Rank Top Minor OF

by bryeic on Aug 23, 2008 3:29 PM EDT

Below is my Top 10 Minor League OF.

NOTE: The following players are ineligible Jay Bruce, Carlos Gonzalezand Jacoby Ellisbury

1. C. Maybin Fla

2 C. Rasmus StL

3. A. McCutchen Pit

4. C. Heyward, Atl

5. T. Snyder Tor

6. F. Martinez NYM

7. M. LaPorta

8. D. Fowler Col

9. A. Jackson NYY

10. R. Kalish Bos

It's a very strong group let by the very controversial and talented Cameron Maybin.

Let me know if agree or disgree!

2 recs | Comment 29 comments

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Comments

any glimpse into the thought process behind the list

is infinitely more valuable than just a list.

ANATOMY OF ERA:
Variables Don't; Constants Aren't

by variablesdont on Aug 23, 2008 3:41 PM EDT 0 recs

I'm sorry

but I laughed at “Carlos Gonzalezand”.

lol

I am like your Dan Aykroyd and biglow would be Jane, the ignorant slut. -Chad

by thecoolest on Aug 23, 2008 4:12 PM EDT 0 recs

C.Heyward

I always thought of ironhead as more of a big bodied catcher or 1B in the Kyle Blanks mold.

by tugboat11 on Aug 23, 2008 4:41 PM EDT 0 recs

He has put his suspension in the rear view mirror with his numbers as a CF in AA. He’s the best defensive OF in the minors with a very good bat an tons of upside. He has to be top 10 over some of these corner OFs.

by bravitos5122 on Aug 23, 2008 4:52 PM EDT 0 recs

He has a .733 OPS this year, and sub .700 OPS years before last year

and he got busted heavy for steroids this year, suggesting last year’s “breakout” was engineered.

facepalm.jpg

by Zonis on Aug 24, 2008 12:30 AM EDT up 0 recs

Heavy for roids?

He got nailed for using HGH, not steroids.

"My mom always taught me it's better to laugh at yourself than to laugh at others. She was so wrong. ;)" -Pedrophile

by Boxkutter on Aug 24, 2008 11:07 AM EDT up 0 recs

his batting average is up to .272.

his OPS is now .848 in 276 AA at bats. this is actually a better performance (according to OPS, at least) than his second half in 2007, where his batting average was 20 points higher and his OPS was 20 points lower.

dude gon hit.

ANATOMY OF ERA:
Variables Don't; Constants Aren't

by variablesdont on Aug 24, 2008 11:52 AM EDT up 0 recs

Actually

He was suspended for involvement with HGH, since they can’t test for it then no one knows if he used HGH or not. Its fine because he is still young and has development time left. After he puts up a good performance next year he will be back in the top half of lists like this.

by JFP on Aug 24, 2008 5:21 PM EDT up 0 recs

I am a little perplexed by your rankings

after the top 2 but not sure of your evaluation process. I also think Nick Weglarz should have a place in your ten.

by sdtribefan on Aug 23, 2008 5:24 PM EDT 0 recs

IMO

Rankings are very subjective … I equally weight stats and physical ability in my assessments which includes offensive and defensive ability plus physical make-up.

by bryeic on Aug 24, 2008 10:26 PM EDT up 0 recs

Um...

Michael Saunders and Michael Stanton should EASILY be ahead of Ryan Kalish.

As Pedro would say, “Who is Ryan Kalish?”

Now raise your goblet of rock. It's a toast to those who rock!

by Dewey Finn on Aug 23, 2008 5:54 PM EDT 0 recs

My list....

1. Travis Snider
2. Dexter Fowler
3. Cameron Maybin
4. Colby Rasmus
5. Matt LaPorta
6. Andrew McCutchen
7. Jason Heyward
8. Michael Stanton
9. Austin Jackson
10. Michael Saunders

Now raise your goblet of rock. It's a toast to those who rock!

by Dewey Finn on Aug 23, 2008 6:00 PM EDT up 0 recs

+1

I’d take Gorkys Hernandez over Kalish in seconds.

by demondeaconsbaseball on Aug 24, 2008 2:13 AM EDT up 0 recs

Don't sleep on Ryan Kalish

Ryan Kalish may not be a household name but his tools are undeniable. BA has him #6 on a talented Boston minor league system and was recently promoted to High A.

Recovering from a broken hammate bone, his power numbers are bit down but a comps such as JD Drew are not far fetched.

by bryeic on Aug 24, 2008 9:38 AM EDT up 0 recs

He's pretty good

But I just don’t see the results to back up a top-10 placement.

by demondeaconsbaseball on Aug 24, 2008 3:44 PM EDT up 0 recs

Jason Heyward

There is no way he’s not one of the top 2 OF prospects!

by Jay212033 on Aug 23, 2008 6:28 PM EDT 0 recs

Well....

The guys ahead of him have proven the ability to hit against advanced pitching in the upper levels of the minors. Dont get me wrong, I think Heyward is a great talent, but he needs to get some more games (at higher levels) under his belt before we think of him as the best OF prospect in the game.

Now raise your goblet of rock. It's a toast to those who rock!

by Dewey Finn on Aug 23, 2008 6:47 PM EDT up 0 recs

RE:

Just because he’s playing at a lower level he’s killing that level at the age of 19. Maybin and McCutchen numbers are average plus Maybin can’t stay healthy, same with Rasmus and Fowler has little power so why wouldn’t he be a top 2 OF prospect? But it’s your list and you have the right to rank them however you feel.

by Jay212033 on Aug 23, 2008 7:37 PM EDT up 0 recs

I just got home from watching Heyward...

Heyward had a bad night and showed why he is such a great prospect. He fights with two strikes, draws walks, and goes back up the middle which is insane for a 19 year old of his size and power. I"m not sure. Most of these other OF prospects have holes of some sort. You would be VERY VERY hard pressed to find a hole in Heyward’s game.

Mike Newman
baseballhandyman.blogspot.com

by Baseball Handyman on Aug 23, 2008 10:08 PM EDT up 0 recs

Yes

He is killing Low A pitching. LOW A.

If he continues the assault on pitching as he climbs up through the minors, he would be top dog.

However, right now, all he has proven is that he can hit LOW A pitching.

Now raise your goblet of rock. It's a toast to those who rock!

by Dewey Finn on Aug 24, 2008 12:37 AM EDT up 0 recs

Old school skills

No knock to Jason Heyward (love his tools) but the others above him are 7 skill players that are potential gold glove caliber with tremendous speed.

Would not argue Heyward over McCutchen since McCutchen power profiles a average to good.

by bryeic on Aug 24, 2008 9:42 AM EDT up 0 recs

me

1)Rasmus
2)Heyward
3)Jackson
4)Fowler
5)McCutchen
6)Stanton
7)Maybin
8)LaPorta-DH in the making, knocks the rank down
9)Snider-DH in the making, knocks the rank down
10)Saunders

by Bravesin07 on Aug 23, 2008 7:01 PM EDT 0 recs

My 10

1) Fowler
2) Heyward
3) Rasmus
4) Snider
5) Maybin
6) McCutchen
7) Engel Beltre
8) Saunders
9) LaPorta
10) Weglarz

HM: F. Martinez, B. Revere, A. Jackson, M. Burgess, Stanton, G. Hernandez, Daryl Jones, Angel Morales, Kelvin DeLeon, Jose Tabata, Desmond Jennings, Dominic Brown.

by gogotabata on Aug 23, 2008 9:17 PM EDT 0 recs

Fowler

Coors Field should help his power totals. Furthermore, he is a big tall kid that could fill out nicely.

I expect .300/20HR/35SB seasons in his prime.

Now raise your goblet of rock. It's a toast to those who rock!

by Dewey Finn on Aug 24, 2008 12:34 AM EDT up 0 recs

Fowler

I think if Fowler can get into that 20-25 homer range he becomes the best of this crop of OF. I see a guy who really fills the stat line( gets walks, good OBP…ETC) years he hits 25 homers he may have 80 XBH. I think some unsung guys are Ben Revere, Julio Borbon

by NYSOX on Aug 28, 2008 11:38 AM EDT up 0 recs

FYI

Ben Badler of Baseball America recently stated in a chat that he sees Heyward as a tick above Stanton. Perhaps the Greensboro Monster should be getting more love from y’all.

Now raise your goblet of rock. It's a toast to those who rock!

by Dewey Finn on Aug 24, 2008 12:40 AM EDT 0 recs

OF

Rasmus
Maybin
Heyward
Snider
mccutchen
stanton
Fowler
FMart

by slurve on Aug 24, 2008 12:04 PM EDT 0 recs

Ranks

1) Rasmus
2) Snider
3) McCutchen
4) Heyward
5) LaPorta
6) Martinez
7) Fowler
8) Jackson
9) Maybin
10) Revere

I went there

by METSMETSMETS on Aug 25, 2008 12:31 PM EDT 0 recs

Drastically underrating Schafer here

Heyward’s one thing; you can say he’s just too far away. But Schaffer is raking, and his glove is as good or better than everyone on the list. Yes, it took him a while to get back to playing baseball after missing two months. And he struggled in what most would consider spring training time.

But just look at the splits! At this point, his AA numbers are BETTER than his A+ numbers from last year. His power has been off the charts in August. If there’s any nit to pick, it’s his K-rate, which has gone up. But there’s been a corresponding increase in his walk rate. And his ISOP has gone up. Up! As he moved up a level! And this is all after accounting for his craptacular start.

So yeah. Schafer’s still an elite talent. You’ll see this reflected in the year-end top 100 lists, where he’ll slot in in the top 50 in all of them and probably the top 20 or 30 in a few.

by mraver on Aug 27, 2008 5:23 PM EDT 0 recs