Top Prospects of 2003

Top Prospects of 2003

2003 was the first year I did a 50/50 list, Top 50 hitters and Top 50 pitchers. I decided to separate them since they are two different species that have to be judged in different ways. I find that when I split them up like that, I thought I did a better job of judging them. Pitches and hitters are valued and analyzed so differently, I think it works better this way. I know some disagree, but I like the system.

This list is hard to judge since so many of these players are still building their careers. Win Shares is just a way to put into one number what they have done so far. Its's not a perfect statistic. Obviously 15 years from now the WS totals will be much different.

1. Mark Teixeira, 3B, Grade A, 104 win shares
   
2. Joe Mauer, C, 82 win shares
   
3. Victor Martinez, C, 97 win shares
   
4. Brandon Phillips, SS, 37 win shares
   
5. Mike Cuddyer, OF, 60 win shares
   
6. Jose Reyes, SS, 87 win shares
   
7. Hee Seop Choi, 1B, 26 win shares
   
8. Scott Hairston, 2B, Grade A-, 9 win shares
   
9. Miguel Cabrera, 3B, 127 win shares
   
10. Travis Hafner, 1B, 98 win shares
    
11. Jason Stokes, 1B, ruined by injuries
    
12. Justin Morneau, 1B, 65 win shares
    
13. Casey Kotchman, 1B, 21 win shares
    
14. Adrian Gonzalez, 1B, 46 win shares
    
15. Marlon Byrd, OF, Grade B+, 44 win shares
    
16. Jose Lopez, SS, 33 win shares
    
17. Jeff Mathis, C, 2 win shares, disappointing bat
    
18. Lyle Overbay, 1B, 68 win shares
    
19. Juan Rivera, OF, 47 win shares
    
20. Jose Castillo, SS, 26 win shares
    
21. John Buck, C, 31 win shares
    
22. Laynce Nix, OF, bad plate discipline crippled his chances
    
23. Shin-Soo Choo, OF, 5 win shares, played well in 2006 for the Indians
    
24. Jayson Werth, OF, 38 win shares
    
25. Rocco Baldelli, OF, 45 win shares
    
26. David Wright, 3B, 103 win shares
    
27. Khalil Greene, SS, 71 win shares
    
28. Bobby Crosby, SS, 36 win shares
    
29. Justin Huber, C, may get trapped in Triple-A
    
30. John-Ford Griffin, OF, Triple-A slugger
    
31. Hanley Ramirez, SS, 54 win shares
    
32. Brendan Harris, INF, 14 win shares
    
33. Chris Snelling, OF, injuries
    
34. Xavier Nady, OF, 40 win shares
    
35. Ken Harvey, 1B, 15 win shares then vanished, injuries, too fat, bad glove
    
36. Todd Linden, OF, 7 win shares, generally disappointing
    
37. Jeremy Brown, C, Triple-A catcher
    
38. Brad Nelson, 1B, minor league slugger, injuries, could still contribute
    
39. Kevin Youkilis, 3B, 53 win shares
    
40. Jason Pridie, OF, will get to play this year in Minnesota
    
41. Jake Gautreau, 2B, stuck in the minors
    
42. Mike Restovich, OF, Triple-A slugger, never got a real chance
    
43. Joe Thurston, 2B, Grade B, in the minors
    
44. Tony Alvarez, OF, 1 win share, topped out in Triple-A
    
45. Chad Tracy, 3B, 52 win shares
    
46. Wilson Betemit, SS, 22 win shares
    
47. Josh Hamilton, OF, 13 win shares
    
48. Joe Borchard, OF, bust
    
49. Jason Lane, OF, 32 win shares
    
50. Russ Adams, INF, 16 win shares

1. Jesse Foppert, RHP, Grade A-, 2 win shares, ruined by injuries
   
2. Francisco Rodriguez, RHP, 63 win shares
   
3. Rich Harden, RHP, 37 win shares
   
4. Jerome Williams, RHP, 20 win shares, then lost velocity, stagnated
   
5. Kurt Ainsworth, RHP, injuries
   
6. Rafael Soriano, RHP, 24 win shares
   
7. Adam Wainwright, RHP, 24 win shares
   
8. Gavin Floyd, RHP, 2 win shares, struggled to establish himself
   
9. Jeremy Bonderman, RHP, Grade B+, 40 win shares
   
10. Scott Kazmir, LHP, 45 win shares
    
11. Ricardo Rodriguez, RHP, 7 win shares, injuries, inconsistency
    
12. Aaron Heilman, RHP, 26 win shares
    
13. Macay McBride, LHP, 4 win shares, looking for a role
    
14. Brian Tallet, LHP, 11 win shares
    
15. Billy Traber, LHP, 4 win shares
    
16. Colby Lewis, RHP, 2 win shares, major command issues
    
17. Jason Arnold, RHP, lost velocity, topped out in Triple-A
    
18. Clint Nageotte, RHP, control problems
    
19. Ryan Hannaman, LHP, injuries
    
20. John VanBenschoten, RHP, injuries
    
21. Kris Honel, RHP, injuries, loss of velocity, etc.
    
22. Ben Kozlowski, LHP, injuries, a good Triple-A pitcher though
    
23. Jason Young, RHP, injuries
    
24. Sean Burnett, LHP, injuries
    
25. Jon Figueroa, LHP, injuries
    
26. Joel Hanrahan, RHP, erratic career, still trying to get established
    
27. Boof Bonser, RHP, 11 win shares
    
28. Johan (Ervin) Santana, RHP, 23 win shares
    
29. Andy Sisco, LHP, 7 win shares in '05 then fell apart with control problems
    
30. Bobby Basham, RHP, injuries
    
31. Angel Guzman, RHP, injuries, still trying to get established
    
32. Joe Valentine, RHP, control problems
    
33. Seong Song, RHP, Triple-A pitcher
    
34. Franklyn German, RHP, 7 win shares
    
35. Dontrelle Willis, LHP, 71 win shares
    
36. Don Levinski, RHP, injuries
    
37. Dewon Brazelton, RHP, 2 win shares
    
38. Dustin McGowan, RHP, 11 win shares
    
39. Zach Greinke, RHP, 24 win shares
    
40. John Patterson, RHP, Grade B, 19 win shares
    
41. Kenny Nelson, RHP, lost velocity
    
42. Cliff Lee, LHP, 35 win shares
    
43. Jimmy Gobble, LHP, 19 win shares
    
44. Andrew Brown, RHP, 4 win shares
    
45. Mike Nicolas, RHP, disappeared due to control problems, injuries
    
46. Luke Hagerty, LHP, injuries
    
47. John Rheinecker, LHP, 3 win shares
    
48. Taylor Buchholz, RHP, 5 win shares
    
49. Travis Foley, RHP, a good Double-A reliever
    
50. Mike Gosling, LHP, 2 win shares, injuries