Winter Leagues

by Guyute on Nov 9, 2006 4:10 PM EST Comment 5 comments

Is there any rhyme or reason to which prospects go to which winter league?

I found the discussion on Prospect Age interesting and enlightening so I thought I'd throw out a question that I really don't know the answer to.

Is there any rhyme or reason to which prospects go to which winter league?

Obviously, it seems that people w/ Caribbean heritage (PC policy don't throw the book at me if that's an incorrect classification, I just don't know the correct terminology) would prefer to go to the DWL and VWL but there are also other, American born, prospects that go there too. Conversely, many Carribean born player end up in the AFL.

Is there a set policy, or even a rule of thumb, that dictates who goes where?

And what of the players who ended up in the newly formed Hawaiian Winter League?

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very brief

Leagues in the Caribbean are populated by older guys and a few notable younger Caribbean prospects here and there, level of play is supposed to be about AA/AAA.

Hawaiian League is for younger prospects and overseas guys not affiliated with MLB, level of play is about A/A+

AFL is for older prospects putting finishing touches on their game, level of play is about AA/AAA.

AFL is a league for learning and teaching meanwhile the Caribbean ones are very competitive.

...NJASDJDH...

by Fabian on Nov 9, 2006 4:06 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Well,

I have to be honest, I don't know where those comparisons are coming from.

The Hawaiian League just started so I don't see how you can call it A/A+. Although the guys in the league this year tend to be A/A+ players.

AFL is certainly not for older prospects (ie. see Wood, Gordon and many others last year) and I'd doubt its AA level. Also, the level of player in the AFL and caliber of prospect has been dropping over the years. Teams don't always send their best prospects to the AFL, although it was started as a showcase for top prospects (Think what the Cape League is for college players only this takes place in the Fall).

And they almost never send top pitchers to the AFL anymore. Few teams send top pitching prospects to the AFL because of the hitters parks and the chance of injury after a full summer of pitching. A lot of times, teams will send pitcher to the AFL if they were hurt during the year.

The truth is, the competition in some winter leagues varies widely, not just year-to-year but player to player. Some times you'll have a top prospect, sometimes you'll have a fallen prospect trying to regain prospect status (such as Boston's Chad Spann in the AFL).

Really, its up to the individual teams. Each team is expected to send players to the AFL because MLB runs the league, but they chose which players to send.

Again, the teams chose which players to send to Hawaii. But they aren't reguired to send players.

Lots of teams suggest guys go to the Carribean. Often these guys were hurt or need to work on a new position. But Carribean teams, like the Domonican Winter League, are limited in the number of foreign-born players they can have on a team I believe.

There's just not an easy answer to this. I'd take it on a case-by-case basis.

by Montreal97 on Nov 9, 2006 4:30 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Where

Glimpsing at the rosters, and stuff I've heard, IIRC, BPro and BA say.

...NJASDJDH...

by Fabian on Nov 9, 2006 4:52 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

i've heard...

...the same as Fabian, that the Hawaiian league was started as an alternative for A/A+ players. And that the AFL is more for AA/AAA players.
Therefore if what I read was correct, the image I got was top prospect or not, in the AFL the pitchers would be more advanced, ie. have more than one pitch, usually a good breaking ball or two and are working on control/injury recovery. Basically they are good enough to be playing at the AA/AAA levels. You see players who are younger in the AFL, Fernando Martinez is the best example, and I think the reason is these clubs are trying to give him a taste of AA before he gets there to ease his transition into the next level.

by phiago on Nov 9, 2006 6:52 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

AFL Eligibility rules

The eligibility rules to play in the AFL are simple.

The roster size is 30 players per team.

Each Major League organization is required to provide six players subject to the following requirements:

* All Triple-A and Double-A players are eligible, provided the players are on at least a Double-A level roster no later than Aug. 1.
* One player below the Double-A level is allowed per Major League team.
* One foreign player is allowed, as long as the player does not reside in a country that participates in winter ball, as part of the Caribbean Confederation or the Australian winter league.
* No players with more than one year of credited Major League service as of August 31 are eligible, except a team may select one player picked in the most recently concluded Major League Rule 5 Draft.
* To be eligible, players on Minor League disabled lists must be activated at least 45 days before the conclusion of their respective seasons.

Source - http://www.sonsofsamhorn.net/wiki/index.php/Arizona_Fall_League

by William K on Nov 9, 2006 7:10 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs