According to YahooSports.  30 million deal.

It's not known at this point who signed him.  Seems way more than waht the Marlins were willing to spend.  The Nats were interested, but that also seems like more than they can afford.  Mets sound like a good possibility, maybe the Dodgers.

Post away.

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So Strasburg apparently looked pretty darn good on Friday night.  I was expecting more k's, but he's apparently trying to induce contact and ground balls.  Judging by the groudout/flyout ratio from his first start, he achieved what he set out to do.  Some other notables include

Mike Stanton, 2-4 first AFL dinger but also 2k's

Scott Sizemore already 3 jacks

Grant Desme, 2nd HR, but more k's 

Chris Heisey, dinger, double, sb

Brandon Laird, hasn't got much mention, probably because he is viewed as more a future bench guy, but it's hard to deny his stats so far

Did Heyward leave yesterday's game due to injury?

No games today, but post your thoughts on what you've seen (liked and disliked) so far.

Tonight many of us will be waiting to see how phenom Stephen Strasburg looks in his AFL and minor league debut.  Not sure if there is any access to this game via the web, but I'm sure we'd all enjoy hearing how he looked from anyone who might be able to see the game.

Some strong performances yesterday, including cough cough, Mike Moustakas (Royals homer).  Moustakas clubed a 3 run Hr, and added two doubles for a 3-5 day with 7 RBI's.  Other performances of note include:

Yonder Alonso, 1-4 with his first AFL dinger

Dustin Ackley, 2-5, run scored

Scott Sizemore, 2-4 2Hr's 3 Rbi's

Dayan Viciedo, 3-5 1BB, Hr 3 runs scored

Andrew Lambo, 3-5 Hr, double, 4 Rbi's

Mike Leake, 2 IP 4hits, 1BB, 2K's 0ER

Jose Iglesias, 1-1 1BB 1HBP, Hr 2 Rbi's

Danny Gutierrez (sigh) 3 IP, 0 hits 2BB, 2K's 0ER

Another two afternoon games, so post away with your comments and observations.

Three more games today, with two on this afternoon.  Of note, Mike Leake takes the mound in his minor league debut.  I confess I don't know much about him, but maybe Reds fans can fill us in on things to watch with him.

Some notable performances from yesterday include the following:

Dustin Ackley  2-4, run

Cole Gillespie 3-3, 2BB, RBI

Josh Vitters 3-4, double

Dom Brown 2-5, 2doubles

Jenrry Meijia, 1 IP  3ER only 21 of 39 for strikes

Donnie Veal,  2IP's  3K's


What are some of your impressions for the first couple days?  Has anyone seen any of the games, would be interested to hear the observations?  Post away.

Good to see some minor league games again.  Some noteworthy performances from day one, including:

Ike Davis' grand slam and 6 RBI day

Jason Heyward pair of doubles RBI/Run/SB

Mike Minor two scoreless innings

Buster Posey 0-5

Yonder Alonso 1-5

Ian Kennedy 4IP's 1 run 4K's 0BB

Dom Brown goes yard

So today there are a couple of afternoon games ahead, pass the day and post away.   Let's talk about some of the fine AFL players

The AFL starts today!  This is by far one of the best crops of players that have been sent to the AFL in a number of years, possibly ever. 

I'm sure we all would welcome any thoughts/opinions/comments from anyone who is able watch these games live (or on the internet, if available?). 

Anyone you guys are really interested in seeing perform?  I'm really looking forward to seeing how Strasburg does, as well as how some top prospects fare against some elite competition.  Was it Tyler Flowers that dominated in the league last year?  He certainly followed-up that success  this year.

Post away.

How the mighty have fallen.  As a Royals fan, I'm not very encouraged.  Obviously they are trying to right the ship, but i'm not sure how much confidence can be gained in AAA.  Maybe I'm wrong on this.    Any other Royals fans feel this is the right thing to do?  I understand that if he is down for more than 20 days it will delay his eligibility to 2013.

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Well the hectic signing period has come and gone.  Obviously Stephen Strasburg vaults up the prospect charts and is arguably number 1 for many.  I'm curious though, where guys like Ackley and Tate fit in to your Top 25, 50 or 100 lists, if at all.  Are there any other signees, like Wheeler, Matzek or Green that land on your lists?

Personally, I rank Strasburg #1 on my list, Ackley probably in the top 25 and Tate in the 30-40 range.  I'd probably also include Matzek and Green 60-75 range.  I honestly don't know that much about Zach Wheeler, so if you have some thoughts on him, I'd love to hear them.

Trying to generate some fantasy discussion.

I was searching through present day major league rosters and found only a handful of useful third baseman for fantasy purposes moving forward (ie. Longoria, Wright, Reynolds, Zimmerman).   I don't remember a time when third base was such a shallow position to fill.  Since most of us belong in some type of fantasy league, I'm curious to hear people's thoughts on who they feel is the best minor league third baseman?  For the purposes of the poll, I've omitted Alvarez and Wallace, because from all indications from those in the industry they will likely find other places to play.  Moustakas could well have to move at some point too, but from what I've read his arm and range is adequate to stick.

If you feel that Wallace or Alvarez will stick long-term and that one of them is the best then choose Other in the poll.  If I've omitted anyone then please feel free to bring the wrath but those listed, I felt, had the greatest chance for fantasy impact at the position.  Post away.

Update: Alvarez reported to minicamp out of shape and could start the season at Low Single-A Charleston rather than High Single-A Lynchburg, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Recommendation: According to director of player development Kyle Stark, Alvarez is above his playing weight, not as strong as usual and is experiencing tendinitis in both of his knees. Team officials confirmed that he has not been in peak shape since signing a four-year, $6 million deal in September. He’ll need to shed weight before spring training in order to start his professional career off on a positive note.

Sounds like this is going to be a big issue for Pedro.  Don't be surprised if he's moved to first base sooner rather than later. 

You would think not being taken #1 would help to motivate him.

Hey Guys,

Having gone through the top 100+ prospects, I'm curious if you could build a fantasy baseball rotation which 5 minor league starters would you take. These are guys you think are going to be fantasy studs, not just a #3 type, that will realistically reach that potential. The categories would be wins, k's, ERA and Whip.

Mine are:

1. David Price

2. Neftali Feliz

3. Trevor Cahill

4. Madison Bumgarner

5. Rick Porcello

I had Porcello narrowly over Inoa and Holland for the fifth spot.