Baseball America continued the release of their “Top 20 Prospects by Minor League” series yesterday with the release of the New York-Penn league prospects.
Disappointingly to Nationals fans, only one prospect from our system was listed: #13 Destin Hood. Hood as you may remember was also in the GCL list released last week. Highlight from the scouting report:
“Hood’s swing is much more balanced than it was a year ago, and he does a considerably better job driving fastballs. He also made some progress recognizing off-speed pitches, but he has a long way to go in that area. He has a physical, athletic frame and very strong hands that translate to excellent bat speed. He projects to hit for plus power as he matures as a hitter. Most of his power is to the pull side currently, and he’s learning to use the opposite field more.”
In the chat that followed the release of the list, BA’s Aaron Fitt mentioned Juan Jamie by name, and he indeed is a guy to watch (fastball sits 93-96, peaks at 98, dominated both Vermont and Hagerstown this year). Jaime was a bit old for NYPenn; we’ll see how he fares as a 22/23 yr old in high-A next season.
It is probably not surprising that we did not get more listed here; our NYP team finished a mediocre 34-41 and didn’t feature a single batter hitting above .300 or having an OPS above .800. Hood and Jack McGeary were arguably the only two major Nationals prospects on the squad; the rest of the team was comprised of mid-to-late round 2009 draft picks and international free agents. In an example of the rich getting richer both the Yankees and Red Sox placed four players each on this same list.
Next up: Sally League on friday.
#1 by peric - September 30th, 2009 at 14:40
Eury Perez?
#2 by dd - September 30th, 2009 at 14:47
peric-Perez was not in shortseason A Ball but rather in the GCL (Rookie league). Vermont players did not fare well, including McGeary and Ramirez. Hopefully, a few players from the GCL can continue to impress! Will wait till next year to comment on Juan Jaime.
#3 by Pilchard - September 30th, 2009 at 14:52
Has Steven Strasburg pitched in the IL yet?
#4 by Sec 204 Row H Seat 7 - September 30th, 2009 at 15:03
I saw somewhere that Strasburg is scheduled to make two starts in Oct. in IL before going to AFL.
#5 by Todd - September 30th, 2009 at 15:31
Strasburg is scheduled to pitch 10/5 and 10/10 in the Instructional league before jetting off to Arizona Fall League. It was announced elsewhere first, but here’s a similar news item:
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/263642-stephen-strasburg-to-take-the-hill
#6 by Fan - September 30th, 2009 at 17:14
Okay let me get this right, Ramirez did not make the list as a top prospect in the NY-PENN league?? This is what he did in Vermont on his 1st. season: 3rd. in the league in 3b, 2nd in the league in hits, 9th in the league in RBI, 10 in the league in 2b, and 2nd in the league in total bases..What else does this 19yr. old kid have to do..Just saying!!
#7 by Andrew Stebbins - September 30th, 2009 at 20:36
Todd, you forgot J.P. Ramirez. He’s probably more of a prospect than McGeary at this point.
#8 by Other Marc with a C - October 1st, 2009 at 08:26
Aaron Fitt was not a big Ramirez fan. Likes his bat, but felt he chased to many pitches and was tied to LF, and was not a great fielder. In his words:
“J.P. wasn’t that close to making this list.”
But he did spend a paragraph talking about him and answered another question about him later in the chat.
#9 by Todd Boss - October 1st, 2009 at 09:29
JP Ramirez is definitely making an impression, especially considering his draft position (15th round in 2008). I didn’t include him as a “major Nats draft prospect” because of this. Hood and McGeary were the only top-3 round talents on the Vermont season-ending roster (recall, McGeary was a top-round talent but was thought to be dead set on Stanford).
Check out the roster and draft positions: there’s only 3 other guys who were even drafted in the top 10 rounds (Killian, Weaver, Applebee). I think the Nats would be ecstatic if any of these guys had Lannan-esque development and turned into stars.
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=tYveItS–AxU4Iv1Rx6XkiA&output=html
#10 by Todd Boss - October 1st, 2009 at 09:35
Oh, and inre Ramirez being a better prospect than McGeary at this point, i’d say this. This was really McGeary’s first full professional season. Drafted in 07, he only played 1/2 a season in 08 as he tried to balance school and proball. He’s still the youngest starter n vermont’s roster (at season’s end).
Had McGeary gone to college, he’d be a entering his junior season right now. I think you have to see how he’s looking AFTER next season to really make a judgement and then start comparing him to our drafted college guys.
#11 by cjrugger - October 1st, 2009 at 10:15
You can pick and choose stats, but his line doesn’t lie. 264, a pathetic 306 on base, and 407 slugging. He drew 14 walks in 72 games, and was 6/15 stealing bases. Add in he will have to play LF and that is not a good season
#12 by e - October 1st, 2009 at 10:47
what constitutes being a “prospect” here? I looked over the relief pitchers chosen by BA and I don’t see how either of them had a better season than the Lake Monsters’ Evan Bronson. Check out Bronson’s stats then look at the three that placed in the Top 10 and explain to me the difference:
Bronson (Vermont) DOB: 2/13/87 3-0, 0.55 ERA, 20 G, 49.1 IP, 28 H, 3 BB, 38 K, 0.63 WHIP
Victor Black (State College) DOB: 5/23/88 Chosen as the #6 Prospect 1-2, 3.45 ERA, 13 G/7 GS, 31.1 IP, 26 H, 15 BB, 33 K, 1.31 WHIP
Ramon Benjamin (Jamestown) DOB: 6/14/87
7 Prospect
1-1, 3.77 ERA, 18 G, 28.2 IP, 25 H, 11 BB, 31 K, 1.26 WHIP Also, he’s been SUSPENDED (can not find out why)
Arquimedes Caminero (Jamestown) DOB: 6/16/87
8 Prospect
3-1, 3.00 ERA, 15 G, 24 IP, 19 H, 16 BB, 42 K, 1.46 WHIP
Bronson was drafted in 2009 (29th round). Black was drafted in 2009 as well, but in the 1st round. But Caminero and Benjamin have been in the minors since 2006, so I just don’t get what constitutes being a prospect …
#13 by e - October 1st, 2009 at 10:48
I apologize for the formatting, but I swear it didn’t look like that while I was typing it in.
#14 by cjrugger - October 1st, 2009 at 11:02
Are we going to do this for every top 20 prospect list?
The list is determined by talking to scouts and managers. They don’t sit back and rank people based on ERA, BA or anything else. They look at tools, current production and future projection.
The “Hey, look at how many 2b’s x player had” or “this list is crap, our guy led the league in x” arguement is getting really old
#15 by exporam - October 1st, 2009 at 13:24
With all due respect cj, I would think we would do this for every top 20 prospect list as that is one of the reasons for having this forum. I always like your comments though! :)
I still don’t get the Yankee prospect love – how many studs has their farm produced in the last 5 years? Joba, Hughes, and who?
As far as the round Ramirez signed in – that should be a moot point because he dropped that low because of signability, not talent.
I don’t know how come they (admittedly) give high marks to the older guys.
As far as Strasburg, looks like he is lined up for a 10/15 AFL night opener in Scottsdale stadium. I’ll be there – should be cool!
#16 by cjrugger - October 1st, 2009 at 13:59
Just to clarify, my comment “going to do this” was in reference to the complaining about who made the list, not the posting of the lists
A lot of yankee prospects end up getting traded or not allowed to develop because of the need to win, although I will agree a lot of them end up being overrated
#17 by Berndaddy - October 1st, 2009 at 14:30
All but Chippard, eh CJ…;)
Just kidding of course..
#18 by e - October 1st, 2009 at 14:32
I’m not complaining, I truly want to know how it’s determined what is a prospect. I don’t have a subscription to BA so I can’t read further than their list. I don’t have access to scouts and managers myself, but I do know that a good number of people on this site have seen a good number of these players play live, so I was hoping that someone could help shine a light on why Player X is considered a prospect by Player B isn’t. All I have to go on is what I see in the boxscores and the stat lines. So forgive me if I question why someone with a 13:1 K/BB ratio and a 0.63 WHIP isn’t considered one of the top relievers (or why any reliever is considered a prospect for that matter).
#19 by cjrugger - October 1st, 2009 at 15:26
It comes down to who most likely projects to be a good major leaguer, not a list of who had the best season.
FOr the most part, relievers are at the bottom of that list. Most major league relievers are starters in the minors that can’t cut it starting in the majors, and become specialized. The fact that a 29th round pick was immediatley made a reliever doesn’t project well for his long term value.
Benjamin missed last year with shouldar sugery and they liked the way he improved his command this year to go with a good fastball and slider. doesnt say anything about him being suspended
Caminero- “He’s got off-the-charts arm strength,” throwing 95-98
Both those guy struck out more than a hitter/inn, bronson didn’t. I’m guessing they would tell you Bronson had a good year, but his stuff doesn’t project well at higher levels and better hitters
Off topic: The twins signed dominican ss miguel sano for 3.15
#20 by BinM - October 1st, 2009 at 17:26
I think Fitt got it right with Hood over Ramirez. Ramirez sounds limited defensively, and while his power counts were good, he could stand to become more selective at the plate. Hood moved up a level this year and might “project” better because he’s even younger than Ramirez.
#21 by Berndaddy - October 1st, 2009 at 17:49
BinM let’s hope that Hood is the one toolsy guy Bowden got right, eh…
#22 by peric - October 1st, 2009 at 21:45
Kobernus really didn’t get to play … wonder how he would have panned out? He’s pretty high draft-wise?
#23 by Sec 204 Row H Seat 7 - October 2nd, 2009 at 09:28
Strasburg pitches Sunday. I hope the stats on the game are available somewhere Monday, or that one of y’all see it and report.
Kobernus was finding his batting touch when he got hurt. One of the prospects to definitely watch next season.
#24 by VladiHondo - October 2nd, 2009 at 12:33
Sally League is up, Derrick Norris #4, no other Nats.
#25 by BinM - October 3rd, 2009 at 15:37
e: Think about it this way – for any given level in the minors, look at 1) overall performance in that league, 2) performance in respect to field position, 3) age relative to other players in the league, 4) year signed, and 5) draft position in year signed. Minor-League scouts look at performance first, then balance it against the players age & professional expierence.