A semblance of a minor league tracking thread

[Basketball Jesus]

As long as you don

[Basketball Jesus]

You know, it

[Sweezo]

RE: premium content...keep in mind you can always summarize what portions you don't wish to quote.

[Ex-hippie]

Well, I've just barely had a chance to go through it, but here are some snippets:

Clement - all can read that for themselves.

Tillman - "highly projectable power pitcher"... "simply needs a little more polish"... "hardly wild," but "needs to improve his command and control." Needs to improve changeup but "does show some feel for the pitch." Perfect world projection: "Tillman's ceiling is considerably high; if everything works out, he's a number two starter."

Triunfel - perfect world projection is "An All-Star infielder, but probably not a shortstop." Mostly a singles hitter at the moment. Should begin the year back in the Cal League.

Balentien - "has more power than anyone in the organization." (Anyone? More than Sexson?) Patient, as noted above, but "still plays with an out-of-control style that hurts him overall." Perfect world projection: "A classic slugging right fielder with lots of home runs, but too many strikeouts to get his average out of the .280s." Is behind Adam Jones and probably ticketed for AAA again; "mentioned in pretty much every trade rumor involving the Mariners these days."

Ramirez - power pitcher whose perfect world projection is an "above-average starting pitcher."

Hey, are these reading like Zagat reviews?

Aumont - best Canadian pitching prospect since Jeff Francis; "in a system filled with power arms, Aumont just adds to the list." Hard to project "other than 'power pitcher'."

Saunders - heading for AA and hoping to force hard decisions in '09. Big and athletic. Patient at the plate. Fast but needs to learn to be a better baserunner. Perfect world projection is "a 20/20 outfielder with a good on-base percentage."

For that, Saunders only gets three stars? Anyhow, to continue...

Butler - great first pro season, struggled in his second. (BTW, just about every M's pitching prospect comes with a mention of how fast they push them through the system.) "Butler's combination of size, velocity and left-handedness is a rare thing." Good athlete who fields well. "Herky-jerky mechanics give scouts pause, with some wondering if his tired-arm period was just a sign of thingst to come." Perfect world projection is "as an above-average, star-level rotation stalwart."

Only TWO stars for that?? Jeez, that's "I Heart Huckabee's" level. I guess he's downgraded for being a high-risk, high-reward guy. But when the "high-reward" part of the equation includes the words "star-level rotation stalwart," that's pretty good.

Rohrbaugh - basically the same things they're saying about Rowland-Smith and Feierabend, and they used to say about Travis Blackley. Ho hum. Could get a call-up in '08.

Halman - "To call Halman toolsy is quite the understatement. He's a big, intimidating presence at the plate who generates plus power with both his bat speed and his natural strength." Fast and a good defensive outfielder with a strong arm. Can be emotional and get frustrated. Poor instincts. High ceiling but not close to being ready.

Carroll (the third round pick in '07) - "plays with an infectious energy"; quick swing that "laces line drives all over the field"; good runner, good arm, "can play all three outfield positions with aplomb." Little power, and needs to "refine his approach" to become a top-of-lineup hitter. Perfect world projection is as a "top-of-the-order offensive catalyst."

Also mentioned as "the sleeper": Alex Liddi.

Overall franchise rankings including non-rookies under 25:

1. Felix
2. Jones
3. Morrow
4. Clement
5. Tillman
6. Triunfel
7. Hammerin' Hank Balentien
8. Ramirez
9. Aumont
10. Saunders

Another note: "There are people out there who are starting to give up on Felix Hernandez, and I just don't get that. His age is still a huge factor in the future, and he's still significantly younger than Clay Buchholz, Joba Chamberlain or Tim Lincecum."

Finally, it appears Morrow is kicking ass in Venezuela, as a starter.

[Basketball Jesus]

Well, if there

[Basketball Jesus]

Overall franchise rankings including non-rookies under 25:

1. Felix
2. Jones
3. Morrow
4. Clement
5. Tillman
6. Triunfel
7. Hammerin' Hank Balentien
8. Ramirez
9. Aumont
10. Saunders

Wow. He really likes Ramirez.

[PhilipNelsonFan]

All of a sudden, the rotation looks a bit rosier. We have a future middle-rotation guy in Chris Tillman and two back-end starters in Morrow and Aumont, should everything go right.

[TSC25]

Baseball Prospectus rankings of Mariners prospects:

Five-Star Prospects
1. Jeff Clement, C
Four-Star Prospects
2. Chris Tillman, RHP
3. Carlos Triunfel, SS
Three-Star Prospects
4. Wladimir Balentien, OF
5. Juan Ramirez, RHP
6. Phillipe Aumont, RHP
7. Michael Saunders, OF
Two-Star Prospects
8. Tony Butler, LHP
9. Robert Rohrbaugh, LHP
10. Greg Halman, OF
11. Danny Carroll, OF

Just Missing: Matt Mangini, 3B; Edward Paredes, LHP; Matt Tuiasosopo, 3B

1. Jeff Clement, c
DOB: 8/21/83
Height/Weight: 6-1/210
Bats/Throws: L/R
Drafted: 1st round, 2005, University of Southern California
2007 Stats: .275/.370/.497 at Triple-A (125 G); .375/.474/.813 at MLB (9 G)

Year In Review: The power-hitting catcher stayed healthy throughout the year and began to blossom at Triple-A in just his second full season.
The Good: Clement is a rare talent-

[Basketball Jesus]

Sickels dropped his preliminary Top 20 Mariners Prospects list over the weekend:

http://www.minorleagueball.com/story/20 ... /19827/635

1. Adam Jones, OF, Grade B+
2. Jeff Clement, C, Grade B+
3. Carlos Triunfel, SS, Grade B+
4. Chris Tillman, RHP, Grade B+
5. Wladimir Balentien, OF, Grade B+ (maybe Grade B?)
6. Tony Butler, LHP, Grade B-
7. Phillippe Aumont, RHP, Grade B-
8. Juan Ramirez, RHP, Grade C+
9. Greg Halman, OF, Grade C+ (tremendous tools, but huge strikeout problems)
10. Nick Hill, LHP, Grade C+
11. Adam Moore, C, Grade C+ (interesting sleeper prospect)
12. Kuo Hui Lo, OF, Grade C+ (sleeper I like a lot)
13. Matt Mangini, 3B, Grade C+
14. Carlos Peguero, OF, Grade C+ (great power, but strikeouts galore!)
15. Michael Saunders, OF, Grade C+
16. Robert Rohrbaugh, LHP, Grade C+
17. Young Chi Chen, 2B, Grade C+
18. Austin Bibens Dirkx, RHP, Grade C
19. Ryan Rowland-Smith, LHP, Grade C (good LOOGY)
20. Mark Tuiasosopo, 3B, Grade C

Other Grade Cs, who are interchangeable with those above, include Nate Adcock, Denny Almonte, Aaron Brown, Danny Carroll, Casey Craig, Brodie Downs, Joe Dunigan, Nolan Gallagher, Alex Liddi, Mario Martinez, Kam "The Almighty" Mickolio, Ricky Orta, Edward Paredes, Kyle Parker, Anthony Varvaro, and Jake Wild.
Again, don't get bent out of shape about the exact placement of the C+ guys.

The top four B+ guys also can vary. If you are looking for long-term upside, Triunfel is the best but his risk is also high. Jones and Clement are much closer to the majors, less risky, and should be impact guys themselves, so it depends on what you want to emphasize. I like what Tillman did last year in the Cal League

Sickels is generally regarded as a bit prudish when it comes to talent in the lower levels, which explains Truinfel

[TSC25]

Baseball america's top 10

TOP TEN
PROSPECTS
1. Jeff Clement, c
2. Phillippe Aumont, rhp
3. Chris Tillman, rhp
4. Carlos Triunfel, ss
5. Wladimir Balentien, of
6. Michael Saunders, of
7. Juan Ramirez, rhp
8. Mark Lowe, rhp
9. Ryan Rowland-Smith, lhp
10. Matt Tuiasosopo, 3b

I can send you guys scouting reports on each if you'd like?

[Basketball Jesus]

BA tends to go a little overboard when it comes to projection v. performance, especially when it comes to grading players based on tools. Not that they

[Bulltalk]

I was listening to Seattle sports radio this morning, and they had a Mariner reporter on who is pretty knowledgeable about the Mariner's farm system. He was at the opening of pitcher/catcher camp.

He said that himself and players were really impressed with this Aumont kid. He went on to say that himself and others were really startled by this guy's tall and imposing physique, that he had the body of a 25 year old man at 19. They also said that he was throwing 90+ MPH just in bullpen warmups.

Now he had no illusions that Aumont was going to need time to develop his game. But he also said that he could see this kid being called up during the late 2009 season for duty, and compete for a roster spot on the 2010 team.

He also said that Bedard had already befriended him, both of them being Canadian.

I wonder if this Aumont kid played much of a role in the willingness to trade Tillman, and the other young arms in the Bedard trade?

[PhilipNelsonFan]

Well, I'd have absolutely no problem with a 2011 pitching rotation of Hernandez/Aumont/Bedard, that's for sure. I can't imagine it was a selling point for Bavasi but it obviously isn't going to hurt.

When you hear of any more information, please pass it along.

[TyCobb]

Daniel Carroll is the Mariners best prospect. Hardly any mention... tis a shame.

[Basketball Jesus]

Ha ha. No. Not even close.

[TyCobb]

LOL, look at BBJ acting like he knows prospects. Too cute.

[Basketball Jesus]

LOL, look at BBJ acting like he knows prospects. Too cute.

Got any other light-hitting spects you feel like touting because you once saw them play your high school team?

[Basketball Jesus]

Reasons to be cheerful, part 3:


http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb ... pid=459943

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb ... pid=434605

[Sweezo]

Reason to be sad, part 85:

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=5827

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?playerId=4612

With two "close" prospects hitting very well, and a couple Mariners kinda scuffling...at what point would a switch be likely? Wouldn't swapping these two with those two be a very easy improvement to make?

I'd like having Vidro and Wilkerson on the bench, getting rid of Cairo and an unneeded pitcher in the process.

[PhilipNelsonFan]

Some prospect updates:

Greg Halman (Class A High Desert): .214/.260/.400, 3 HR, 12 RBI, 5 BB, 20 SO, 3 SB (17 games)

Adam Moore (Class AA West Tennessee): .260/.373/.360, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 4 BB, 4 SO (15 games)

Austin Bibens-Dirkx (Class A High Desert): 7.27 ERA, 10 K, 7 BB, .265 opp. avg. (6 games)

Travis Chick (Class AA West Tennessee): 1.29 ERA, 7 K, 6 BB, .174 opp. avg. (3 games)

Phillippe Aumont (Class A Wisconsin): 0.00 ERA, 11 K, 3 BB, .176 opp. avg. (3 games)

Jacob Wild (Class A Wisconsin): 2.70 ERA, 5 K, 3 BB, .169 opp. avg. (3 games)

Carlos Peguero (Class A High Desert): .274/.293/.521, 4 HR, 17 RBI, 1 BB, 26 SO, 1 SB (18 games)

Michael Saunders (Class AA West Tennessee): .328/.414/.492, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 7 BB, 14 SO, 5 SB (17 games)

Doug Fister (Class AA West Tennessee): 1.52 ERA, 19 K, 5 BB, .183 opp. avg. (4 games)

Carlos Triunfel (Class A High Desert): .077/.143/.128, 0 HR, 2 RBI, 2 BB, 3 SO, 2 SB (9 games)

Daniel Carroll (Class A Wisconsin): .308/.379/.385, 0 HR, 4 RBI, 5 BB, 12 SO, 10 SB (14 games)

Matt Mangini (Class A High Desert): .222/.400/.352, 1 HR, 10 RBI, 12 BB, 19 SO, 1 SB (18 games)

Joe Dunigan (Class A Wisconsin): .195/.292/.317, 0 HR, 4 RBI, 4 BB, 16 SO, 4 SB (13 games)