• Giants IF Eugenio Velez had 3 SB in their game against the Cubs today. That gives the speedster 5 already in spring training. The Giants’ infield is still in total flux. Velez could definitely be a fantasy sleeper in the SB category if he’s given enough chances.
• In the same game, Giants 2B prospect Travis Denker had a double and a HR with 3 RBI. Denker was the player to be named in the Mark Sweeney trade with the Dodgers. He is not regarded as a top prospect, but with a strong spring and the Giants current IF situation, I guess anything is possible.
• Top 10 overall prospect Franklin Morales knows that he isn’t a shoe in for the Rockies’ opening day rotation. With his incredible upside he has to be considered the favorite at this point, but he could easily lose his spot to one of the veterans in camp if he shows any signs of weakness. It doesn’t help that his main competition, Josh Towers, had a great outing today.
• Should Atlanta’s new CF Mark Kotsay get injured, the Braves have plenty of top prospects ready to take his place. Top rated prospect Jordan Schafer has impressed Bobby Cox so far in camp, and some think he could be called up this summer. Fellow prospect Brandon Jones is the current front-runner for the 4th OF position, but coaches say speedster Josh Anderson is challenging him for that title.
• Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote a great story about Pirates OF prospect Steve Pearce. The kid has mashed at every level, and is continuing to do so this spring. But GM Neal Huntington still thinks the club will start Pearce at AAA this year. It’s no slight against Pearce’s abilities; according to Huntington it’s more about the team already having veteran outfielders in place. Keep an eye on this guy when he does get the call-up.

We covered the pitching prospects below, now we’ll cover the hitting prospects. As mentioned before, MiLB.com put together a compilation of the best Q&A’s from recent MLB.com Mailbags. The answers are provided by beat writers for each respective team. We’ve summarize some of the more juicy prospect news below:

• Colby Rasmus’ call-up could be delayed for business reasons. A few days ago we discussed how Evan Longoria is in the same position. The Cardinals could gain an extra year of free agency with a short delay, and avoid Super-Two status with a mid-season call-up.
• Dodgers’ SS prospect Chin-Lung Hu will more than likely start the season at Triple-A. But with Rafael Furcal’s contract up after this season, look for Hu to compete for that position next Spring.
• Giants’ IF prospect Eugenio Velez could steal a whole lot of bases if given the opportunity. Velez has 122 stolen bases between the past two seasons.
• The MLB.com author argues that the Braves might be better off keeping BA’s 70th ranked overall Brandon Jones (OF) at Triple-A this season. The thought is that allowing him to play every day will be better for his development than sticking him in a major league platoon with Matt Diaz.
• Jesus Flores has not lost his status as the Catcher of the future for the Nationals; the future has just gotten a little further away. It seems he will spend at least a portion of the season at Triple-A due to the signings of Paul Lo Duca and Johnny Estrada.
• Nolan Reimold could see some playing time in Baltimore this season, just not in April. With CF and RF firmly occupied by Adam Jones and Nick Markakis, the only option for Reimold is in Left. Luke Scott will have to really struggle or get injured for the Orioles to make the call for Reimold this season.
• Look for Jed Lowrie to be this year’s version of Jacoby Ellsbury, a late season call-up with immediate impact. Lowrie is currently playing shortstop, but could probably play any infield position and “can flat-out hit”.