i can see why scouts like mayberry better (he's a first-round lock, probably top 15). the guy is huge, but moves very well around the bag and on the bases. he has light-tower power and has a very refined approach at the plate. plus, he has pedigree--it certainly helps that his dad was a big-league star.

lowrie doesn't excite the scouts as much, but it's impossible to find anything not to like about his performance. he's a very good defensive 2B, both in terms of range and reliability. and his hitting is out of this world--nobody in the entire NCAA hit better last year, in terms of average, walks, power, and level of competition. he's also a switch-hitter who is just as dangerous from either side. sure, he's a little-ish guy, but i can't for the life of me figure out why he won't be a star in the majors; he does literally everything well (and the most important thing, hitting, extremely well), and guys like that are hard to come by. he's an unimpressive physical specimen; that's the only knock against him, but it might be enough to drop him out of the first round come june.

Alex Romero is from Venezuela.  Last season he played at Fort Myers in the FSL, where he produced the following line:

.292/.387/.405 at age 21.  He had a 54:47 BB:K ratio in 380 ABs, and has always shown good plate discipline and low strikeouts.  

His age 21 season at Ft. Myers compares favorably to Jason Kubel's line at the same age and level in 2003; Kubel posted .298/.361/.400 with a 48:54 BB:K rate in 420 ABs.  

The lack of power from both players isn't suprising; nobody hits for power there.  Justin Morneau, as a 20 year old, slugged .600 in half a season at Quad Cities (Midwest), then got promoted and could only manage a .437 SLG (with a .294 BA) at Ft. Myers in 200 ABs.  Its where power goes to die.  

Kubel, of course rediscovered his power in 2004 at New Britain and Rochester.  The difference between he and Romero statistically is that Kubel had shown good power before arriving at Ft. Myers, slugging .521 at Quad Cities the year before.  Romero has never shown that kind of power, and while he appears to be a solid on base guy, especially given his age, he hasn't been a basestealer either.  I think he'll have to develop some power to be a top notch prospect.  

John might have more insight about whether he thinks this is a likely development.  

The rotation now is:

Santana
Radke
Silva
Lohse
Mays/Mulholland

Only the 5th spot is up for grabs if everyone is healthy.  

There has been some talk that he might be better suited to the bullpen, but I think they will keep him as a starter unless that proves unsuccessful.

1. Jesse Crain- future closer
2. Jason kubel- he'll be back next year
3. Glen perkins- southpaw, loved him at U of M
4. Scott Baker- Polished, #3 or #4 type guy
5. Kyle Waldrop- Love this kid, future #2 possible
6. Francisco Liriano- Southpaw, great stuff
7. Trevor Plouffe- looks good so far at SS
8. Alexander smit- Underrated by many, lefty
9. Jay Rainville- Next clemens/schilling?
10. Jason Bartlett- Who cares about Guzzy
11. Adam Harben- Saw him pitch, love him
12. Anthony Swarzak- Twins love him, battles
13. Matt Moses- injured a lot, but huge bat
14. Garrett Jones- Huge bat, needs a follow up yr
15. Scott Tyler- Unreal stuff, needs to work on control
16. Alex Romero - Could break out, solid Of'r
17. Travis Bowyer- Can throw upper 90's, lights out, needs to work on control
18. Matt Fox- nice pick out of UCF in last years draft, can really bring it.
19. Deacon Burns- little guy, big pop in his bat
20. Johnny Woodard- raw power, could move up this list soon, has big potential.