2007 Cincinnati Reds Prospects

1. Homer Bailey, RHP, Grade A (one of the top three pitching prospects in baseball)
   
2. Jay Bruce, OF, Grade A- (strong tools with developing skills)
   
3. Joey Votto, 1B, Grade B+ (breakthrough looks real to me)
   
4. Johnny Cueto, RHP, Grade B- (overlooked prospect with a live arm)
   
5. Drew Stubbs, OF, B- (outstanding tools but doubts about his bat are legit)
   
6. Travis Wood, LHP, B-  (loss of velocity this year is not a good marker, but his numbers are good)
   
7. Sean Watson, RHP, C+ (results don't seem to match his tools)
   
8. Chris Valaika, INF, C+ (hit well in the Pioneer League, but he was a college guy)
   
9. Sam LeCure, RHP, C+ (possible fourth/fifth starter type)
   
10. Milton Loo, 3B, C+ (another tools guy with a bat but a long way away)
    
11. Paul Janish, SS, C  (excellent glove, bat prevents him from being a better prospect)
    
12. Jon Coutlangus, LHP, C (useful bullpen spare part)
    
13. Calvin Medlock, RHP, C  (useful bullpen spare part)
    
14. Brendan Harris, INF, C (useful infield spare part)
    
15. Tyler Pelland, LHP, C (good arm but more thrower than pitcher)
    
16. Chris Dickerson, OF, C (useful outfield spare part, good glove)
    
17. Brad Salmon, RHP, C  (useful bullpen spare part)
    
18. David Shafer, RHP, C  (useful bullpen spare part)
    
19. Daryl Thompson, RHP, C  (live arm, recovering from shoulder trouble)
    
20. B.J. Szymanski, OF, C (status is slipping quickly due to contact problems)

The Reds In One Sentence: This system has two future stars in Bailey and Bruce, two very good prospects in Votto and Cueto, then a bunch of questionmarks and spare parts.

Obviously this system is weak right now. The Grade C guys are all interchangeable on the list depending on what you want to emphasize. I know everyone is all gaga over Josh Hamilton being picked in the Rule 5 draft, and he will be in the book, but the guy has so much rust accumulated that I am skeptical about his ability to do much.

ALL GRADES ARE PRELIMINARY. If you hate a grade, feel free to make a case for me to change it, though remember that cases phrased respectfully using logic and facts are more likely to be viewed positively than those featuring insults and invective.

There is a lot of slack in the B-/C+/C range and players may move up and down depending on how my thinking progresses. Feel free to make comments, point out sleepers I may have missed, etc. Note that there is only a limited amount of space in the book, and the max I can do is 35-36 players per team.

And, as always, there is the helpful reminder to Buy My Book, which will lay out reports for all these guys (and more) in detail.