6/30 AA Minor League Report

Posted by Jeremy on July 1, 2009 under Minor League Ball today | Be the First to Comment

Boston Red Sox OF/C/1B/DH prospect Jon Still seems to be awakening from his June slumber by hitting his 3rd HR in the last four games.  Still had a big season at High-A Lancaster last season by hitting .265 with 22 HR 65 RBI and 30 doubles, but this year has been a different story.  Struggles with plate discipline (22 BB/79 K in 69 games) and difficulty in finding a defensive home has dropped the former N.C. State star’s stock significantly.  There is still quite a bit of power potential locked up in Still’s bat and he has shown the ability in the past to draw a high number of walks.  At 24 years old, there is still some upside to his game, but he has to rediscover his plate discipline and find a way to stick at a defensive position.  If he can, there is some hope that he can have a decent MLB future for a club not named the Boston Red Sox.

Today’s top prospect is New York Yankees catching phenom Jesus Montero.  The 19 year old Venezuelan hit two HR yesterday, his second and third since being promoted to Trenton.  Montero’s bat is special and his 8 BB/6 K ratio since being called up is yet another sign that the track to New York is going to be an accelerated one.  Don’t expect it to happen in September, as the Yankees are in the thick of a playoff hunt.  However, a trip to the Arizonza Fall League should make thing interesting the next spring.  Jorge Posada has bounced back nicely from his shoulder injury and there has been some conjecture that Montero may end up playing 1B for the Yankees in the future while Austin Romine becomes Posada’s eventual successor.  Regardless of when he dons the pinstripes, there is little doubt that Montero will be an extraordinary hitter in the Yankees’ lineup for years to come.

AA Player of the Day—JESUS MONTERO 

Other Notable Performances

Hitting:

• Leo Davis—3-4 2B RBI R BB
• Marvin Lowrance—2-4 HR(13) 3 RBI 2B
• Brett Pill—3-4 2B 3B 2 RBI R
• Rene Tosoni—2-4 HR(10) 2 RBI
• Erik Lis—1-5 HR(6) 3 RBI
• Josh Reddick—1-4 HR(9) 2 RBI 2R BB
• Jon Still—2-3 HR(10) 3 RBI BB
• Brian Friday—1-6 HR(5) 2 RBI
• Quentin Berry—3-5 3B RBI 2 SB(24)
• Jesus Montero—2-3 2 HR(11) 3 RBI 2R BB
• Marquez Smith—2-4 HR(11) RBI 2R 2B
• Wellington Castillo—2-4 2B 2 RBI R
• Steffan Gartrell—3-6 HR(14) RBI BB
• Greg Halman—1-3 2R BB SB(5)

Pitching:

• Heath Rollins—8 IP 7H ER 5K W (7-6)
• Henry Sosa—5.1 IP 4H BB 3K

6/14 AA Minor League Report

Posted by Jeremy on June 15, 2009 under Minor League Ball today | Be the First to Comment

If you’ve been paying attention to this blog over the last year, you would know that I have a good deal of love for Chicago White Sox 1B prospect Brandon Allen.  The 6-2 235 lb. slugger has had a fine season at AA Birmingham, hitting .295 with 7 HR 35 RBI and 38 runs scored.  Allen’s power production has been down this season, after hitting 30 HR between High-A and AA last year, and his stolen base totals have diminished to almost nil.  However, the plate discipline that once was a major question mark in Allen’s game has now become one of his strengths.  Through 60 games, the ‘04 draftee has walked 29 times and has struck out 45 times.  Factor out the month of April and those numbers are even better (23 BB/34 K).  Similar to Oakland A’s 1B prospect Chris Carter, the power should increase as the summer goes along as Allen’s confidence with in his more disciplined plate approach increases.

Today’s top prospect is a repeat offender.  Cleveland Indians prospect Matt McBride went 2-4 with a grand slam HR, four RBI, a double and two runs scored.  McBride was promoted to Akron after a blistering start at High-A Kinston where he hit .405 with 6 HR 36 RBI and 15 doubles in 31 games.  Since moving to Akron, McBride has not been as good (.247 2 HR 16 RBI 7 doubles in 23 games), though much of his offensive struggles happened during the month of May.  McBride entered the ’09 season as a catcher, but he’s played the bulk of his innings as a corner outfielder as top prospect Carlos Santana is the Indians’ catcher of the future.  June’s been a hot month for McBride as he’s hit .455 in the early going.  If he can continue his torrid pace and continue to drive the ball, he may make a strong case to be considered as a solid corner outfielder for the Indians by the middle of 2010.  Given their depth at the position, it wouldn’t surprise me to see him packaged up in an off-season deal either.

AA Player of the Day—MATT MCBRIDE

Other Notable Performances

Hitting:

• Nick Evans—2-5 2B R RBI
• Shawn Bowman—2-5 2B R RBI
• Ian Desmond—2-5 2B 2 RBI BB SB(5)
• Marvin Lowrance—3-4 HR(10) 2 RBI 2B
• Jeremy Slayden—4-4 2B 3 RBI
• Brian Jeroloman—1-4 HR(3) 2 RBI
• Casper Wells—2-4 HR(3) RBI 2B
• Brnadon Snyder—-2-3 2 2B BB
• Matt McBride—2-4 GS HR(8) 4 RBI 2B 2R
• Sean Henry—4-4 2R
• Chris Heisey—1-3 HR(13) 2 RBI
• Brandon Allen—3-4 2B 3 RBI BB
• John Shelby Jr.—1-3 HR(6) RBI
• Mike Paulk—3-5 HR(2) 4 RBI
• Jason Castro—2-4 R
• Eric Sogard—2-4 2B R
• Kellen Kulbacki—3-4 R RBI SB(2)
• Cedric Hunter—2-5 R 2 RBI
• Lance Zawadzki—2-5 2B R 3 RBI
• Chad Tracy—3-4 R 2 RBI
• Mitch Moreland—2-5 3R BB
• Matt Spencer—2-4 2R
• Drew Sutton—2-5 2B R RBI

Pitching:

• Alfredo Figardo—7.1 IP 3H 2 ER BB 10K W (5-2)
• Hector Rondon—4 IP H BB 3K
• Scott Elbert—5 IP 4H 3 ER 3 BB 9K L (2-2)
• Brian Omogrosso—5 IP 4H 2 BB 5K W (7-2)
• Jay Jackson—5 IP 4H ER 6K

5/7 AA Minor League Report

Posted by Jeremy on May 8, 2009 under Minor League Ball today | Be the First to Comment

Multiple HR performances speckled the AA landscape yesterday as a trio of Detroit Tigers farmhands took turns accomplishing the task.  First baseman Ryan Strieby hit his sixth and seventh in the first game of the double header, driving in four runs and scoring three times, while Cale Iorg hit his first two dingers in the second game of the double dip.  Iorg’s double play partner Scott Sizemore hit a homerun in each game of the double header, doubling his season totals.  In other news, Collin DeLome hit number nine, while Hank Conger, Brandon Allen, and Marvin Lowrance each hit their fourth HR’s.  On the mound, Cubs righthander Jay Jackson tossed another seven innings shutout gem, punching out 10 for his second win.  Hector Rondon moved to 5-0 and Troy Patton allowed just two hits over six victorious innings.

Today’s top player is someone who jumped onto my radar screen last season after a fast track, two level performance at Low-A Kane County and High-A Stockton, hitting .266 with 30 HR 83 RBI and 16 SB.  Corey Brown was a highly recruited two sport athlete who chose to play baseball at Oklahoma State University.  He had some difficulty with strike zone discipline (58 BB/168 K) last season, but seems to have made some strides in the early going this year.  In just 13 games, Brown is hitting a robust .435 with 4 HR 11 RBI 2 SB and 11 runs scored.  He doesn’t strike me as a high average guy, but the athleticism and adeptness in the field makes him, in my mind, a poor man’s Grady Sizemore.  He should play most or all of the season at AA this year with a likely audition for an MLB job in spring of 2010. 

AA Player of the Day—COREY BROWN

Other Notable Performances

Hitting:

• Luis Durango—2-4 2R BB SB(17)
• Justin Smoak—2-4 R
• Chad Tracy—1-4 HR(6) 2 RBI
• Josh Horton—3-3 2R RBI 2 BB
• Corey Brown—3-5 2 HR(4) 4 RBI 2B 2R
• Josh Donaldson—1-3 HR(2) 3 RBI BB
• Kurt Mertins—2-4 HR(1) RBI
• Collin DeLome—1-4 HR(9) RBI
• Brett Wallace—3-5
• Todd Cruz—2-4 2 2B RBI
• Hank Conger—1-4 HR(4) RBI
• Matt Mangini—2-3 2B 3 RBI
• Scott Cousins—2-4 R RBI SB(6) (Game 1)…..1-4 HR(3) 2 RBI
• Jaime Hoffmann—2-3 2B 3B 3 RBI R
• Justin Sellers—2-2 2B 2 BB 3R SB(3)
• Darwin Barney—4-6 3 RBI R SB(2)
• Tony Thomas—3-5 2 2B 3B 2R BB (Game 1)…..2-3 2B R BB (Game 2)
• Travis Jones—3-3 2B 2 BB 2R (Game 1)…..2-3 2B (Game 2)
• Brandon Hicks—3-5 2 RBI R
• Ty Wright—3-4 2 RBI 2R
• Pedro Ciraco—3-4 R RBI SB(6)
• Mark Hallberg—2-5 2B 2 RBI
• Chris Heisey—4-5 2B HR(5) 2 RBI
• Todd Frazier—2-4 2B R
• Brandon Allen—3-4 HR(4) 2 RBI 2B 2R BB
• Dayan Viciedo—2-5 2R RBI SB(3)
• Beau Mills—2-4 R RBI
• Carlos Santana—2-3 2B RBI BB
• Brad Emaus—2-5 2B R 2 RBI
• Sean Shoffit—2-5 2B 2 RBI R
• Jonathan Diaz—2-5 2 2B 2R RBI
• Brad Corley—2-3 3R HR(3) RBI
• Brandon Snyder—1-3 HR(3) 2 RBI
• Scott Sizemore—2-5 HR(3) RBI 2R (Game 1)…..2-4 HR(4) 2 RBI 2B
• Ryan Strieby—3-3 2 HR(7) 4 RBI 3R BB
• Marvin Lowrance—3-4 HR(4) RBI 2R
• Cale Iorg—2-3 2 HR(2) 2 RBI 2R
• Aaron Bates—4-5 2B 2 RBI R
• Lucas Duda—2-4 2B 2R 2 RBI
• Shawn Bowman—3-4 2B RBI R

Pitching:

• Michael Antonini—6.2 IP 5H ER 2 BB 6K
• Jay Jackson—7 IP 5H BB 10K W (2-3)
• Jarrod Parker—6 IP 8H 2 ER 6K W (1-1)
• Hector Rondon—6.1 IP 3H ER BB 4K W (5-0)
• Brett Omogrosso—6 IP 2H ER 2 BB 4K W (3-0)
• Troy Patton—6 IP 2H BB 6K W (3-0)
• Will Inman—8 IP 5H 2 ER BB 5K W (3-1)
• Omar Poveda—7 IP 3H UER 2 BB K
• Jason Fernandez—8 IP 5H 2 ER 4K W (3-3)
• Dan Cortes—6 IP 5H ER 4 BB 8K
• Tyler Herron—7.1 IP 3H 2 ER BB 8K L (1-2)
• Trevor Reckling—7 IP 2H BB 7K
• Chaz Roe—6.2 IP 4H 2 ER 2 BB 4K
• Kyle Winters—4 IP 5H 3 ER 3 BB 7K
• Josh Lindblom—5 IP 3H ER BB 6K

9/1 AA Minor League Report

Posted by Jeremy on September 3, 2008 under Minor League Ball today | Be the First to Comment

Jeremy Slayden

• 2-4 2 2B R—.298 17 HR 81 RBI 33 2B

Shelby Ford

• 3-4 2B 2 RBI Sb(19)—.285 4 HR 32 RBI 19 SB

J.P. Arencibia

• 2-4 2B 2 RBI—.298 27 HR 105 RBI 36 2B

Nolan Reimold

• 1-3 HR(25) 2 RBI 2 BB—.284 25 HR 84 RBI 87 R 63 BB

Matt Wieters

• 2-5 2B RBI—.355 27 HR 91 RBI 82 BB 1.035 OPS

Marvin Lowrance

• 1-4 HR(20) 3 RBI BB—.275 20 HR 63 RBI 30 2B

Andrew Lambo

• 2-5—.295 18 HR 91 RBI 35 2B

Chris Coghlan

• 2-4 2B 2 RBI BB—.298 7 HR 74 RBI 67 BB 34 SB

Cole Gillespie

• 2-4 2B RBI—.281 14 HR 79 RBI 75 BB 17 SB 38 2B

Chris Nelson

• 3-5 R 2 RBI—.230 4 HR 47 RBI 6 SB (one of ’08’s biggest busts)

Dexter Fowler

• 3-5 2 2B 3B 2R 2 RBI—.335 9 HR 64 RBI 20 SB 65 BB 92 R 31 2B

Mitch Einertson

• 4-4 2B RBI R—.262 11 HR 62 RBI

BUY/SELL Analysis

Pedroia-Lite?

Chris Coghlan is one of the only guys on this list that I haven’t written about in previous posts.  Coghlan is a former supplimental 1st round pick out of the University of Mississippi who plays the game with grit and passion.  Coghlan is not a power hitter, he often employs an inside-out swing, though he has the potential to drive balls well into the gaps for extra bases.  Coghlan is one of several Marlins prospects who runs the bases extremely well, stealing 34 bases in 44 tries.  He walks more than he strikes out (67BB/65K) and does all the little things to drive in runs and move runners.  He is still learning 2B after being converted from 3B last season, though his range, arm, and glove should allow him to stay there.  Coghlan has autographed 1st year cards in the 2007 Bowman Chrome Prospect and Bowman’s Best.  He also has cards available in the 2007 Bowman Heritage set.  The autographs vary in price from as low as $3-5 for his Bowman’s Best to $6-9 for his Bowman Chrome cards.

Market Advice: Coghlan reminds me of a poor man’s Dustin Pedroia.  He likes to get his uniform dirty, he makes good contact with the ball, runs well, works the count and can hit the occasional long ball.  The Marlins are by no means going to every supplant the Red Sox in popularity, but this is an organization that is thick with talent and is primed to be one of the top NL teams again within the next year or two.  Coghlan is not going to challenge Dan Uggla for his job anytime soon, but Uggla may find himself moving to 3B once Coghlan is ready (especially on the heels of this year All-Star game meltdown).  Expect Coghlan to challenge for a roster spot this next spring making him a strong BUY right now.

8/4 AA Minor League Report

Posted by Jeremy on August 6, 2008 under Uncategorized | Be the First to Comment

Top performances from Monday’s AA Minor League action was as follows:

Allen Craig

• 2-6 HR(20) 3 RBI—.421 2 HR 8 RBI last 10 games (the more I see from him, the more I like)

Julio Borbon

• 1-5 HR(3) RBI—Part of the speedy 3 amigos at Frisco (Borbon, Andrus, Duran)

Elvis Andrus

• 2-5 2B—.325 2 HR 10 RBI 6 SB last 10 games (coming on strong!)

Gaby Sanchez

• 2-4 2 HR(16) 3 RBI—.419 6 HR 21 RBI 10 R last 10 games (underrated)

Cameron Maybin

• 2-3 R 2BB SB(18)—.268 12 HR 38 RBI 18 SB (is it unfair that we expect more out of him?)

Alcides Escobar

• 2-3 HR( 8 ) 2 RBI SB(28)—.335 152 H 80 R 201 TB (Huntsville taking a dive as of late)

Tommy Hanson

• 6 IP 4H 2ER BB 10K—5-1 2.88 ERA 63K/56IP last 10 games (3 10+ K outings)

Austin Jackson

• 4-5 3R 2B RBI—.297 9 HR 61 RBI (finishing strong at AA Trenton)

Matt Wieters

• 1-4 HR(22) RBI—.441 2 HR 11 RBI 9BB/5K 10 R last 10 games

Chris Tillman

• 6 IP 4H 2ER BB 11K—7-3 3.63 ERA 114K/108IP (M’s smacking foreheads on this trade)

Ian Desmond

• 4-4 HR(9) 3 RBI 2B BB—.258 9 HR 36 RBI 13 SB (Forgotton since incredible spring in ‘05)

Marvin Lowrance

• 3-5 2 2B 2R—.285 17 HR 51 RBI 27 2B (way under the radar pure hitter)

Zack Daeges

• 2-4 2B RBI BB—.425 2 HR 16 RBI 9R 6BB last 10 games (regaining ‘07 form)

Lars Anderson

• 2-5 HR(14) RBI 2R—1st AA HR for Red Sox top hitting prospect (more to come!)

BUY/SELL Analysis

Lowrance isn't below my radar

Tonight we delve way below the radar to unearth a prospect from the Washington Nationals farm system, Marvin Lowrance (not to be confused with Martin Lawrence).  Lowrance was a 2004 7th round pick out of a small JC in California.  For the past 4 season, Lowrance has toiled in the Nationals’ minor leagues but has really begun to ascend nicely the past couple of years jumping two levels last year and two, so far, this season.  A major part of this is the fact that Lowrance’s power has begun to develop, as he hit 20 HR and 62 RBI last year and has accumulated 17 HR and 51 RBI at High A and AA this season.  Lowrance is all hitter who has a polished and disciplined approach at the plate.  He is an average OF who will need to watch his conditioning in order to hold down a corner spot.  Lowrance will steal a base once every solar eclipse, which further exposes him as a one dimensional player.  That dimension, his bat, should carry him to the major leagues as a 4th outfielder or short term starter.  Lowrance’s 1st year cards are found in the 2007 Bowman and Chrome Prospects.  Fortunately for prospectors, his cards are available for 20-40 cents each in abundance.  Refractors can be found in the $2-3 range and are numbered to 500.

Market Advice: Lowrance is the perfect prospect to acquire if you have a 5 dollar bill around and don’t know how to spend it.  For that price, you can easily BUY a 10 card lot and a refractor of Lowrance and hope that he can make a little noise at the major league level.  Long term, I don’t see him having a super career, but I do think he has enough talent and youth on his side to hit for a major league club.  SELL at the right time and you can make a few bucks to spend on higher ceiling prospects!