Corey Brock of MLB.com reports that the Padres optioned Chase Headley to Triple-A Portland. Headley hit .349 in 43 at-bats this spring and lead the team with 4 home runs and 14 RBIs. Headley has been sent down to work on his defense. Meanwhile, the Padres don’t have to submit their 25-man roster until March 30th. One prospect left is Callix Crabbe and it appears that the utilityman has a good chance of making the team. Crabbe can play every spot in the outfield and every spot in the infield except 1B. His chances of making the team are only improved by the fact that Jim Edmonds is on the DL.
Archive for the ‘MLBPN Top Prospects’ Category
Padres Trim Down Roster
Tuesday, March 25th, 2008Player Cuts: Reid Brignac
Tuesday, March 25th, 2008Lost amid news of top overall prospect Evan Longoria getting optioned to Triple-A was news of another top Rays prospect getting cut. Rays SS of the future, Reid Brignac was optioned to Triple-A Durham as well. It seems the acquisition of Jason Bartlett from the Twins in the Delmon Young trade has delayed the big league appearance of Brignac for a while. The young shortstop handled the news well:
“I’m not disappointed at all… I just got to go down to Triple-A and keep working until I get where I need to be. They’ve seen me, they’ve seen how I play. Just going to keep playing hard, keeping working hard and see what happens.”
At only 22, Brignac still has plenty of time to develop his skills and still come up to Tampa as the offensive SS he projects to be. Even if he does get the call-up this year, he probably won’t be fantasy relevant until 2009 or later.
Mariners Notes: Balentien, Triunfel
Monday, March 24th, 2008- The Mariners announced today that they optioned top OF prospect Wladimir Balentien to Triple-A Tacoma. Balentien certainly didn’t fail to impress the Mariners with his stellar spring. He went 15 of 47 (.319) with 9 RBI and a team-leading 3 HR. When discussing why the Mariners decided to demote Balentien rather than keep him with the big league club, skipper John McLaren compared his situation to that of top catching prospect Jeff Clement:
“We don’t want those guys sitting around as extra players. We want them playing on a regular basis.”
With his impressive spring, though, it might not be long before Balentien is getting regular playing time at the big league level. Keep an eye on this talented young OF.
- While both Balentien and Clement have impressed all this spring, it is another young Mariners prospect that all the scouts are raving about, Carlos Triunfel. The 18-year-old has everyone who sees him calling him a future superstar. While he’s an adequate SS right now, most feel he’ll end up at 3B. And as Larry Stone of The Seattle Times speculates in his article, Triunfel could end up being the long-term replacement for Adrian Beltre as the Mariners 3B when Beltre leaves after 2009.Here’s a quick scouting report from ESPN’s Keith Law, who is very impressed with the Mariners ability to scout internationally:
“He’s an offensive shortstop who is strong and getting stronger, with more room to fill out in the future, as he turned 18 just last month. A right-handed hitter, he puts great backspin on the ball and wears out the right-center gap with searing line drives. His bat speed is plus and he keeps his hip rotation timed with his swing; he transfers his weight a little early, and might need to correct that to reach his maximum power output. His pitch recognition needs work, but the M’s have pushed him up the ladder and he hasn’t stumbled.”
Gammons Chat Wrap
Monday, March 24th, 2008A few notes of interest from ESPN legend Peter Gammons latest chat:
- From the sound of things, Gammons thinks Clayton Kershaw is certain to be a factor for the Dodgers this year. Their main concern is limiting his inning early so he finishes in the 150-160 IP range.
- Tigers manager Jim Leyland thinks Detroit’s first pick in the 2007 Draft, Rick Porcello, will be with the big league club some time this season.
- Gammons also notes that players like Porcello, the Yankees Austin Jackson, Andrew Brackman, and Ian Kennedy, the Red Sox Lars Anderson, Ryan Kalish, Anthony Rizzo, David Mailman, and Will Middlebrooks, will have a serious impact on this year’s draft. Of course these players are all now top prospects who were drafted way above slot in later rounds.
- Picking player comparables is always tricky business, but Gammons thinks the best comparable he’s heard for Yankees SP Ian Kennedy is the Blue Jays SP Shaun Marcum.
Player Cuts: Cameron Maybin
Monday, March 24th, 2008Today was a big day for big name prospects getting the ax. One such top prospect was the Marlins CF prospect, Cameron Maybin. Despite showing flashes of the potential that has earned Maybin his status as one of the very top prospects, his spring overall was merely mediocre. It was for this reason that the Marlins decided Monday afternoon to option Maybin to Double-A Carolina. Marlins’ president of baseball operations, Larry Beinfest, pointed to a lack of big league experience as the main reason for sending Maybin down:
“We still see him as the center fielder of the future. It’s not going to be on Opening Day. He still needs to refine a few things. He probably needs additional Minor League at-bats to work through those things, and hopefully he will be our center fielder for a long time.”
Breaking News: Evan Longoria Cut
Monday, March 24th, 2008We’ve been anticipating it for a while now, but still holding out hope that the Rays wouldn’t do it. The Rays informed Evan Longoria that they were reassigning him to minor league camp after the Rays game on Monday. Longoria said that he was “a little bit let down” by the decision, and that the Rays did not give him any kind of timetable for his return to the show.
The Rays pointed to the fact that Longoria has only had 104 ABs above the Double-A level. They say they want to avoid a situation similar to how the Alex Gordon call-up played out last year. Really, though, it all comes down to the economics. If Longoria stays in the minors for even a few weeks, the Rays can delay his free agency until after 2014. If they wait a few months to call him up, similar to Ryan Braun’s situation last year, then they can avoid Longoria qualifying for Super-Two early arbitration eligibility. While there’s no question about whether Longoria can succeed in the majors, it becomes a question of whether or not the Rays can succeed this season even with Longoria for a full season. In the stacked AL East, not many people think the vastly improved Rays can compete in 2008-2009, with or without Longoria. If the Rays are targeting next year or the year after as the year they start to compete, why not delay the arbitration clock on Longoria as much as possible. In short, while any true baseball fan would love to see what this kid could do this with a fulls eason, this move made all the sense in the world for the Rays.
Red Sox Prospects Update: Ellsbury, Buchholz
Monday, March 24th, 2008- The Red Sox love Jacoby Ellsbury, writes Michael Silverman. Manager Terry Francona likes that he is driving the ball a little more, imparting more backspin on the ball to help it carry. Ellsbury got the start in center field on Saturday, playing all 9 innings (although he was moved to left field in the 7th when Coco Crisp came in to pinch run for Mike Lowell). Ellsbury is expected to start opening day and bat somewhere at the bottom of a stacked Boston lineup.
- Clay Buchholz has yet to secure the 5th rotation spot, and getting lit up for 4 runs in the first 2 innings of his start against the Hanshin Tigers didn’t help his cause. His command wasn’t there, and he left a lot of pitches up in the zone, although he did recover to retire the side in the third.
Rays’ Price Leaves Game With Elbow Stiffness
Monday, March 24th, 20082007 top overall draft pick out of Vanderbilt, David Price, left a minor league game with stiffness in his throwing elbow. The left-hander will see a specialist today. MLB.com’s Bill Chastain mentions that Price did not throw in a game situation for a long time between his last game with Vandy and beginning work with the Rays. Rays officials are optimistic, hoping that it is a minor setback, and will start Price in the minors for a while before considering moving him to the big league club.
Player Cuts: Fernando Martinez
Thursday, March 20th, 2008Anthony DiComo of MLB.com is reporting that Mets top prospect Fernando Martinez has been reassigned to the Minor League camp. While this move was expected, what wasn’t expected was how much playing time Martinez got this spring. The injuries to fellow outfielders Carlos Beltran, Ryan Church, Moises Alou, and Endy Chavez provided Martinez ample opportunity to show off his impressive skill set. Martinez didn’t let anyone down, hitting .340 over the span of his 18 Grapefruit League games. Martinez, for one, is extremely confident that he will get the call-up by September. Manager Willie Randolph didn’t disagree:
“He’s confident, obviously, and that would be awesome. He’s very talented, so I can see him setting that goal, and hopefully he’s going to reach that.”
Breaking News: Jay Bruce Cut
Thursday, March 20th, 2008News of top prospects being cut is flying in. The latest top prospect to be cut is Reds CF Jay Bruce. We’ve been expecting this for a while now, especially after the surprise signing of Corey Patterson. This is still big news, though, as Bruce was projected by many to be the early favorite for Rookie of the Year honors in the NL.
Bruce didn’t have a very good spring, and probably could use some more time to develop at Triple-A. He went .262/.279/.286 in 42 AB. But it really is only a matter of time before this young stud is hammering the ball in Cincinnati.
