Baseball America's top 100 Prospects

[BSN07]

http://www.baseballamerica.com/blog/prospects/?p=7539

 

 

01 Jason Heyward, of, Braves

02 Stephen Strasburg, rhp, Nationals

03 Mike Stanton, of, Marlins

04 Jesus Montero, c, Yankees

05 Brian Matusz, lhp, Orioles

06 Desmond Jennings, of, Rays

07 Buster Posey, c, Giants

08 Pedro Alvarez, 3b, Pirates

09 Neftali Feliz, rhp, Rangers

10 Carlos Santana, c, Guardians

11 Dustin Ackley, of/1b/2b, Mariners

12 Alcides Escobar, ss, Brewers

13 Justin Smoak, 1b, Rangers

14 Madison Bumgarner, lhp, Giants

15 Domonic Brown, of, Phillies

16 Starlin Castro, ss, Cubs

17 Martin Perez, lhp, Rangers

18 Jeremy Hellickson, rhp, Rays

19 Aaron Hicks, of, Twins

20 Logan Morrison, 1b, Marlins

21 Ryan Westmoreland, of, Red Sox

22 Aroldis Chapman, lhp, Reds

23 Tyler Matzek, lhp, Rockies

24 Casey Kelly, rhp, Red Sox

25 Kyle Drabek, rhp, Blue Jays

26 Jacob Turner, rhp, Tigers

27 Brett Wallace, 3b/1b, Blue Jays

28 Chris Carter, of/1b, Athletics

29 Michael Taylor, of, Athletics

30 Michael Saunders, of, Mariners

31 Lonnie Chisenhall, 3b, Guardians

32 Freddie Freeman, 1b, Braves

33 Christian Friedrich, lhp, Rockies

34 Wade Davis, rhp, Rays

35 Matt Moore, lhp, Rays

36 Jarrod Parker, rhp, Diamondbacks

37 Josh Bell, 3b, Orioles

38 Derek Norris, c, Nationals

39 Mike Montgomery, lhp, Royals

40 Aaron Crow, rhp, Royals

41 Jason Castro, c, Astros

42 Tanner Scheppers, rhp, Rangers

43 Todd Frazier, of/2b/3b, Reds

44 Nick Hagadone, lhp, Guardians

45 Yonder Alonso, 1b, Reds

46 Dee Gordon, ss, Dodgers

47 Casey Crosby, lhp, Tigers

48 Chris Withrow, rhp, Dodgers

49 Zack Wheeler, rhp, Giants

50 Shelby Miller, rhp, Cardinals

51 Julio Teheran, rhp, Braves

52 Grant Green, ss, Athletics

53 Donavan Tate, of, Padres

54 Reid Brignac, ss, Rays

55 Jared Mitchell, of, White Sox

56 Jennry Mejia, rhp, Mets

57 Simon Castro, rhp, Padres

58 Wilson Ramos, c, Twins

59 Brett Lawrie, 2b, Brewers

60 Tyler Flowers, c, White Sox

61 Kyle Gibson, rhp, Twins

62 Ike Davis, 1b, Mets

63 Zach Britton, lhp, Orioles

64 Jason Knapp, rhp, Guardians

65 Alex White, rhp, Guardians

66 Dan Hudson, rhp, White Sox

67 Tim Beckham, ss, Rays

68 Alex Colome, rhp, Rays

69 Arodys Vizcaino, rhp, Braves

70 Josh Vitters, 3b, Cubs

71 Jhoulys Chacin, rhp, Rockies

72 Mike Leake, rhp, Reds

73 Jiovanni Mier, ss, Astros

74 Brett Jackson, of, Cubs

75 Josh Reddick, of, Red Sox

76 Austin Jackson, of, Tigers

77 Fernando Martinez, of, Mets

78 Chad James, lhp, Marlins

79 Tony Sanchez, c, Pirates

80 Mike Moustakas, 3b, Royals

81 Travis d'Arnaud, c, Blue Jays

82 Jaff Decker, of, Padres

83 Adam Moore, c, Mariners

84 Hank Conger, c, Angels

85 Mike Trout, of, Angels

86 Austin Romine, c, Yankees

87 Lars Anderson, 1b, Red Sox

88 Wilmer Flores, ss, Mets

89 Mat Gamel, 3b, Brewers

90 James Darnell, 3b, Padres

91 Jordan Lyles, rhp, Astros

92 Drew Storen, rhp, Nationals

93 Phillippe Aumont, rhp, Phillies

94 Miguel Sano, ss/3b, Twins

95 Andrew Cashner, rhp, Cubs

96 Thomas Neal, of, Giants

97 Peter Bourjos, of, Angels

98 Jay Jackson, rhp, Cubs

99 Jake Arrieta, rhp, Orioles

100 Noel Arguelles, lhp, Royals

[BSN07]

From Jacko and the "Keith Law top 100" thread,

 

I am intrigued by how BA is going to handle this. BA released their yankee top 30 not too long ago and Banuelos was 5th on that list. Also, how Austin Romine isnt on a top 100 list is downright ridiculous. He was only the player of the yr in the FSL and was younger than almost everyone to boot. I have a feeling BA will have an equal amount of sox and yankee prospects as I believe both systems are pretty comparable at this time

 

Go ahead Jacko, tear BA apart now

[Imperial59]

Come on Lars, time to turn things around. We really need a prospect with some power.

[BSN07]

Come on Lars' date=' time to turn things around. We really need a prospect with some power.[/quote']

 

Agreed.

[Dipre]

From Jacko and the "Keith Law top 100" thread,

 

 

 

Go ahead Jacko, tear BA apart now

 

I want to take this post to dinner and drive it back to my place.

[diony]

Austin Jackson and Arodys Vizcaino (both products of the farm system) are on that list. So it's 4-4. Just a comment unrelated to Jacko's post.

[BSN07]

Austin Jackson and Arodys Vizcaino (both products of the farm system) are on that list. So it's 4-4. Just a comment unrelated to Jacko's post.

 

Hadagone is a product of the Sox farm system, 5-4 :harhar:

[YAZMAN]

Speaking of prospects, anybody hear anything new about that monster lefty high school kid with the ultra-sweet swing who put on the home run derby show?

[italstallianion]

Austin Jackson and Arodys Vizcaino (both products of the farm system) are on that list. So it's 4-4. Just a comment unrelated to Jacko's post.

 

 

No, as the first post shows, it's 4-2. They aren't part of the system anymore. If you think it's 4-4 then you should stay away from accounting or you'd go straight to jail for cooking the books.

[suns]

Speaking of prospects' date=' anybody hear anything new about that monster lefty high school kid with the ultra-sweet swing who put on the home run derby show?[/quote']

 

Are you talking about the guy that was in sports illustrated and said he wanted to play for the yankees and he skipped his senior year of high school?

[italstallianion]

Bryce Harper?

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liS3kGvQ9Bk

[Dipre]

Dude refuses to make a meaningful post. It's like clockwork.

[Imperial59]

Austin Jackson and Arodys Vizcaino (both products of the farm system) are on that list. So it's 4-4. Just a comment unrelated to Jacko's post.

 

Last I checked, they play for other teams. Small detail

[YAZMAN]

Bryce Harper?

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liS3kGvQ9Bk

 

That's him. I just hope he plays his draft/signing event better than Drew did.

 

Sweet.Faaaking.Swing. Wow!

[Imperial59]

That's him. I just hope he plays his draft/signing event better than Drew did.

 

Sweet.Faaaking.Swing. Wow!

 

Eh, he has a HUGE hitch in his swing which will be exploited time and time again by minor league pitchers. It will be near impossible for him to time minor league caliber pitchers unless he drastically changes his swing.

[YAZMAN]

Eh' date=' he has a HUGE hitch in his swing which will be exploited time and time again by minor league pitchers. It will be near impossible for him to time minor league caliber pitchers unless he drastically changes his swing.[/quote']

 

Please, how old is he? Do you think he won't listen to his hitting coaches and make adjustments? Look at his hand speed and bat head acceleration through the hitting zone. When he fills out, he'll be a monster. And he has the things you can't teach - size, quickness, and super hand-eye coordination.

[Imperial59]

Please' date=' how old is he? Do you think he won't listen to his hitting coaches and make adjustments? Look at his hand speed and bat head acceleration through the hitting zone. When he fills out, he'll be a monster. And he has the things you can't teach - size, quickness, and super hand-eye coordination.[/quote']

 

We'll see if he makes the adjustment or not. I just think he's way overhyped.

[Dipre]

That kind of present power and bat speed comes once, maybe twice in a generation on a guy so young. Everyone can make adjustments, but not everyone has raw talent and light-tower power at such a young age.

[Keeper]

Please' date=' how old is he? Do you think he won't listen to his hitting coaches and make adjustments? Look at his hand speed and bat head acceleration through the hitting zone. When he fills out, he'll be a monster. And he has the things you can't teach - size, quickness, and super hand-eye coordination.[/quote']

 

Agreed. Harper can definitely make adjustments. If he has a flaw in his swing, it can easily be corrected at this age.

 

I once heard Prince Fielder hit an upper deck HR at Tiger Stadium when he was like 13. Harper appears to possess that kind of raw power.

[Dipre]

You know who had a huge "glitch" on his wing and shied scouts away because of herky-jerky hitting mechanics? The guy who plays First Base most of the time for the Saint Louis Cadinals. Heard it straight from the horse's mouth in an interview a couple years ago, and look how that turned out.

[jacksonianmarch]

That kind of present power and bat speed comes once' date=' maybe twice in a generation on a guy so young. Everyone can make adjustments, but not everyone has raw talent and light-tower power at such a young age.[/quote']

 

Jesus Montero has that kind of talent. It is rare. But probably not once or twice a generation. Jason Heyward and Mike Stanton are both very young and equally impressive as well. The question will be, can this kid improve on his ridiculous skill set. There are tons of players with massive talent who just cannot adjust. I think that is his biggest obstacle. If his game smarts and his talent are equal, then he'll be another Mauer.

[jacksonianmarch]

I think they are pretty spot on with the Sox guys. I think they miss the boat a bit on Banuelos though. I just dont see how they can ignore his age, stuff, left handedness and numbers in a long season league. I think he's a top 50 prospect, IMO. I am cool with Romine in the latter half as I think he needs to prove something in AA. And I am cool with them leaving the rest of the farm off the top 100 for now. After this season, though, we'll probably have 5-7 guys in the top 100. Our A ball team is gonna be loaded.

[BSN07]

I think they are pretty spot on with the Sox guys. I think they miss the boat a bit on Banuelos though. I just dont see how they can ignore his age' date=' stuff, left handedness and numbers in a long season league. I think he's a top 50 prospect, IMO. I am cool with Romine in the latter half as I think he needs to prove something in AA. And I am cool with them leaving the rest of the farm off the top 100 for now. After this season, though, we'll probably have 5-7 guys in the top 100. [b']Our A ball team is gonna be loaded.[/b]

 

Says the guy that won't credit any Sox prospect that hasn't touched AA

 

The rest of your post and response on Harper are fair though.

[Dipre]

Jesus Montero has that kind of talent. It is rare. But probably not once or twice a generation. Jason Heyward and Mike Stanton are both very young and equally impressive as well. The question will be' date=' can this kid improve on his ridiculous skill set. There are tons of players with massive talent who just cannot adjust. I think that is his biggest obstacle. If his game smarts and his talent are equal, then he'll be another Mauer.[/quote']

 

No he doesn't. Not that kind of power. He's more refined, and has better contact skills, but he doesn't have that category of power. We're talking raw tools here.

 

Just to clarify, i'm not saying Harper's better than Montero. I'm talking about raw power, and that doesn't guarantee success at the big league level, what i'm literally saying is that Harper's got Prince Fielder style light-tower power. That is rare.

[Imperial59]

I think they are pretty spot on with the Sox guys. I think they miss the boat a bit on Banuelos though. I just dont see how they can ignore his age' date=' stuff, left handedness and numbers in a long season league. I think he's a top 50 prospect, IMO. I am cool with Romine in the latter half as I think he needs to prove something in AA. And I am cool with them leaving the rest of the farm off the top 100 for now. After this season, though, we'll probably have 5-7 guys in the top 100. Our A ball team is gonna be loaded.[/quote']

 

BA ranked Banuelos the 6th best prospect on his own team (5th after Vizcaino was dealt) so it shouldn't be surprising that they didn't rank him a top 100 prospect. He tops out around 90 mph, doesn't he? And from the scouting reports I've seen he struggles to locate his curve and I've yet to read anything good about his change. I'm not seeing how his stuff is good enough to be a top 100 prospect.

 

EDIT:This scouting report says that he has good control of his curve, but it doesn't have much bite to it. It sounds like he's got plenty of confidence and carries himself well on the mound but he doesn't have any plus pitches.

 

http://www.scoutingthesally.com/2009/07/game-report-manuel-banuelos-sp-new-york.html