Minor League Ball Daily Notes, March 20, 2016

Good afternoon everyone. We hope your Sunday is going well. Here are some news/notes/nuggets from the world of MLB prospects and minor league baseball.

***Over at Fangraphs, David Laurila talked to Minnesota Twins outfield prospect Byron Buxton, discussing the young fly-catcher's defense and the steps he is taking to improve it:

"I’m working on footwork every day," Buxton told me. "I’m seeing if I can get better jumps on balls. Along with trying to get better explosiveness off my first step, I’m trying to get better reads."

Buxton acknowledged that Target Field’s expansive outfield is conducive to "playing back a few steps to cover the gaps a little better," although he doesn’t see it as markedly different from other ballparks.

Regarding his directional range, he feels he’s better going to his right, which he likened to stealing bases (the crossover step being with his left foot). Coming in is easier than going back, as "you can tell where the ball is going to land, whereas when you’re running back, you put your head down for a split second and run to a spot."

****Over at Beyond the Boxscore, Randy Holt discusses Miami Marlins outfielder Christian Yelich, asking if he is a "successful failure"

****Ray Guilfoyle at FakeTeams offers their Consensus position rankings series for your fantasy teams.

****Frequent Minor League Ball poster Reillocity has an extensive fanpost over at Crawfish Boxes discussing sabermetric offensive speed breakdowns for Houston Astros prospects.

****Josh Norris at Baseball America has video of Los Angeles Dodgers prospect Yadier Alvarez, the Cuban right-hander reportedly hitting 98-99 MPH.

****Four persons have been arrested and charged in relation to the September 2015 murder of Oakland Athletics minor league pitcher Michael Nolan. Nolan, a successful pitcher at Oklahoma City University, was drafted in the 18th round in 2014. A 6-7 lefty with a low-90s fastball, he spent 2015 on the restricted list and was killed before making his professional debut.