Arizona Diamondbacks 2009 Pre-Season Prospects List in Review

This list was originally published November 16th, 2008. This is a REVIEW of the PRE-SEASON list for 2009, not a revision of that list. This is a REVIEW of the old list. The first grade listed is the OLD GRADE.

1) Jarrod Parker, RHP, Grade B+: Pitched very well in Double-A (3.68 ERA, 74/34 K/BB in 78 innings) at age 20 before going down with an elbow injury. Hasn't had surgery yet.

2) Daniel Schlereth, LHP, Grade B: 1.01 ERA with 39/16 K/BB in 27 Double-A innings. Allowed five runs in 4.2 major league innings, has missed time with strained ribcage. Could help in pen next year.

3) Gerardo Parra, OF, Grade B-: Hitting .290/.330/.429 in 75 major league games, a successful debut especially considering jump from Double-A.

4) Cesar Valdez, RHP, Grade B-: 4.60 ERA with 56/27 K/BB in 86 innings in Triple-A. Holding his own in PCL conditions.

5) Wade Miley, LHP, Grade B-: 4.09 ERA with 84/27 K/BB in 106 innings in the Midwest League, 112 hits allowed. Getting a lot of grounders but not exactly dominant.

6) Bryan Shaw, RHP, Grade B-: 4.63 ERA with 83/34 K/BB in 95 innings in the California League. Decent performance considering environment but not dominating.

7) Trevor Harden, RHP, Grade B-: Excellent in early season Midwest League outings, promoted to Cal League and is holding his own (4.54, 55/22 K/BB in 81 innings, 103 hits) but (broken record) not dominating.

8) Kevin Eichhorn, RHP, Grade C+: Has pitched four innings in the Pioneer League. Sample too small to be meaningful.

9) Barry Enright, RHP, Grade C+: 3.98 ERA with 78/27 K/BB in 129 innings for Double-A Mobile, 145 hits. Throws strikes with average stuff.

10) Collin Cowgill, OF, Grade C+: Hitting .277/.373/.445 with 11 steals in 61 games in the Cal League, on the DL since mid-June. Doing OK but not great before getting hurt.

11) Evan Frey, OF, Grade C: Hitting .256/.339/.317 with 24 steals in Double-A. Lack of power limits his upside.

12) Tony Barnette, RHP, Grade C: 10-7 but with a 6.25 ERA for Triple-A Reno, 90/48 K/BB in 127 innings, 156 hits. Throws strikes and pitching environment isn't easy.

13) Billy Buckner, RHP, Grade C: 3.29 ERA with 84/43 K/BB in 82 innings in Triple-A. 8.63 with 33/15 K/BB in 41 major league innings. Good Triple-A numbers in rough environment means he'll get more chances, but might end up as a Quadruple-A guy.

14) Hector Ambriz, RHP, Grade C: 5.92 ERA with 83/30 K/BB in 97 innings in Triple-A, 123 hits. Another guy who throws strikes but doesn't dominate.

15) Brooks Brown, RHP, Grade C: Traded to Tigers. 4.45 ERA with 41/42 K/BB in 87 innings for Triple-A Toledo. Low strikeout rate is worrisome.

16) Bryan Augenstein, RHP, Grade C: 0.78 with 31/6 K/BB in 35 innings in Double-A, 5.50 ERA with 29/7 K/BB in 36 innings in Triple-A, made two major league starts. Throws strikes, gets grounders, a typical Arizona prospect.

17) Wes Roemer, RHP, Grade C:  4.33 ERA with 72/33 K/BB in 104 innings in Double-A, 104 hits. Another inning-eater.

18) Josh Collmenter, RHP, Grade C: 4.07 ERA with 124/41 K/BB in 119 innings, 101 hits for Visalia in the Cal League. Good K/IP and K/BB ratios.

19) Leo Rosales, RHP, Grade C: 1.40 ERA with 12/8 K/BB in 19 innings in Triple-A, 4.73 ERA with 20/8 K/BB in 27 innings in the majors. A competent middle reliever.

20) Josh Whitesell, 1B, Grade C: .313/.422/.494 in Triple-A, .191/.356/.298 in the majors. Draws walks, has power, could have a career as a platoon guy if he can time a hot streak just right and sneak into a job. Limited upside at age 27.

Arizona loves the polished pitchers who throw strikes but most of them don't have great projectability or stuff, limiting the upside in the system. Parker was the best hope for a future ace, but his elbow problem throws his durability into doubt now. Parra has been a decent surprise, but the system really needs more impact hitting and more upside arms. The 2009 draft has a better mixture of upside and polish, but it will take some time for that to percolate up through the system.