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  UCB: Top 7 Minor League Players

  http://www.rockinthered.com/2008/09/ucb-top-7-minor-league-p...
  76 days ago in Rockin' the Red · Authority: 21

  This season has been a major step forward for the entire organization, especially in the minor leagues. We've had numerous breakout players and several major league contributors, and I expect both of those numbers to increase in the next couple of years. Ranking top prospects is as much of a subjective game as it is an objective one, because at some point you have to determine how much a player's potential outweighs another player's statistics. As hard as Baseball Prospectus and Co. work to predict a player's potential, there's still an arbitrariness to it all, making each person's prospect list a little different. Derrick Goold asked the UCB to rank our top 7 minor leaguers today, so here's mine (notice: Chris Perez is on the verge of cracking the limit for who qualifies as a prospect, and, considering he'll be on the major league roster at the beginning of next season, I think his days as a prospect are done): 1. Colby Rasmus -- Is there any debate to this one? Despite the injury-hampered season and his struggles adjusting to Triple-A, there's no doubt that Colby is still the number one prospect in the Cardinals system. He was able to put up a .251/.345/.396 line with 11 homers as a 21-year-old, which is pretty good considering he didn't play the entire month of August there. It's now a question of whether he's prepared to start off the season in the big leagues. With Ludwick, Skip, and Ankiel coming back, along with Mather, Barton, and Duncan, I don't know if he'll get a legitimate shot. 2. Brett Wallace -- Following the lead of Future Redbirds, my number two prospect is Brett Wallace. Honestly, Wallace could have played in the majors this season; his bat is that good. When scouts said he had a polished bat, they weren't joking, as he cracked Double-A Springfield in his first (and shortened) season of pro ball. Even with "questionable" defense, the Cards will find a place to play Wallace when he's ready. The overall depth at third base - from David Freese to Allen Craig to Wallace to Tony Cruz - is outstanding. 3. Jess Todd -- This might be a reach, but that's what prospect lists are for. This was Todd's breakout season, putting up stellar numbers in Double-A Springfield and respectable numbers in Memphis. Some see Todd as a middle relief guy, but he's got the potential to be an effective mid-rotation starter. My favorite statistic about Todd is his extremely low walk rates, which didn't go beyond 6.5% from Batavia to Springfield. Couple that with a high strikeout rate and a propensity to get ground balls, and you have the makings of a pretty good pitcher. If 2008 was Todd's breakout season, 2009 will be his chance to prove to everyone that his future belongs in the rotation. 4. Bryan Anderson -- I'm going to give the nod to Anderson over Daryl Jones, because, even though Bryan didn't have a spectacular season in Memphis, he still put up respectable numbers there, at a premium position (catcher), and he's only 6 months older than Jones. If we were going to use only Double-A numbers, both Jones and Anderson would be near-equals, so I think the advantage has to go to Anderson. And, if we were going to use strictly Triple-A numbers to evaluate Bryan, he wouldn't seem so special with a .281/.361/.379 line. But, taken in the context that he's only 21-years-old and was called up to Memphis after batting .383/.402/.519 in 81 Double-A at-bats, there's still a lot of potential for the catcher. I think 2009 will be a big step forward for Bryan. 5. Daryl Jones -- Daryl, as mentioned in the previous post, had a great season this year, batting .290/.404/.500 in Double-A and .326/.403/.476 in A+ Palm Beach. Daryl is the epitome of a toolsy player who never was able to put it all together... until now. If he can continue building on the success he had this season, as he's only 21-years-old, he'll definitely find a place in the prospect top three. Count on it. 6. Jaime Garcia -- Regardless of whether he'll be able to play much next season, Jaime still deserves a spot close to the top. He's only 22 and has plenty of time to recover fully from surgery, but it's true that his prospect status will drop a bit as he gets older. I hope he can make a speedy recovery, as he has the talent to be a lefty reliever or rotation starter. 7. Nico Vasquez -- No Pete Kozma? The contrast between Nico Vasquez and Pete Kozma is the difference between a player who has potential but is still raw and a player who's nearing his potential and pretty polished. I'll take potential on this one, because I have a lot of good vibes about Nico. Watching him bat reminds me a bit of Nomar Garciaparra, and, while that's a big comparison to make, he has a ceiling that is a considerable amount higher than Kozma's. He batted .312/.405/.460 in Johnson City, but his real test will come next season when he'll be challenged to move up the organizational roster. Bonus pick: I can't make a prospect list without including one of my favorites, Mark Diapoules. You want ground balls? He's got 'em. You want strikeouts? He's got 'em. You want a low HR/Air ratio? He's got it. He's got a lot of the characteristics I look for in a pitcher, and he's only 20-years-old playing in A+ Palm Beach. I'm looking for the Cards to test him next season, and I'm excited to see what he can do.
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  UCB: Top 7 Minor League Players

  http://www.fanhome.com/forums/st-louis-cardinals/17901-ucb-t...
  76 days ago in FanHome · Authority: 11

  This season has been a major step forward for the entire organization, especially in the minor leagues. We've had numerous breakout players and several major league contributors, and I expect both of those numbers to increase in the next couple of years. Ranking top prospects is as much of a subjective game as it is an objective one, because at some point you have to determine how much a player's potential outweighs another player's statistics. As hard as Baseball Prospectus and Co. work to predict a player's potential, there's still an arbitrariness to it all, making each person's prospect list a little different. Derrick Goold asked the UCB to rank our top 7 minor leaguers today, so here's mine (notice: Chris Perez is on the verge of cracking the limit (http://www.stltoday.com/blogzone/bird-land/bird-land/2008/09/prospect-audit-the-top-30-revised-p1/) for who qualifies as a prospect, and, considering he'll be on the major league roster at the beginning of next season, I think his days as a prospect are done): *1. Colby Rasmus (http://firstinning.com/players/Colby-Rasmus-a/)* -- Is there any debate to this one? Despite the injury-hampered season and his struggles adjusting to Triple-A, there's no doubt that Colby is still the number one prospect in the Cardinals system. He was able to put up a .251/.345/.396 line with 11 homers as a 21-year-old, which is pretty good considering he didn't play the entire month of August there. It's now a question of whether he's prepared to start off the season in the big leagues. With Ludwick, Skip, and Ankiel coming back, along with Mather, Barton, and Duncan, I don't know if he'll get a legitimate shot. * 2. Brett Wallace (http://firstinning.com/players/Brett-Wallace-a/)* -- Following the lead of Future Redbirds (http://www.futureredbirds.net/2008/09/07/ucb-project-my-top-seven-cardinal-prospects/), my number two prospect is Brett Wallace. Honestly, Wallace could have played in the majors this season; his bat is that good. When scouts said he had a polished bat, they weren't joking, as he cracked Double-A Springfield in his first (and shortened) season of pro ball. Even with "questionable" defense, the Cards will find a place to play Wallace when he's ready. The overall depth at third base - from David Freese to Allen Craig to Wallace to Tony Cruz - is outstanding. *3. Jess Todd (http://firstinning.com/players/Jesse-Todd-a/)* -- This might be a reach, but that's what prospect lists are for. This was Todd's breakout season, putting up stellar numbers in Double-A Springfield and respectable numbers in Memphis. Some see Todd as a middle relief guy, but he's got the potential to be an effective mid-rotation starter. My favorite statistic about Todd is his extremely low walk rates, which didn't go beyond 6.5% from Batavia to Springfield. Couple that with a high strikeout rate and a propensity to get ground balls, and you have the makings of a pretty good pitcher. If 2008 was Todd's breakout season, 2009 will be his chance to prove to everyone that his future belongs in the rotation. *4. *Bryan Anderson (http://firstinning.com/players/Bryan-Anderson-a/)-- I'm going to give the nod to Anderson over Daryl Jones, because, even though Bryan didn't have a spectacular season in Memphis, he still put up respectable numbers there, at a premium position (catcher), and he's only 6 months older than Jones. If we were going to use only Double-A numbers, both Jones and Anderson would be near-equals, so I think the advantage has to go to Anderson. And, if we were going to use strictly Triple-A numbers to evaluate Bryan, he wouldn't seem so special with a .281/.361/.379 line. But, taken in the context that he's only 21-years-old and was called up to Memphis after batting .383/.402/.519 in 81 Double-A at-bats, there's still a lot of potential for the catcher. I think 2009 will be a big step forward for Bryan. *5. Daryl Jones (http://firstinning.com/players/Daryl-Jones-b/)* -- Daryl, as mentioned in the previous post, had a great season this year, batting .290/.404/.500 in Double-A and .326/.403/.476 in A+ Palm Beach. Daryl is the epitome of a toolsy player who never was able to put it all together... until now. If he can continue building on the success he had this season, as he's only 21-years-old, he'll definitely find a place in the prospect top three. Count on it. * 6. Jaime Garcia (http://firstinning.com/players/Daryl-Jones-b/)* -- Regardless of whether he'll be able to play much next season, Jaime still deserves a spot close to the top. He's only 22 and has plenty of time to recover fully from surgery, but it's true that his prospect status will drop a bit as he gets older. I hope he can make a speedy recovery, as he has the talent to be a lefty reliever or rotation starter. * 7. Nico Vasquez (http://firstinning.com/players/Nico-Vasquez-a/)* -- No Pete Kozma? The contrast between Nico Vasquez and Pete Kozma is the difference between a player who has potential but is still raw and a player who's nearing his potential and pretty polished. I'll take potential on this one, because I have a lot of good vibes about Nico. Watching him bat reminds me a bit of Nomar Garciaparra, and, while that's a big comparison to make, he has a ceiling that is a considerable amount higher than Kozma's. He batted .312/.405/.460 in Johnson City, but his real test will come next season when he'll be challenged to move up the organizational roster. Bonus pick: I can't make a prospect list without including one of my favorites, *Mark Diapoules* (http://firstinning.com/players/Mark-Diapoules-a/). You want ground balls? He's got 'em. You want strikeouts? He's got 'em. You want a low HR/Air ratio? He's got it. He's got a lot of the characteristics I look for in a pitcher, and he's only 20-years-old playing in A+ Palm Beach. I'm looking for the Cards to test him next season, and I'm excited to see what he can do. More... (http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/RockinTheRed/~3/386683282/ucb-top-7-minor-league-players.html)

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