My Braves Top 50 Prospect list
by timmy3 on Feb 22, 2009 8:10 PM EST
47 comments
- I spent some time putting this list together for my blog on another site and figured I'd pass it along. After you go down a ways things get up in the air, so it becomes more of a "Who to watch for" type thing. I don't pretend to be bringing any new or valuable insight into it. I'm just a fan, and these are my rankings. I had a blast putting this together.
- Jason Heyward, RF- I know putting him ahead of Jesus is tough, but when in doubt, I'll roll with the position player.
- Tommy Hanson, RH SP- The duh choice of all of this.
- Jordan Schafer, CF- The Next Grady Sizemore? Maybe, maybe not... But I think we could all live with a Sizemore Lite.
- Freddie Freeman, 1B- 18 and already raking in full season ball, what's not to love?
- Cole Rohrbough, LH SP- Dude is about to make serious noise. I'm getting a seat up front for this bandwagon.
- Gorkys Hernandez, CF- Loads of potential, young for his level, has the speed and the defense. Will the on-base skills and pop come along?
- Kris Medlen, RH SP/RP- Is he a starter or a reliever? It remains to be seen. The little guy doesn't get much love from prospect lists, but the hitters don't seem to be enjoying him, and he's someone you can bank on making an impact at the big league level which is why he's here ahead of some guys with higher ceilings.
- Jeff Locke, LH SP- Didn't punch in a dominant performance, but a lot of people thing very highly of this guy, and there's still a lot to like here.
- Randall Delgado, RH SP- In the Delgado vs Teheran argument I'm taking Delgado until I see some performance from Teheran. But he's next...
- Julio Teheran, RH SP- This is all based on upside and hear-say at this point. But if he adds a very good full season performance to that resume as an 18 yr old, he'll be blowing up prospect lists everywhere this time next year.
- Craig Kimbrel, RH RP- Kimbrel had two words for hitters last year. Sit down. Can he tear through the higher levels with the same gusto?
- Brandon Hicks, SS- Defense? Check. Speed? Check. Patience? Check. Power? Check. Now can he hit for average, and cut down on the Ks a tad?
- Scott Diamond, LH SP- I was sceptical of this guy early last year, but he's just a winner. His splits indicate that at worst he ought to be a solid LOOGY.
- Brett DeVall, LH SP- Very polished for a high schooler. But there's a slew of lefties in this system, so he'll have plenty of competition. I'm curious to see whether he starts at Rome.
- Eric Campbell, 3B- It's make or break time for Campbell. If he can produce at AA, he'll start showing up on prospect lists. The talent is there.
- Zeke Spruill, RH SP- Might be the most talented of the 08 draftees, mid-90's fastball and a big slider.
- Kala Kaaihue, 1B- Can he avoid the big dropoff he's had adjusting to higher levels finally at Gwinnett? Now that he's away from Mississippi and the pitcher-friendly Southern League, we may see a big home run spike.
- Todd Redmond, RH SP- Not my favorite prospect. But he gets outs, and wins. Great control. Will be 24 in May, so the clock is ticking.
- Stephen Marek, RH RP- Said to have closer-quality stuff. Could be in our 'pen very soon.
- James Parr, RH SP- Already pitched a bit in the majors. So-so stuff, but it's gotten him this far and he'll only be 23 this season.
- Luis Sumoza, OF- Toolsy guy. Adds to our great OF depth.
- Edgar Osuna, LH SP- Love the results, the stuff may not be that great. But you can't argue with the results though, 4.4/1 K/BB ratio as a 20 yr old in the Sally League.
- Braeden Schlehuber, C- Our top catching prospect with Flowers gone. Supposed to be very athletic.
- Jacob Thompson, RH SP- A draft-day steal. Would have gone much higher in last year's draft. This guy could fly through our system.
- David Francis, RH SP- Had a great pro-debut. We're drafting so much good pitching right now.
- Diory Hernandez, IF- He's close. Probably nothing more than a career as a backup, but he had a great winter, and he'll almost assuredly get big league playing time very soon.
- Deunte Heath, RH SP- Great stuff. Results? Not so much. I would love to see him get some more Ks.
- Tyler Stovall, LH SP- Gets forgotten amongst the other '08 guys, but he was drafted ahead of Spruill, Thompson, Francis and Kimbrel.
- Willie Cabrera, OF- I really like this guy. Got overshadowed by the other bats at The Beach. But he hit very well there.
- Ernesto Mejia, 1B- Showed a lot of power last year. Must repeat and improve the OBP to remain relevant though.
- Paul Clemens, RH SP- Big-time fastball.
- Luis Valdez, RH RP-Turned in a big year last year as the M-Braves closer. ETA is 2009 or never, I'd say.
- Travis Jones, 2B- Defensively maybe not all that, and he finished the year pretty poorly. Still, very good pop from a middle infielder. And very good Iso numbers (.113/.180)
- Erik Cordier, RH SP- Needs to stay healthy. A great talent though.
- Cody Johnson, LF- When he makes contact he's as good a hitter as we have. If he can cut his K rate in half, he could be a star.
- Adam Milligan, OF- Very excited to see his debut this summer.
- Steve Evarts, LH SP - Was hurt a lot this year. As a high draft choice he should get plenty of chances, although he's a drop of Southpaw in a sea of LHP.
- Concepcion Rodriguez, OF - Another guy who hit well between Rome and The Beach.
- Benino Pruneda, RH RP- :ittle guy, huge arm. I'm pulling for Pruneda.
- JJ Hoover, RHP- Sickels really seems to like this guy.
- Cory Gearrin, RH RP- Struck out a ton of batters last year (14.1 K/9). Walked a ton too (7.0 BB/9)
- Jose Ortegano, LH SP - Probably moving to the pen longterm.
- Van Pope, 3B- Great defense. Talented. But c'mon with that bat man.
- Cory Rasmus, RHP- See Erik Cordier.
- Jon Owings, OF- Another bat at The Beach.
- Kyle Cofield, RH SP- Great ERA, the periperals were so-so though.
- Chris Shehan, OF- One of the better offensive debuts from the 08 class.
- Robert Brooks, SS -Fantastic pro debut in the GCL.
- Chad Rodgers, LH SP - One or Rome's many lefties. Has fantastic control.
- Adam Coe, 3B -Talented guy. Good defense. I hope this guy starts hitting.
- Also want to mention, Danilo Alvarez, Daniel Falcon, Matt Kennelly, Brett Oberholtzer, Dimaster Delgado, Casey Hodges, Chen-En Hung, Christian Betancourt, Alberto Odreman as guys to watch.
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Good list
but its similar to every other person’s top 50 for the Braves.
Thank you.
To be honest, I didn’t really look at anyone else’s top 50 when putting this together. But I can imagine they would look rather similar to mine.
Tommy Hanson 4 ROY
Nice list
And thanks for all the hard work. I know these lists take minutes to read, but hours to put together.
That being said, I think Dimaster should be ranked, and I think that ‘a tad’ is being very generous in regards to cutting down on Hicks’ Ks.
Agreed.
That’s probably not the greatest phraseology…
He definitely has to improve his contact rate. But that seems to be the only real chink in his armor right now. He seems to have everything else together. It’s important to remember that Hicks was drafted primarily for his glove, and that the power has come as a bit of a surprise.
On Dimaster, I can agree with that. There’s just a ton of pitching with upside. I probably regard him just as highly as some of the guys ranked. Which is why I included him there at the end.
Tommy Hanson 4 ROY
Like I said on BN....
….great stuff timmy. Good to see you’re putting this out there for other Braves fans to see.
Here's a couple of guys.......
That you left off that I think will make some noise this year.
Luis Avilan, 19, LHP
Carlos Perez, 16, LHP
Adam Milligan, 20, OF
Victor Cadette, 17, SS
Also I think that Robert Brooks should be much higher but that’s just me otherwise good list.
I can't say that...
I know much about Perez or Cadette. I’ve taken notice ot Cadette’s name, and I know that Perez was one of our bigger international signings but that’s it. What can you tell me about those two?
This list is pretty performance based, so there isn’t much love for the GCL and DSL guys.
I thought about Avilan, I probably should have all of these guys included in the add ons at the end.
Tommy Hanson 4 ROY
Re:
Victor Cadette – SS – Dominican Republic – 6’0", 180 – 17 years old
Almaraz is really excited about Cadette, a kid he projects will probably be at 6’1", 190 when he finishes filling out. Cadette is a very good defensive player, but he can also hit. He’s got a really good swing and he’s very strong.
"We wanted to go after position players that could hit," Almaraz said. "There are so many kids that can field the ball. But I wanted to look at the other end of it and pursue guys that will have a chance to hit."
_______________________________________________________________________
Carlos Perez – LHP – Dominican Republic – 6’2", 190 – 16 years old
The Braves believe this was the top lefty pitcher on the international market. He’s 6’2", 190 pounds, and the Braves believe he’ll gain another inch or two and get up to around 220. Perez has a fastball in the 88-92 range, an above average curve, and a changeup. ESPN had ranked Perez as the 14th best player on the international market this year, but the Braves believe he’s even better than that.
“He’s somebody we scouted the entire year,” said Johnny Almaraz, the Braves’ Director of International Scouting. “We were happy with the progress he made. We negotiated the entire night and wrapped him up this morning. He’s a good looking kid. He commands three pitches. His poise and command are extremely advanced for his age.”
Perez, who was born on November 20, 1991, was in the Braves’ Dominican complex this morning and said through Almaraz, “I feel very happy to be a Brave.”
The List
Great List! In fact, it is one of the best that I have seen. My only friendly criticisms would be that Cody Johnson should be higher (though your comment is on target) and I would have thought that Matt Kennelly or Daniel Elorriga-Matra merited inclusion ahead of Schlehuber….
by Stephen in the UAE on Feb 22, 2009 11:31 PM EST reply actions
On Kennelly after I finished, I really felt like I snubbed him. I think BA has Schlehuber ranked like 18th for the organization (I don’t have the list, that was just something they mentioned in an Ask BA thing about how the Braves have produced so many catchers recently).
I figured my ranking of CoJo would get some criticism. And to be fair, he did finish the season very well. It’s just that if Sally League pitchers can K you 38% of the time, I can’t see you having much upside. Obviously he’s still pretty young, but the between the horrible contact rate and the fact that his defense doesn’t even play well for a Low-A left fielder, I can’t justify having him any higher.
Tommy Hanson 4 ROY
I thought Cody was a good bit too low too. I take your point on the Ks, but Michael Burgess struck out 34% of his ABs in the Sally League and everybody loves him. Actually, Cody had a better year than he did. He’s got issues, so I can see why you put him where you did, but with his potential, he should be higher.
www.dropoutproductions.com
I can agree with some of this...
Hopefully this summer, Cody makes me look like a damn fool for ranking him so low. The low OBP and all the Ks just scare me off. And part of my ranking him so low, has to do with how highly I’ve seen him regarded, he’s simply not a top 20 guy right now. I can agree with him being ranked anywhere from 21-35. I took the low end for now.
Tommy Hanson 4 ROY
Cory Gearrin
Has anyone seen this guy pitch? It almost looks like he jumps off the mound when hes pitching. He has a good fastball/changeup combo and it has to be tough to pick up the ball coming out of his hand. I think this is part of the reason his walk rate is so high though.
by atl14yearsschaffer on Feb 23, 2009 2:05 PM EST reply actions
Anyone getting 14 K/9 has to be discussed as a prospect. Obviously, he’s gotta improve his control though. He’s someone I’m pulling for for personal reasons, because he’s from the Nooga.
We’ve certainly got some impressive bullpen arms on the way. Medlen, Marek, and Kimbrel are the headliners, but guys like Pruneda and Gearrin should get a bit more discussion too.
Tommy Hanson 4 ROY
Do you know much about Thomas Palica?
I’ve heard that his stuff isn’t anything special, and his ERA wasn’t that spectacular last year, but his peripherals certainly were. His Missed Bats Number, K-(H+BB), was an impressive 8 (as in he had 8 more Ks than hits and walks allowed). To put that in prospective only three guys out-did that in our organization. Tommy Hanson who was26 (and second among all minor league starters, incidently if you count his post-season and fall league he bumps up to +67), Craig Kimbrel who was +25, and David Francis who was +14.
And Palica didn’t have long ball issues either. Giving up only 0.41 HR/9.
Tommy Hanson 4 ROY
I saw Palica pitch several times in Rome
He was good…..They used him to close out games some, and he could come in and shut the door – throws hard. I don’t remember him being a victim of the horrible Rome defense the way Jeff Locke was, but it’s very possible (if any of his numbers look bad in any direction that could be affected by defense. Does that make sense?)
Anyway, he’s a nice guy and has great glasses, so those two factors alone should count for something.
That umpire looks like he’s a touch too close to the pitcher’s mound.
I'll handle u in spring training - phil413
by mattdiaz4life on Feb 23, 2009 6:14 PM EST up reply actions
Yeah, Tommy’s glasses are great. I could see him becoming a lefty specialist down the line. I doubt he’ll ever be a top prospect, but if he can survive the gruel of a few minor league seasons, and gets hot at the right time, he could find himself in the bigs going after some leftys.
www.dropoutproductions.com
Thanks for the info
The defense seems to have left him out to dry quite a bit, like I said his peripherals were fantastic, even for a reliever, but his ERA was still not that great at 3.68, while is FIP was a mere 2.87, so the defense wasn’t exactly his friend.
Another interesting thing though regarding him being a potential LOOGY. He actually has reverse splits, and has been better against righties. Though this is through only 108 professional innings.
He gave up a .286 BA to lefties last year and a 35% LD, and righties only hit .192 against him with a 12 LD%. He also gave up 2 of his 3 homers to lefties last year, despite facing a lot fewer of them.
Tommy Hanson 4 ROY
I didn’t know about those results. Hmm…he better turn that around, because he really doesn’t have the stuff to be full or multiple inning reliever in the majors. Interesting.
www.dropoutproductions.com
Yeah, its still a bit of a small sample size so that trend may change. To be fair was at 15.2 K/9 against righties, it’s just that they tee’d a lot of line drives off of him when they actually were able to put it in play. So maybe the reverse platoon splits he’s had so far will look like an abberation down the road.
Tommy Hanson 4 ROY
I REALLY like
Gorkys Hernandez. I was so glad he wasnt traded during the offseason. I think his floor might be a Carlos Gomez type with 40+ SB and low power numbers, but if he develops power I think his ceiling could be Carlos Beltran (no joke). He really has all the tools in the world, and if starts going off this year I absolutely salivate at the idea of an outfield of Gorkys – Schafer – Heyward within a year or two. That outfield would have speed, power, range, strong arms….‘shudders’. It’s almost too good to be true.
60% of the time, it works every time
Personally, I don’t see Gorkys developing the power, but, I do think he’s a dynamic player and that he’s going to be a great leadoff hitter. That’s my dream outfield too, and even though I’m usually one to say there’s no way that many prospects will work out, I think all three of those guys have an excellent chance to become very good major leaguers. I love that Gorkys works hard at his game; I think a healthy 2009 is gonna be a good year for him.
www.dropoutproductions.com
Hey CB
You seem like one of the most plugged-in guys here in terms of the ATL farm system.
Have you heard anything about where these guys are gonna start? I assume they’ll start GH in AA, Schafer in AAA, and Heyward at MB, but that’s just a guess.
Formerly Uncle Charlie of Minor League Ball
That would be my guess on all three.
I’d say Heyward at MB with a very outside shot at moving to Mississippi late in the year. The Braves like guys to spend full seasons at the A ball teams, so he’d really have to mash to move up.
Gorkys will probably be in Miss; there’s a small chance he could go back to MB, since he didn’t exactly tear it up, but I think he played well enough to move up, and I have no doubt he’ll have a good spring.
And I’ve been saying Schafer wouldn’t be in the majors to start the year all off season, and I think Garret Anderson’s signing cements that. He’ll go to Gwinnett and hopefully the guys in Atlanta will play well enough that they don’t feel the need to rush him.
I don’t know for a fact that any of this will happen, all kinds of stuff could change, but that’s my best guess based on where I think those guys are at and how the Braves usually work.
www.dropoutproductions.com
Thanks
On another post, I speculated that the GA signing might send Brandon Jones back to AAA as well. It wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world to send him back to build up a little confidence.
Formerly Uncle Charlie of Minor League Ball
Yeah, I saw that. There’s no doubt in my mind that Brandon Jones goes back to AAA now. The only thing that would prevent it is either that somebody gets hurt (it might even take a few guys getting hurt) or he gets traded. I’m not really sold on how much better he’s going to get with more time in AAA, I kind of feel like he’s a finished product who just needs a chance to play, but at least in AAA he’ll get to play everyday and accumulate some at bats.
www.dropoutproductions.com
Jones
I didn’t watch him much in the minors, but I think Jones would be well served to work on handling the breaking stuff. It seems like the book is out on him, and he’s being fed a steady diet of off-speed stuff.
Formerly Uncle Charlie of Minor League Ball
I think that’s sort of a common practice for pitching to rookie hitters. Unless the other team has a specific scouting report to the contrary, they’d usually assume that if a kid is in the majors, he can hit a fastball. I don’t think this is specific to Brandon in any way, but a common thing, that seems to be working.
I don’t doubt that he could become better playing every in AAA; pretty much any player will get better with regular playing time. But, aside from some fine tuning, he is what he’s going to be, average power, decent defense, some RBI knack, a solid, but unspectacular player.
It just doesn’t seem like the Braves are willing to give him a chance, so I’d rather see him get moved to another team and bring back something they actually will use.
www.dropoutproductions.com
Sure, I agree that learning to hit off-speed stuff is usually the last piece in the puzzle. And, frankly, it’s something that a lot of hitters have to learn (or not) in the big leagues.
I guess my point was that, in the roughly 10-15 games I saw Bjones play last year, he looked pretty lost against off-speed stuff. Another dose of AAA might be a way for him to reclaim some of his value, and if he learns on a less visible stage it doesn’t completely destroy his trade value if he fails.
Formerly Uncle Charlie of Minor League Ball
hahaha
Not gonna lie, I haven’t heard the JF-K nickname yet and I almost spit my chicken sandwich onto my computer. By the time Gorkys-Schafer-Heyward come along I hope ole’ Jeffy will be hacking away in Kansas City courtesy of a Zack Greinke trade.
60% of the time, it works every time
I also enjoy...
Frenchwhore (courtesy of Mets fans), and going off of “The Natural” thing, Natty Light or just Natty Flat.
And of course we have to thank Leonard Kessler for writing such a great book about him…
Tommy Hanson 4 ROY
Holy shit
Is that a real book cover?
No wonder nobody likes you, Tuttle... everything's a (Pujols) damn debate.
I should buy it on Amazon and have it sent to Hank Aaron Drive, care of Jeff Francoeur then.
No wonder nobody likes you, Tuttle... everything's a (Pujols) damn debate.
That would probably be the best four dollars you ever spent.
Just make sure and get the one with the #7 cover.
Tommy Hanson 4 ROY
Actually it would be better to get it, and circulate it around members of the Braves blogosphere, have people sign it like a birthday card, but full of disparaging remarks, and then, mail it to Turner Field, pretending like it was fan mail.
And then Francoeur would get it and get all pissed, and walk out onto Turner Field with several buckets of balls and try to hit baseballs to all his detractors around the world like he did in that first Delta commercial, but the first ball he would hit, it would plop onto the left side, and Hanley Ramirez would come out of nowhere, field it to Chase Utley who also comes out of nowhere and then completes the GIDP to Adam Dunn who materializes at first base.
Sorry, I got a little carried away there.
No wonder nobody likes you, Tuttle... everything's a (Pujols) damn debate.
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