Well yesterday I gave you my #41-50 top Minor League Prospects as we head into the 2008 season, and today I'm going to continue with the next segment which are #'s 31-40.
#40 | Elvis Andrus | Shortstop | Texas Rangers
Age: 19
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Ht: 6'0''
Wt: 185 lbs.
Andrus is not going to be a middle of the lineup hitter. His best assets are his defense and his speed. His glove suggests that he could some day be one of the best defensive shortstops in the game, and his speed makes some optimistic that he could potential steal 30+ bases a season. His bat could you s a little work, but he has an alright on base percentage. He just needs to stay patient at the plate and look for the pitch he knows he can give a ride. He'll probably start the 2008 season with the Frisco RoughRiders, but could wind back up at Advanced-A if he doesn't seem ready.
ETA: 20102007 G AB AVG OBP SLG OPS HR RBIA+ 99 385 .244 .330 .335 .665 3 37A+ 27 110 .300 .369 .373 .742 2 12
#39 | Franklin Morales | Pitcher | Colorado Rockies
Age: 22
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
Ht: 6'0''
Wt: 175 lbs.
Morales had another very consistent year in terms of his career numbers. Only this season, after starting in AA, he maid it all the way to the majors and even made the Colorado Rockies playoff roster and started game 4 of the NLCS to help the Rockies sweep the Diamondbacks before advancing to the World Series. His 2007 numbers are almost a replica of his 4 seasons in the minor leagues, the only thing that was really different was that before '07, he had a very good K/9 ratio. He will probably start the '08 season in the Rockies rotation.
ETA: 2008Level G W L ERA IP K BB K/9AA 17 3 4 3.48 95.2 77 45 7.24AAA 3 2 0 3.71 17.0 16 13 6.88MLB 8 3 2 3.43 39.1 26 14 5.95
#38 | Carlos Carrasco | Pitcher | Philadelphia Phillies
Age: 21
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Ht: 6'3''
Wt: 178 lbs.
Carrasco started the '07 season off strong with the Advanced-A Clearwater Threshers in the Florida State League, he had success in Double-A with the Reading Philies, but it wasn't the same. He won the same amount of games, but he did so with an ERA 2 points higher and he also had a 5.89 BB/9 ratio. Or to put that into another way, he had 46 walks compared to 49 strikeouts in just over 70 innings. His 2006 season with the Lakewood BlueClaws was very good as he posted a 12-6 record with a 2.26 ERA and 159 strikeouts in 159.1 innings, which suggests the beginning of the 2007 season wasn't just a fluke. His age and level where he's at makes him an intriguing prospect, but he definitely has a lot to work on before reaching the majors. He should probably start the '08 season in Double-A with the Reading Phillies, and if he can prove he's effective there, he should be able to move on soon.
Level G W L ERA IP K BB K/9
AA 12 6 2 2.84 69.2 53 22 6.85AAA 14 6 4 4.86 70.1 49 46 6.27ETA: 2009#37 | Jeff Clement | Catcher | Seattle Mariners
Age: 24
Bats: Left
Throws: Right
Ht: 6'1''
Wt: 210 lbs.
Probably the biggest downfall of Clement is that he lacks a true position. He's played catcher since he was drafted, but some feel that his inability to throw out runners will never make him a good defensive catcher. And with Kenji Johjima already at that position, it'll be interesting to see how they work Clement into their lineup. Clement has some serious power potential. The type of potential that could make him a potential 35-40 home run kind of guy. But I'm suspecting that the Mariners plan on trading Richie Sexson in order to put Clement at first base. But otherwise he may be primarily used at DH. clement will probably start the 2008 season with the Mariners unless they want him to work on his glove at a different position in Triple-A.
ETA: 20082007 G AB AVG OBP SLG OPS HR RBIAAA 125 455 .275 .370 .497 .867 20 80MLB 9 16 .375 .474 .813 1.286 2 3
#36 | Luke Hochevar | Pitcher | Kansas City Royals
Age: 24
Bats: Right
Throws: Rightt
Ht: 6'5''
Wt: 205 lbs.
Hochevar, the #1 overall pick of the 2006 draft has had a lot of trouble adjusting to professional baseball after he advanced from Class-A Burlington. His career minor league numbers are 5-11 with a 4.26 ERA. He made it all the way to the majors last season even with pretty bad numbers at both Double-A and Triple-A. He faired well in the majors and started the last game of the season against the Minnesota Twins. He allowed two runners over 3 innings of work and picked up his first major league loss. However, his other 3 performances in relief were pretty impressive as he allowed just 1 run over the other 9.2 innings of work. He could start the 2008 season with the Royals, but he should probably start in Triple-A.
ETA: 2008Level G W L ERA IP K BB K/9AA 17 3 6 4.69 94.0 94 26 9.00AAA 10 1 3 5.12 58.0 44 21 6.83MLB 4 0 1 2.13 12.2 5 4 3.55
#35 | Matt Antonelli | Second Base | San Diego Padres
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Ht: 6'1''
Wt: 190 lbs.
Antonelli first started at third base, and has permanently switched switched to second base, with a few games at third here and there. The reason for that, you'll find out. But Antonelli is a great all-around hitter. He posses adequate power with good plate discipline. He's batted .298/.406/.453 with 21 home runs and 11 RBI in 739 MiLB at bats. The former 19th round pick by the Dodgers back in 2003 decided to go to college and it looks like he made the right decision as he was drafted in the first round of the 2006 draft. He'll likely start the 2008 season in Triple-A with the Portland Beavers.
ETA: Late 20082007 G AB AVG OBP SLG OPS HR RBIA+ 82 347 .314 .409 .499 .907 14 54AA 49 187 .300 .395 .476 .871 7 24
#34 | Chase Headley | Third Base | San Diego Padres
Age: 23
Bats: Switch
Throws: Left
Ht: 6'2''
Wt: 195 lbs.
Well, this is the reason why Matt Antonelli had to make the switch from third base to second base. And rightfully so, Headley is a great talent and a solid defender at third base. His ridiculous 1.016 OPS at Double-A with the San Antonio Missions gave the Padres a shot at calling him up while skipping Triple-A. That didn't work out as well as they thought, but he never really got a chance to prove himself (18 at-bats is not enough of a sample size to work with). The Padres have a predicament that most teams would love to be in...they have too many third baseman! The team already has Kevin Kouzmanoff at third right now, which means that another switch is likley. It'll probably be Kouzmanoff moving to left field, but I think anything is possible. Headley should probably start the 2008 season with the Triple-A Portland Beavers.
ETA: 20082007 G AB AVG OBP SLG OPS HR RBIAA 121 433 .330 .437 .580 1.016 20 78MLB 18 8 .222 .333 .278 .611 0 0
#33 | Giovany Gonzalez | Pitcher | Chicago White Sox
Bats: Right
Throws: Left
Ht: 5'11''
Wt: 185 lbs.
One of the reasons I'm sure why the White Sox felt comfortable trading pitcher Jon Garland for shortstop Orlando Cabrera was because of the emergence of Gonzalez. His fantastic numbers at Double-A (as well as his numbers through his entire minor league career) suggest that he could one day become a good number two pitcher in the majors. He mixes a mid-90's fastball with one of the best curve balls in the minors, which is one of the reasons why he has been able to strikeout opposing batters at such a high mark. He was traded by the White Sox along with Aaron Rowand to the Phillies to acquire Jim Thome in 2005. In 2006, he was traded along with Gavin Floyd back to the White Sox for Freddy Garcia. It must be destiny. With the rotation up in the air, don't be surprised to see Gonzalez pitching for the White Sox sooner than some might expect. He'll start the 2008 season with the Triple-A Charlotte Knights, unless he blows away his opposition, and his coaches in Spring Training.
ETA: 2008Level G W L ERA IP K BB K/9AA 27 9 7 3.18 150.0 185 57 11.10
#32 | Joey Votto | First Base | Cincinnati Reds
Bats: Left
Throws: Right
Ht: 6'3''
Wt: 220 lbs.
Votto is one of the better all-around hitting prospects in the game. His solid average will make him a threat as he also displays a great amount of power as well. He'll have to earn his spot into the starting lineup as Dusty Baker has a liking for veteran players (sound familiar Twins fans?), and the Reds did exercise Scott Hatteburg's '08 option in hopes that they'll have a good competition in spring training. My bet is that Votto will get a good amount of at bats early on, which should make him the favorite to be starting by mid-season. He should start the season with the Reds, unless they want to use his roster spot (if he's on the bench) for another player.
ETA: 20082007 G AB AVG OBP SLG OPS HR RBIAAA 133 496 .294 .381 .478 .859 22 92MLB 24 84 .321 .360 .548 .907 4 17
#31 | Josh Vitters | Third Base | Chicago Cubs
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Ht: 6'3''
Wt: 200 lbs.
Vitters didn't really got much of a chance to display his talents after he was drafted, but let me tell you, this kid has it all. He's a solid defender, but his glove could use a little work. But there's no doubt that his bat is what makes him special. Many feel that his power and excellent bat speed will allow him to hit 30+ home runs with little doubt. I think of him having comparable numbers to Mets third baseman David Wright. And I really think that the city of Chicago will idolize him like the city of New York does with Wright.
ETA: 20112007 G AB AVG OBP SLG OPS HR RBIR 7 30 .067 .094 .067 .161 0 2A- 7 21 .190 .261 .190 .451 0 1
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