Mayo's top 50

Thanks

Chiefly, because the only tool people talk about with Pimentel is power. He’s a fringe average runner whose speed tool will get worse as he matures physically, he has a decent arm, but really, his game is all about power. Peguero was the same way.

It seems like comparing the two is only based off of the fact that they are Latin American free agent outfielders.

How about they’re both left handed bats from the Dominican Republic (which means a similar level of experience when they signed) who are limited athletically to an OF corner, whose primary tools are power and whose only other plus tools are their arms, and both of them strike out too much and don’t walk enough? Is that a little more than “both are Latin American outfielders?”

Peguero’s bigger, but they have similar strengths and weaknesses.

And not having him in your top 20 for the organization is just… well, it doesn’t make a lot of sense unless you just wouldn’t put anyone in the top 20 who hasn’t played stateside yet.

As I explained when I posted my list on this site, my approach to prospect rankings begins with the fundamental assumption that while physical development is relatively predictable, skills development is very difficult bordering on impossible to project. The fact that someone is physically projectable puts him on the map, but when his skills lag so far behind his physical projection, I am inclined to be very conservative on his ranking. Especially when even as a teenager his athleticism precludes any possibility of him playing a position on the positive end of the defensive spectrum.

Pimentel’s tools put him on the map for me. His skills (which I consider to be significantly rawer than other Latin American bonus babies his age) put him down the list a good bit. From where I’m standing, he isn’t any more likely than anyone else to improve his swing mechanics, his pitch recognition, or his approach at the plate. Until he demonstrates a skill base that will allow him to develop into a major league hitter down the line, I will remain conservative in my ranking of him.

The flip side in ranking these teenage bonus babies, in my opinion, is pretty much just picking the archetype you think a player best fits and to rank him based on that rather than on any characteristic that’s unique to the specific player. I’d much rather be conservative than form my opinion based on an abstraction rather than concrete information about a player.

because that was the meaning of my comment. #snarkfail

It seems Royals fans are more bullish on Dwyer than other fans.