Baseball America | Blog | Baseball America Prospects Blog

See also: MWL Batting and Pitching Leaders
See also: SAL Batting and Pitching Leaders

Check out the Triple-A Stat Wrap for a detailed explanation of the methods used here. The Double-A and high Class A versions also are available.

MIDWEST LEAGUE

Best Run Differential: Dayton: +124 (finished third in Eastern Division at 78-62)
Fun Fact: 3B Juan Francisco led the league with 25 homers and OF Drew Stubbs led with 93 runs
Best Player: 2B Justin Turner, .311/.374/.446 with 10 HR, 25 2B and 12 SB
Best Pitcher: RHP Sean Watson, 5-2, 1.88 in 72 IP with 85-13 K-BB

Worst Run Differential: Great Lakes: -166 (finished fifth in Eastern Division at 57-82)
Dubious Distinction: The Loons’ offense was respectable—led by 1B Eduardo Perez, OF Matt Berezay and 3B Josh Bell—but pitching, with the exception of LHP Clayton Kershaw, was the club’s downfall. Great Lakes pitchers surrendered the most walks and runs in the league.

BATTERS

EXTRA-BASE HIT RATE
BATTER	Pos	ORG	PA	2B	3B	HR	XBH	XBH+
Pettit, Chris	of	LAA	266	24	1	9	13%	194
*Buckman, Brandon	1b	STL	284	19	2	14	12%	187
*Snider, Travis	of	TOR	517	35	7	16	11%	170
*Peguero, Carlos	of	SEA	321	21	6	9	11%	170
Johnson, Tyler	of	LAA	317	19	5	11	11%	167
#Berezay, Matt	of	LAD	481	34	5	13	11%	164
*Dinkelman, Brian	2b	MIN	278	16	6	7	10%	158
*Sweeney, Matt	3b	LAA	485	29	2	18	10%	153
Valaika, Chris	ss	CIN	331	20	3	10	10%	151
Everett, Brady	c	KC	423	30	2	10	10%	150
Thompson, Mike	3b	KC	415	22	0	19	10%	150
*Whittleman, John	3b	TEX	406	25	1	14	10%	149
*Lane, Matt	1b	TOR	376	27	2	8	10%	149
Pettway, Brian	of	TOR	348	20	1	13	10%	148
#Conger, Hank	c	LAA	320	20	0	11	10%	147
Valencia, Dan	3b	MIN	271	15	0	11	10%	145
Liuzza, Matt	c	TOR	355	17	3	14	10%	145
*Perales, Dan	of	ARI	609	32	10	16	10%	144
Hill, Steve	1b	STL	273	15	0	11	10%	144
Rosario, Anderson	of	LAA	169	9	1	6	9%	143
Gorsett, Luke	of	STL	291	21	2	4	9%	141
*Herren, K.C.	of	TEX	519	30	12	6	9%	140
#Valdez, Alex	3b	OAK	438	24	6	10	9%	138
Laster, Jeramy	of	DET	441	21	3	16	9%	137
Gomez, Mauro	1b	TEX	541	28	0	21	9%	137

The two batters who rank ahead of the 19-year-old Snider are both 23. The Angels had two 2006 high school draft picks perform well in Conger and Sweeney. Peguero, a 20-year-old from the Dominican, showed impressive pop, and at 6-foot-5 there’s probably more to come.

SPEED SCORE
BATTER	Pos	ORG	PA	R	3B	SB	CS	SPD	SPD+
*Shoffit, Sean	3b	TOR	499	78	13	23	3	11.3	221
Phillips, P.J.	ss	LAA	461	67	8	34	4	10.3	202
Bourjos, Peter	of	LAA	270	37	6	19	9	9.4	184
#Carter, Yusuf	of	CHC	266	37	5	11	4	9.0	177
Lo, Kuo Hui	of	SEA	410	65	7	32	9	9.0	176
*Dinkelman, Brian	2b	MIN	278	48	6	10	0	8.9	175
Johnson, Tyler	of	LAA	317	43	5	18	7	8.9	175
Hernandez, Gorkys	of	DET	533	84	5	54	11	8.0	158
*Scram, Deik	of	DET	313	45	6	14	5	7.8	154
Vallejo, Jose	2b	TEX	567	68	5	47	3	7.6	149
*Herren, K.C.	of	TEX	519	68	12	12	10	7.6	149
Mattingly, Preston	2b	LAD	437	42	7	11	3	7.5	148
Smith, Stantrel	of	LAA	338	39	3	23	5	7.5	148
Benson, Joe	of	MIN	507	73	8	18	16	7.5	147
Mertins, Kurt	2b	KC	508	70	5	30	8	7.2	141
*Mount, Ryan	2b	LAA	337	47	3	19	6	6.9	135
*Diaz, Javis	of	SD	524	67	6	31	14	6.8	134
#Rodriguez, Yuber	of	TOR	395	61	4	11	8	6.8	133
*Mitchell, Jermaine	of	OAK	513	79	5	24	8	6.8	132
*Peguero, Carlos	of	SEA	321	35	6	4	3	6.7	132
*Rapoport, James	of	STL	173	22	1	10	2	6.7	132
Emanuele, Chris	of	TOR	415	54	6	9	3	6.7	132
Barney, Darwin	ss	CHC	192	27	3	5	2	6.7	131
Paisano, David	of	TEX	338	43	1	20	2	6.6	130
#Barron, Raul	2b	TOR	236	32	3	5	2	6.6	129

Hernandez edged Snider for the league’s MVP award on the strength of his stolen base and runs scored totals. The Angels do well here, too, only this time Phillips, Bourjos and Mount are all 2005 high school picks. Though unrefined, Peguero clearly has raw ability given that he ranks on both lists in a 14-team league.

TOP FIVE POWER/SPEED PROSPECTS
BATTER	Pos	ORG	HR	SB	PSN
Phillips, P.J.	ss	LAA	13	34	19
#Francisco, Juan	3b	CIN	25	12	16
Stubbs, Drew	of	CIN	12	23	16
*Mitchell, Jermaine	of	OAK	8	24	12
*Boesch, Brennan	of	DET	10	15	12

BIG SEASONS
BATTER	Pos	ORG	PA	AVG	OBP	SLG	R	2B	HR	RBI	SB
*Snider, Travis	of	TOR	517	.313	.377	.525	72	35	16	93	3
Pettit, Chris	of	LAA	266	.346	.429	.579	47	24	9	41	17
*Buckman, Brandon	1b	STL	284	.341	.384	.590	39	19	14	52	2
*Skelton, James	c	DET	417	.309	.402	.448	60	24	7	52	18
*Mitchell, Jermaine	of	OAK	513	.288	.390	.413	79	20	8	58	24
Turner, Justin	2b	CIN	516	.311	.374	.446	70	25	10	59	12
*Whittleman, John	3b	TEX	406	.271	.382	.476	56	25	14	57	5
*Parra, Gerardo	of	ARI	488	.320	.370	.435	64	25	6	57	24
Hernandez, Gorkys	of	DET	533	.293	.344	.391	84	25	4	50	54
#Bell, Josh	3b	LAD	438	.289	.354	.470	65	21	15	62	5

PITCHERS

STRIKEOUT PERCENTAGE
PITCHER	ORG	IP	SO	TBF	K%	K+
Bailey, Andrew	OAK	51	74	218	34%	171
*Kershaw, Clayton	LAD	97	134	413	32%	164
Watson, Sean	CIN	72	85	278	31%	154
*Robertson, Tyler	MIN	102	123	421	29%	147
*Kiker, Kasey	TEX	96	112	406	28%	139
Cahill, Trevor	OAK	105	117	437	27%	135
Manship, Jeff	MIN	78	77	288	27%	135
*Cody, Chris	DET	91	92	347	27%	134
*Below, Duane	DET	146	160	608	26%	133
*Anderson, Brett	ARI	81	85	326	26%	132
Walters, P.J.	STL	69	73	282	26%	131
Miller, Drew	SD	81	87	339	26%	129
*Brandt, Doug	LAA	61	64	251	25%	129
*Phillips, Zach	TEX	152	157	618	25%	128
Rodriguez, Henry	OAK	100	106	419	25%	128
Orta, Ricky	SEA	93	102	404	25%	127
*Norberto, Jordan	ARI	102	111	443	25%	126
Poveda, Omar	TEX	126	120	490	24%	124
Varvaro, Anthony	SEA	104	112	464	24%	122
Ginley, Kyle	TOR	122	129	544	24%	120
Herron, Tyler	STL	137	130	556	23%	118
*Starner, Nathan	TOR	140	143	615	23%	117
*Furnish, Brad	STL	82	76	328	23%	117
*Webb, Travis	CIN	115	114	496	23%	116
Hernandez, Elvis	STL	110	111	483	23%	116

Kershaw’s 50 walks in 97 innings hurt him here. Bailey, a 2006 sixth-round pick, was more efficient, but then he ought to be as a college draft. Miller, Rodriguez and Poveda all delivered on their potential. Impressive steps forward for high-school arms Robertson, Kiker, Cahill, Anderson and Herron.

GROUNDOUT-TO-FLYOUT RATIO
PITCHER	ORG	IP	SO	BB	HR	G/F	G/F+
Godin, Jason	KC	96	60	36	0	2.58	215
Manship, Jeff	MIN	78	77	9	4	2.56	214
Herndon, David	LAA	152	83	20	10	2.37	198
Dickson, Brandon	STL	144	84	41	9	2.26	189
Walters, P.J.	STL	69	73	12	2	2.21	184
*Culp, Nate	SD	80	54	13	4	2.13	178
Gonzalez, Reidier	TOR	115	71	30	4	2.09	174
Gressick, Anthony	CIN	90	82	47	6	2.03	169
Valdez, Cesar	ARI	148	106	32	11	2.01	168
*Robertson, Tyler	MIN	102	123	33	3	2.00	167
Godfrey, Graham	TOR	111	74	36	8	1.97	164
*Anderson, Brett	ARI	81	85	10	3	1.96	164
O’Brien, Matt	DET	82	41	14	5	1.91	159
*Ballard, Mike	TEX	76	59	14	5	1.90	158
Cahill, Trevor	OAK	105	117	40	3	1.83	153
Adcock, Nathan	SEA	88	66	38	7	1.83	153
Santiago, Mario	KC	132	70	39	13	1.81	151
*Phillips, Zach	TEX	152	157	43	6	1.71	143
Smith, Jordan	CIN	134	96	40	8	1.71	143
Faris, Stephen	SD	103	58	35	7	1.70	142
Renshaw, Jake	CHC	112	96	42	12	1.68	140
*Cody, Chris	DET	91	92	15	1	1.66	138
Castro, Angel	DET	78	43	23	10	1.64	137
*Brandt, Doug	LAA	61	64	15	2	1.60	133
Dials, Zach	TOR	85	43	23	5	1.60	133

Robertson, Anderson and Cahill are notable as the prime high-schoolers to rank on both lists.

TOP FIVE COMMAND PROSPECTS
PITCHER	ORG	IP	SO	BB	K/BB
Schoeninger, Tim	LAA	85	68	6	11.33
Manship, Jeff	MIN	78	77	9	8.56
*Anderson, Brett	ARI	81	85	10	8.50
Watson, Sean	CIN	72	85	13	6.54
*Cody, Chris	DET	91	92	15	6.13

BIG SEASONS
PITCHER	ORG	IP	W	L	ERA	H	SO	BB	HR
*Phillips, Zach	TEX	152	11	7	2.91	139	157	43	6
*Below, Duane	DET	146	13	5	2.97	128	160	58	6
*Cody, Chris	DET	91	5	5	1.77	70	92	15	1
Herron, Tyler	STL	137	10	7	3.74	123	130	26	7
*Robertson, Tyler	MIN	102	9	5	2.29	87	123	33	3
O’Sullivan, Sean	LAA	158	10	7	2.22	136	125	40	6
*Anderson, Brett	ARI	81	8	4	2.21	76	85	10	3
Cahill, Trevor	OAK	105	11	4	2.73	85	117	40	3
Burnett, Alex	MIN	155	9	8	3.02	140	117	38	9
*Kershaw, Clayton	LAD	97	7	5	2.77	72	134	50	5
Manship, Jeff	MIN	78	7	1	1.51	51	77	9	4
Poveda, Omar	TEX	126	11	4	2.79	94	120	32	10

SOUTH ATLANTIC LEAGUE

Best Run Differential: Augusta: +210 (finished first in Southern Division at 89-51)
Fun Fact: Augusta’s pitching staff was more than half a run better than Columbus’—3.02 to 3.61. RHP Kevin Pucetas, LHP Ben Snyder and RHP Adam Cowart finished 1-2-3 in the ERA race.
Best Player: SS Emmanuel Burriss, .321/.374/.381 with 14 2B and 51 SB
Best Pitcher: LHP Ben Snyder, 16-5, 2.09 in 151 IP with 145-32 K-BB

Worst Run Differential: Savannah: -296 (finished last in Southern Division at 41-94)
Dubious Distinction: The Sand Gnats, owners of the worst run differential in the minors, also were the only outfit to lose more than 90 games. They lost 94, in fact.

BATTERS

EXTRA-BASE HIT RATE
BATTER	Pos	ORG	PA	2B	3B	HR	XBH	XBH+
*Schafer, Jordan	of	ATL	145	15	2	5	15%	205
*Davis, Leonard	3b	WAS	385	29	4	16	13%	172
Goedert, Jared	3b	CLE	205	10	0	16	13%	171
Royster, Ryan	of	TB	518	31	4	30	13%	169
Alonso, John	1b	MIL	282	27	1	6	12%	163
Repec, Matt	3b	COL	357	30	3	10	12%	163
McKenry, Mike	c	COL	485	35	1	22	12%	161
Marrero, Chris	of	WAS	243	14	0	14	12%	156
Maxwell, Justin	of	WAS	244	12	2	14	11%	155
Smyth, Paul	c	BOS	159	10	1	7	11%	153
Shelby, John	of	CWS	538	35	9	16	11%	151
*Coghlan, Chris	2b	FLA	360	26	4	10	11%	150
Pacheco, Jonel	of	PIT	514	25	5	27	11%	150
*Tripp, Brandon	of	BAL	433	25	4	19	11%	150
*Allen, Brandon	1b	CWS	561	39	5	18	11%	149
Fields, Matt	1b	TB	381	23	0	19	11%	149
Flowers, Tyler	1b	ATL	445	34	2	12	11%	146
*Chapman, Stephen	of	MIL	511	25	6	24	11%	145
Whitney, Matt	1b	CLE	326	19	0	16	11%	145
*Cox, Jay	of	COL	493	37	7	8	11%	142
Cruz, Lee	of	CWS	439	31	5	10	10%	141
Still, Jon	c	BOS	454	25	1	21	10%	140
Maldonado, Brahiam	of	NYM	329	20	4	10	10%	140
Keel, Jared	3b	PIT	400	23	1	17	10%	138
*Watts, Kris	c	PIT	343	25	2	8	10%	138

Maldonado, a 10th-round pick in 2004 from Puerto Rico, has hit for power two years in a row now—and he was one of the few bright spots for a Savannah team that was probably the minors’ worst. Schafer’s breakout began in the Sally League, but continued unabated in the Carolina League. He combines impressive tools with impressive performance. Dig it. Royster’s power is humongous and it’s beginning to manifest in games. He’s a sixth-round pick from an Oregon high school in 2004, so it’s taken him a while to get here. As a first-round high school pick in 2006, Marrero is roughly the Sally League equivalent of the MWL’s Travis Snider. Marrero, 19, made it to high Class A.

SPEED SCORE
BATTER	Pos	ORG	PA	R	3B	SB	CS	SPD	SPD+
Simmons, James	of	SF	202	29	5	13	6	11.4	204
#Jackson, Anthony	of	COL	529	84	12	34	5	10.7	190
#Strickland, Geoff	3b	COL	404	73	9	23	15	10.1	180
Caipen, Brandon	of	HOU	176	27	4	8	3	9.8	175
Ford, Darren	of	MIL	254	48	4	31	10	9.5	169
Raynor, John	of	FLA	526	110	8	54	8	9.5	169
Graham, Tyler	of	SF	258	45	4	29	8	9.4	167
Brewer, Brent	ss	MIL	577	86	7	42	7	8.9	158
Moresi, Nick	of	HOU	440	63	7	15	2	8.4	149
Gilbert, Archie	of	CWS	394	66	6	35	13	8.3	148
Henry, Carl	of	PHI	374	46	4	13	3	8.2	145
Sheely, Matt	of	BOS	152	25	2	11	1	8.1	144
*Burns, Greg	of	FLA	468	70	4	39	6	7.9	140
#Burriss, Emmanuel	ss	SF	405	64	4	51	15	7.8	140
Ashley, Nevin	c	TB	490	76	8	20	8	7.8	139
Gomez, Hector	ss	COL	576	89	8	20	10	7.7	137
Jennings, Desmond	of	TB	448	75	5	45	15	7.6	136
Lagares, Juan	ss	NYM	304	26	6	11	7	7.6	135
Shelby, John	of	CWS	538	83	9	19	8	7.6	135
Madsen, Scott	2b	CWS	298	44	2	17	5	7.5	134
Quintero, Cesar	of	HOU	246	46	1	21	2	7.5	133
*Holden, Joe	of	NYM	342	54	3	19	3	7.5	133
Sanders, Marcus	2b	SF	346	53	3	29	6	7.4	132
Maxwell, Justin	of	WAS	244	51	2	14	3	7.4	131
#Davis, Adam	2b	CLE	583	95	8	22	11	7.4	131

Maxwell, a fourth-round pick from Maryland in 2005, had one of the quieter great seasons. He hit 27 homers and stole 35 bases between low and high Class A to earn a big league promotion. Two Giants did well—Burriss and Sanders—but both should be in high Class A. Two of the league’s most exciting players, Gomez and Jennings, showed exactly why they’re so highly thought of with their work on the bases.

TOP FIVE POWER/SPEED PROSPECTS
BATTER	Pos	ORG	HR	SB	PSN
Royster, Ryan	of	TB	30	17	22
Raynor, John	of	FLA	13	54	21
Mayora, Daniel	2b	COL	14	26	18
Brewer, Brent	ss	MIL	11	42	17
Jennings, Desmond	of	TB	9	45	15

BIG SEASONS
BATTER	Pos	ORG	PA	AVG	OBP	SLG	R	2B	HR	RBI	SB
Raynor, John	of	FLA	526	.333	.429	.519	110	28	13	57	54
Royster, Ryan	of	TB	518	.329	.380	.601	90	31	30	98	17
*Lefave, Andrew	1b	MIL	498	.345	.432	.525	90	25	17	79	12
Still, Jon	c	BOS	454	.292	.432	.542	71	25	21	79	2
*Coghlan, Chris	2b	FLA	360	.325	.419	.534	60	26	10	64	19
Carter, Chris	1b	CWS	545	.291	.383	.522	84	27	25	93	3
*Weglarz, Nick	of	CLE	532	.276	.395	.497	75	28	23	82	1
Jennings, Desmond	of	TB	448	.315	.401	.465	75	21	9	37	45
Mayora, Daniel	2b	COL	571	.310	.366	.477	88	42	14	78	26
Maxwell, Justin	of	WAS	244	.301	.389	.579	51	12	14	40	14
Shelby, John	of	CWS	538	.301	.352	.508	83	35	16	79	19

PITCHERS

STRIKEOUT PERCENTAGE
PITCHER	ORG	IP	SO	TBF	K%	K+
De Los Santos, Fautino	CWS	98	121	384	32%	165
Hanson, Tommy	ATL	73	90	296	30%	159
Norris, Bud	HOU	97	117	416	28%	147
Wright, Steven	CLE	66	75	274	27%	143
Jeffress, Jeremy	MIL	86	95	366	26%	136
Schmidt, Kyle	BAL	131	145	559	26%	136
Sosa, Henry	SF	62	61	237	26%	135
*Bastardo, Antonio	PHI	92	98	382	26%	134
Jones, Chris	BOS	113	119	496	24%	126
Hellickson, Jeremy	TB	111	106	446	24%	124
Rodriguez, Aneury	COL	152	160	675	24%	124
*Snyder, Ben	SF	151	145	614	24%	124
Rollins, Heath	TB	159	149	637	23%	122
*Richardson, Dustin	BOS	100	98	423	23%	121
*Dunn, Mike	NYY	145	138	597	23%	121
*Phillips, Ryan	BOS	78	80	347	23%	121
Graham, Andy	COL	139	140	611	23%	120
*Trinidad, Polin	HOU	131	120	539	22%	117
Cabrera, Henry	PIT	78	76	344	22%	116
Beazley, Travis	BOS	102	92	421	22%	114
*Taylor, Graham	FLA	164	135	639	21%	111
*Van Allen, Cory	WAS	55	51	243	21%	110
Townsend, Wade	TB	103	92	447	21%	108
Sullivan, Josh	COL	50	45	219	21%	108
Tomlin, Josh	CLE	104	89	434	21%	107

Interestingly, Snyder was the only one of Augusta’s college arms (Adam Cowart and Kevin Pucetas are the others) to rank here. Fautino who? De los Santos didn’t even begin the year in Kannapolis’ rotation, but he piled up three double-digit strikeout games before his promotion to high Class A. Just 19, Rodriguez got better as the season progressed.

GROUNDOUT-TO-FLYOUT RATIO
PITCHER	ORG	IP	SO	BB	HR	G/F	G/F+
Clark, Zach	BAL	58	37	9	2	2.97	240
Butler, Josh	TB	77	54	20	3	2.85	230
Hudspeth, Casey	HOU	110	63	42	11	2.64	213
Crotta, Mike	PIT	137	74	28	10	2.58	209
Bergesen, Brad	BAL	94	73	17	3	2.42	196
Cowart, Adam	SF	170	95	28	4	2.27	184
*Tanner, Clayton	SF	135	104	44	5	2.11	171
Drabek, Kyle	PHI	54	46	23	9	2.08	168
Levinski, Don	WAS	62	59	37	5	2.07	167
McCall, Derell	FLA	75	56	17	11	2.07	167
Hacker, Eric	NYY	95	54	18	5	1.92	155
Sullivan, Josh	COL	50	45	25	3	1.89	153
*Qualben, David	HOU	148	108	63	13	1.84	149
*Wright, Brae	MIL	110	76	32	19	1.84	149
*Arguello, Doug	HOU	139	100	59	13	1.83	148
Periard, Alexandre	MIL	109	55	21	8	1.81	146
Fines, Woods	TB	118	67	45	8	1.79	145
*Taylor, Graham	FLA	164	135	18	16	1.78	144
Cofield, Kyle	ATL	112	90	56	7	1.73	140
Stronach, Tim	NYM	73	42	24	11	1.69	137
Zazueta, Jose	CWS	106	66	71	7	1.67	135
Rollins, Heath	TB	159	149	38	11	1.66	134
Hughes, Jared	PIT	145	109	54	11	1.65	133
McClendon, Mike	MIL	63	47	12	6	1.63	132
Heath, Deunte	ATL	71	47	19	1	1.63	132

College arms Taylor and Rollins got attention during the season, but what about Sullivan, a fifth-round pick from Auburn in 2005? He also starred as a quarterback in college, but he boasts a clean delivery and athleticism on the diamond. Unfortunately, that didn’t stop Sullivan from having labrum surgery in 2005 or from hitting the DL twice this year. He’s off to Hawaii to get more innings.

TOP FIVE COMMAND PROSPECTS
PITCHER	ORG	IP	SO	BB	K/BB
*Van Allen, Cory	WAS	55	51	6	8.50
*Taylor, Graham	FLA	164	135	18	7.50
Wright, Steven	CLE	66	75	15	5.00
Pucetas, Kevin	SF	145	104	21	4.95
*Snyder, Ben	SF	151	145	32	4.53

BIG PITCHING SEASONS
PITCHER	ORG	IP	W	L	ERA	H	SO	BB	HR
Cowart, Adam	SF	170	14	7	2.39	152	95	28	4
Rollins, Heath	TB	159	17	4	2.54	132	149	38	11
*Snyder, Ben	SF	151	16	5	2.09	128	145	32	12
Pucetas, Kevin	SF	145	15	4	1.86	124	104	21	7
*Taylor, Graham	FLA	164	11	3	2.68	135	135	18	16
*Tanner, Clayton	SF	135	12	8	3.59	147	104	44	5
Richmond, Jamie	ATL	139	7	6	3.05	141	98	25	9
De Los Santos, Fautino	CWS	98	9	4	2.40	49	121	36	5
Hellickson, Jeremy	TB	111	13	3	2.67	87	106	34	7
Rodriguez, Aneury	COL	152	9	9	5.15	182	160	48	19