December, 2001
Strengths: Ron Young, the ever patient GM of this troparctic franchise, continues to amass the largest quantity of prospects yet seen in the prospect-rich history of the Shoeless Joe League. This organization has so many prospects that it may prove the truth of the 19th century dialecticians' belief that accumulation of quantity eventually leads to a qualitative transformation. In plain English, that means Young's got a pile of youngsters here. Yet he has no clear "A" prospect, just a heck of alot of B's. The best of the bees are probably OFer Juan Rivera and RP Carlos Zambrano (maybe in a great young lefty-righty Bear pen combo with Wil Rodriguez?) who could both make an impact real soon. Further away is SS Miguel Cabrera whose numbers are impressive when you consider how young he was for full season ball. To get a sense of the depth, consider the situation at 3B, where Russ Branyan, Aubrey Huff, and Joe Crede are all in the organzation. That's an amazing batch of young hot corner talent. Of course, Branyan's moved to the OF. Of the three, only Crede is still a prospect of course. Huff can play third now. The median age of this team is 25. Amazing. That means incumbent catcher Ramon Hernandez is older than the average bear. This team should get better soon and dominate by about .... oh 2006 or '07?
Weaknesses: The injury laden season of highly touted Josh Hamilton had to be a disappointment. Yet with this many prospects, there's no position where the ice bears lack multiple prospects. A relative weakeness may be behind the plate where the most talented guy is 20 year old Rob Bowen who strikes out three times more often than he walks. More advanced catching prospect, Dane Sardinha can field but probably not hit at the ML level. More significantly though, is this overkill? With all these youngsters how many will actually succeed at the ML level? Perhaps given his characterisitic patience and historian's sense of time it will be fun for Young to watch to it all unfold . . . I suppose.
Juan Rivera, of B+ Miguel Cabrera, ss B+ Grady Sizemore, of B+ Joe Crede, 3b B+ Carlos Zambrano, rhp B+ Juan Rincon, rhp B+ Josh Hamilton, of B+ Cesar Isturiz, ss B+ David Espinosa, SS B Alex Escobar, of B Pat Manning, 2b B Rob Bowen, c B Jackson Melian, of B- Dustin Moseley, rhp B- Francisco Rodriguez, rhp B- Ramon Soler, 2b B- Javier Colina, 2b C+ Dane Sardinha, c C+ Maicer Isturiz, 2b C Wilfredo Rodriguez, lhp C Williams Figueroa, rhp C- Jose Salas, 1b C- Jerry Gil, ss C- DeWayne Wise, of C-
Overall grade: A-
Chicago Cockroaches
Strengths: In the southern portions of the United States, these nasty bugs are ubiquitous and homeowners typically pay monthly bills to the exterminator along with the mortgage, gas, and lights. But this summer, they were creeping around the cold, damp friendly confines of Chi-town with all too much success. GM Mike Isaacs has combined good draft picks with savvy trading, such as the acquisition of Chipper Jones and he somehow knew just the right time to deal away the Big MacGwire. Down on the bug farm, Josh Beckett looks like the greatest thing since an open sugar bowl and provides the Chicago squad with what may well be the best pitching prospect in all of baseball. And yes, folks, there is such a thing as a pitching prospect. Josh "don't call me Samuel" Beckett is a guy we won't be waiting for much longer (at least if his shoulder stays intact). Additional bug life includes Eric Hinske and Hee Seop Choi who are advanced hitting prospects, and whom could provide Chicago with good offense at the IF corners in the near future. Chip Ambres is a couple of years away but brings good tools and skills to play in the outfield.
Weaknesses: Outside of pitching the organzition is a bit thin at the ML level and the sole catching prospect, Joe Lawrence looks like a disappointment and so to a lesser extent is the once much hyped Vernon Wells. OFer Choo Freeman was once hyped, although he never deserved to be. Joe Lawrence was once a shortstop and that is an area where Chicago needs to add some prospects. Every prospecter has disappointments, of course, and the roachclippers have not unsurprisingly had their share in the pitching department: Jon Rauch was a #1 prospect type a year ago and he got hurt. Cha Baek and Todd Noel have great stuff but appear stalled career-wise as well. Trivia: who succeeded Nomar as starting SS at Georgia Tech? (He's named at the bottom of the list that follows):
Josh Beckett, rhp A Hee Choi, 1b B Eric Hinske, 3b B Chip Ambres, of B Vernon Wells, of B- Cha Baek, rhp C+ Blake Williams, rhp C+ Alex Cintron, ss C+ Juan LeBron, of C+ Choo Freeman, of C Rick Asadoorian, of C Shane Loux, rhp C Hong Chih-Kuo, lhp C Todd Noel, rhp C- Jay Hood, ss D (answer to trivia question)
Overall grade: B
Florida Panthers
Strengths: They failed to make the big deal and failed to make the playoffs but still the management claims it was a succesful season. Hmm. Wonder what Leo Durcoher would say about that? Down on the farm there's some more mirages and Florida swampland for you to buy if you think any of these guys will develop into major league impact players. But before we move onto weaknesses let us note the strengths: catcher Brian Schnedier can catch and throw and may even be underappreciated by this organization. Shortstop Luis Maza put together a good stat line at A ball and he can catch and throw too (hey it's a simple game, right?). Marshall McDougall hit a bunch of doubles when he wasn't striking out or drawing walks, although at age 23, those twobaggers aren't so likely to develop into taters. In the outfield, Gavin Wright has tools and potential, while Eduardo Figueroa hit over .300 in short season ball, but he's a half decade away from the big show.
Weaknesses: The lack of a single B grade prospect could make it hard for GM Ron Cox to make the deals that will keep these cats in contention. I suppose he could deal picks and cash for sore armed aces ... uh yeah, been there, done that. Speaking of sore armed hurlers, Florida's had its share of disappointments in this area as well. Wes Anderson and Matt McClendon both are gifted with nasty, nasty stuff and both had lousy, lousy years in 2001. Yes folks, pitching prospects are risky ... I mean really risky ... stick to stocks. It isn't noted as often by the smart investor set, but catching prospects are risky business as well. If anyone can tell Steve Lomasney, a formerly overhyped type, what happened to his prospect label, I'm sured he'd be grateful if you could help him regain it. The organization likes Termel Sledge, but as a first baseman he projects to be sub-ML average in offense.
Brian Schneider, c C+ Eduardo Figueroa, of C+ Luis Maza, ss C+ Marshall MacDougal, 3b C+ Gavin Wright, of C+ Ryan Snare, rhp C+ Termel Sledge, 1b C Wes Anderson, rhp C Steve Lomasney, c C Jorge Nunez, ss C Jovanny Sosa, of C Matt McClendon, rhp C-
Overall grade: C
Fort Lauderdale Clementes
Strengths: You got to like a franchise that takes its name for the great Roberto C. Too bad he played for the Bucs, I always hated that team when I was a kid growing up in the eastern half of PA. There's been a bit of GM shuffling here, but the guiding hand of what was an impressively far-sighted expansion draft was Manny Rosario and a year later he's soley at the helm and appears like he's got an organization that'll put some real talent on the scoresheet in the near future. First base is an especially deep position in the organization chart with young Derek Lee on the job now while Justin Morneau develops. Edgar Martinez still hangs around but you gotta think he's good for some trade value soon. Over at the hot corner, Hank Blalock provides these Clementes with a legit A-grade hitting prospect, which is the best kind to have. There are also solid prospects behind the plate, in the outfield, and on the hill. Not as many as Caracas has, but maybe the Fort Lauderdale talent will arrive a bit sooner than later.
Weaknesses: Could use some middle infield prospects here but then again this organization had real good fortune establishing a young ML-level DP combo (Rollins-Young) in its first season of operation. The outfield prospects are long on potential but short on numbers that indicate development. The best of the outfield prospects (Nunez and Restovich) were both distinctly disappointing in terms of the stats they put up in 2001. There are too many roster slots occupied by first basemen on this team.
Hank Blalock, 3b A Jayson Werth,c B+ Victor Alvarez, lhp B Justin Morneau, 1b B Mike Restovich, of B Abe Nunez, of B Ryan Langerhans, of B- Tim Drew, rhp B- Juan Pena, rhp C+ Brian Reith, rhp C+ Andres Torres, of C Julio Ramirez, of C Ntema Ndungidi, of C Elpidio Guzman, of C Nate Espy, 1b C Kevin Eberwein 1b C Ruben Castillo, ss C Randy Dorame, lhp C Winston Abreu, rhp C John Sneed, rhp C Oscar Garcia, 2b C- Jason Lakman, rhp C- Robert Pugmire, rhp C- Jon Ratiliff, rhp C- Jeff Goldbach, c C- Troy Cameron, 3b C- Jay Woolf, 2b C- Edgard Clemente, of L (for legacy)
Overall Grade: B+
Kansas City Whirlwind
Strengths: Is the dynasty at an end? Has the Dark Lord been defeated? (Oh sorry, that's a hobbit ... I mean another hobby). Wouldn't count on it, fellows. After a poor start, this squad never adjusted and its fourth place finish was well below a talent level that features some of MLBs very highly paid, true superstars. Concerning salaries, an interesting study prepared for Cleveland GM Jon Hart showed that no team has ever won a pennant while paying more than 15% of its payroll to any one player. ARod takes 28% on this payroll! Is that too much? Given ARodriguez's unque value, perhaps not. IRod is arguably a bargain at his salary. But what about Griffey? With all that salary tied up, the Winds need some help from the farm to provide youngsters who will play cheap. Look for some of that help from the farm to arrive soon in the form of the sweet swing of the bat of Austin Kearns leading the way. This team is potent up the middle (IRod, ARod, Griffey), has Thome's big bat, and has some good young pitching. GM Nils Samuels does need those young arms to get it together though, as the team was clearly hurting in this department last season. Jake Peavy looks like he could help this team improve its ERA real soon. The outfield prospects look very solid (two B+'s in that area) and Josh Phelps looks like he can provide some power while playing behind the plate.
Weaknesses: At the minor league level, this organization does not have the depth of a Caracas or Fort Lauderdale. But then you would not expect that from a roster that has the talent to dominate at the ML level. Dealing Brandon Phillips netted Kearns, so it served a need. But now the middle IF looks weak at the minor league level, with the somewhat disappointing Antonio Perez the only prospect around. The real world deal of Roberto Alomar to the Mets moves Alfonzo to third and creates a potential dilemma for this organization next year. Of course, Rafeal Furcal is on this roster so he could help. Perhaps to address that other weak spot, pitching, Nils Samuels will do some dealing from his positions of strength to get the mound help needed for his team to blow away the competition this year. We shall see.
Jacob Peavy, rhp A- Austin Kearns, of B+ Shin-Soo Choo, of B+ Josh Phelps, c B+ Willy Mo Pena, of B Antonio Perez, ss B Justin Miller, rhp B- Jae Wong Seo, rhp B- Adam Everett, ss B- Denny Stark, rhp C+ Junior Herndon, rhp C+ Willie Bloomquist, 2b C Guil Quiroz, c C Rob Henkel, lhp C Mike Bynum, lhp C
Overall Grade: B+
Miami, de Leones
Strengths: As befits someone who is successful and has assets worth protecting, the GM of this organization has AAA. The first A is for Aybar, Willin who played full season ball at the hot corner at age 17 while showing a good batting eye. He's the top prospect here and a B+ in this evaluation. The second A is for Aquino, Jackson a young and intriguing shortstop with great potential. He may be the #2 prospect on this list. The third A is for Austin, Jeff who is the only prospect for the mound and who might actually help the team in the bullpen this year. And that is kind of Awful. Better is the GM's promise not to talk to me after this is posted on the website. The Lion King remain silent? This, I got to hear.
Weaknesses: Top catching prospect Forrest Johnson does not have a last name beginning with A, but he does have power. He needs to show it at a higher level before he can be considered a true prospect however. The outfield prospects on this roster project as pinchrunners at the ML level. The roster wastes no space on pitching prospects, while at the ML level the aging Glavine and Maddux continue to pollute the nation's TV screens with their junk, apparently unaffected by the NSZ. The rest of the names on the list are either failed prospects or long shots that reflect Carlos Barrera's penchant for very, very young signings from his Caribbean colonies, no doubt scouted on the many vacation junkets he takes, so affordable to those of us who make our living in the world of public education.
Willin Aybar, 3b B+ Jackson Aquino, ss C+ Forrest Johnson, c C+ Jeff Austin, rhp C Jean Mujica, 3b C Daylan Holt, of C Darnell McDonald, of C Alex Sanchez, of C Luis Torres, rhp C- Ricardo Medina, of C- Cody Nowlin, of C-
Overall Grade: C+
New Orleans Hurlers
Strengths: An expansion team, although this one did come out of year one with quite as much depth in the minors as Fort Lauderdale. Still, as one might expect there are a large number of players with potential on this roster. The pick of Dennis Tankersley looks especially inspired right now. The pitching depth is indeed very good with seven hurlers grading in the B- or better range, plus a couple of others who could develop. There's also a trio of tools types developing in the outfield. While on the IF the team has some good talent at the ML level, including Prince Ryno's kinsman Jared Sandberg. Third sacker Jason Grabowski was a Rule 5 pick and he's probably old enough and ready enough not to get his development screwed up by that process.
Weaknesses: Outside of pitching there farm system lacks depth. There aren't any real prospects at the key skill positions of catching and shortstop. As to the pitchers, Buddy Carlyle went to Japan, which is too bad because he looked like the real deal. The untimely death of Gerik Baxter in a car accident had to put a pall over the season for GM Rod Rebuck, as well. It is not clear yet whether this organization is going to try a long or a short path to contention. This year's draft should provide more clues. Look for the franchise to add hitting prospects perhaps to balance the pitching strength.
Dennis Tankersley, rhp A- Colby Lewis, rhp B John Patterson, rhp B Brad Thomas, rhp B Gary Majewski, rhp B- Fernando Rodney, rhp B- Pat Strange, rhp B- Alex Fernandez, of B- Will Smith, of B- Mario Valenzuela, of C+ Jason Grabowski, 3b C+ Nobuaki Yoshida, rhp C+ Nick Stocks, rhp C+ Ryan Madson, rhp C
Overall Grade: B-
St. Louis Sprockets
Strengths: Never a pennant winner but rarely a cellar dweller, GM Kip Welborn appears to be ratcheting this squad back up and could push a couple of the Southern Div's haughty boys into the second division if they're not careful. The Sprocketeers have never been known for their good farm system, but did experience the truly rapid rise of Al Pujols last year. So rapid that he never appeared in one of these reports. Less rapid (and often touted here) was the arrival of second sacker Luis Rivas at the ML level. Vet Mike Bordick will now accompany those two guys on the adventures of '02. From the farm, the St. Louis franchise of the SJL might get some pitching help, especially in the 'pen from fireballing Lesli Brea. Chin-Feng Chen re-established himself as a prospect last year and the big club could use a bat like his promises to be. There's a couple more OF prospects who could be useful ML role players, most notable of the group is Jamal Strong.
Weaknesses: Behind the plate and on the infield the organization now lacks solid prospects, although Tomas de la Rosa could be a useful utility guy. Those donning the tools of ignorance are too far from the majors and have to be considered projects not prospects at this writing. Jason Botts could be a worthy successor to Mark Garce but he's yet to play above A-ball. The organization could perhaps draft for needed pitching help this year as there isn't really any starting pitching prospect on the near horizon (the most promising is Colby Miller, who was at rookie ball in 2001). Upgrading the offense to contention level may prove to be very difficult to accomplish if Chen and Strong don't come through. The organization also has a fixation on shortstops named Ozzie which is endearing, although probably not healthy.
Lesli Brea, rhp B Chin-Feng Chen, of B Aquilino Lopez, rhp B- Colby Miller, rhp B- Scott Heard, c C+ Jason Botts, 1b C+ Tomas de la Rosa, ss C+ Jamal Strong of C+ Kory DeHaan, of C+ Nick Trzesniak, c C Josh Kalinowski, lhp C Sam Hays, lhp C- Brennan King, 3b C-
Overall Grade: C+