As usual, the Arizona Fall League was a hitter’s paradise this year. The league averaged a sweet 6.9 runs per nine innings (per team), resulting in league average slash stats of .293/.365/.473.

The league can make even ordinary hitters look like they belong in the middle of the Gas-House Gorillas’ lineup.

The AFL season is only 38 games long, and as managers shuffle around their lineups to get everyone adequate playing time, most prospects are lucky to get 100 or so plate appearances. That amounts to essentially one month or around 20 percent of the regular minor league season, but with so many scouts and key decision makers in attendance, a player’s AFL showing can sometimes receive a heavier weight in those minds than it might otherwise merit.

But the AFL does give us our first records of 2008 draft picks, like Justin Smoak, using wood bats against professional pitchers, and let’s us see how hitters like Tyler Flowers and Logan Morrison–both of whom spent the entire year at high Class A–fare in a league that has historically played as a Double-A/Triple-A hybrid.

And we do have the means to somewhat neutralize player performance–albeit in a blunt way–to account for the league’s high offensive environment by comparing hitters’ performances to the AFL average. 

Hitters below are sorted by Baseball-Reference.com’s OPS+ formula, without the park adjustment. The formula is: 100* (OBP/LgOBP + SLG/LgSLG – 1), a loose guideline of how a player performed relative to the league average (100). Each player’s listed position is the position at which he played the most games during the AFL season.

As always, an asterisk (*) denotes a lefthanded batter and a pound sign (#) is for a switch hitter. All caveats about analyzing small sample AFL performance records apply.

[...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day

Phoenix first baseman Josh Donaldson (Athletics) did most of the damage at the plate to help the Desert Dogs defeat the Solar Sox for the Arizona Fall League championship on Saturday afternoon.

Donaldson went 3-for-5 with a home run and four RBIs.

The home run was Donaldson’s seventh of the AFL and came off of Mesa righthander Tim Wood (Marlins).

Donaldson finished fall ball with a line of .288/.315/.452 over 104 at-bats. [...] Continue Reading »

This week’s installment considers all transactions reported by MLB between Nov. 18-20. The previous installment is available here. The next transactions will be published online next week, after the Thanksgiving holiday.

For more transactions fun, see our rundown of 40-man roster additions and our minor league free agents listing.

Arizona Diamondbacks
Added to 40-man roster: RHP Jose Marte, RHP Kyler Newby, RHP Cesar Valdez, LHP Leyson Septimo, LHP Clay Zavada, SS Pedro Ciriaco

Zavada was the top-ranked player on BA’s independent ball prospects list among players who signed with a major league organization.

Atlanta Braves
Voluntarily retired: 2B Paul Bennett
Added to 40-man roster: RHP Stephen Marek, RHP Todd Redmond, 3B Diory Hernandez

Baltimore Orioles
Signed: RHP Brad Hennessey

Boston Red Sox
Signed: OF Paul McAnulty
Released: RHP Felipe Garcia, RHP Joseph Guerra, RHP Manuel Jimenez, RHP Jorge Rodriguez, 1B Ricardo Burgos, SS Chih-Hsiang Huang
Added to 40-man roster: LHP Felix Doubront, LHP Hunter Jones, C Mark Wagner

The Padres’ 12th-round pick out of Long Beach State in 2002, McAnulty was signed by Padres area scout Jason McLeod, who has since become Boston’s scouting director. McAnulty has proven himself at the Triple-A level, batting .310/.391/.516 in 279 games for Portland over the past four seasons. It’s been a different story in the big leagues for the soon-to-be 28-year-old, though, as he managed just .207/.341/.341 for San Diego in the first half of 2008. [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day
Peoria Javelinas shortstop Brent Brewer (Brewers) didn’t have a particularly good regular season. Drafted in the second round of the 2006 draft out of a  Georgia high school, Brewer spent 2008 split between low Class A  West Virginia and high Class A Brevard County. While Brewer is a gifted athlete, he struggled at the plate and hit just .236/.307/.334 over 449 at-bats between the two stops.

All that was behind him, however, as he added an exclamation point onto his AFL campaign yesterday—the final day of the season. Brewer got just 30 at-bats in the desert, but made the most of them by hitting .300/.344/.700. Yesterday, he went 2-for-4 with two home runs as the Javelinas  took down the Phoenix Desert Dogs, 13-6.
[...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day
It was an all-Hughes matchup as the Peoria Javelinas faced off against the Scottsdale Scorpions yesterday.

Righthander Phil Hughes (Yankees) got the ball for the Javelinas, while righthander Jared Hughes (Pirates) took the hill for Scottsdale.

Taking the mound for the last time this fall, Phil stole the show.

Facing the Scottsdale Scorpions, Hughes went five scoreless innings, giving up just two hits in the process. He didn’t issue a walk and struck out 10 as the Javelinas rolled past the Scorpions, 5-0.

The performance gives Hughes a final line in the AFL of 2-0, 3.00 with 38 strikeouts and 13 walks over 30 innings.
[...] Continue Reading »

Brian Bogusevic’s decision to ditch pitching and instead take aim on the majors as a solid-hitting outfielder is beginning to pay off.

The former Tulane standout and 2005 first-round pick has been placed on the Astros’ 40-man roster, one of a number of minor leaguers now protected from next month’s Rule 5 draft. Major League Baseball released the list of players added to the Rule 5 late Wednesday.

Among the notable storylines was the Rangers trading John Mayberry Jr., a first-round pick from Stanford in 2005, to the Phillies for 2004 first-rounder  Greg Golson. The Padres also added Matt Bush, who was a first-round pick in 2004 as a shortstop but gave it up for a pitching career.

The list of other additions include Orioles righthander Brad Bergesen and Cardinals shortstop Tyler Greene, a 2005 first-round pick who has overcame massive struggles at the plate and this year finally moved out of Double-A.

Bogusevic, however, is arguably the most intriguing storyline of any player added this week as teams were required to protect college players drafted in 2005 and high school draft picks from 2004. The lefthanded hitter is currently in the Arizona Fall League, where scouts and managers see a player capable of hitting well the other way but also having some trouble pulling the ball. [...] Continue Reading »

This week’s installment considers all transactions reported by MLB between Nov. 8-18. The previous installment is available here.

Arizona Diamondbacks
Granted free agency: RHP Edgar Gonzalez

Gonzalez debuted with the Diamondbacks at age 20 in 2003, but he never did establish himself in a regular role in six seasons. His peak season in terms of usage was 2007, when went 8-4, 5.03 in 102 innings as a spot starter for Arizona’s NL West-winning club. It’s probably the role he’s best suited for, seeing as he has four average pitches and has proven to be durable, if not overpowering. Gonzalez will be 26 next season, but he missed much of the second half of 2008 with an elbow strain.

Atlanta Braves
Released: RHP Rodrigo Lopez [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day

Peoria Saguaros DH Leonard Davis (Nationals) has logged a lot of miles this year.

The Nationals’ eighth-round pick in 2004 out of Fresno Community College, Davis split his season between three different teams—Potomac, Harrisburg and Columbus. Although he struggled in Triple A, his final line was a solid .308/.364/.566 over 438 at-bats with 28 doubles and 25 home runs.

Now Davis is in the AFL and yesterday he went 2-for-5 with a double and a home run to help the Saguaros beat the Phoenix Desert Dogs, 14-8.

The performance isn’t an anomaly for Davis, who has been stinging the ball this fall. Over 73 AFL at-bats, he’s hitting .342/.430/.630 with five doubles, two triples, four home runs and two stolen bases.
[...] Continue Reading »

Talk about putting heavy weight on recent performance.

After Brandon Wood’s .167/.259/.250 start in 13 games for Estrellas, the Dominican Winter League club has released Wood, according to Baseball America correspondent Bill Shaikin.

"You’ve got to perform pretty much right off the plane," Angels farm director Abe Flores told Shaikin.

No kidding. Wood, playing primarily third base, had six walks and 16 strikeouts in 54 plate appearances. Other than Wood, Wilton Veras (.563 OPS in 13 games) and Ed Rogers (.606 OPS in 9 games) have seen the most time at third base for Estrellas, which also has sent Tony Blanco, Javier Guzman and Henry Mateo out to the hot corner this winter.

Wood, 23, hit .296/.375/.595 in 103 games during the regular season for Triple-A Salt Lake, though he managed to bat just .200/.224/.327 in 155 at-bats with the big league club.

Prospect Of The Day

Mesa righthander Tommy Hanson (Braves) is a machine.  There’s no other way around it.

Hanson has dominated in every outing this fall and yesterday was no exception. Over five innings, he gave up just one hit, walked two and struck out 10.

Hanson is now 5-0 with a microscopic 0.64 ERA. Over 28 1/3 innings, he’s given up just 10 hits, walked seven and struck out 49.

To find the last pitcher to record more strikeouts in the AFL, you have to go all the way back to 2002 when Bobby Jenks was still a starting pitcher and struck out 54 (over 42 innings) for Scottsdale.

[...] Continue Reading »

Waikiki 5, West Oahu 1

Waikiki won its first ever HWB league title on Sunday with a 5-1 victory over West Oahu. Waikiki catcher Buster Posey (Giants) finished off an outstanding winter campaign with a 2-for-3 night. Posey’s three-run homer in the seventh put the game away for the BeachBoys and hit his first home run of the winter. Posey finshed the HWB league regular season fourth in hitting at .338. Waikiki center fielder James McOwen (Mariners) went 2-for-3 with two runs and an RBI, and third baseman Marquez Smith (Cubs) added a 2-for-4 night with a run and two doubles in the win. BeachBoys left hander Mitsuo Yoshikawa (Nippon Ham Fighters) finished off a solid winter campaign going five innings giving up four hits, one run, and striking out six. Yoshikawa had a HWB league regular season ERA of 4.55 with three wins. BeachBoys right hander Steven Richard (Mariners) finished the game by going four innings allowing one hit, no runs, and striking out two. Richards finished the HWB league regular season with a 1.93 ERA but this was his first HWB league save. West Oahu second baseman Mark Hallberg (Diamondbacks) finsihed the game going 2-for-4. Hallberg finished the HWB league regular season at .362, good for third in the HWB league.

Prospect Of The Day

The day just kept getting better and better for Phoenix second baseman Chris Nelson (Rockies). In the second inning, he flied out to right field. When he came up in the four inning, he singled on a line drive to left field and then stole second base. In the sixth inning, Nelson hit a home run out to center field. With his team teeing off against Scottsdale, he came up again in the next frame and laced a triple. For an encore, he stepped to the plate yet again in the eighth inning and hit another home run.

All told, Nelson went 4-for-5 on the day with a single, a triple, two home runs, five RBIs and a stolen base to help the Desert Dogs crush the Scorpions, 15-6.

Nelson mostly played shortstop this season between high Class A Modesto and Double A Tulsa where he hit .230/.315/.342.

In Arizona, Nelson has seen some time at second base and has been stinging the ball. Through 71 at-bats in the AFL, Nelson has hit .352/.407/.676.
[...] Continue Reading »

Waikiki 3, North Shore 2 (10 Innings)

First baseman Yonder Alonso (Reds) put Waikiki on the brink of the HWB league’s Eastern Division title with a walk-off homer in the tenth Wednesday night against North Shore. Alonso went 2-for-5 in the game with two RBIs and a double to go along with the home run. Alonso, the Reds first pick in the 2008 draft, is now 7-for-16 with a homer and four RBIs over his last for games. Not to be outdone, Giants top pick catcher Buster Posey had a very good nigth as well, going 2-for-5 with a run scored and a double. Posey leads the HWB league with a .373 batting average on the campaign. The other star for Waikiki during the evening was right hander Andrew Brackman (Yankees). Brackman has been up and down throughout the HWB league season, and he was up for this game. Despite allowing five walks in five innings Brackman managed to scatter his nine baserunners and only allow two runs. The two runs that North Shore got off of Brackman were both via solo homers, one by first baseman Kyu Hyun Moon (Lotte Giants) and the other by left fielder Jordan Parraz (Astros). Honu started right hander Jason Godin (Royals) who actually outpitched Brackman through his 4 2/3 innings allowing just two hits, two walks, no runs, and striking out four. Unfortunately for Godin, the North Shore bullpen was unable to hold the lead and the Honu fell 3-2.

 West Oahu 5, Honolulu 1

West Oahu started right hander Fumikazu Kimura (Seibu Lions) who led the way to an easy 5-1 win over Honolulu Wednesday. Kimura went 5 2/3 innings allowing three hits, one run, three walks, and striking out four. The victory was the twenty-year-old Kimura’s first in the HWB league. West Oahu got offensive contributions from a slew of players, starting with leadoff hitting left fielder Kyle Peter (Tigers) who went 3-for-5 and scored twice. Peter remained in second place in the HWB league batting average race, sitting at .368. CaneFires second baseman Mark Hallberg (Diamondbacks) remained hot going 3-for-4 with an RBI (Hallberg is hitting .366), as did third baseman Tyler Henson (Orioles) who went 2-for-4 with a run scored and a double. Former Orioles pitching prospect attempting to come back from multiple injuries as a first baseman Adam Loewen (Blue Jays) had a good night as well going 3-for-4 with a run scored, his first stolen base, and an RBI for West Oahu. Honolulu left hander Jonathan Venters (Braves) was effective in the loss. Despite giving up nine hits Venters allowed only two runs (one earned) and struck out four. Venters ERA stands at 2.90 for the HWB league season.

Prospect Of The Day
The last time Mesa catcher Tyler Flowers (Braves) was AFL Prospect Of The Day was in late October when he hit two home runs in a game. This time, he outdid himself.

Flowers went 3-for-4 yesterday with three home runs, leapfrogging two players to put him in the league lead for home runs. His seven RBIs yesterday helped the Solar Sox trample the Surprise Rafters, 16-4.

Flowers was the Braves’ 33rd-round draft pick in 2005 and signed as a draft-and-follow out of Chipola (Fla.) Junior College. Because of some knee problems, he’s played both catcher and first base in the minors, but he’s hit well at every level. This season, playing for High A Myrtle Beach, Flowers hit .288/.427/.494 with 32 doubles, 17 home runs and nearly as many walks (98) as strikeouts (102).

Through 62 AFL at-bats, Flowers is hitting a robust .387/.458/1.000.
[...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day

Scottsdale second baseman Emmanuel Burriss (Giants) doesn’t typically hit home runs. In fact, he has one career minor-league home run and one career major-league home run.

Now, he has one home run in the Arizona Fall League.

Burriss went 4-for-6 last night with the home run as the Scorpions stung the Surprise Rafters, 14-4.

The Giants’ supplemental first-round pick in 2006 out of Kent State, Burriss zipped through the minor leagues, skipping Double A altogether and playing only 14 games in Triple A before finding himself in the big leagues last season.

He held his own, hitting .283/.357/.329 over 240 at-bats. He also stole 13 bases.

In Arizona, Burriss is hitting .352/.403/.423 over 71 at-bats with seven stolen bases.
[...] Continue Reading »

West Oahu 6, Waikiki 3

West Oahu clinched the West Division title of the HWB league season by defeating Waikiki 6-3 on Tuesday night. Left fielder Cyle Hankerd (Diamondbacks) led the way for West Oahu hitting a grand slam in the first. The homer was Hankerd’s fifth of the winter. CaneFires second baseman Mark Hallberg (Diamondbacks) stayed hot going 3-for-5 with two runs scored.  West Oahu started right hander Cody Scarpetta (Brewers) who was excellent. Scarpetta went five innings allowing just one hit, no runs, and striking out eight. Waikiki’s offense came from first baseman Yonder Alonso (Reds) who went 3-for-4 with a double and a run scored. West Oahu will play in Sunday’s title game against either Waikiki or Honolulu.

North Shore 5, Honolulu 4

North Shore got just enough offense to defeat Honolulu 5-4. The Honu offense was led by third baseman Kyle Martin (Royals) who went 2-for-5 with a run, a double, and two RBIs. North Shore center fielder Corey Brown (A’s) added his fourth homer of the winter campaign, a solo shot, in the Honu’s victory. Honolulu’s offense was led by second baseman Bradley Emaus (Blue Jays) who went 2-for-4, scoring once with a double and an RBI. Right fielder Dominic Brown (Phillies) contributed a 2-for-4 night with a double and a two run homer. Honolulu remained a half game behind Waikiki in the chase for the HWB league Eastern Division.

Major League Baseball announced today that Marlins righthander Henry Owens was handed a 50-game suspension for failing a test for performance-enhancing drugs. He sat out the entire 2008 season with a shoulder injury and was removed from Florida’s  40-man roster in October.

The Marlins acquired Owens from the Mets in November 2006, in the same trade that netted them Matt Lindstrom. The 29-year-old Owens went 2-0, 1.96 with 16-10 strikeouts-walks in 23 innings for the Marlins in 2007, but he had shoulder surgery that August.

Owens joins catchers Eliezer Alfonzo and Humberto Cota as the only big leaguers to be handed 50-game suspensions in 2008.

Prospect Of The Day
It was a career day for Peoria Javelinas right fielder Lorenzo Cain (Brewers).

The toolsy outfielder was drafted by the Brewers in the 17th round of the 2004 draft and signed as a draft-and-follow after attending Tallahassee (Fla) Community College.

Throughout his professional career, Cain has hit .295/.367/.423 with 24 home runs. Never before had he hit two home runs in the same game … until yesterday.

Cain unloaded for the Javelinas yesterday, going 4-for-4 with a double and two home runs. His five RBIs helped his team defeat the Solar Sox, 13-9.

Over 44 at-bats in the AFL, Cain is now hitting .364/.404/.682.
[...] Continue Reading »

This week’s installment considers all transactions reported by MLB between Nov. 1-7. The previous installment is available here.

Minor league free agents are here.

Arizona Diamondbacks
Released: RHP Dustin Glant, RHP Brett Reynolds
Removed from 40-man roster: RHP Edgar Gonzalez, OF Javier Brito

Atlanta Braves
Signed: RHP Moises Hernandez, C J.C. Boscan, C Jose Camarena, OF Joe Borchard, OF Reid Gorecki

Hernandez, who will be 25 next season, spent all of 2008 on the disabled list. He’s notable here because he was the player the Orioles surrendered as compensation for signing pitching coach Leo Mazzone from the Braves in November 2005. Moises is the older brother of Mariners righthander Felix Hernandez. [...] Continue Reading »

Honolulu 4, Waikiki 1

Right hander Kyle Drabek (Phillies) looked great Sunday night for Honolulu tossing six innings of one hit ball. Drabek allowed no runs, walked one, and struck out three. Drabek’s ERA now stands at 2.76 for the HWB league season. The Sharks offense was led by left fielder Michael Taylor (Phillies) going 3-for-4 with a solo home-run. Waikiki right hander Waldis Joaquin (Giants) matched Drabek for five innings before giving way to the bullpen. Joaquin went five allowing two hits, no runs, and walked five. Waikiki’s offense was led by left fielder Logan Kieschnick (Giants) who went 2-for-4 with a solo homer. Kieschnick’s homer was his fifth of the HWB league season. Kieschnick is now second in the HWB league season.

North Shore 6, West Oahu 6 (Tied Seven Innings)

West Oahu left hander Chris Cody (Brewers) led the way for West Oahu going five innings allowing one hit and no runs for a no decision. The CaneFires offense was led by second baseman Mark Hallberg (Diamondbacks) who went 3-for-4 with two runs and a three-run homer. West Oahu third baseman Tyler Henson (Orioles) added a 2-for-4 night and scored a run. North Shore started left hander Jose Capellan (Red Sox) went four innings allowing one run and striking out five. The Honu’s offense was led by center fielder Corey Brown’s (A’s) going 1-for-4 with two runs and a two-run homer. Indians outfield prospect Matt McBride went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI. The Honu came from behind to tie the game with West Oahu. The tie prevented the CaneFires from clinching the division title and a berth in the championship game.