Comments on: Midseason Top 25 Prospects

By: Ron Baynton

Ron Baynton — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 10:06:01 +0000

Excellent list.
My only changes would be to move Stanton to number 1, and Posey to number 2.

By: NM

NM — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 14:54:40 +0000

why is alcides escobar on this list but not ruben tejada?

By: johnsss

johnsss — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 13:45:45 +0000

wheel,

if bucholz WERE eligible, he wouldnt be number one. that would go to tommy hanson…

By: CH

CH — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 20:00:09 +0000

I respect that you guys dropped Alvarez from the top 25. Lesser publications would have wedged him into the top 15 to justify his pre-season ranking.

By: Brandon

Brandon — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 21:58:46 +0000

Also wondering, where does Dee Gordon fit in?

By: Brandon

Brandon — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 21:44:16 +0000

Adrian Cardenas? His power will develop, and he will steal 15 bags a year in the bigs. Dude can play. Is Arrieta really that far behind Tillman and Matusz? I still take Arrieta over both. And take Hellickson over all 3 of them.

By: shane

shane — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 21:48:13 +0000

acording to this list the yankees system is better that boston the yanks have the #3 prospect and a 26-50 one and boston has 2 26-50 PROSPECTS not major leagers now that were minor leagers a year ago like bukholtzs (misspelled) beside Lars anderson and Clay Buckholtz what prospects does boston have.

and shut up about the yankees buying a team right know that yankees have 10 imported players

boston has 14 imported players so if any team is buying a team its boston

By: Aaron

Aaron — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 21:21:41 +0000

no white sox prospects? how bout tyler flowers, viciedo, carlos torres?

By: NM

NM — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 15:26:52 +0000

I have a very difficult time believing Tim Beckham being ahead of Wilmer Flores (and what gives? No Flores at all?)… who is that kidding? Flores > Beckham.

By: Greg

Greg — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 18:32:11 +0000

Did Josh Reddick recieve any consideration for the back end of the top 50? He’s showing good power this year (especially outside of June when he was just coming back from his injury) and his patience appears to be greatly improved from last year. I’ve also heard at fairly encouraging things about his fielding in CF. Just wondering what you’re thoughts are. Thanks.

By: Jason

Jason — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 19:28:44 +0000

John, I appreciate your response regarding Flores. I guess the only difference is that I think Flores is actually having a very good year, when his performance is evaluated within its context (a 17-year-old playing against much older competition in the SAL).

By: John Manuel

John Manuel — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 04:48:29 +0000

Jason, belatedly, I’ll respond on Flores. He was so impressive last season in a short burst at a young edge. This year, he’s adjusting to the longer season, the grind, and we’ve had scouting reports that he’s playing with less energy than you’d like to see. He’s 17; no way you want to bury a guy like that, at that age, with that offensive upside. But you do try to temper enthusiasm when a guy is having a statistically modest or just solid year, rather than an explosive one. That’s how I view Flores. Thnaks for your patience.

By: Robert Hall

Robert Hall — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 08:54:09 +0000

How about a list of guys who are DROPPING? Where would Carlos Carrasco fit in? Is he still considered an elite prospect?

By: Joe LeCates

Joe LeCates — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 04:31:18 +0000

I can’t believe I am actually agitated to the point of losing respect for a player based on belligerent comments from fans. I’m going to have nightmares of Michael Taylor becoming Ricky Jordan tonight.

By: eric

eric — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 03:09:45 +0000

i guess u guys are sitting on an upcoming wilmer flores article. i think he’s the mets #1 prospect.

By: Ali T

Ali T — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 00:46:39 +0000

Great list, though I was surprised that Villalona didn’t even make the top 50. I thought you guys were pretty high on him. What was the group discussion about him? If he finishes the season strong, where does he rank in the Top 100 in the offseason?

By: Nick

Nick — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 00:20:13 +0000

Where is Scott Sizemore or Alex Avila? Are they close? In the conversation?

By: Jason

Jason — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 23:06:14 +0000

To: BA Staff… Just want to point out that you guys keep responding to multiple comments made by the same few individuals (seems like you are mostly responding to those who criticize you the most). A couple of us have kindly asked about Wilmer Flores’ current status and his omission from the Top 50. Any clarification/info would be appreciated. P.S. Thanks for the good work on this list.

By: Steve

Steve — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 20:52:08 +0000

This is coming from a White Sox fan, but where the hell is Andrew Cashner? His combined stats from High-A and AA: ERA – 1.39; WHIP – 1.06; 1 HR given up in 14 starts…and he’s doing all this while making a transition from a reliever to a starter.

By: D.Cutler

D.Cutler — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 20:31:07 +0000

As a Royals’ fan I appreciate Moustakas and Hosmer still making the top 50, but have they really earned that by their play thus far this season? Is their potential just too high to not include them?

By: J.J. Cooper

J.J. Cooper — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 17:28:55 +0000

Bill, When you say “other than age” you’re glossing over a two-year age difference between Brown and Taylor. Both of them made the Top 25, but Brown rates higher because he’s producing one level behind in one of the toughest hitters leagues in baseball despite being two years younger, plus he’s a better athlete with better speed, a better arm and an equal hit tool. What are we not understanding? Taylor’s ranked as the 23rd best prospect in baseball, that’s a sign we respect him, not that we don’t like him.

By: Scott

Scott — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 16:53:42 +0000

will there be a chat today?

By: John

John — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 16:52:02 +0000

Very good list B.A. I have a question about why Michael Taylor is so low. This guy is claerly one of the best hitters in he minors now and he is way better than Alonso, Castro, and Beckham. He should be in the top 15 with ease. I know your list is based on ceiling, but Taylor is legit.

By: Tony

Tony — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 16:14:32 +0000

As a Cubs fan, I think the Vitters ranking is quite fair, particularly since John indicated he’s closer to 26 than 50. He’s improved, but I can’t make a case for him as a top 25 prospect until we know what he does at Daytona. He can get away with some things in the lower levels. Can he adjust? That said, he’s been quite impressive, but it was a hot streak followed by a cold streak.

As to the above Casey Coleman comment, my personal opinion is that I highly doubt Casey will be anywhere near a top 100. I’m a fan, and I think he was underrated and underhyped. Like Jay Jackson, he was aggressively pushed to AA and he’s done well. That said, unlike Jackson, Casey doesn’t really possess that plus arsenal. He throws a good sinker and a decent curve/change. I like the honesty the kid has about his abilities – he knows the sinker is his bread and butter, and he plays to it. He even acknowledges that he’s a mid-end of the rotation type arm. If the cutter/slider he’s been working on develops, that could be a big help to him.

By: John Manuel

John Manuel — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:59:11 +0000

JM, I think us not having ranked Sandoval for two years reflects that the Giants didn’t like him, and that we didn’t do enough those two years to go outside the org for sources. The two previous years, he ranked 27th and 15th; I did those lists and recall scouts or managers outside the system liked Sandoval better than the Giants did.

By: MJ

MJ — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:36:54 +0000

David dlf~

Makes sense…Vitters should still be the Cubs’ #1 prospect heading into 2010, anyway…

By: Bill

Bill — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:12:06 +0000

Other than age, it’s hard to fathom how Dom Brown, on the DL in high Class A for two months (Sistine Chapel ceiling, True Value tools, one assumes), is rated 6 spots ahead of EL Triple Crown contender (6-6, 250, 17 steals in 21 attempts, arm compared to Ellis Valentine) Michael Taylor. Is there something you guys don’t understand about the wall-to-wall numbers this athlete has put up at three levels the past season and a half? Or are you still being influenced by Taylor’s disappointing Stanford career?

By: Sylvain Noiseux

Sylvain Noiseux — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 14:40:34 +0000

What kind of a season Eric Young Jr. should have to even be considered in the top 50? This guy is doing almost everything this year and is not that old to play in AAA! So why isn’t he there?

By: JM

JM — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 14:10:03 +0000

I don’t know why people get so riled up over BA’s lists. By now they should realize that they heavily favor 1st rounders and are more accurate as reflections of CURRENT performance than predictions of future performance. For example Pablo Sandoval wasn’t even in his teams top 30 in the 08 BA Prospect Handbook and now he’s one of the best young MLB hitters

By: John Manuel

John Manuel — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 13:58:41 +0000

Buchholz is not eligible.