As always, some good prospect news from an article by ESPN’s legend Peter Gammons:

• Evan Longoria has lived up to the hype this spring, impressing everyone with not only his bat but his stellar glove work as well. Gammons notes that scouts believe Longoria could go for 30 HR in his rookie season if he’s allowed to play all of it. But as Gammons notes, there is still speculation that the Rays might delay his call-up to avoid super-two status. For fantasy sake, we all hope they just let him play.
• A few people in Dodgers camp think that phenom Clayton Kershaw should be with the major league team now. Russell Martin was quoted saying that Kershaw is going to help the Dodgers this year, in line with a similar quote by Joe Torre a couple weeks ago. That the Dodgers are even discussing bringing Kershaw up so early (remember he’s only 19) is testament to his uncanny skill.  There was word today that the Dodgers have decided to keep Kershaw at the big league camp through the rest of spring training, but Joe Torre said there is almost zero chance he makes the big league rotation.
• Gammons also notes that Dodgers coach Larry Bowa is very impressed with SS prospect Chin-Lung Hu.  His quote was “He can really play defense.”  Don’t look for Hu at SS in Los Angeles as long as Furcal is healthy.  But Furcal’s contract expires after this season, so the Dodgers would love for Hu to be ready to take over at short next year.
• Check out this gem of a quote Gammons pulled up from one of the Scouts in Arizona this spring:  “The best young pitcher I’ve seen in two years out here is Oakland’s Henry Rodriguez. He throws 98 with a devastating breaking ball.”  Gammons notes that Rodriguez will not start the season with Oakland, but given these comments and the abundance of opportunity for young players in Oakland this year, it could only be a matter of time before we see this 21-year-old with the big club.  That’s pretty interesting stuff, considering Rodriguez isn’t on many people’s radar as a top prospect.  He is the #8 prospect in the A’s system according to BaseballAmerica.

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”.