(Check the FanPosts for other prospect game reports by AyatollahTLC. -- James)

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As the Mets did battle with the Braves Monday Night, 45 Miles to the Northeast of Atlanta, Mets prospect Michael Fulmer was making his second Sally league in front of a sparse, rain logged Rome, Ga. crowd. Although he did not record the win, Fulmer showcased skills that makes him a prospect to keep an eye on.

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Armed with one of the better strikeout to walk rates in the South Atlantic League, Mets prospect Rafael Montero has started turning heads amongst prospect observers and fans alike.

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Jack Leathersich has been putting up strikeout rates that make grown men blush. I had to see what the fuss was all about.

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Top pitching prospects squared off as White Sox prospect Nestor Molina bested Dodgers prospect Allen Webster in Southern League action. I caught the first seven innings of Molina's start and came away quite impressed despite a slow start.

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I didn't get enough time to really evaluate Jae-Hoon Ha but I figured, since I had footage of him, I'd share it. Being Easter Sunday, I didn't see any Abs after the third one since I wanted to make it home for Easter dinner. Not much action in CF to get a real gauge of his abilities out there. Here's the video. Enjoy!

Cubs Prospect Jae-Hoon Ha (via MetsgeekTV)

Tennessee Smokies pitcher and Cubs pitching prospect Dae-Eun Rhee took a no decision in an Easter Sunday start against the Chattanooga Lookouts (Dodgers). Here are some thoughts on Rhee, including video featuring four specific pitching sequences.

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I was editing videos today of various prospects, including Astros prospect Chris Lee, and came across some video on Jamaine Cotton pitching for Greeneville. I don't really have much to add scouting wise on Cotton. Fastball/Slider guy. Really the only reason why I video taped him was his place of birth, the Virgin Islands. He was sort of what I expected, a very raw pitcher. I just thought I would be seeing a guy with plus velocity. I was disappointed. For what it's worth, I believe he was the winning pitcher.

Houston Astros Pitching Prospect Jamaine Cotton (via MetsgeekTV)

Before I get to my scouting report on Rhiner Cruz, I feel the need to introduce myself. My name is Chris Blessing and I've been writing about prospects for the past 4 seasons under various handles, at various sites. In fact, some of my work has been linked and discussed here, specifically my piece on Paul Clemens, which I contributed at my friend's website, Scouting the Sally.

If you asked me last off season if I thought Rhiner Cruz would be selected in the Rule V draft, I would have probably laughed at you. When I first saw him in 2009, I thought he was trying to do his best Jesus Colome impersonation. For those who don't remember, Jesus Colome was a hard throwing right hander who was a top prospect in the Rays organization. Although Colome ended up with over 300 major league appearances, he never captured the promise he showed in 2000 and 2001, when he was ranked in Baseball America's top 100. He was plagued by poor command that was a result of sloppy mechanics, specifically an inconsistent release point. Now, Rhiner doesn't have the tools (plus pitches) Colome had; however, Rhiner does feature the plus velocity, the inconsistent release point and the poor command that made Colome famous.

Cruz primarily throws from a 3/4's arm angle. He likes to variate his arm angle to try to create deception, which is the primarily root to all of his inconsistencies. I blame this for his command issues and his inability to develop a quality secondary pitch. He has always been a hard thrower, topping out at 95 MPH as a 22 year old in 2009. Since then, I've heard his top velocity has ticked up a bit and I'm not surprised by the talk of him hitting triple digits in the Dominican League. He works best now throwing in the mid 90s, where he can command his fastball and his pitches don't flatten out. His slider was below average in 2009 and my contact in the Florida State League told me it wasn't any better in 2011. It is more like a slurve than a true Slider and lacks the break to project it to be an average major league pitch.

I don't know much about your major league club. I don't know what your pen looks like. I do think, if his slider becomes an average offering, he has a chance to stick. Had he not been drafted, he would have been invited to big league camp this spring and probably sent back to Double A, with a realistic chance of a promotion to Triple A. I hope it works out for the Astros. I plan on keeping an eye on him and some of the other guys in your organization I've seen, like Clemens, Brett Oberholtzer, Jonathan Singleton & Telvin Nash. Also, look for some content on Astros prospects Chris Lee & Jamaine Cotton, two pitchers I caught while watching Greeneville this season. I drove up to NE Tennessee specifically to see Ariel Ovando and Mets prospect Juan Urbina. Of course, Ovando was sitting out with an injury.

Edit: My friend Mike Newman posted a write up on Fangraphs today on Rhiner Cruz. He probably has seen more of Cruz than anyone not employed by the Mets. http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/rule-5-draft-2011-rhiner-cruz-first-pick-houston-astros/

(Bumped from FanPosts. --Eric)

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Nineteen year old Mets prospect Aderlin Rodriguez is a kid who is very talented and has the potential of becoming a very talented hitter. At this time, Aderlin is pressing a bit, especially when he has two strikes. He has little to no athleticism and is playing a position that I doubt he'll ever field in the major leagues. During the weekend I saw him against Rome (3 of the 4 games of the series), he was 3 for 14 with 2 home runs, a double, a walk, a HBP, 2 strikeouts and 4 RBIs.

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(Bumped from FanPosts. --Eric)

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I spent most of Friday battling a stomach bug, pretty unsure whether I'd make it out to the ballpark in time to catch the Savannah Sand Gnats battle the Rome Braves. Luckily, the game was delayed slightly due to some passing showers in the Rome area so I made it before the Sand Gnats pitcher, Erik Goeddel, started warming up in the bullpen. I always enjoy watching guys work in the pen before the game. As you can see in the video that I posted below, he takes his time to gather a feel for his pitches.

Fast Forward to Game action. Erik didn't disappoint. He was seemingly in control the entire game, reaching his first 3 ball count in the 7th inning. In fact, from information I obtained from an anonymous source, this was the first game that Erik reached the 7th inning as a starter since Erik was in high school. If you don't know the story, he battled elbow injuries in high school and college, having a torn elbow ligament repaired while at UCLA. He is a tall, lanky kid who has room to grow and pack on some muscle.

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