SB Nation User Blog: siddfynch

Update on Community Synthesis

siddfynch — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 16:09:53 -0000

Hey all,

I've got the numbers run. But like I said in my post a few days ago, I need formatting input from someone. I want to post several graphs form XL to this site, but am having trouble finding a way - I'm used to producing graphics in Word and PDF, not on the Web.

Anyway, what I need is step by step instructions on how to get a graph from XL to some kind of format (JPG?) that can be uploaded to this site. I have converted one from XL to PDF to JPG, but the resolution became so poor that the text was unreadable.

Further complicating it is that I have designed one graph to have a long Y-Axis, long enough that it would not all fit onto one Word or PDF page (but would seem to be fine on the Web, where we can scroll down indefinitely to continue a graph).

Can I get some advice from those of you who run web sites? John, Erik, Doug, etc.? You can email me, too, if you'd prefer.

SiddfynchATgmailDOTcom.

BTW, the Top 5 are:

1) Wieters and Price (basically a tie)

2) Heyward and Snider (again, basically a tie)

3) Maybin

4) Bumgarner and Rasmus (basically a tie)

5) LaPorta

Prospect 100 is David Huff, but another 129 guys were listed and come in below him.

Cahill (# 10) was the highest-rated guy to be left off of one ballot.

Villalona (#38) was the lowest-rated guy to make it on all the ballots.

Of guys who appeared on only one ballot, Ryan Kalish (#36 on that one, #145 overall) was the one listed the highest.

Strangely, there were no Rangers players listed anywhere in the top 50.

Cardinals a top-10 farm systemAcc

siddfynch — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 14:22:36 -0000

According to BA:

http://www.stltoday.com/blogzone/bird-land/bird-land/2008/12/baseball-america-st-louis-cardinals-minor-league-talent-cracks-top-10/

Of course, I;ve been bitching for awahile that AAA semi-stars that project as MLB regulars should be given more weight than they are getting in out internal rankings here, and this helps my feelings - guys like Chris Perez, Jason Motte, David Freese, and Allen Craig are surely in the Cards top 10, and probably help tip the Cards system into the Top 10. Interesting, though, that BA is traditionally the organization that tends to upgrade raw talent, whereas the guys I am talking about are the steady reliable types.

Off the top of my head, teams I see ahead of teh Cards would be:

ATL

OAK

TEX

SFO

BAL?

BOS?

The link refers to STL being #8.

Last call for community top-100 lists

siddfynch — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 14:13:03 -0000

Hey all,

I'm on vacation with Dick Cheney at our secret undisclosed location and am just logging in after a fews day without the internet. I'd like to run the Synthesis of the Community top-100 list during this vacation, but also would really like to get more lists from people - for example, I see guys posting their 100 on here, but not sending an email along. Please, if you have a 100 list, go ahead and email it to me at siddfynchATgmailDOTcom. All you need to do is list the last name, then first name, and spell everything correctly - I can take care of the rest.

here's the original link, but in reality you don't need it - just email me your top 100 list, and please spell the names right. I'm especially interested in those from a few of you regulars (doug, galt, dfarth, daveh, etc.) that always are willing to share their thoughts. And John, I promise not to give yours away if you submit it also ;)

http://www.minorleagueball.com/2008/11/20/666430/community-ranking-synthesi

Reminder - Community Top 100 synthesis list

siddfynch — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 05:06:43 -0000

Hey all,

It has slid off the front page, so I thought I would give a quick reminder on the synthesis of people's individual Top-100. The link with full overview and directions is at Top 100 synthesis.

It's kind of cool so far - contributions from many people who don't post a lot, but are long--time readers here, and some pretty variant opinions. Be sure to get yours in the queue!

siddfynchATgmailDOTcom

Community ranking synthesis - call for Top 100 lists

siddfynch — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 19:49:31 -0000

Hello everyone,

I have volunteered to collect people's Top 100 and report back to you with the results. This will be a useful list on its own, as well as interesting to compare to our Community Top 100 and other lists.

The most onerous part of this process is not going to be computing the actual numbers, but rather organizing the files that everyone submits. My experience doing this for other sites is that this is by far the biggest headache. Therefore, I am asking you to submit with some fairly strict (but simple) requirements. If you do this, your list makes it into the mix. If you don't, I may be able to fix it, or I may just chuck it. I'm not going to assess any kind of "User name requirement" such as seniority on this board or anything - rather, the organization of your list will be the chief criteria I use in accepting the submissions. (I will, however, reserve the right to throw away a list that is obviously from a sabateur.) Can we all live with that?

If you submit your list in Microsoft Excel (preferred), I need you to save it for pre-2007 version (e.g., XLS 2003). I also need it to be a simple list of three columns - one for the rank, one for the last name, and one for the first name. Please do not list position, team name, or anything else. This should look like the following:

1 Bruce Jay

2 Longoria Evan

3 Rasmus Colby

If you don't have Excel, you can send it as a text tile, saved as RTF format. If you do this, please list as: Numerical rank, followed by a space, followed by last name, followed by a comma, followed by a space, followed by the first name. This will create a list that looks like this:

1 Bruce, Jay

2 Longoria, Evan

3 Rasmus, Colby

(Please do not submit a list that looks like this:

1. Bruce, Jay

or this

1 Jay Bruce

or this

1 Bruce, Jay)

Some other requirements:

If you submit in XLS, BE SURE to save it as XL 2003. Each layer should be on a separate row, and all rows should be consecutive (e.g., 50 rows for 50 players). If you don't have Excel, try it as a list in rich text format (rtf).
Send the file to me at: Siddfynch AT gmail.com (note that this is NOT the email address found in my settings on this site).
In the file name, be sure to include the username you use on this site (e.g., "top50list from Siddfynch")
You MUST spell the names of all the players completely and correctly. Do not send me "Moose" as an entry, or 'Mike Moostakas". I'm willing to spend a little time fixing typos and spelling errors, but not a whole lot. If your entry is chock full of errors, it makes it tough. Be extra careful with the use of "s" and "z" in Latin American names. Note that I do this myself with BA and BP and John's list each year, and they NEVER have typos in the names - it's not hard to avoid, with a little effort.

Time span

I've got a great window of time from Dec 16 to work on this. Our own Commuity list will be done by then, and many other sites will be well into their reporting season, which means plenty of resources out there for informing our rankings. Thus, I am proposing the following:

Call for submissions: Now
Deadline for submissions: Dec16
My report back to you: January 3 (faster, if the files are clean)

List size and player eligibility

After reading the initial comments, let's make it a Top 100. You can submit more if you choose.

Let's make eligibility based simply on:

1) a max of 50IP or 130 ABs in the majors (e.g., don't worry about service time)

2) a player has to have been either drafted or already in a major league program (e.g., no Stephen Strasbourgs)

Note:

I won't be checking that email account very often in the next week or so, so it's generally better to post questions/comments/complaints in this thread than by email to me directly. Thanks.

Happy ranking,

Sidd

DePodesta begins blog - (GMs everywhere cringe)

siddfynch — Mon, 12 May 2008 06:13:56 -0000

Yup, it's at:

http://itmightbedangerous.blogspot.com/

And, from reading the first two threads (excuse me, um "fanposts"), it looks like it could be pretty nifty. He comes across as pretty genuinely interested in interacting with the readers, and already has a couple answers to posts up there. He's crazy if he thinks he can keep up with the stream of questions he'll get, but even if he can settle into some sort of selective cherry-picking every so often, it's a cool move forward in this information age.

Future Redbirds has recently had some great interviews with Jeff Luhnow, the Cards' director of player development. Between real-time interviews like that and blogs started by the SD front office, is it safe to assume we are starting a new age of front office interaction, where we can at least some prospect news directly from the source? 5 years ago , the Chris Perez callup "story" would have been broken only by the press; now it is broken by bloggers; in 5 years, will it be released directly by the Cards GM?

Matt LaPorta defensive news

siddfynch — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 19:26:47 -0000

Just came across this while skimming the Milwaukee newspaper, www.Milwaukeenewsandsuasagepress.com/Melvin. Given all the recent discussions about the seven-headed monster known as Heyward-Moustakas-LaPorta-Burgess-Schafer-Vitters-LaPorta -Snider in here, I thought it might be useful to some ongoing discussions (that will hopefully end by 2010).

*Melvin settles on defensive alignment for opening day*
By Marty McFly
Milwaukee News and Free Sausage Press
February 24, 2008

Brewers General Manager Doug Melvin announced today that he's settled on a defensive alignment designed to take advantage of the lineup's hitting potential, while minimizing the defensive liabilities from a team stocked with second-tier defensive players. In an interesting twist, Melvin credits internet message boards for helping solve his defensive puzzle, a tribute to the growing legions of knowledgeable fans on blog sites around the world.

"We've been experimenting with different lineups as kind of back-of-the-envelope things since last September", said Melvin. "I think pretty much everyone knows our defensive shortcomings last year. None of our pitchers were confident letting the ball get put on the ground or to the left side of the outfield. Our original hope was that our pitchers could learn to coax the ball towards wherever Corey Hart was playing, but some guys - especially Chris Capuano - really couldn't get the hang of it."

As a result, the team selected Matt LaPorta with its first pick in last year's draft, hoping his versatility could help solve the Brewers' defensive condundrum. "Matt's glove work has really been underrated by some of the professional pundits", said Melvin "and although it's true he has limited range, he's also a terrific athlete, with soft hands and the agility of a ballerina. (Assistant GM) Gord Ash and I were surfing the net the other day and came across some excellent points by Mr. Big Fly on John Sickels' site, noting that LaPorta hadn't made an error all last year, and that we could put him anywhere on the field. And so we thought, well why not?"

As a result, says Melvin, the team will open with an alignment that moves Ryan Braun from 3B to LF, Billy Hall from CF to SS, Rickie Weeks from 2B to CF, JJ Hardy from SS to 3B, and installs LaPorta as the starting 2B. Also, Corey Hart will be moved from RF to 1B, where his 6' 6" frame will help to flag down the errant missiles coming from Hall at SS. 1B Prince Fielder, an underrated athlete himself, will move to RF.

"This really takes advantage of all the strengths of our guys, while minimizing their defensive shortcomings", said Melvin. "Braun was a butcher at the hot corner last year - we need to get him as far away from the ball as we can, to give him as much time to read it as possible - putting him somewhere out there on the warning track will do that."

At the same time, Melvin continued, "Hall was pretty much lost in CF, looked like Shawon Dunston out there. Hardy's got a great arm, but the range of an elm tree, and Rickie Weeks has all the speed in the world but can't pivot to save his life. It's only a matter of time before someone angry like Milton Bradley breaks him off at the knees."

Enter LaPorta, who many people don't realize was a competitive figure skater as a teenager before turning to baseball full time in college. "If you look at the old film, he had the full repertoire of moves", said Melvin, "The triple-lux, the camel, you name it. Christina Kahrl called it "Boitano-esque." So we thought - why not stick a glove on his left hand, plop him down next to the 2-bag, and let him put those old moves to good use? Now we have a domino effect that improves our whole team. Thank God for the insights on those internet message boards."

To help with the changes, former major league all-stars Rusty Staub and Jack Clark have been brought in as defensive consultants.

Note: George Plimpton contributed research to this article.

Poll

Where does the move to 2B place LaPorta among 2007 draftee rank

First

1 votes

First

3 votes

First

2 votes

First

7 votes

First

1 votes

Jason Heyward is still better

46 votes

First

7 votes

First

4 votes

First

0 votes

First

10 votes

81 votes | Poll has closed

Community member sighting - BK letter to Goldstein posted at BP

siddfynch — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 19:41:52 -0000

Great read on both Morales and Stewart, as well as on some prospecting philosophies in general.

Not sure how much is subscriber content, so I'll just post the link.

http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=7076

Not sure how much is subscriber content, so I'll just post the link.

http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=7076 One thing I'll say is that BP does a nice job answering emails. I've gotten a couple back myself. Props to BK for getting his posted, though!

Nate Silver on Clayton Kershaw - chat excerpt

siddfynch — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 15:19:56 -0000

I don't think this is subscriber info, so I'll post the whole thing instead of abridging. Originally tacked it into Prospect #37 diary, but then felt it had enough tranferrable value to hopefully spark some larger discussion, especially in regards to other prospects:

From the Dec 19 chat at BP:

David (Sonoma State University): Is Clayton Kershaw REALLY that good? Why aren't the Dodgers more willing to trade him considering that they have Scott Elbert?

Nate Silver: Clay did a bunch of work on the pitcher DTs this winter -- I mean, some really thorough, painstaking work -- and one thing he found is that the difficulty curve for minor league pitchers is much steeper that we'd previously believed. So to the extent that Kershaw is a top prospect, it's at this stage more a scouting thing than a numbers thing -- his high walk rates are almost as much of a minus as his high strikeout rates are a plus. He's still an excellent prospect, but he's leaps and bounds behind the Clay Buchholz class of pitchers.

I found this interesting for four reasons:

1) Back when we were debating Kershaw, there were a few in here that vehemently claimed his walks prevented them from placing him too high. FWIW, Silver/PECOTA agree, though I was really surprised to see him say that the walks almost COMPLETELY negated the high K rates, when predicting success; I'm pretty sure Artie was one of the guys leading that critique of Kershaw....

2)In his answer, Silver states flatly that Kershaw's distance from the majors (and walk rate) place him far behind Buchholz (for example) as a prospect. This doesn't surprise me in terms of risk/reward. but it DOES surprise me in terms of upside. Basically, that walk rate is a real problem, and until Kershaw fixes it, it affects not only his chances of reaches his "ceiling", but also the height of that ceiling in the first place.

3) This is not just applicable to Kershaw - this is a transferrable issue, as we have other prospects coming up in the community poll that this very much applies to - Adenhart jumps immediately to mind.

4) While I am mentioning Artie, one of the things I've noticed him saying a lot this "season" is that he's giving some older pitching prospects a bit of EXTRA credit, just due to the fact that they're closer and are maybe a little more projectable as _survivors_of the injury nexus. I'm wondering if this age things also plays into PECOTA/Davenport's predictions, in the sense that perhaps there's not much credit given for accomplishment at a young ARL IF the pitcher is really young.

It's interesting that this view on Kershaw comes from a stathead stance, given that the stathead element of the public tends to really like Kershaw.

Do you guys buy it? Is Kershaw's ceiling really much lower Buchholz's - even after ignoring risk? Do his walks really hurt him that much?

And, who else coming up might this apply to? Adenhart, Lofgren, Elbert, ?????

2007 draftee pro performance, Supplemental Round (w/ poll)

siddfynch — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 15:09:54 -0000

OK, here's the supplemental round, which turned out to be even longer than Round 1 in 2007. As before, the stats are from BB Cube and from MiLB.com, with supplemental info from blog sites and pre-draft reports.

As before, I have assigned grades, but I think the real value is just in knowing where the guys played, and what kind of numbers they put up. These grades are also strictly performance-related, and don't factor in ceiling or overall outlook as a prospect - they are all about stats, as modified by ARL.

filler
Finally, when prepping for this, I caught myself wondering how many rounds to do this for - e.g., where is the point of diminishing returns?

With that, I went to three years of BA top 50 lists to see how different rounds contributed to the Top-50 lists. I spaced these 4 years out to reduce confounding factors of players showing up on 2 or more lists (e.g., Delmon Young 3 straight years), which weeded out all redundancy except for Michael "the perennial prospect" Cuddyer, who made the list in both '99 and 2003. I'll try to post the graphic in the thread below.

As I see it, the take-home message is that it's a lot of work for little return to do this beyond the 2nd round - fewguys after that make teh top-50, and those that do pretty much come from all walks - rounds 3, 4, 5, but also 16 (Chris Young), 31 (Travis Hafner), etc.

Of course, this entire graphic assumes that BA is not biased towards high draftees in the first place - which, of course, they are. But you can factor that in as you please.

2007 pro performance, Supplemental picks

31. Josh Smoker, LHP, (WA). HS player, still just 18, threw just 4 innings in the NYPL league (low A). Grade = Incomplete.

32. Nick Noonan, 2B (SF). HS player, lefty hitter, hit 316/357/451/808 over 206 ABs in Rookie ball, with good peripherals and speed (12BB, 20K, 18SB, 3CS). Came into draft with questions about whether his arm could handle SS, and he indeed split his pro time between SS and 2B. Grade = B+. Doesn't even turn 19 until May 2008.

33. Jon Gilmore, 3B, (ATL). HS draftee who got 162 ABs in Rookie Ball in 2007. Hit 284/296/346/692, with 4 BB and 28 Ks. Not sure how his defense looked, but his bat was supposed to be stronger than glove at draft time. Grade = C for being a bit underwhelming, especially with the lack of power and slight regression in stats over course of season.

34. Todd Frazier, SS, CIN. College draftee who had a solid 160ABs in Rookie Ball, then cranked 2 HR in 22 ABs at A ball (MW league). Overall line of 319/405/538/943, with 20 BB and 26K. Apparently stayed as SS, despite claims he'd need to shift to 3B. Grade = B, as a 21-yr-old playing in RK ball. I'm guessing "FrazierFan" can tell us more about this guy.

35. Julio Borbon, OF, TEX. Speedy collegian recovering from fractured ankle, logged 29ABs in A- ball, with a miserable .398 OPS. Swiped 3 bags, though, and Rangers are probably just glad to see him running full speed. Grade = INC for so few ABs.

36. Clayton Mortensen, rhp, stl. A somewhat projectable collegian, spent 33% time at A- and 66% time at A in 2007. Overall, had a 1.26 whip, 68k, 19bb in 61ip. Was more hittable as he moved up, but K rate remained strong and control actually improved (45/8). Groundball pitcher with a decent ability to K batters, is a good fit for Cards' "pitch to contact" philosophy, and could move fast in 2008. Grade = B+ for strong performance at A ball, with a decent K rate and potential projectability left.

37. Travis D'Arnaud, C, PHI. HS catcher rated highly for defense, with questions about his bat. Posted a .626 OPS in 140 ABs in Rookie ball in 2007, with 4BB and 23 K. Grade = C+

38. Bret Cecil LHP, TOR. College pitcher (but just 20 YO) who threw 50 innings in 2007, all at A-. Had outstanding peripherals, with 56 Ks, 11 BBs, 36 H, and only 1 HR. Was a reliever in college, but started 13 of his 14 games as a pro, and appeared to take to it well. Grade = a bullish A-; tempted to go B+ here because of low level of competition, but keep in mind he was only 20 and also making the transition to SP. Very nice.

39. James Adkins LHP, LAD. Is there an echo in here? Like Cecil, he is a college lefty with a great slider who was strong in his first taste of the pros. Adkins threw 26 innings as a pro in 2007, all in A ball. Great line of 26 ip, 30k, 10 bb, 17 h, and 1 hr. Grade = B+, gets props for starting out in A ball.

40. Kellen Kulbacki, OF, SD. Lefty college hitter whose bat is supposed to carry him turned in a fine initial campaign at A-, going 301/382/491/873 in 226 ABs. Also had 27BBs and 56Ks. Is going to have to keep hitting if he ends up moving to LF, as predicted before the draft (not sure if he's made the move from RF yet as a pro). Grade = B+, held down a tad by A- league setting.

41. Sean Doolittle, 1B, OAK. College 2-way player, apparently has given up pitching in the OAK system and is now a 1B. Logged a .688 OPS in 239 ABs in 2007, mostly at A level. Good OBP (.341), but minimal power (.347). Grade = B-, with the low OPS being mitigated by good OBP skills.

42. Eddie Kunz, RHP, NYM. Collegian who came into A- for 12 games and pretty much struggled. Shows 2 pitches, and profiles best as a reliever. 9k / 8 bb in 12 innings, but only 6 h and no HR. Grade = C, buoyed by low BAA but dinged by bad control.

43. Jackson Williams, C, SFG. Collegian who got 130 pro ABs, all at A-. Posted an OPS of .707, with a decent walk rate (16) and a bit of power (5HR). I don't know much about this guy - any SF fans want to chime in? Grade = C+, for OK production, but at a low level.

44. Neil Ramirez RHP, TEX. HS pitcher. I can't find any record of him pitching in 2007. Grade = Incomplete.

45. Justin Jackson, SS, TOR. HS draftee struggled at Rookie level, posting a .515 OPS in 166 ABs. Had a decent walk rate (20 bbs), but only hit .187 and slugged .241, while striking out 44 times. Not the kind of K rate you want to see from a guy with limited power. Grade = C-, pending any kind of news about his defense.

46. Drew Cumberland, SS, SD. Speed merchant who is considered to have limited power, a fringy arm, and decent OBP skills. Backed all this up by posting a .310/.383/.357/.740 line in 84 ABs at Rookie level in 2007, before a cup of coffee at A- (4 games). Overall, showed the kind of hitting skills (contact, good discipline) that will allow a speed guy to rise thru the ranks and potentially be a leadoff hitter. Grade = B-, with props for a decent performance in his stint at A- as an 18-yr-old.

47. Nathan Vineyard, LHP, NYM. HS lefty posted decent peripherals in 27 IP at Rookie ball - 33K, 9 BB, 30H. Allowed 4 taters, though, which helped lead to a 5.27 ERA. Hittable, but decent control, and seems worthy of a promotion in 2008. Grade = B- for decent control and not outrageously hittable.

48. Josh Donaldson, C, CHC. Collegian who spent most of his pro appearances at A-, where he posted a nifty 346/470/605/1075 line in 162 ABs. Also had a sweet 37BB/34K. Not sure how his defense played - there were concerns coming into the draft about his ability to stick at C. Grade = B, weighed down only by a somewhat low level by collegian.

49. Michael Burgess, OF, WAS. HS draftee who split time 60/40 between Rookie (128 ABs) and A- ball (70 ABs). Put up a combined line of 318/421/561/982, with 35BB and 60Ks. Grade = A-, despite the high K rate. Gets extra props for shooting up to A- as an 18-yr-old in his first year.

50. Wes Roemer, RHP, AZ. College draftee spent all 8 games in the bullpen at A-, with a line of 18K/2BB/11H in 12 innings. Solid start for the guy, though it's a shame to see him get moved to the bullpen right off. Grade = B, with a weigh down for bullpen move.

51. Charlie Culberson, 2B/SS, SFG. HS draftee posted a 790 OPS with little power but good OBP in 160 ABs in Rookie ball. Speed demon was 19 for 20 in SB attempts, while walking 19 times (against 38 Ks, though). Like Cumberland (#46), has the speed and on-base skills to offset lack of power, especially if he can stick at middle infield. Grade = B, with speed and OBP offsetting lack of power and Ks.

52. Matt Mangini, 3B, SEA. Hulking college draftee (6'4", 220 lbs) split time between A- and A+ in 2007, posting a combined line of 252/353/395/748 in 147 ABs. Was solid at A-, a little weak at A+ (6bb, 21K), but had a nice overall line and showed some pop and ability to get on base. Will be nice to see him have a full year in the pros in 2008 to see what he can do with a wood bat full-time. Grade = B-, for being a little overmatched at A+, but solid at A-.

53. Kyle Lotzkar, RHP, CIN. HS draftee, looked solid in Rookie league, with 36K, 10BB, 22H in 29 IP. Grade = B, for promising but not dominant. Will be fun to watch this guy in 2008.

54. Tommy Hunter, RHP, TEX. College sophomore who threw 18 innings at A- in 2007, all in the bullpen. Great control (13K/1BB) with 15 H and no HRs allowed. Is he in the bullpen for good? Grade = B-, buoyed by control, but dampened by low K rate and move to bullpen.

55. Nick Hagadone, BOS, LHP. Collegian who pitched more in relief than as a starter in college, and thus threw only 128 innings over three years in college. Age 21 in 2007, he was move to the rotation as a pro and started 10 games in A-, but was limited to just 24 IP. Really excelled in those, though, with 33K, 8BB, 14H, and 1HR, with opponents only hitting .163 off him. On pure performance, he'd be an A-; others might bump him down due to it being low-A ball, but I'll take the Brett Cecil (# 38, above) approach and leave him at A- since he was also making the transition to starting (and a nice one at that).

56. Trystan Magnuson, RHP, TOR. Not sure if he signed or not. Did not pitch in the pros in 2007. Apparently also plays the violin (this is the kind of detailed scouting I bring to the table!), which is funny for a 6'7" guy who sounds like he should be towing cars in the World's Strongest man competition. Grade = incomplete.

57. Mitch Canham, C, SD. Cardinals escapee from the 2006 draft, he logged 116 ABs in A- ball in 2007, posting a line of 293/379/397/776, with 11BB and 35Ks. Not overwhelming for a guy whose bat is supposed to carry him at CI or CO if he doesn't pan out at C, but also not terrible. Grade = B-, which should be bumped up if he looked decent defensively. Should start 2008 at lake Elsinore in the Cal League - if so, he could really put up good numbers and be on everyone's radar as a lefty-hitting catcher with good stats.

58. Jonathon Bachanov, RHP, LAA. No innings as a pro - did he sign? Grade = incomplete.

59. Corey Brown, OF, OAK. Collegiate slugger who profiles as a TTO guy, chosen by - you guessed it - Oakland. Logged 213 ABs at A-, hitting268/379/545/924. Walked 37 times, and struck out a whopping 77 times. Overall grade = B+, with a bit of a deduction for the numbers coming at low-A. Like Canham, watch him in the Cal League next year.

60. Brandon Hamilton, RHP, DET. Gotta love the Tigers, going with yet another HS arm. Did not play in the pros in 2007. Grade = incomplete.
61. Ed Easley, C, ARI. Posted a .738 OPS in 124 ABs in A-. Grade = B-.

62. Ryan Dent, 2B/SS, BOS. Speedy HS draftee who hit for a 1.063 OPS in 35 ABs in Rookie Ball (as a SS), then was overmatched with a .396 OPS in 45 ABs in A- (while playing 2B). Apparently athletic enough to handle 2B or CF if SS does not work out, has major speed, and shouldn't be dinged too much for moving up to A- as an 18-yr-old. Grade = B for fine showing at Rookie Ball, held down only by small sample size.

63. Corey Luebke, LHP, SD. College draftee who looked excellent while splitting time at 3 levels in 2007, topping out at A+ in the Cal League (where he was shelled in first start, but gave up no runs in the other). Overall split was 61K/8BB/57H in 59 IP, with 5 HRs. I like the control and K rate, but don't have much of a scouting report in him. Grade = B+.

64. Danny Payne, OF, SD. Collegiate draftee who profiles as a minimal power guy with ability to hit for average, excellent arm, and average speed. Posted a curious line of 279/444/355/799 in 183 ABs at A- in 2007. Odd to see an OBP so much above the SLG. Drew an amazing 53BB and had 53K in those 183 ABs. Also stole 17 bases despite being pegged as an average runner. Am I seeing Kotsay/Erstad? Grade = B-.

Summary:

A- = 3 (Cecil, Burgess, Hagadone)
B+ = 6 (Noonan, Mortenson, Adkins, Kulbacki, Brown, Luebke)
B = 6 (Frazier, Donaldson, Roemer, Culberson, Lotzkar, Dent)
B- = 8 (Doolittle, Cumberland, Vineyard, Mangini, Hunter, Canham, Easley, Payne)
C+ = 2 (D'Arnaud, Williams)
C = 2 (Gilmore, Kunz)
C- = 1 (Jackson)
Incomplete = 6 (Smoker, Borbon, Ramirez, Bachanov, Magnuson, Hamilton)

Poll

Who would you place in the Top -100 for 2008 from this round (multiple selections OK)?

Kellen Kulbacki

2 votes

Matt Mangini

1 votes

Corey Brown

9 votes

Other

7 votes

Brett Cecil

16 votes

Mitch Canham

1 votes

Michael Burgess

52 votes

Todd Frazier

9 votes

Nick Hagadone

9 votes

Clayton Mortenson

2 votes

108 votes | Poll has closed