No Braves among the Sally League's top prospects

This is kind of non-news, but for the first time in a long time the Braves didn't have anyone represented in the Baseball America top-20 Sally League prospects. There are usually a bunch of high ceiling Braves prospects at Rome, but I guess they didn't think so this year. I asked the question in the chat about guys like Milligan, Hoover, Delgado, and Spruill, so we'll see what Matt Forman has to say. (And how can Matt Forman miss Braves prospects? It's like he's missing an "e" or something.)

over 2 years ago gondeee 14 comments 0 recs |

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I was shocked that at least Spruill wasn’t on there. I know there’s always a lot of talent, but the guy was the SP in the All Star game; he’s 19 and a high round draft pick. Come on BA!

But, I was happy to see my college buddy Dexter Carter at number 15. Monarchs are taking names.

"At least he didn’t nail the bitchy fat girl from Hell's Kitchen."
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by cbwilk on Oct 2, 2009 4:30 PM EDT reply actions

the thing people miss about Spruill unless they see him is he has one of the most projectable bodies I have ever seen. Kid is rail thin.

by yondaime4 on Oct 2, 2009 5:59 PM EDT up reply actions

Excellent point. He looks exactly how Kevin Millwood looked at the same age. Paul Snyder used to talk about looking for pitchers with “coat hanger” shoulders; he wanted guys with that angle from their neck to their arms. I haven’t seen a guy in the system recently who more perfectly fit this description than Spruill.

"At least he didn’t nail the bitchy fat girl from Hell's Kitchen."
www.dropoutproductions.com

by cbwilk on Oct 2, 2009 6:03 PM EDT up reply actions

Oh yeah I got in a long conversation one time with a scout about how the sloped shoulders are one of the first things they look for in any player. There have been very very ‘square shoulder’ guys who have been really successful. Off the top of my head only Joe Carter and Dave Winfield come immediately to mind. Maybe Juan Gonzales too.

Griffey Jr is a great example of coat hanger guy:

by yondaime4 on Oct 2, 2009 6:12 PM EDT up reply actions

My question was answered:

Gondeee (Atlanta): No Braves prospects? Not even Adam Milligan? Or J.J. Hoover, or one of the Delgados?

Matt Forman: If I could have ranked a 21st player, it would have been Randall Delgado. Managers and scouts love his explosive fastball, which some had up to 96 mph this year. The biggest question marks were about his secondary stuff and his command. He’s got excellent deception out of his high three-quarters arm slot, and a nice projectable frame. I can see why people would have expected him to make the list, especially considering he’s 19 years old. Milligan put together a solid year. Most people seem to like hit hit tool, but question how it will translate how he moves up the latter. Next year will be a big year for him.

by gondeee on Oct 2, 2009 4:49 PM EDT reply actions

How many Braves spent a majority of their season in Rome though...

Spruill bounced up and down, Milligan came up late. Hoover or the Delgado’s would make sense, but Rome was really bad this year, and some of their better players spent good size chunks of their seasons in GCL/Danville.

by Mr. Sanchez on Oct 3, 2009 9:12 AM EDT up reply actions

The funny thing is, Myrtle Beach was one of the worst teams in organized baseball this year, but I bet they have a few guys on the CL list.

"At least he didn’t nail the bitchy fat girl from Hell's Kitchen."
www.dropoutproductions.com

by cbwilk on Oct 3, 2009 11:51 AM EDT up reply actions

Dimaster Delgado isnt really a good prospect

But i feel like Hoover could have gotten some mention.

Go to Braves games.

by esadb on Oct 3, 2009 11:45 AM EDT up reply actions

You must explain this statement, because it sound ridiculous. DiMaster Delgado is a year and a half younger than Hoover. At the same level, Hoover was 7-6 with a 3.35 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 9.9 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9, compared to Delgado going 5-7 with a 3.61 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 9.4 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9.

If anything, Delgado’s performance, which just looking at the numbers is only a tick behind Hoover’s, is much more impressive because he was playing at an age appropriate level, while Hoover was slightly old for the league.

"At least he didn’t nail the bitchy fat girl from Hell's Kitchen."
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by cbwilk on Oct 3, 2009 12:00 PM EDT up reply actions

Apparenty his stuff is not very good. high 80s Fastball, and his curve is too obvious. I mean, he had a good year in the low minors, i just dont think that will translate well to A+ and AA… ive never seen him pitch so this is just what ive read.

Go to Braves games.

by esadb on Oct 3, 2009 12:28 PM EDT up reply actions

I guess we’ll see, but the kid is still young and performed well. Saying he isn’t a prospect because his fastball isn’t in the mid-90s like Hoover and he needs to work on his secondary stuff, which every young pitcher needs to, still seems harsh. Even with the supposed gap in stuff, he pitched just as well as the guy who’s older, so if it’s a question of how it will translate, then Hoover, with his superior stuff, is going to have some serious work to do at the higher levels.

"At least he didn’t nail the bitchy fat girl from Hell's Kitchen."
www.dropoutproductions.com

by cbwilk on Oct 3, 2009 1:33 PM EDT up reply actions

The velocity issue is only part of the problem. I saw him pitch once this season, he was 83-87 with his FB. I’ve read articles and blurbs saying he had a little more velo than that so it could have been an off night. That wouldn’t be as much of an issue with me much with an athletic, taller, thin player like Ortegano at the same age. But the fact that Delgado looks about 6 foot maybe 6-1 and is pudgy bordering on fat, doesn’t lend him to being a top prospect. He’s certainly a prospect but point blank, he has a bad body and doesn’t appear very athletic. His body type is going to work against him and he’s probably has more work to do in that area that any other prospect in the system.

That being said, you can’t argue with the results. He’s got outs and done his job but the skill level of the hitters he is facing is still very low in the Sally league and I question whether he will still have the skill to get outs when he faces guys that have a more developed approach at the plate while his physical skills are likely to see only marginal gains.

"Four of us wolves, running around the desert together in Las Vegas, looking for strippers and cocaine..."

by jeg on Oct 4, 2009 2:08 AM EDT up reply actions

That second paragraph lends to my argument about Delgado in relation to Hoover. Hoover unquestioningly has the better stuff, and he was older, but, he didn’t outpitch Delgado by much. So, since Delgado has weaker stuff but was nearly as successful at the same level, at a younger age, that’s got to be more impressive. Delgado wouldn’t be the first soft tossing lefty to have to deal with doubt.
As far as the body type goes, I can’t really remember what DiMaster looks like, but I’ll take your word for it. As far as that goes, it’s not like Hoover is a physical specimen. He’s a fairly hefty kid himself. milb.com has Delgado listed at 6’2" 180 and Hoover at 6’3" 215. I’m sure there’s some room for error in both, but again, the body type issue might be even for these guys as well.
I’m not trying to defend Delgado’s overall prospect status or negate Hoover’s, I’m just trying to argue that esadb’s take that Delgado isn’t a prospect and Hoover is just doesn’t seem to hold up under scrutiny.

"At least he didn’t nail the bitchy fat girl from Hell's Kitchen."
www.dropoutproductions.com

by cbwilk on Oct 4, 2009 3:07 AM EDT up reply actions

I really think Randall Delgado got snubbed. Go look at how he finished out the year… In his final nine starts:

48 IP, 4-2 W/L, 40 H, 14 ER, 7 BB, 60 K, 2.63 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, 11.3 K/9, 1.3 BB/9

By the end of the season, he was one of the more dominating arms in the league, at just 19. And not only that, his FIP for the year was a very strong 3.55 despite a 4.35 ERA. I think Delgado’s biggest detractor was that he pitched for a really crappy team, hence the 5-10 record and the yucky ERA.

With the kind of velocity and deception he has on his FB, if he develops the secondary stuff he could be a strikeout machine. And he has a projectable frame just like Spruill, who also seems to be a just-miss on this list.

Q: If on-base pct is so important then why don't they put it on the scoreboard? -Failcoeur

A: Because the Braves don't want to show their fans how bad you suck.

by timmy3 on Oct 4, 2009 12:40 PM EDT reply actions