San Francisco Giants Top 20 PRE-SEASON Prospects in Review

1) Matt Cain, RHP
    Went 10-5, 4.39 in 26 starts for Triple-A Fresno, with 176/73 K/BB in just 146 innings. Posted 2.33 ERA in 7 starts for the Giants. He needs to sharpen his command, but if his health holds up he could be an ace.

2) Merkin Valdez, RHP
    5-6, 3.53 in 107 innings for Double-A Norwich, 96/45 K/BB. Command still an issue, although like Cain he can dominate when everything is working. Health and durability also remain concerning.

3) Eddy Martinez-Esteve, OF
     Hit .313/.427/.524 with 44 doubles, 17 homers, 89 walks in 479 at-bats for Class A San Jose.. I am very confident in his bat. However, his defense has deteriorated from bad to dreadful according to reports.

4) David Aardsma, RHP
    Traded to Cubs. Posted 3.91 ERA and 43/32 K/BB in 51 innings for West Tennessee after trade. His control is getting worse, not better, and his status has slipped.

5) Nate Schierholtz, OF
     Hit .319/.363/.514 with 37 doubles, 15 homers for Class A San Jose. He has excellent bat speed, enough (so far) to overcome poor strike zone judgment, witness 32/132 BB/K ratio in 128 games, 502 at-bats. Double-A will test him but he is young at 21.

6) Craig Whitaker, RHP
     4.66 ERA for Class A Augusta, 72/39 K/BB in 58 innings, 5 saves. Seemed to take well to relief switch, although control remains an issue. Note excellent K/IP ratio.

7) Fred Lewis, OF
    Hit .273/.361/.396 with 30 steals, 69 walks for Norwich. He did OK but will have to hit with more authority to earn a starting job in the majors.

8) Alfredo Simon, RHP
    5.03 ERA for Norwich, 60/24 K/BB in 91 innings, 104 hits allowed. Good control but otherwise a non-impressive season. As a 24 year old in Double-A, this is not a good sign for his future.

9) Patrick Misch, LHP
     Pitched well for Norwich, but was crushed in the Pacific Coast League, going 3-9, 6.35 in 19 starts with a 69/40 K/BB in 102 innings, 135 hits allowed. A finesse pitcher who failed to transition.

10) John Bowker, OF
     Hit .267/.319/.414 with 13 homers for San Jose, 36/108 BB/K ratio in 464 at-bats. He has some power but overall his production was disappointing.

11) Marcus Sanders, 2B
      Hit .300/.407/.400 with 57 steals and 69 walks for Augusta. Just 20 years old, has lots of speed and strong on-base ability, should be tracked closely.

12) Billy Sadler, RHP
     3.31 ERA, 81/33 K/BB in 84 innings at Norwich, 5 saves, just 64 hits allowed. He has good stuff but is still trying to refine his command. Relief candidate although unprotected in Rule 5.

13) Todd Linden, OF
    Hit 30 homers with .321 average in 95 games in Triple-A, but just .216/.280/.333 in 60 games for the Giants. I really have no idea what he is going to do. He has good tools and flashes strong skills, but is inconsistent.

14) Clay Timpner, OF
      Hit .291/.334/.397 for San Jose, 34 steals. Good gap power, 22 doubles, 12 triples, and runs well, but strike zone judgment is only mediocre and inhibits OBP.

15) Travis Ishikawa, 1B
     Hit .282/.397/.539 with 22 homers, 70 walks for San Jose. Scouts have always liked him, and he produced this year. At age 21, the improvement is likely for real. Not sure about what his batting average will be like, but I expect OBP and power to hold up. Will definitely shoot up the list this year.

16) Justin Knoedler, C
      Hit .272/.345/.387 for Fresno. Probably won't hit enough to be a regular.

17) Justin Hedrick, RHP
     12 saves, 3.55 ERA for San Jose, 75/23 K/BB in 58 innings. I love the strikeout rate, but he needs to repeat this in Double-A.

18) Brian Burres, LHP
      9-6, 4.20 in 24 starts for Norwich, 105/57 K/BB in 129 innings, 130 hits. Did OK, held his own as a finesse guy in Double-A, but walk rate almost doubled compared to 2004.

19) Jonathan Sanchez, LHP
    4.08 ERA in 25 starts for Augusta, 166/39 K/BB in 126 innings. Exceptionally good K/IP and K/BB ratios. This guy is a sleeper in my opinion.

20) Scott Munter, RHP
     2.56 ERA for the Giants in 45 games, but with an 11/12 K/BB in 39 innings. Great control, keeps the ball down, but even the best ground ball pitchers have a hard time surviving with K/IP that low.

Well, what do you guys think? How are the Giants doing considering their draft strategy lately?