righties slightly above average, and a solid batting eye. He won't hit for a good average, but I think his slugging pct and OBP will give him a solid OPS.

What I said about him when he was drafted: "Hmmm...interesting selection. Great contact and power, but an awful lefty split and average righty split, but then a great batting eye. Can't wait to see what happens with him."

Also Receiving Votes:

Luis Martin
Raymond Hausmann
Charles Dickerson
Fernando Segui
Casey Gorecki
Carlos Carrasco
Geraldo Arias
Juan Nieves

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