Batter's Box Interactive Magazine - 2005 Minor League Line-ups

2005 Minor League Line-ups

It is time to plan the minor league rosters for 2005. When I asked Dick Scott how he allocated the players to the teams he acknowledged that he first places his top prospects and then fills around them. He also said that 90% of the decisions are made before the players report in the spring; so let's see how we would do it if it was our call.

I will start with some of the September call-ups and then move on to Jordan's list of top 30 prospects.

Russ Adams will be with the Blue Jays
Gabe Gross will be playing in AAA
Guillermo Quiroz will be catching in AAA
Eric Crozier will be manning first base in AAA
Gustavo Chacin will likely be in the Syracuse rotation
Brandon League will probably be in the bullpen in Toronto

We need to understand the bullpen in Toronto. At this writing we have Jason Frasor; Justin Speier; Kerry Ligtenberg; Vinnie Chulk; Justin Miller; Billy Koch; Scott Schoeneweiss; and Brandon League takes us to eight in the pen. At least one of these pitchers will be bumped to AAA. This assumes that pitchers such as Scott Downs and Chad Gaudin go to Syracuse, if they do not then someone else will be dropped down.

On to Jordan's top 30....

Prospect #1, Aaron Hill will move up to play shortstop in AAA after holding his own in AA in 2004

#2, Josh Banks spent half a season at AA; he started slowly at AA but improved as the season moved into August. I would send Banks back to AA to start the season. Remember Banks will still be 22 on opening day, so he is still young for his level

#4, Francisco Rosario improved at the end of the season and was good, in stretches, in the AFL. He is still developing consistency and control so I would send him back to AA for at least a half season.

#5, Shaun Marcum pitched well in Dunedin and will move up to AA

#7, Dustin McGowan should be back and ready to go. I would start him in Dunedin to take advantage of the better weather

#8, Jamie Vermilyea will move to AAA and be in the bullpen there. The Syracuse pen will be crowded but I don't think Vermilyea has anything left to prove at AA

#9, John Hattig will move up to AAA following a full year of AA and a stint in the AFL

#10, David Purcey will make the traditional 1st round pick jump to High A Dunedin

#11, Adam Peterson was traded

#12, Vito Chiaravalloti will move up to AA after a full season at High A

#13, Raul Tablado will move up with Vito. I will keep him at shortstop, even though he might not end up there. Rob Cosby will play third and I will keep Tablado at short for as long as I can

#14, Robinson Diaz will move up to Dunedin

#15, Vince Perkins will pitch in AA after an injury filled season in High A and stints in the instructional league and the AFL

#16, Davis Romero made a mid season move into the rotation at Charleston; he will start in Dunedin in 2005

#17, Ismael Ramirez has been in High A for parts of three seasons, he will jump to AA

#18, Curtis Thigpen will move to A. In previous years Russ Adams and Aaron Hill jumped straight to High A, but Robinson Diaz is there and Thigpen needs to play; unless the Jays want to use a tandem catching rotation at Dunedin

#19, Carlo Cota will move up to play second base in AA after moving ahead of Ryan Roberts on the depth chart in the second half of 2004

#20, Ryan Roberts struggled some after his promotion to High A, I will leave Ryan in Dunedin to play second base.

#21, Miguel Negron will move up to AA

#22, Ron Davenport will also move to AA

#23, Tom Mastny has been traded

#24, John-Ford Griffin will go to AAA where he will patrol left field, Crozier is ahead of him at first base. Another option for the Jays would be to switch Crozier and Griffin between first and left; neither would be above average in left but if either of them can play there it would increase their value

#25, Jason Arnold will return to AAA for another, possibly final, shot

#26, Chi-hung Cheng is still young and will head for extended spring training and then to Auburn

#27, Bubbie Buzachero will get his shot at AA

#28, Adam Lind will make the big jump to high A, he and Thigpen were the leading hitters at Auburn in 2004 but there is outfield room, whereas Diaz is ahead of Thigpen

#29, Yuber Rodriguez will jump from Rookie ball to A

#30, Jordan DeJong will continue up to AAA

We have a couple of extra players:

Zack Jackson who Baseball America listed as the Jays #8 prospect will accompany Purcey to Dunedin

Rob Cosby, who blew out his knee last April, after a fast start at AA, will take up where he left off in AA

DJ Hanson, who missed all of 2004 will start in Dunedin

Here is what we have:


            AAA             AA            High A          A
C         Quiroz                          Diaz          Thigpen
1B        Crozier       Chiaravalloti    
2B                      Cota              Roberts
SS        Hill          Tablado          
3B        Hattig        Cosby
LF        Griffin       Davenport         Lind
CF                      Negron                          Y. Rodriguez
RF        Gross         

SP1       Arnold        Banks             Purcey
SP2       Chacin        Marcum            McGowan
SP3                     Perkins           Jackson
SP4                     Ramirez           Romero
SP5                     Rosario           Hanson
 
RP1       Vermilyea     Buzachero         
RP2       DeJong

These are the top prospects and by inference the strongest players. The New Hampshire rotation looks pretty good, and the Dunedin rotation is not bad either.

The next step is to fill in the gaps. The biggest question mark as I see it is the pitching roster in AAA. Through placing the top 30 prospects we slotted two starters, Gustavo Chacin and Jason Arnold, and two relievers, Jamie Vermilyea and Jordan DeJong.

To add to these five pitchers we have one player dropping down from the major league pitchers I listed above, it could be Brandon League or Justin Miller. I will say Miller. Then we add hold-overs from 2004: Cameron Reimers; Ryan Glynn; Josue Matos and Mike Smith to give us ten pitchers.

Over the winter the Jays added ten pitchers on waivers or as free agents, namely: Seong Song; Chad Gaudin; Steve Andrade; Scott Downs; Mike Nannini; Adrian Burnside; Spike Lundberg; Matt Whiteside; Pete Walker; and Jesse Carlson to give us twenty candidates. Then we add some AA pitchers who deserve a promotion: Ryan Houston; Dan Jackson and maybe Chris Baker; plus the two pitchers selected in the rule 5 draft, Lee Gronkiewicz; and Milton Tavarez. Now we have 25 pitchers and a log-jam. We have twelve spots in AAA, say six spots in AA (after placing the six top prospects) and I will assume three pitchers on the DL, total 21. Most of the pitchers signed by the Jays have AAA experience and a demotion to AA would not be a happy day.

I will place Ryan Glynn and Cameron Reimers in the starting rotation, they have been starters throughout their careers. I will put Seong Song at the fifth starter position. All other pitchers are bullpen material. Vermilyea and DeJong should be joined by Scott Downs, Spike Lundberg, Pete Walker, Justin Miller and Matt Whiteside.

Other gaps:

At AAA Jason Alfaro, Bryant Nelson and Julius Matos will cover second base and utility infielder. There might not be a spot for Dominic Rich. Anton French will take the CF spot with Anthony Sanders and Chad Mottola signed for DH and backup.

At AA Tim Whittaker or John Schneider will catch. Mikael Jova or Justin Singleton will play RF. Mike Snyder should repeat AA as a backup first baseman and DH.

At Dunedin Clint Johnston and/or Joey Reiman will play first, Juan Peralta short, and Eric Arnold third. David Smith and Christian Snavely will be in the outfield with Jayce Tingler.

The starting rotation at Dunedin is full, so there is no room for Justin James or Danny Core to start. Jordy Templett and Tracey Thorpe would hope to jump up to AA but with the large number of pitchers above them they might not get the chance. Andy Torres, Brian Reed and Chad Pleiness will also return to Dunedin, although Pleiness could be squeezed out.

Lansing will have most of the 2004 draft class, plus Kurt Isenberg and Jermy Acey. The Jays still have a lot of second basemen, Cota at AA; Roberts at High A; and Brian Hall at A. Where does Acey fit into this picture? There is no room for Isenberg in Dunedin so he has another turn in A.


            AAA             AA            High A          A
C         Quiroz        Whittaker         Diaz          Thigpen
1B        Crozier       Chiaravalloti     Johnston      Cannon
2B        Nelson        Cota              Roberts       Hall
SS        Hill          Tablado           Peralta       Klosterman
3B        Hattig        Cosby             Arnold        Esposito
LF        Griffin       Davenport         Lind          Mathews
CF        French        Negron            Smith         Y. Rodriguez
RF        Gross         Jova              Snavely       Neilsen

Bench/DH  Alfaro        Singleton         Reiman        Mangioni
          Matos         Snyder            Tingler       Metropoulus
          Sanders       Hassey            Dragicevich   Armstrong
          Huckaby
          Mottola

SP1       Chacin        Banks             Purcey        MacDonald
SP2       Arnold        Marcum            McGowan       Janssen
SP3       Glynn         Perkins           Jackson       Isenberg
SP4       Reimers       Ramirez           Romero        Perez
SP5       Song          Rosario           Hanson        Leonard
 
RP1       Vermilyea     Buzachero         Reed          Hill
RP2       Whiteside     Houston           James         Rico
RP3       DeJong        Jackson           Core          Harper
RP4       Lundberg      Carlson           Thorpe        Mumma
RP5       Downs         Tavarez           Torres        McKenzie
RP6       Miller
RP7       Walker

TBD - Hitters: Rich; Acey; Medina
TBD - Pitchers: Nannini; Gaudin; Andrade; Burnside; Matos; Smith; Baker; Walker; Gronkiewicz; Ogiltree; Pleiness; Templett; Tate; Day; Yates; McLaughlin

The Jays do have a lot of arms coming in to spring training, it will be tough for them all to get enough work in the spring and it will be tough for Dick Scott to place them all. Look for some trades or a lot of sore arms at the end of spring training.

In case you missed it the Jays released the following over the winter: Shawn Fagan; Kip Bouknight; Travis Thompson; Willie Rivera; Chris Neylan; James Pidutti; Brad Esaray; Joey Charron; Bryan Gale; and Tim Land.

Comments are welcome.

Posted by Gerry on Monday, January 31 2005 @ 09:28 AM EST.

2005 Minor League Line-ups | 41 comments | Create New Account

The following comments are owned by whomever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.

Gerry - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 10:03 AM EST (#1080) #

One point I forgot to mention is the stronger line-up in Syracuse for 2005. Before last season the Chiefs Board of Directors expressed concern regarding the poor teams in Syracuse over the last few years. In response the Jays have spent money this winter signing a lot of good AAA players, to make the Syracuse line-up much improved. Expectations will be high in the 'Cuse this year.

Mike Green - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 10:14 AM EST (#1081) #

Nice piece, Gerry. "Nelson" at second base for Syracuse is Bryant Nelson, who was recently signed by the organization.

There will be a pitching shakeout. I am quite sure that Gaudin, Naninni and Andrade will have jobs. Health will have a lot to do with some of the pitching decisions that will be made in March.

_Tim - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 10:16 AM EST (#1082) #

Impressive work, Gerry.

_Marc - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 10:21 AM EST (#1083) #

Here is how my depth chart differs:

I think Tavarez will be at Dunedin; his numbers were not that impressive in A-ball last year. Torres should have a shot at double-A. Esposito has probably lost his chance at third, replace him with Garibaldi. Due to a history of injuries Hanson is switched to the pen and aggressively pushed to double-A.

Matos (who earlier expressed - as a minor league FA - that he wanted the opportunity to start) and Nannini are both in the rotation in Syracuse. Glynn and Song are in the pen or waived. Lundberg could end up in double-A again. Gronkiewicz (great winter numbers) and Andrade are in Syracuse.

Is Jackson even still pitching in the Jays' system? Hassey is gone, isn't he?

Rico, due to his age and success, is aggressively pushed to Dunedin. Thorpe is in the pen in double-A. Rich is in Syracuse, Acey is in Dunedin on the bench. Core and James are starting in Dunedin. Tate and McLaughlin are in Lansing over Harper and Mumma. Isenberg is in Dunedin, Juan Perez is let go. Timm and Roy deserve to be in Lansin.

Veteran minor league reliever Matt Duff was also signed (quietly) to a triple-A contract, according to the Syracuse Skychiefs.

Those are the main differences...

_A - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 10:41 AM EST (#1084) #

That was great, Gerry. Without a doubt the best piece so far this winter.

_braden - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 10:47 AM EST (#1085) #

Nice work, Gerry. Out of curiosity, where is Justin Maureau? Was he released?

_Jim - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 10:48 AM EST (#1086) #

Very nice.

You should steal a page from the USS Mariner - I don't mean that literally.

The one guy I disagree with you on is Gaudin. I'd take him over at least 6 of the pitchers you have at Syracuse.

_jsoh - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 10:52 AM EST (#1087) #

You should steal a page from the USS Mariner - I don't mean that literally.

If you mean USSM's Big Board, then we already kinda have that - see 'Jays Depth Chart' on the sidebar.

Of course, its current as of last year, so it does need some updating, which hopefully Gerry will get around to eventually :)

Mike D - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 11:01 AM EST (#1088) #

Thoughtful work, Gerry. Thanks!

Gerry - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 11:02 AM EST (#1089) #

http://www.gerrymcdonald.ca/depthchart.htm
Thanks for the kind words.

COMN for the Big Board from my own web site. We have to come up with a new way to handle the one here for 2005.

Justin Maureau battled injuries and control problems last year and ended up back in Auburn, where he pitched a couple of times. The Jays will hope his arm is OK for this year but I see him starting in Lansing or Dunedin and trying to get his form back, after a great 2003 he really fell off the wagon in 2004.

I agree with you on Gaudin, I just wonder about the politics. If you sign a AAA free agent pitcher you probably makes some promises to sign him, one of them might be that he will pitch at AAA. Gaudin might not have that political "pull" and he can work on his pitches at AA.

_Geoff - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 11:08 AM EST (#1090) #

Very fine work - I've been trying to keep a spreadsheet up to date all offseason and, though there are some differences of opinion, your depth chart looks largely similar to my own

One name I noticed is missing is Ron Acuna, who I assume will be in the Syracuse mix after signing a minor league contract

_Jim - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 11:29 AM EST (#1091) #

'I agree with you on Gaudin, I just wonder about the politics. If you sign a AAA free agent pitcher you probably makes some promises to sign him, one of them might be that he will pitch at AAA. Gaudin might not have that political "pull" and he can work on his pitches at AA.'

I'm sure that will play a part. If it forces Gaudin to AAA, then they brought in too many guys - is Pete Walker really necessary?

I'd still place him clearly higher then DeJong and Reimers, but it's probably not that big of a deal.

Just link the org chart here to Gerry's site!

_Ducey - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 11:43 AM EST (#1092) #

I would hope League would start in the AAA rotation for 1/2 the year. I expect Gaudin to be in the TO pen instead.

Vermilyea will start the year in the AA pen due to the glut of other arms.

Smith and Baker will likely be let go.

Godwin likely will be offered back to the Jays. I am not sure they will take him back but he might figure in the CF mix in AA or AAA.

Time to try Arnold in the AAA pen?

Wouldn't it be better to start McGowan in the pen for a while?

What happened to Kevin Frederick?

As mentioned, injuries will likely make many decisions more obvious than they are now.

_Rob - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 11:58 AM EST (#1093) #

http://www.thebaseballcube.com/profiles/JA/tbc5754.asp
Very nice work, Gerry. I noticed you had Walker listed under TBD, but you also have Walker in the Syracuse 'pen. Are those both Pete?

Is Jackson even still pitching in the Jays' system?

Yeah, he threw 69 innings for the Fisher Cats last year. COMN. That page shows he missed 2003, but The Baseball Cube has an entry for another Dan Jackson -- who only pitched 2003, for Dunedin and New Haven. They are the same player, since Dan Jackson's page at nhfishercats.com has that 2003 recorded in his career statistics.

I think Ty Godwin will stick with the Nationals. As of now, they have Jose Guillen, Brad Wilkerson, Endy Chavez, Termell Sledge and Wil Cordero for three outfield spots and DH. That leaves a fourth outfielder somewhere, and since it's the National League, there's more room on the bench for a fifth outfielder/pinch-runner.

Godwin's named Carlton on the Washington roster. I didn't know until now that Tyrell was his middle name.

_jim854 - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 12:01 PM EST (#1094) #

Great article, Gerry! I have been waiting for weeks to talk Blue Jays baseball and with the new season just weeks away - let the discussion begin. Thanks!

I hope you are right re the team in Syracuse - we have a number of friends who are baseball fans who live there and dislike (to put it mildly) the Blue Jays. The Chiefs have been one of the worse teams in AAA baseball for a few years now and a campaign was started by some fans to have the Board of Trustees find another major league team to stock their franchise. While the dissent seems to have quietly gone away for now, it wont take much to bring it back to a boil. Lets hope the team is better this year and the top prospects have a solid experience that prepares them for their major league careers.

Any info re D J Hanson - he is returning this year from the retired list and you have him starting in A ball. Would it not be better for him to be in the pen (perhaps as a closer) to reduce the stress on his body and hopefully reduce the injuries that have plagued his career so far? He has a great arm and we need to make sure he fulfills the great promise he has shown so far.

Thanks again for 'making my day'.

Mike Green - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 12:07 PM EST (#1095) #

Here are my other question marks for players on Gerry's chart:

1. Clint Johnston is old to be a prospect; will Chip Cannon be promoted directly to High A with Joey Metropoulos being given a chance in low A? They could even promote Johnston to NH to back-up big Vito and to DH.

2. I believe Rodney Medina will get another shot at the high A centerfielder job over David Smith.

3. Will the Jays aggressively move Perkins and Zach Jackson despite their struggles from last year? It wouldn't surprise me to see Perkins start in Dunedin with Zach Jack in Lansing.

_Blue in SK - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 12:11 PM EST (#1096) #

Rob - re: Godwin, there is no DH in the Nationals league :)

_Rob - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 12:30 PM EST (#1097) #

there is no DH in the Nationals league

Ugh...of course. Thanks for the correction. I actually meant first base, since Wilkerson and Cordero could both play there. It doesn't change my overall point, though: I still think Godwin will stay in Washington.

Gerry - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 12:38 PM EST (#1098) #

The Jays minor league system is relatively predictable for position players, the uncertainty comes with the pitchers, mainly because the Jays have brought in a lot of pitching over the winter. I am not sure how feasible it will be for Jays management to make decisions based on spring training, it will be hard to get enough work for all those pitchers. The Jays pitchers better come to camp ready to go, a couple of bad outings could push you back to AA, that is why I jokingly said there could be a lot of sore arms come opening day.

My philosophy is you put your best players where you want them and you fit the others around them. That is why I moved Vermilyea up to AAA, he could stay at AA but Jamie does not have the 95 mph fastball, he has a bag of moving pitches, so the experience of working the more experienced AAA hitters should benefit him.

Kevin Frederick was released.

I asked Dick Scott in the fall if it was time to move Arnold to the pen and he said not yet, so I left Arnold as a starter.

Minor league systems generally push premium prospects as mcuh as they can, Purcey and Jackson were first round selections in 2004 and first rounders usually start the next year in Dunedin. Most of Purcey and Jacksons innings were pitched in instructional league last year, and we have no visibility to that, so I assume they developed enough to be pushed, but again with the abundance of pitching they could be sent to Lansing.

I don't know any more about Hanson since Dick Scott said he would be ready for 2005. McGowan would still be 50/50 for opening day until we hear more.

_whizland2000 - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 12:55 PM EST (#1099) #

WOW, jackson was rated # 8 by BA. Who were some of the other prospects they listed.

Craig B - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 04:01 PM EST (#1100) #

I think Ty Godwin will stick with the Nationals. As of now, they have Jose Guillen, Brad Wilkerson, Endy Chavez, Termell Sledge and Wil Cordero for three outfield spots and DH. That leaves a fourth outfielder somewhere, and since it's the National League, there's more room on the bench for a fifth outfielder/pinch-runner.

Ryan Church and J.J. Davis are both on the Nats' 40-man, and both are light-years ahead of Godwin's development. Church also needs a place to play after flat-out dominating the PCL last year. With Sledge, Chavez and Wilkerson all capable of playing center, there's no particular need for them to keep Godwin around to man centerfield.

I think it's a very long shot for Godwin to stick in Washington. They already have Endy Chavez, and there's no need for them to waste a roster spot for a year in order to nail down Endy Chavez Lite.

If the Nats like Godwin enough to keep him, they'll make J.P. an offer for him in a trade so he can play in the minors where he belongs. I think he has effectively no chance of lasting the year with the big club - he'd be too overmatched. Godwin would be cheap, anyway, and the Expos for all their developmental problems are swimming in AAAA players that the Jays would be happy to take on and try out.

Mike Green - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 04:29 PM EST (#1101) #

Godwin would be cheap, anyway, and the Expos

It's going to be hard, isn't it, saying "Nationals" all year?

_Eric - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 04:47 PM EST (#1102) #

Great work, Gerry. I know Jorge Sequea got bumped from the 40-man roster, but did I thought he was still with the Jays?

_Eric - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 04:48 PM EST (#1103) #

That should read 'but I thought he was still with the Jays'.

Thomas - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 05:12 PM EST (#1104) #

I think Sequea signed with Boston, but I could be mistaken. That's just off the top of my head.

_Rob - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 05:38 PM EST (#1105) #

Ryan Church and J.J. Davis are both on the Nats' 40-man, and both are light-years ahead of Godwin's development.

I saw Davis, and figured he was destined to play in AAA. He's doesn't have much ML experience, granted, but he didn't do very well in any of his MLB year. Some nice power, though.

As for Church...well, that was just an oversight. Apparently, in my DH-in-the-National-League world, a .343/.428/.620 line doesn't warrant a mention. :)

and the Expos

Mike Green pointed this out above, and I didn't even notice it. I think we'll all be calling them the Expos for a while...

_Marc - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 06:29 PM EST (#1106) #

http://washnationals.blogspot.com/
I am sure Sequea is gone.

Just a quick note, while everyone is talking about the Nationals... I have started a blog for them if anyone is interested in checking it out... or if you want to help me with it, drop me a line!

Thomas - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 06:44 PM EST (#1107) #

Davis was about the only good move Bowden's made this offseason, he picked him up for a really marginal A-ball prospect. I think he deserves more of a chance than the Pirates gave him.

_DW - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 10:38 PM EST (#1108) #

I don't think Clint Johnson will/should stick around either and Joey Metro deserves a starting job. So, move Cannon to Dunedin, Metropoulos to the starting 1b job for Lansing and have Charles Anderson take Metro's bench spot.

_DW - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 10:39 PM EST (#1109) #

Also, actual rosters have more than 21 spots - that's one rerason there are so many bodies without spots.

_MikeyD - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 10:43 PM EST (#1110) #

Justin James will be in the A rotation, Romero could possibly be moved to the bullpen as he has this experience , at least until a spot in the rotation opens up. I can see Danny Core in the Dunedin rotation as well.

_MikeyD - Monday, January 31 2005 @ 10:44 PM EST (#1111) #

Sorry, I mean to write Justin James will be in the Dunedin rotation. Isenberg has a really good chance being in Dunedin as well.

I don't think it is written in stone, that Zach Jackson goes to Dunedin rather then Lansing. His peformance spring training and instruction league should be the determining factor.

Thomas - Tuesday, February 01 2005 @ 11:31 PM EST (#1112) #

Does anyone know where Stubby Clapp signed as a FA in the offseason?

_jays minor leag - Friday, February 04 2005 @ 07:07 PM EST (#1113) #

Very tough topic to talk about, but nicely done. I am in the system and agree on most things. I think that you overdid the new players as opposed to the players who have been around a few years. Just because players are starting their 2 or 3rd full season, doesn't count them out. For example, no where do you mention Matt Dalton. Brad Mumma and Dalton dominated the end of the season in Charleston. I don't think Danny Core will be in the pen. A lot of the Auburn guys will have to have strong first halves with Lansing before given the opp. to play in Dunedin. No way Diaz will be in Dunedin. He is too immature. They are going to take their sweet time with him until they trade him. You're right people will be released and/or traded. Way too many good but not great players. That is the fault with drafting college heavy, a lot of players are good enough to keep around, which makes the system look a lot better than it actually is. You wrote off a few guys too early.

Trade Bait
Vito, Diaz, Bubbie, Davenport, Hansen, any college who has been around but not moving fast

_Jabonoso - Friday, February 04 2005 @ 09:58 PM EST (#1114) #

very true what we just hear (jml)
i just saw pitching Jonathan Albaladejo from Puerto Rico in the Caribean series. It is a big boy, 22 years old with tremendous potential, he was the key for the Indians to win in PR. He belongs to the Pirates and was not taken in the Rule V. Amazing!!!
Amazing!!!
Where are the scouts when you need them?
Lesson from this:
The baseball world out of the major leagues is as little known as the Antartida or Saturn.

_Jabonoso - Friday, February 04 2005 @ 10:03 PM EST (#1115) #

regarding the Godwin-Nationals affair, it seems that they are very serious about Polonia as the fifth OF, so a trade proposal is inminent. Nationals could be a very good trade partner, they want to go the latino way and we are driving the other route.

_Jabonoso - Friday, February 04 2005 @ 10:05 PM EST (#1116) #

the latino comment is obviously unrelated to Godwin. it is about the BJ's dumping that strange people that cannot speak English

Mike Green - Saturday, February 05 2005 @ 04:52 PM EST (#1117) #

Jabonoso,

You'll watch Albaladejo for the next few years, and I'll watch Alex Romero, who also passed through the Rule 5 to my surprise.

It really makes me wonder. If a team picks a pitcher in the Rule 5 draft, it costs them $25,000-$50,000 and there is a small chance of picking a Johan Santana. If a team picks a pitcher in the middle of the first round of the draft, it costs them $1.5-$2 million and there is some chance, maybe 5-10%, of getting a really fine pitcher out of it. Are the odds really 30-80 times better on the first round pick? I don't think so.

_Jabonoso - Saturday, February 05 2005 @ 08:07 PM EST (#1118) #

Alex Romero is a pleasure to watch playing, makes a lot of contact, ergo does not need to work full count and get to base on balls. Good glove and plays well with pressure. What not to love...
He surely could be a fifth OF in a team that has two or more teams ahead of him in his division...
Mike, i wrote a mail to you yesterday, but my connection went off and was lost.
I'll add some random notes:
-Batista declared to the press that he does not understand what his (ML) team is doing. That Delgado is a great person and a great player and can not visualize how he is going to be replaced. That he does not know in which role he is going to pitch, that it was a bit (a lot ) akward to have him as closer. He is fit and strong to be a starter again. He was programmed to pitch today but it is raining right now. ( check more of his interview in mlb page )
-Tejada declared that he looks up to Sosa, long time idol and friend, and that the O's line up will be better much more than the sum of its parts, because Sosa is a leader, motivator and great person ( i thing thats exactly opposite of what Henry thinks ).
-Former BJ Doug Linton had a great outing and has no team for 05, he just have an offer for Mexican summer league. So it could be a wise investment to have him in your AAA team just in case.

_Jabonoso - Saturday, February 05 2005 @ 09:03 PM EST (#1119) #

Mike,
Check in mlb.com Johnatan Mayo reports and articles about the CS , he put an Albaladejo clip to watch.

_robert - Monday, February 07 2005 @ 05:00 AM EST (#1120) #

hiya, could you give me any info on jason arnold (jays), a friend of mine drafted him last year in our keeper draft, he's expecting good things from him. thx.

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