This time: Oct. 14-25
Previous installment: Oct. 6-13

More 40-man roster maneuvering, a handful of new free agents and one club’s foray into the independent leagues . . . it’s all next on a very special Minor League Transactions.

Check out the Transactions Glossary for the key to deciphering the various inactive lists presented here.

Arizona Diamondbacks
Assigned to Arizona Fall League: RHP Bryan Augenstein, RHP Cesar Valdez, LHP Thomas Layne, LHP Scott Maine, 1B Brandon Allen, SS Pedro Ciriaco, OF Cole Gillespie

Atlanta Braves
Granted free agency: OF Reid Gorecki

Boston Red Sox
Granted free agency: RHP Marcus McBeth, RHP Takashi Saito
Outrighted to Triple-A and removed from 40-man: RHP Takashi Saito [...] Continue Reading »

BA’s AFL maven Bill Mitchell reports that Athletics farmhand Grant Desme has homered twice again Wednesday. Batting cleanup for the Phoenix Desert Dogs, Desme hit his ninth and 10th home runs in an 11-6 victory against the Peoria Javelinas.

Desme, a second-round pick in 2007 out of Cal Poly, homered in the first inning off Brewers righthander Josh Butler, a three-run shot. He hit a solo homer in the eighth inning off Brewers righty Omar Aguilar for his 10th. Desme, the minors’ only 30-homer, 30-steals performer in 2009, is now just four home runs shy of the AFL record set in 2005 by Brandon Wood, and he’s done his damage in just 12 games. [...] Continue Reading »

The Arizona Fall League lost a little of its star power this week, as Mike Stanton and Jason Heyward, two of the top outfield prospects in baseball, were sent home by their teams because of injuries.

Stanton, Florida’s top prospect, was hitting a Fall League-leading .478 before being shut down with a back injury. He had hit only one home run but was 11-for-23 with four stolen bases before the injury flared up. Heyward, the Braves’ top prospect, was sent home with a strained hamstring that also led to back inflammation according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was 4-for-14 with three doubles in four games in Arizona.

Both players are expected to be fully healthy before spring training.

The Royals have replaced outfielder David Lough in their Arizona Fall League contingent, with the Surprise Rafters, with outfielder Jarrod Dyson.

Lough left the AFL with a back injury, ending what had been a breakout season. Splitting his season almost evenly between high Class A Wilmington and Double-A Northwest Arkansas, he hit .325/.370/.496 with 14 home runs and 19 stolen bases. The 23-year-old out of Mercyhurst (Pa.) was the system’s best position player in the minors this season.

Dyson, 25, is a different kind of player, a 25-year-old speedster who stole 46 bases this season and made his first trip to Double-A. He has yet to hit a home run in 801 professional at-bats and hit .276/.345/.337 overall this season between low Class A Burlington and Northwest Arkansas. He struck out 68 times in 315 at-bats.

Diamondbacks pitching prospect Jarrod Parker is going to have Tommy John surgery, after going down in the middle of the season with elbow trouble.

Arizona shut down the righthander, the organization’s top prospect, with elbow tightness in late July when he was pitching at Double-A Mobile, and hoped rest and rehab would fix the problem. During instructional league he played catch at 120 feet, and he was scheduled to resume throwing off a mound in January.

But Parker’s agent broke the news on Thursday afternoon that he planned to have Tommy John surgery next week, and the Diamondbacks confirmed it later in the day. [...] Continue Reading »

We had the final batting leaderboards last week.

Note that players are listed with the teams for which they finished the season. Ages are as of Sept. 1. As always, (*) denotes a lefthanded pitcher. Make use of our Player Finder to learn more about players’ schools or countries of origin. In most cases the Acquired column provides draft year and round, e.g. 2007 (5).

[...] Continue Reading »

By Dave Perkin

Stephen Strasburg made his long-awaited and highly-anticipated professional debut here Friday night in an Arizona Fall League contest.

The righthander was one of the most highly publicized prospects in baseball history, Strasburg enjoyed a sensational junior season at San Diego State in 2009 and was named BA’s College Player of the Year on his way to being the No. 1 overall pick by the Washington Nationals in June.

Taking the mound for the Phoenix Desert Dogs in a game against the Scottsdale Scorpions, Strasburg delivered 52 pitches in 3.1 innings of work. Overall, the 6-foot-5, 220-pounder faced 11 hitters, allowing two hits, one walk and striking out two. He got eight ground outs and no fly outs. Thirty-two of his pitches were strikes, and he notched first-pitch strikes on six of the 11 batters he faced.

BA spoke to a veteran pro and amateur scout and received his assessment on Strasburg’s outing. [...] Continue Reading »

This time: Oct. 6-13
Previous installment: Sept. 28-Oct. 7

The mass list of minor league free agents won’t be available for another few weeks, but the trickle continues in this installment with 15 more players opting to test the market.

Check out the Transactions Glossary for the key to deciphering the various inactive lists presented here.

Arizona Diamondbacks
Outrighted to Triple-A and removed from 40-man: RHP Bobby Korecky

Atlanta Braves
Granted free agency: RHP Jorge Campillo, RHP Buddy Carlyle, RHP Vladimir Nunez
Outrighted to Triple-A and removed from 40-man: RHP Jorge Campillo, RHP Buddy Carlyle, RHP Vladimir Nunez, OF Reid Gorecki

Campillo, Carlyle and Gorecki served the Braves well as minor league free agent signs who contributed to the big league club in supporting roles over the past two years. [...] Continue Reading »

Let’s take one last stroll through the minor league batting leaderboards before we say our final goodbyes to the ’09 season. Here you’ll find full-season minor league leaders (to 15 places) in batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, home runs, doubles, stolen bases, strikeouts and plate appearances per strikeout, a measure of contact ability. We’ll follow up with the pitching version next week.

Note that players are listed with the teams for which they finished the season. Ages are as of Sept. 1. Primary position is listed. As always, (*) denotes a lefthanded batter and (#) a switch-hitter. Make use of our Player Finder to learn more about players’ schools or countries of origin.

[...] Continue Reading »

Updated rosters for the Arizona Fall League season, which starts today, are online here. Let’s take a look at some of the updates:

• Five Japanese pitchers will take part in the AFL, a first for the league and a byproduct of the demise of Hawaii Winter Baseball.

Two are 2006 Japan League first-round picks—lefthanders Hiroshi Katayama (Rakuten Golden Eagles), who will play for the Phoenix Desert Dogs, and Takanobu Tsujiuchi (Yomiuri Giants), who will pitch for the Scottsdale Scorpions. Tsujiuchi has had control problems in Japan, while Katayama, much more physical at 6-foot-4, 220 pounds, had a 5.42 ERA in the Japanese minors this season and has had injury issues the last two seasons. [...] Continue Reading »

This time: Sept. 28-Oct. 7
Previous installment: Sept. 21-27

The offseason is officially upon us. The first wave of minor league free agents make their way to the open market as their contracts expire. The list includes a pair of No. 1 overall draft picks in Kris Benson (’96) and Bryan Bullington (’02). And throw in third overall pick Philip Humber (’04) for good measure. Elsewhere, teams recalled the remnants of their 40-man rosters because at this point there’s no longer a distinction between the active and expanded roster.

Check out the Transactions Glossary for the key to deciphering the various inactive lists presented here.

Arizona Diamondbacks
Granted free agency: LHP Travis Blackley
Recalled: RHP Bobby Korecky, RHP Jose Marte, RHP Kyler Newby, RHP Cesar Valdez, LHP Leyson Septimo, LHP Doug Slaten, 1B Josh Whitesell, SS Pedro Ciriaco

Atlanta Braves
Reinstated from inactive list: RHP Rico Reid

Baltimore Orioles
Reinstated from DL: LHP Cameron Coffey

Boston Red Sox
Signed: SS Jose Iglesias
Granted free agency: RHP Enrique Gonzalez, LHP Javier Lopez
Recalled: LHP Felix Doubront, C Mark Wagner, 1B Aaron Bates
Added to 40-man roster: RHP Fernando Cabrera, LHP Dustin Richardson
Designated for assignment: OF Chris Carter
Reinstated from DL: RHP Austin Bailey, OF Roberto Feliz
Assigned to Arizona Fall League: RHP Randor Bierd, RHP Casey Kelly, RHP Richie Lentz, RHP Chris Province, LHP Dustin Richardson, C Luis Exposito, OF Ryan Kalish

The Red Sox first reached a deal with Iglesias, a 19-year-old Cuban defector, in July, but now it’s official. Interesting to note here that his initial assignment was designated as Double-A Portland. That could change, especially in light of how 20-year-old White Sox third baseman Dayan Viciedo fared with Birmingham this year. [...] Continue Reading »

Mike Stanton might have prodigious power, but first baseman Logan Morrison should be the next big bat to make a difference in the Marlins’ lineup.

Morrison, 22, is closer than Stanton to being ready to hit major league pitching. Morrison has above-average raw power, but what scouts consistently point to as his most impressive attribute is his approach to hitting. He has a flat swing, works the middle of the field, stays balanced and does an outstanding job with his pitch recognition, which is why he walked (63) more than he stuck out (46) in Double-A Jacksonville.

“He probably stood out more while I was there than Stanton,” said an American League scout. “But once you look at Stanton’s age (19) and look long term, you go with Stanton. Morrison just hits, and everything he hits he centers consistently.”

After missing the first two months of the season with a fracture in his right wrist, Morrison didn’t come back swinging for the fences. He stayed with his gap-to-gap approach and hit .277/.411/.442 in 79 games with eight home runs for Jacksonville. 

[...] Continue Reading »

Cardinals minor leaguer Alan Ahmady, most notable for driving in 92 runs for Fresno State’s national championship team in 2008, was suspended for 50 games for violating MLB’s performance-enhancing drug policy. Ahmady tested positive for an amphetamine.

The Cardinals drafted Ahmady in the 11th round this season after he batted .326 for the Bulldogs as a junior. He was a crucial middle-of-the-lineup force for the Bulldogs’ 2008 national champions, batting .382-13-92, ranking second only to Buster Posey in RBIs among Division I batters. In his pro debut with short-season Batavia, Ahmady played both third base and first base, with a little catcher and left field thrown in, while batting .292/.407/.391 with three home runs. His on-base percentage ranked second in the New York-Penn League.

MLB suspended two more minor league players for 50 games after each tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs, in violation of the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program.

One was third baseman Stephen King, the Nationals’ third-round pick in 2006. He’s the second ’06 Nats pick suspended this year, joining Stephen Englund, another prep infielder who was converted to pitching this year. King, 22, spent the last two seasons in high Class A Potomac and hit .222/.304/.340 this season. King tested positive for Ritalinic Acid, a stimulant.

The other is catcher Wilson (also known as Willson) Contreras, in the Cubs organization, who was in the Rookie-level Dominican Summer League this season, batting .205. He tested positive for metabolites of Nandrolone.
 

Nothing is certain yet, but the Pirates have spoken with incumbent third baseman Andy LaRoche about working out at second base, with the hope that Pedro Alvarez can take over at third base in Pittsburgh by the middle of next season.

While LaRoche will have to adjust to learning a new position, the other question is whether Alvarez is capable of handling third base.

Not every scout is completely sold on Alvarez sticking at third base, but the answers from those who have seen the 22-year-old Alvarez this year are mostly that he can, at least for the next few years.

Internally, the Pirates call Alvarez’s defense a work in progress. There are some things in the field that he does well, some things he needs to work on and some things that will always limit him.

With Alvarez’s size (he’s listed at 6-foot-3, 235 pounds), most talent evaluators’ knee-jerk reactions upon looking at Alvarez’s body is to assume he’s better suited at first base. Alvarez’s conditioning has already been chronicled at length—first he supposedly showed up to instructional league after signing out of shape, then he reportedly showed up to spring training in much better condition—as if he were the Oprah Winfrey of prospects.

But after watching him play, several managers around the high Class A Carolina League saw enough evidence to believe Alvarez could remain at third base in the short term:

[...] Continue Reading »

There are a lot of power hitters in the minor leagues, but there aren’t many prospects like Marlins outfielder Mike Stanton.

Stanton can pull any fastball out of the park, but with his strength and ability to keep the barrel in the hitting zone for a long time, he can get caught out front or catch balls deep in the zone and drive them over the opposite-field wall, something he did eight times this year.

Several managers who faced Stanton this year recalled seemingly routine line drives he hit that appeared to have an extra gear on them as they traveled off the wall or even over the fence. Along with Stanton’s obvious physical gifts, Stanton receives praise from talent evaluators throughout the industry for his dedication to working on all facets of his game and ability to make adjustments.

“He has gotten better in all areas,” Double-A Jacksonville manager Brandon Hyde said. “His pitch selection improved, his baserunning improved, his defense has improved. Pitchers are real careful with him—he doesn’t get much on the white part of the plate.”

Stanton hit .294/.390/.578 in 50 games with high Class A Jupiter, then went on to bat .231/.311/.455 in 79 games with Jacksonville, combining for 28 homers along the way. And the praise from scouts around the Florida State League and the Southern League has been glowing.

“He’s going to be a franchise player,” said an American League scout. “I think he has a chance to be a five-tool guy who hits 40 home runs in the big leagues.”

[...] Continue Reading »