AZL Top 20 Prospects

by jponry on Sep 21, 2007 9:26 AM PDT Comment 73 comments

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/features/264877.html

Angel Villalona, 3b, Giants
Nick Noonan, 2b, Giants
Wilmer Font, rhp, Giants
Wilber Bucardo, rhp, Giants
Charlie Culberson, 2b/ss, Giants

5 of the top 20 (and 4 of the top 6) is pretty good!

This FanPost is reader-generated, and it does not necessarily reflect the views of McCovey Chronicles. If the author uses filler to achieve the minimum word requirement, a moderator may edit the FanPost for his or her own amusement.

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Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

BA says Wilmer Font is in the Rangers organization.

by KCE on Sep 21, 2007 9:19 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

First I have heard of him. Great to see the kids performing/potential. Wish this was the AAA Top 20 Prospects.

by wilriv21 on Sep 21, 2007 9:20 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

I thought the name sounded unfamiliar... I copied it from somewhere else and they'd listed him as a Giant. :(

Matt Cain: He'll save children, but not the Dodger children.

by jponry on Sep 21, 2007 9:22 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

Still... four of the top 20 and three of the top six is pretty good! :D

Matt Cain: He'll save children, but not the Dodger children.

by jponry on Sep 21, 2007 9:23 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

BA needs to change their Font. Perhaps to Times New Roman. :p

I'm really glad to see Culberson getting props. I liked him on draft day, and I like him now.

Strikeouts are boring. Besides that, they're fascist. Not boring: Emmanuel Burriss. Not facist: THE RETURN OF SF Dugout

by BaronVonCurrentEvents on Sep 21, 2007 10:03 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

I'm really intrigued by Arial Black, could he be a prospect?

Proud adoptive father of the All-Father, currently sandbagging in San Jose.

by EliminateMe on Sep 21, 2007 10:55 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

Calling Arial Black a prospect would be a bold statement.

But he's better off than Olmeda Saenz's little brother. Nobody likes Comic Saenz.

"When Jackson Williams thinks of how many times Madison Bumgarner has tried to kill Tyler Walker..."

by multiphasic on Sep 21, 2007 11:46 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

I used to like Comic Saenz in college. But... I mean, everybody experiments in college, right?

Dave Righetti: You don't know him. / Read My Blog, Because I Write It

by howtheyscored on Sep 21, 2007 11:51 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

I was a lesbisaenz until graduation.

Jesse Foppert: Welcome home, my son. And meet your adopted brother, Kelvin Pichardo. He's from the Dominican Republic.

by leftymalo on Sep 21, 2007 2:04 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

Olmeda, of course, being the post-op Olmedo.

"When Jackson Williams thinks of how many times Madison Bumgarner has tried to kill Tyler Walker..."

by multiphasic on Sep 21, 2007 12:13 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I hate Comic Saenz

Barry Bombs gear | comics | Durham? I hardly know 'im!

by Natto on Sep 21, 2007 12:56 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: I hate Comic Saenz

Hahaha awesome!

Matt Cain: He'll save children, but not the Dodger children.

by jponry on Sep 21, 2007 1:13 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

I'm guessing BA didn't think Tim Alderson pitched enough innings to qualify, but I would think he would easily have made the top five if they had.

by sharksrog on Sep 21, 2007 12:06 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Right On!

John Manuel, in the chat, said Alderson would have been #2 and a close second to Big V. He went on to say that he expects Alderson to be the first HS draftee from this class to make the majors. He projects him as the Giants closer of the future, possibly as soon as next year!! Yikes! Hope they don't ruin him by pushing him too fast.

by DrBGiantsfan on Sep 21, 2007 12:23 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Right On!

They ruined him by putting him in the Giants organization.

Sharlon Schoop: "It's only stealing if you get caught...more than 54% of the time"

by Woody Wins on Sep 21, 2007 1:09 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Right On!

Not sure how to take that. Giants have a pretty darn good track record of developing pitchers from within the organization.

by DrBGiantsfan on Sep 21, 2007 3:12 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Wilber Bucardo

I'm really interested in Bucardo and hope he can have a strong AFL showing. I love the idea of his "heaviest sinker in the league" running between 90-95mph. According to BA he had a GO/AO ratio of 3.16 which is very good. I really dig the power sinker pitchers that have come to the MLB over the last few years and have had success (Webb and Wang come to mind)

by xanthan on Sep 21, 2007 9:31 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Re: Wilber Bucardo

as long as he doesn't end up having a Munter-esque heavy sinker.

Matt Cain: He'll save children, but not the Dodger children.

by jponry on Sep 21, 2007 9:32 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Wilber Bucardo

But its a bowling ball!

by xanthan on Sep 21, 2007 9:36 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Wilber Bucardo

Oops, I guess I was wrong, I could have swore Bucardo was going to play in the AFL but he's not.

I wonder where he'll start next year?

by xanthan on Sep 21, 2007 9:44 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Wilber Bucardo

Hopefully his younger brother in the DSL is just as promising.

SFDugout.com - Returning Offseason 2007

by BruteSentiment on Sep 21, 2007 11:25 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Wilber Bucardo

How many Bucardos are there? We should collect them all.

Strikeouts are boring. Besides that, they're fascist. Not boring: Emmanuel Burriss. Not facist: THE RETURN OF SF Dugout

by BaronVonCurrentEvents on Sep 21, 2007 11:46 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Wilber Bucardo

Wilber Bucardo, I choose you!

Dave Righetti: You don't know him. / Read My Blog, Because I Write It

by howtheyscored on Sep 21, 2007 11:49 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Wilber Bucardo

At what level does Wilber evolve into stud Major League pitcher?

Strikeouts are boring. Besides that, they're fascist. Not boring: Emmanuel Burriss. Not facist: THE RETURN OF SF Dugout

by BaronVonCurrentEvents on Sep 21, 2007 12:03 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Wilber Bucardo

yeah i thought the younger Bucardo was supposed to be the good one

by slojoe on Sep 22, 2007 3:25 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Band Name Alert!!

Webb and Wang

The SF Giants: agressively promoting young talent since 2008.

by Lyle on Sep 22, 2007 5:50 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

Hope for the future is a beautiful thing

Can't w8 for '08!

by southcitysteve on Sep 21, 2007 9:59 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

From that article: Several of the league's stats leaders didn't make the list mostly because of their advanced age, such as Giants first baseman Andy D'Alessio (14 homers) and Angels outfielder Anthony Norman (.362 batting average). Both were 22.

Look at the top 20 list. Who's at #20? Jacob Wild, the guy who pitched in the championship game and won the game for the Mariners. Some posters here pointed out that Wild was old for the league, at 22. He'd just been drafted after two years at UOP. I didn't have a problem with him in the AZL.

But, if D'alessio is too old at 22 and excluded from the list despite the same conditions as Wild, being drafted in 07 out of college, why is Wild on the list? Wild is also a few weeks older than D'alessio. Wild was born 8-18-84 and Andy was born 9-23.

BA, you fail. Do some research next time.

Strikeouts are boring. Besides that, they're fascist. Not boring: Emmanuel Burriss. Not facist: THE RETURN OF SF Dugout

by BaronVonCurrentEvents on Sep 21, 2007 10:12 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

BA has always been far too obsessed with age. I love the ranking, but I'm not sure I would've put Angel up top, even if one chalks up his poor performance to age-related immaturity, I get iffy.

I feel like BA is leading the rage in raising expectations on the kid like they did a few years ago with some pitcher named Foppert.

SFDugout.com - Returning Offseason 2007

by BruteSentiment on Sep 21, 2007 11:27 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

I emailed the dude who wrote the piece and basically asked him WTF, but in a nice way that would make me look informed and smart. And you know how the great age debate puts me in such a good mood...

At least D'alessio got props in the article, if he didn't make the list.

Strikeouts are boring. Besides that, they're fascist. Not boring: Emmanuel Burriss. Not facist: THE RETURN OF SF Dugout

by BaronVonCurrentEvents on Sep 21, 2007 11:37 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

LOL...we think alike...I sent in the question to the chat.

We'll see if he answers.

SFDugout.com - Returning Offseason 2007

by BruteSentiment on Sep 21, 2007 11:38 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

The dude? I kinda feel John Manuel deserves a bit more respect than that in this forum given some of the interviews he has granted to McCovey Chronicles (granted all before he became co-editor-in-chief).

Not sure about the timing of this post and the chat, as I was late to notice all of this, but John explained well in his chat why there were mitigating factors with Wild's age that are not there with D'alessio. He also acknowledged that in retrospect, he would have bumped another player onto the list ahead of Wild.

by steve S on Sep 21, 2007 3:13 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

Couldn't remember his name off the top of my head. Thus, "the dude."

Strikeouts are boring. Besides that, they're fascist. Not boring: Emmanuel Burriss. Not facist: THE RETURN OF SF Dugout

by BaronVonCurrentEvents on Sep 21, 2007 3:49 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

I think you might be underplaying the role of age, Brute. Some have written that age is even more important than performance.

I certainly wouldn't go that far, but I think if one graphed performance on one axis and age on another, he could get an idea from the slope of the lines between two players as to which one might be the better prospect.

Angel definitely had some difficulties (primarily a high strikeout rate), but I don't have a problem with his being ranked #1. I like Nick Noonan a LOT, but I would certainly still rank Angel above Nick.

If Angel ISN'T truly the best prospect in the organization, the Giants are dead for longer than I think -- and I'm definitely looking into the next decade.

by sharksrog on Sep 21, 2007 12:15 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

Angel's own scouting report implied immaturity about his being sent to the AZL, not the S-K. It said he took bad at-bats into the field with him. It said he pressed too hard with trying to hit home runs, expanding the strike zone. And it was continually implied regarding his ability (or not) to stay in shape remains a huge question.

That's a #1 prospect scouting report?

I'm sorry, but to put it bluntly: For BA, they see a younger age as being more years to improve. I see it as more years for a player to get derailed. (And people call me the unfathomable optimist)

The truth is invariably somewhere inbetween, but this is becoming a hype machine of ridiculous performances.

I'm not saying I'd make D'Alessio the #1. Maybe I wouldn't even list him, either. What the comment is more about is that the age bias that has run rampant through BA is really showing through.

Some may have written that age is more important than performance: Manuel pretty much did that. I'd say experience is more important than age.

I'll say this for D'Alessio. He was put below what his level should have been. But he did exactly what he should have. He dominated the level. He had more than double the home runs of any other player at the level, barring one. And he continued to do well when promoted.

Steve made an interesting comment in the '08 minor league preview piece I did: Does Pill not deserve the chance to be the starter at first in San Jose, rather than being in Augusta again in favor of D'Alessio? While I would agree that Pill's performance deserves a promotion, I'd have to counter, what about D'Alessio's performance makes him a lesser choice?

Bottom line: I think BA is wildly overrating Villalona, and hyping him so that any actual performance will be a disappointment.

SFDugout.com - Returning Offseason 2007

by BruteSentiment on Sep 21, 2007 11:59 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

I think Angel is ranked so highly because his ceiling is deemed to be monumental (meaning that in about three different ways). You bring up good points that could prevent his reaching his ceiling, points which would indeed be worthy of concern.

But I'm guessing Angel is the only guy in the Arizona league who has the potential to be a superstar, although it sounds as if Alderson might indeed have star potential, and I think Noonan has above-average potential.

In actuality, I'm feeling anywhere from good to really good about all the Giants top six picks except for the catcher, who might have been a bit of a reach from what I gather.

by sharksrog on Sep 22, 2007 12:08 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

Funny, up until about a month or two ago, people were calling the final TWO picks of the six a reach. It didn't take people long to come around on Culberson, so give Jackson some time to prove us wrong, too.

Oh, and one more note on Villalona: after posting my thoughts on another board, my friend who monitors the AZL also noted Villalona's handling of umps as very poor, said he developed a bad reputation quickly and would've been ejected more than once if the umps had known how to speak Spanish.

SFDugout.com - Returning Offseason 2007

by BruteSentiment on Sep 22, 2007 1:06 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

Brute, thanks for your observations on this topic. Although I recognize that age can be a factor in predicting ML success, I agree with you that it too often becomes the trump card in any discussion, derailing further conversation or analysis. Your point about D'Alessio is right on: he did what he needed to do in S-K, and he should not be downgraded because of it. Whether he eventually reaches the bigs or not isn't the issue so much as being fair overall in assessment.

The SF Giants: agressively promoting young talent since 2008.

by Lyle on Sep 22, 2007 6:47 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Spanish?

I'm going to call BS on this one. You're trying to tell us the umps in Arizona don't know a spanish cuss word when they hear it? or that Big V needs to understand English to know he's been tossed?

by DrBGiantsfan on Sep 22, 2007 7:57 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Spanish?

I'm just repeating what he told me. This is the same guy who commented about D'Alessio's swing, and Manuel's comments mirror his.

SFDugout.com - Returning Offseason 2007

by BruteSentiment on Sep 22, 2007 9:16 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Spanish?

Sorry, but it sounds bogus to me. Not saying you didn't hear that from somebody. If you did, I question the reality of it.

I think in your earlier post where you raised the maturity issue, you failed to include BA's comments that V's attitude noticeably improved as the season went on. Remember, he was a 16 yo kid. 16 yo's are fairly well known for their immaturity.

by DrBGiantsfan on Sep 23, 2007 7:56 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

Not sure if anyone will be reading this thread after I pretty much spent the weekend away from the internet ...

I think you're missing the point about the age thing. The level of play in the AZL has always been low, and there was the comment about the average age being even lower than normal this year. It's not about what D'alessio's age is relative to Villalona's, so much as it is about their ages relative to the pitchers they were facing.

I don't see what there is to learn from Andy D'alessio's performance so far. He can hit mistakes from pitchers whose stuff, command and experience mean they are assigned to the lowest level of the minors. So the stats of a four-year college player against them seems fairly meaningless to me in terms of projection. That leaves us with just handful of plate appearances in the NWL, and the sample size there is pretty meaningless. At this point the question about D'alessio's performance is probably about how he performs in spring training against some more advanced pitchers, and we just don't know the answer to that yet. What we basically know is that D'alessio didn't fall on his face in his pro debut.

I don't think BA is wildly overrating Villalona. Of all the comments I have seen, I think the people overrating Villalona are various commenters in this forum. I don't think it is BA. If they were overrating him, wouldn't he have been in their top 100 list last year?

by steve S on Sep 24, 2007 10:46 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

I think we can assume from various comments they've made that he will be this year. That said, I think if you listen to their podcasts you quickly come to appreciate that the BA staff has a much more level-headed approach to prospects than most of the so-called prospect community does. They frequently say that the point of a system is to help the major league club win, that trading prospects for players who can help a team now makes great sense, and that a player who's proved he can produce in the majors is more valuable than a player who hasn't. It's amazing to see how much BA gets blasted for various "biases" that I don't think hold up to a close examination if you actually read and listen to them regularly.

My boy ain't fat, he's just big boned. Big bat, too.

by Roger on Sep 24, 2007 10:55 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

Actually I think it was Fopp's stats and incredibly wicked stuff that led that rage. When you throw up a 12k/9 in AA and AAA people are going to get excited. And his stuff really was extraordinary. A lot of people talk about the FB, but the one that made me drool was the low 90s splitter he used to throw. It's a real shame what happened to him.

I won't get into the age issue because we've debated it enough to know we disagree, but there was an Ask BA last week that gave some incredible anecdotal evidence to the importance of age. It came up as a question about how important it was that Justin Upton was in the show at 19. As an answer, they listed every player who had homered in the major leagues as a teenager since the player draft started in 1965.

The complete list:
Johnny Bench
Oscar Gamble
Caesar Cedeno
Darrel Porter
Robin Yount
Rickey Seilheimer
Juan Gonzalez
Gary Sheffield
Ken Griffey, Jr.
Ivan Rodriguez
Alex Rodriguez
Andruw Jones
Adrian Beltre
Aramis Ramirez
BJ Upton
Justin Upton

As they noted, aside from the one total flop, the second worst player on that list is Oscar Gamble, who played 17 years and hit 200 HRs. Other than that you've got a list full of HOFers, soon to be HOFers, near HOFers, league MVPS, and many multiple appearances All Star players. That's a pretty impressive harbinger of future success tied directly to age relative to league. Hardly definitive, but interesting I thought.

My boy ain't fat, he's just big boned. Big bat, too.

by Roger on Sep 21, 2007 2:06 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

Whoa. I went to high school with Wild, and in a school where we graduated like 80 to a class, so we all knew him pretty well. Crazy.

Giant Expectations

by UnleashTheGore on Sep 21, 2007 11:49 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

I think the pitcher with the first name of Jacob made the list because he truly was born to be Wild.

Oh, and his 62 strikeouts versus only 47 base runners via walk or hit in 48 innings might have had something to do with him. Jacob limited opponents to a .199 batting average, and though as discussed, he was literally born to be Wild, Jacob walked only 14 in those 48 innings.

The guy was born in Stockton. Give him a break! :)

by sharksrog on Sep 21, 2007 12:11 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

NOOOOOONAN!

And Angel make me happy.

Dave Righetti: You don't know him. / Read My Blog, Because I Write It

by howtheyscored on Sep 21, 2007 10:27 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Jose Valdez

I'm a bit surprised and disappointed that Jose Valdez didn't get any love on this list. Still, add him into the mix, and we have a ton of great young prospects. When was the last time we could say that? And, we're not even counting the 3 #1's, Bumgarner, Alderson and Fairley!

by DrBGiantsfan on Sep 21, 2007 11:13 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

In John Manuel's chat, he said that if Alderson qualified for the list, he'd have been #2 and given Villalona 'a run for #1'. He also indicates that he believes Alderson will be the first high schooler to make the majors from the 2007 draft, is the Giants next closer and could make the majors next year.

Wow...that's hype.

SFDugout.com - Returning Offseason 2007

by BruteSentiment on Sep 21, 2007 11:37 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

No pressure or anything.

I mean, if it came true it'd be super amazingly awesome and cool, but really. Can we refrain from shooting off in our pants about Timmy II at least until he throws a pitch in pro ball?

Strikeouts are boring. Besides that, they're fascist. Not boring: Emmanuel Burriss. Not facist: THE RETURN OF SF Dugout

by BaronVonCurrentEvents on Sep 21, 2007 11:40 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

We certainly weren't able to for Timmy I. It's cool, though. I'll just wear shorts.

Dave Righetti: You don't know him. / Read My Blog, Because I Write It

by howtheyscored on Sep 21, 2007 11:48 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

but shooting off in our pants over prospects with 5 career IP is so fun!

Matt Cain: He'll save children, but not the Dodger children.

by jponry on Sep 21, 2007 12:02 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

I'll do the dance of joy instead.

Strikeouts are boring. Besides that, they're fascist. Not boring: Emmanuel Burriss. Not facist: THE RETURN OF SF Dugout

by BaronVonCurrentEvents on Sep 21, 2007 12:07 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

Timmy II HAS thrown a pitch in pro ball. Likely about 75 or 80 of them.

by sharksrog on Sep 21, 2007 12:19 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

jponry's comment made me realize I was mistaken.

Strikeouts are boring. Besides that, they're fascist. Not boring: Emmanuel Burriss. Not facist: THE RETURN OF SF Dugout

by BaronVonCurrentEvents on Sep 21, 2007 12:52 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

I defenitely see him as a closer-type rather than a starter just because he doesn't pitch from the wind-up. I wonder if the Giants are thinking about making him learn a wind-up pitching motion.

Can't w8 for '08!

by southcitysteve on Sep 21, 2007 11:41 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Windup

Is there some reason you can't be a starter if you don't use a windup?

I remember one year later in his career when Juan Marichal was struggling, they had him pitch exclusively out of the stretch and it seemed to help him.

by DrBGiantsfan on Sep 21, 2007 12:06 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Windup

It just seems to me that pitching from the windup would be less stressful on your arm b/c you have more momentum going towards the plate. A lot of relievers pitch from the stretch exclusively b/c its easier to repeat your delivery with a lot less moving parts. If the Giants are gonna make Alderson a starter, then I would assume they would teach him the wind-up to avoid stress on his arm.

Can't w8 for '08!

by southcitysteve on Sep 21, 2007 12:49 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Windup

Unless they have changed recently, both Adam Cowart and Dave McKae pitch exclusively from the stretch. They both spent the entire minor league season as starters. Are there any others like them? I can't recall of anyone being asked to pitch from the stretch more.

by steve S on Sep 21, 2007 3:09 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Windup

I did not know that Cowart and McKae pitched from the stretch. Do you know if the Giants are still projecting them as MLB starters or just trying to get them as many innings as possible to build arm strength?

Can't w8 for '08!

by southcitysteve on Sep 21, 2007 3:26 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Windup

The scouting consensus is that Cowart might be a future ROOGY. I like McKae, but I am not projecting him as a future major leaguer. Perhaps not coincidentally, both are right-handers whose velocity is fringy.

by steve S on Sep 21, 2007 4:04 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Windup

ROOGY?

Can't w8 for '08!

by southcitysteve on Sep 21, 2007 6:24 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Windup

A R ighty O ne O ut G uY.

The opposite of a LOOGY. A ROOGY is someone who gets out right handed hitters.

by xanthan on Sep 21, 2007 7:48 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Windup

So you're saying Jack Taschner is a ROOGY? :)

by sharksrog on Sep 22, 2007 12:11 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Windup

He should be.

Barry Bombs gear | comics | Durham? I hardly know 'im!

by Natto on Sep 22, 2007 2:28 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

For what it's worth, I like the idea of the Giants taking an "old school" approach to pitcher development, letting the freaks be freaks.

"When Jackson Williams thinks of how many times Madison Bumgarner has tried to kill Tyler Walker..."

by multiphasic on Sep 21, 2007 12:12 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

I wonder that too. Why wouldn't they have him experiment with a windup? The kid's just 18 -- isn't this the time to rework his mechanics, if you think there's any chance that it might need to happen eventually?

by Evan on Sep 21, 2007 12:23 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

It all depends on what the Giants want from him at the MLB level and whether they think changing his mechanics will make him more prone to injury. I for one would like to see them let Alderson do what he do for a season and then decide.

Can't w8 for '08!

by southcitysteve on Sep 21, 2007 12:51 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

All I know about pitching mechanics is what I read on the Internet, but his motion sure looks awkward to me. Does awkward = unhealthy? Who knows. But it also looks inefficient. And now seems like the time to fix that. You can have the guy spend a whole season learning a new delivery and he'll still be a phenom. Whereas if you wait a couple of years, he'll be more set in his ways, he'll be facing a higher level of competition, more will be expected of him, etc.

Of course, the guy does throw hard with great control, so how inefficent can his motion be....

by Evan on Sep 21, 2007 2:55 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Delivery

The only thing I have to go on with Alderson is his scouting video on milb.com. The only thing I noticed was a bit of hunching down at the beginning, kind of like Matt Morris, which appears to get more of his body and back leg behind the delivery. It does appear to be close to a max effort delivery. Beyond that, it looks pretty good to me. Front foot lands directly forward....no opening up or cross-body stuff. He comes in high 3/4's which takes advantage of his height. I really don't see why he can't be a starter, or keep his same delivery. I say keep him as a starter until he proves he can't do it.

by DrBGiantsfan on Sep 21, 2007 3:10 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: AZL Top 20 Prospects

For me, the most important info from this piece is that we got a scouting report on Wilber Bucardo, and he was ranked considerably ahead of Charlie Culberson. I am very encouraged by that.

by steve S on Sep 21, 2007 3:15 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Yup!

The Bucardo info is huge. Still not sure I like the comp to Carlos Silva all that much, but if he throws hard, there's at least something to work with.

Like I said before, If I had to guess beforehand I would have thought BA would rank Jose Valdez ahead of Bucardo. Don't know if I should be more happy for Bucardo or more disappointed for Valdez.

by DrBGiantsfan on Sep 21, 2007 5:51 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Re: Yup!

The way I viewed it, Bucardo was a groundball pitcher, either a guy with 90+ mph velocity and some projection or a guy with ~87mph velocity and little projection. Fortunately, it seems to be the latter. I didn't expect Valdez to be ranked. He wasn't ranked a year ago, and he showed no improvement performance-wise. Of all the lists that BA does, the league lists are often the ones most weighted towards performance.

by steve S on Sep 24, 2007 10:36 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs