| By Jason A. Churchill |  | By 04-26-2009 |
This week's Premium Notebook will be a nice split between prospects, trade rumors and draft stuff.Yes, I said trade rumors.
Remember, the notebooks are going to be a little bit shorter each time out, but will be more frequent. The next notebook will be published on or before the 5th of May, which will be right after I get a chance to see USC's Grant Green and Brad Boxberger, and a couple of local arms at Skagit Valley and Everett Community Colleges that are being seen as potential top 100 talents.
Thought of the Week: Many of the former staffers at the Seattle P-I have gotten together and created the Seattle Post Globe, and have begun the initial stages of a new online news service, essentially competing directly with seattlepi.com.
Among those contributing to the baseball content are John Hickey, Art Thiel and yours truly. My first prospect report for the SPG should be published Monday or Tuesday at Seattle Post Globe dot Org.
Full access is being granted for the writers at the Post Globe, so the quality of the content should generally appear very similar as it did in the P-I over the years. But they are partnering with KCTS for the project, so the editors would like to do podcasts, video and will use still photography with the prospect reports... so, say hello to Paul Marsh, the Post Globe's newest photographer.
premium-notebook---4.26.09
Comments
The following 44 comment(s) for this article are shown below:
| 1. By: teddyb on 04-26-2009 19:52:20 Liddi and Dunigan are having a good game today bolth have 2HR's |
| 2. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-26-2009 19:53:18 Liddi is limited physically, Dunigan is interesting, but neither are top 15 prospects for me. Dunigan is a better bet to develop a plus tool, though. |
| 3. By: teddyb on 04-26-2009 20:08:37 thanks jac and anyword on the kid i told you about from Neb |
| 4. By: teddyb on 04-26-2009 20:13:01 and Lo just hit his 2nd Hr of the game |
| 5. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-26-2009 20:49:54 teddy, McCoy? |
| 6. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-26-2009 20:55:57 BTW, I know it's fun to see the guys in HD putting up crooked numbers; long balls, lots of runs scored and RBI... but they mean nothing. There isn't one single position player on that roster that I personally project as an everyday big-leaguer, regardless of the numbers they put up. Tyson Gillies has an outside chance, and he'll likely find his way to majors in some capacity, but everyone else there is on the long-shot list to be everyday guys. The arms are the story. |
| 7. By: Lonnie on 04-26-2009 22:41:38 Jason, For whatever reason, let's say that Washington picks Strasburg yet fails to sign him. Do they then get the #1 overall in 2010? I'm suffering from brain-lock and can't remember how the process works. *Can* Washington afford to pony up the funds to sign both the #1 and #10 picks? Lonnie |
| 8. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-27-2009 00:04:00 No, Wash would get No. 2. And yes, they will. |
| 9. By: 01v-dubs on 04-27-2009 13:53:15 Jason, recently on ESPN you wrote a nice review of Scheppers, do you think it's still likely that he's around for the M's lat first round pick? From the article I'd say it seems unlikely. |
| 10. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-27-2009 19:46:54 If the draft were today, not a chance. His final workouts, performances in St. Paul and his final medical review will determine whether he's a risk at 40, like 2008, or a steal at 10. |
| 11. By: Slack on 04-27-2009 22:00:56 Jason, If Tyler Matzek reaches his ceiling, who's an MLB pitcher we could compare him too? |
| 12. By: teddyb on 04-27-2009 22:58:46 what happend to hensley tongiht hurt or called up? |
| 13. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-27-2009 23:07:53 Just as far as level of performances, not style or specific stuff, a maxed out Matzek is a No. 1 starter. Maybe at the level of a 2008 Cole Hamels, Scott Kazmir... maybe 2007 and 09 Erik Bedard. |
| 14. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-28-2009 01:15:24 Hensley is slated to start Tuesday. |
| 15. By: rocketdawg31 on 04-28-2009 05:13:27 Jason- If Scheppers is gone at #27 (and I'm choosing to believe he will be), is there a comparable college arm- besides Leake- that you project with similar potential and available? If not, does a high school catcher maybe make sense at #27? We all know this is a decent year for those. I've been of the suspicion for awhile now that the value to be found in this draft- after pick #15- is more on the prep side. |
| 16. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-28-2009 10:10:14 Similar to Scheppers? No. Without the injury, he would have already been touted as the No. 2 prospect. |
| 17. By: teddyb on 04-28-2009 11:21:58 why was hensley pushed back for? |
| 18. By: PositivePaul on 04-28-2009 11:31:24 That's right. Uh-huh. We're published in the PostGlobe now... |
| 19. By: Slack on 04-28-2009 12:34:17 Jason, What is Matt Purke's upside? Could he be a #1 or is he more of a #2-3 type? What separates him and Matzek? |
| 20. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-28-2009 12:37:32 Hensley wasn't pushed back. He pitched on the 16th, then the 22nd -- five full days in between - and will do so again on the 28th -- five full days in between. I haven not spoken to anyone about Hensley, and don't feel inclined to do so -- he's not a prospect -- but that's been the schedule all along. |
| 21. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-28-2009 12:39:49 Purke's upside is right there with Matzek's. Purke is a little lankier than Matzek, but similar is height, arm speed, raw stuff. But Matzek's command is a little better, and Purke's arm slot could go either for him -- could be a big asset, as it is now -- could negatively affect the development of a change up, or another pitch to get righties out in pro ball. There's a little more risk in Purke than there is in Matzek. |
| 22. By: teddyb on 04-28-2009 12:58:05 o ok cause on the clinton website hensley was scratched form the start and nation pitched for him thats what is said so i was wondering thanks |
| 23. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-28-2009 13:48:28 I would imagine it's just because of the days rest thing, teddyb. I did just send an email out to ask, just for you. |
| 24. By: teddyb on 04-28-2009 14:08:09 lol thanks and yeah mCcoy is going to a try out in KC in june aswell and playing on are softball team hahaha is arm will come in handy somewhere lol |
| 25. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-28-2009 15:29:30 teddyb, Aaron should be at any and all workouts he can get to between now and June 9. And a few scout I know are going to go see him. |
| 26. By: nighthawk180 on 04-28-2009 17:09:22 Jason little off topic but, Do you think that the mariners consider signing Branyon to another year next year. He is getting older but he does have some pop in that bat. He is also a lefty bat. The mariners need some lefty sticks in the lineup. It probably doesnt really matter but was wondering if it would be worth the trouble. Mike carp has been tearing up AAA right know albeit small sample size. He is probably the next 1B but with Griffey, Sweeney and a few others coming off the books would it make sense to sign him to another 1 year deal worth about 5mil or so. Again not a big gain but not a bad idea in my opinion even as a DH or something. Thx for the insight. |
| 27. By: Pumpkin on 04-28-2009 17:12:22 Jason, I havn't heard too much about Tate recently, has he dropped some do to performance or whatnot? Him and Matzek were my personal favorites a while back and I still hear about Matzek all the time. Also, I know at the time of the draft Mangini was considered by many to be a good pick, and then last year he flopped. Have you heard anything about him recently? thanks |
| 28. By: 01v-dubs on 04-28-2009 20:15:08 Jason, I don't know if you've already answered this but with Clement playing some first base in Tacoma what are the M's plans for him? Maybe a partime C/1b/DH kind of like Victor Martinez? |
| 29. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-28-2009 20:17:23 dubs, No idea. If he's not going to hit, he's useless anyway. Pumpkin, Tate is performing, Keith had a write-up on him not long ago. Top 10 guy. |
| 30. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-28-2009 20:17:59 And who said Mangini was a good pick? I didn't. |
| 31. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-28-2009 20:43:08 I don't want to use the word ignore, but using Carp's early performances isn't a good idea. Far too small a sample size. He can hit, but he's not going to sustain his power numbers in Tacoma, let alone bring much of it to the big leagues. We're not talking about a 10-year starter at 1B or anything. |
| 32. By: Jerry on 04-28-2009 21:06:28 Hey Jason, What do you think of Tate as a possible pick for the M's with their first pick. He is pretty clearly the best prep position player, and has a ton of upside. I know that he isn't on the same level as the Uptons or Eric Hosmer, but the other potential picks (Ackley, White, Crow, Maztek) don't have the same upside. With the second overall pick, I would almost rather see the M's go for the guy who has a shot at superstardom. Some of the prep pitchers also have high upside, but the inherent risk of prep arms makes that a tough call to make that early. Perhaps it is best to just roll the dice on Maztek or Miller. But Tate could be a nice pickup. Waddya think? |
| 33. By: teddyb on 04-28-2009 21:56:12 ok hensley was scratched cause he was sick but came in tonight to pitch 2 inings andgot the win lorin pitched great to thanks jason |
| 34. By: DAMellen on 04-28-2009 23:11:35 Maybe not, but it doesn't sound like we're talking about a bad player either. Even if we disregard this year's small sample, he looks like he'll be pretty good at getting on base and hit with some power. After all, that's what he's done throughout most of his minor league career. It seems like Carp'll be worth a starting gig throughout his arbitration years. |
| 35. By: DAMellen on 04-28-2009 23:14:49 Also, what pitches does Matzek throw? What issues are you expecting him to have as far as getting ready for the majors goes? Will he have to improve his command, develop a change, anything like that? |
| 36. By: rocketdawg31 on 04-28-2009 23:20:11 Jerry- I won't speak FOR Jason, but regarding Tate, here's my two cents...he's an extreme high-risk/high reward proposition, essentially a bunch of intriguing tools slapped together at this point. In Triunfel and Halman (and maybe Morban, we'll have to see), we have a decent amount of those in our Top 10 prospects anyway. Tate has speed and power in abundance, but you run the risk that all that pure athleticism won't translate to "superstar ballplayer" in the long run. As Jason knows, I've had my misgivings about Tate and his baseball instincts. And who says Matzek doesn't have the same amount of upside? If he maxes out, Matzek is a number-one type of LH starter. I could also argue that Crow DOES have as much upside as what Tate does. All things considered, I roll the dice on Matzek or Miller with #2. My money's on Matzek. |
| 37. By: randallball on 04-29-2009 13:02:20 Hey Jason, Thoughts on Ezequiel Carrera's performance so far? He seems (from the #'s anyways) to be showing some much improved pop and plate discipline. |
| 38. By: jakemantooth3 on 04-29-2009 13:57:16 jason, i subscribed to ur site and pay the monthly fee. yet i log in and it says i am logged in and i try to read the premium notebook or go in premium chat and it says that it is restricted and logs me out. what gives? |
| 39. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-29-2009 14:59:04 jake, You never responded when I sent out instructions to all subscribers. You should be good to go now, however. |
| 40. By: jakemantooth3 on 04-29-2009 15:08:07 sorry ive been away from the site for a little while. thanks jason. |
| 41. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-29-2009 15:13:48 no prob. |
| 42. By: Pumpkin on 04-30-2009 12:53:54 Thanks Jason, I don't remember exactaly who it was that said mangini was a good pick, but it was in some article a while back praising the pick of him, and bashing the Almonte pick. One more thing, from what I can remember one of the biggest questions with Purke is whether or not he can develop a changeup with his 3/4 arm slot, but I was just reading a scouting report on him at milb and they said that he already has a good changeup. Do you know if this is true? If so wouldn't this bump him up to quite a bit? |
| 43. By: Stoiz on 04-30-2009 15:00:13 Jason- Do you think Scheppers can get in the mix at 2 or is the risk too high? Also would you look at Bailey with the 27 or 33? Could he slide to 51? |
| 44. By: Jason A. Churchill on 04-30-2009 15:55:03 Stoiz, Funny you should ask. Check out the latest piece I just posted 2 mins ago. I directly answer both of those questions. Pumpkin, You are probably referring to someone I don't respect much when it comes to draft analysis... The Mangini pick was not good, I never liked it. I didn't like the Raben pick a whole lot, either. There were better upside talents available. Not a horrible pick, a couple notches above Mangini, of course. Re: Purke, That's one of the things, yes, but MiLB is going off of one game with those scouting reports, and from what I hear, his change is "good for a prep kid," so there's some developing to do. And his arm speed on the pitch is a question mark. He has no glaring issues, but Matzek has as much upside and is a safer pick for most who have seen both extensively. Purke is a top five talent for me. Just this past year Madison Bumgarner developed a plus breaking ball from his low slot when many didn't believe he could. Up until he became a pro, he wasn't throwing a breaking ball regularly, I guess. Now he's among the top few pitching prospects in baseball just two years out. Purke and Bumgarner are somewhat similar in that way. Just don't let anyone tell you that Tyler Skaggs or Purke are BETTER than Matzek. Right now, Purke and Matzek are head and shoulder above Skaggs. |
Haven't created a Prospect Insider account yet? Sign up!
|
|
 |
|
|
| Copyright 2010 Prospect Insider | Created by AQ Central Prospect Insider is optimized for Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome |