| By Chris Crawford |  | By 03-02-2010 |
As I mentioned in the previous post, the handbook is very close, so I thought it might be fun to give you guys something to talk about/give you some of my thoughts on some of the prospects I've seen and-or studied.
Gabriel Noriega : I saw Gabriel Noriega while he was in Pulaski last fall, and for the most part -- I was impressed. Noriega has fluidity about him on the field that is difficult to ignore. I didn't get a chance to watch batting practice, but I was able to see a flaw that you might here from a lot of scouts...he has happy feet. Big time. Can he fix it? I'm pretty sure he can, but it's hard to imagine gap numbers from Noriega until he gets his footwork right.
Steve Baron : Take all the good stuff I said about Noriega and...shrink it in half for Baron. I WAS able to watch Baron take batting practice, and the swing -- while not a disaster -- needs a lot of work, from the hips to the wrists to the head. Baron's still very young, and everything you hear from scouts is that he can really throw and block the plate, but offensively? It could be a long -- or even impossible -- project.
Rich Poythress : To me, Poythress is one of the most important prospects in the system, because while we've discussed at length that numbers like home runs can be over-hyped, having a guy who can slug in the mid .500's is never a bad thing. The question for me is going to be if he has the bat speed and can develop the patience to be a true middle of the order bat. He has one plus skill right now, but if he can improve the bat speed and approach to go with the plate coverage, Poythress could be the right handed pop bat the team needs, and possibly soon.
James Jones: Another guy who I've gotten to see extensive video on, and he really impressed me. No, he's not one of the ten best prospects in the system as a certain person who runs a certain website said, but there is that kind of potential. There's a decent chance that he is nothing more than a platoon outfielder even at his peak still, but Jones is definitely one I'm keeping my eye on.
Josh Fields: The numbers Fields put up at West Tennessee were a mixed bag. It is absolutely true that his command was shaky all year, and if there was ever a movie made called "The pitcher who tried to do too much" -- it might star Josh Fields. But let's look at the good numbers: a strikeout per inning, only 2 home runs in 40 innings, and a decent GB/FB ratio for a power pitcher. Is Fields going to be a dominating closer? Probably not, but I would almost say he’s assured (barring health, obviously) of being a solid member of a bullpen, and soon.
Greg Halman: Is there a prospect with a larger range in opinions than Halman? You will hear estimations range anywhere from if he puts it together watch out' to 'he can't put it together, so don't worry about it'. Most of the video I've seen of Halman was the disaster that was the World Baseball Classic, and I almost wonder if that was a confidence killer. I just don't think he'll transfer the tools over to skills to be anything more than a platoon guy.
Dan Cortes: Cortes struggles last year were similar to those of Fields -- but Cortes issues were not accompanied with as many of the positive splits Fields had. There are real concerns that Cortes is going to have to move to the pen, and without a huge improvement in command, that move could occur sooner than later. The stuff is definitely there, the feel for pitching...I haven't seen. It was still a darned good return for an automatic out whose name must never be spoken again, but the two to three starter talk is probably nonsense.
Brian Moran: Moran was one of three UNC players drafted by the M's in the top ten round, and you wouldn't think much of him reading a scouting report. He throws in the mid 80's, has average breaking stuff and doesn't have a real good feel for his changeup yet, but there’s a real chance Moran is going to reach the bigs because he has plus movement and one heck of a challenging arm slot. Brian Moran isn't a guy who’s going to get a lot of love on Baseball Prospectus or B.A., but he's one of those guys that if you can develop him internally can save you money for "more important things." He put up good numbers at Clinton, and if he does the same at Higher Desert next year he could be a fast track guy to the bigs.
That’s just a few of the guys that I've been keeping tabs on. More importantly, who have YOU been keeping tabs on? Who are those guys that you think could be sleepers in the system? This is your time to shine.
some-thoughts-and-perceptions
Comments
The following 15 comment(s) for this article are shown below:
| 1. By: rjfrik on 03-02-2010 19:57:13 I still can't believe we drafted Baron. |
| 2. By: FelixElRey on 03-02-2010 20:07:27 That's a pretty depressing take on most of those guys. It seems like they're too raw or just not skilled enough to be an impact player out of the majority of this group. |
| 3. By: Chris Crawford on 03-02-2010 20:42:30 I would say its mostly raw right now Elray, but thats the thing about raw...it can be........cooked? Minus Baron, there is real hope for all of those guys...I just think it's important to have realistic looks at players. Minus Halman and Raben, i would say my outlook for them is very optimistic, but I purposely picked players that have flaws and strengths that could make them interesting. |
| 4. By: Slack on 03-02-2010 20:47:46 I am looking forward to seeing what Nick Franklin does in a full season this year. It's his time to show M"s fans that he was worth being drafted as high as he was. I am also interested in watching Tyler Blandford. He has great velocity but no command. I'd like to see if he can improve his command. |
| 5. By: Chris Crawford on 03-02-2010 20:50:27 Saw Blandford, probably a reliever, but big arm, one to watch for sure next year. |
| 6. By: Slack on 03-02-2010 21:22:00 What's your take on James Gillheeney, Trevor Coleman and Matt Cerione? I know they were later round picks in 2009 but I was curious about them as well. |
| 7. By: Chris Crawford on 03-02-2010 21:48:25 Coleman, and again, this is me....a switch hitting more advanced Baron. Gillheeny....good curve, good changeup, very mediocre fastball, probably a loogy, but again, one too watch Cerione....definition of Raw, also questions about his attitude and want. Didn't see enough of him to tell you much more than that. |
| 8. By: StandinPat on 03-02-2010 23:15:03 "Saw Blandford, probably a reliever, but big arm, one to watch for sure next year." Yet another reason why you don't take a reliever, ie Fields, in the first round. SP's with live arms who can't refine their secondary offerings can always be moved to the pen. Side note, super excited to see what Pineda, Cortes and Robles do this spring. |
| 9. By: Jason A. Churchill on 03-02-2010 23:55:43 Blandford wasn't a first rounder, however. So at least there's that. And he's definitely a pen guy. Not much chance to start. Gillheeney and Cerione aren't major leaguers. Coleman reminds me of Jack Hannahan at the plate. Good approach, has a clue, the physical ability to be something is there, but he strikes out too much and doesn't do enough when he does make contact. |
| 10. By: rocketdawg31 on 03-03-2010 11:58:31 On the pitching side of the ledger, I'm planning on watching Mauricio Robles and Luke Burnett closely. The crystal ball in my spare room told me to watch for outfielder Julio Morban, second baseman Kyle Seager and (currently) shortstop Juan Diaz this year. |
| 11. By: rocketdawg31 on 03-03-2010 12:09:34 I agree with rjfrik regarding Baron, too. After all these months it still...irks me that he was drafted as high as he was, and we signed him for so much more than what his skill-set commanded logically. That swing makes me cringe at all the work needed. |
| 12. By: Edman on 03-03-2010 16:44:03 I trust in Jack and his evaluators. Obviously, then see/know something that the casual fan, does not. A journey is not about where you start, but where you finish. If he turns into another Charles Johnson, would you still think so? They don't draft for quick-turn players, especially at the high-school level. They draft for projectability. I'll give it a few years, before I decide that it was a failed draft pick. |
| 13. By: Slack on 03-03-2010 17:42:02 I didn't care for the Baron selection either. I would have taken Max Stassi instead. It didn't take much more for the A's to sign him than it did the Mariners to sign Baron. |
| 14. By: Edman on 03-03-2010 18:46:43 Stassi was a very iffy signing. To imply that Seattle should have drafted him just because the A's signed him, is very narrow minded. He's a California kid who lives near Oakland. Sometimes, it's not entirely about money. Some of you think that it's all it takes. You don't think that there might have been consideration taken that he would not want to sign with a last place team, several hundred miles from his home? He had a college scholarship already in hand. You don't think that Seattle's area scouts didn't enquire about his signability? |
| 15. By: Jason A. Churchill on 03-04-2010 17:01:54 Stassi would have signed, he and his father had no intention of not signing. The impression that he was a tough sign scared off the teams he didn't really wanna go to. Mission accomplished. He would have signed with any team, perhaps outside of an east coast team like Pittsburgh or possibly a different city than he's used to, such as Detroit. Anything out west, or anyone who might win regularly, done deal. That should be easy to figure out, too, since Oakland doesn't exactly spend tons of money and haven't won since Stassi got to HS. |
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