BA's Cubs Top 30

[CUBZ99]

Wow, three players from last year's draft in the top 10. Is that the product of a great draft or an indictment on the Cubs farm system as a whole?

 

Also, not great news on Pawelek. I was almost certain there were reports that he finally regained his velocity once he got back in shape? Will be interesting to see how he progresses this year.

[Outshined_One]

Wow, three players from last year's draft in the top 10. Is that the product of a great draft or an indictment on the Cubs farm system as a whole?

 

Little bit from Column A, little bit from Column B.

[CoolHandLuke]

Wow, three players from last year's draft in the top 10. Is that the product of a great draft or an indictment on the Cubs farm system as a whole?

 

Little bit from Column A, little bit from Column B.

 

Also, in my opinion, BA overrates players from the most recent draft.

[Guest]

The players from the latest draft haven't had time to have their flaws exposed or to show they'll fall short of their potential yet. Since BA's ratings have as much to do with attainable ceiling as anything else, you'll see guys with less track record get the benefit of the doubt.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Also, not great news on Pawelek. I was almost certain there were reports that he finally regained his velocity once he got back in shape? Will be interesting to see how he progresses this year.

 

I heard conflicting reports about his velo - I think a lot of that had to do with his sporadic mechanics. He needs to stay consistant with them to keep his velocity up. I think it will help that Boise pitching coach is going to be at Peoria this coming season.

 

Callis didn't answer my Petrick question in the chat. :(

[RichHillIsABeast]

Also, not great news on Pawelek. I was almost certain there were reports that he finally regained his velocity once he got back in shape? Will be interesting to see how he progresses this year.

 

I heard conflicting reports about his velo - I think a lot of that had to do with his sporadic mechanics. He needs to stay consistant with them to keep his velocity up. I think it will help that Boise pitching coach is going to be at Peoria this coming season.

 

Callis didn't answer my Petrick question in the chat. :(

 

But he answered the Samardzija cap question. :D

[CUBZ99]

Also, not great news on Pawelek. I was almost certain there were reports that he finally regained his velocity once he got back in shape? Will be interesting to see how he progresses this year.

 

I heard conflicting reports about his velo - I think a lot of that had to do with his sporadic mechanics. He needs to stay consistant with them to keep his velocity up. I think it will help that Boise pitching coach is going to be at Peoria this coming season.

 

Callis didn't answer my Petrick question in the chat. :(

 

But he answered the Samardzija cap question. :D

 

Come on, you can't tease us like that without giving a short explanation. :D

[RichHillIsABeast]

Also, not great news on Pawelek. I was almost certain there were reports that he finally regained his velocity once he got back in shape? Will be interesting to see how he progresses this year.

 

I heard conflicting reports about his velo - I think a lot of that had to do with his sporadic mechanics. He needs to stay consistant with them to keep his velocity up. I think it will help that Boise pitching coach is going to be at Peoria this coming season.

 

Callis didn't answer my Petrick question in the chat. :(

 

But he answered the Samardzija cap question. :D

 

Come on, you can't tease us like that without giving a short explanation. :D

 

Q: Chip from Richmond, VA asks:

Does it make your stomach turn like it does mind to see pics of guys like Samardzija or any other player with their hats cocked to the side? There is a way the hat is supposed to be worn....do these guys realize they're not "being original" or "showing their personal style" any more? It just looks ridiculous. Sorry, I just had to blow off a little steam. Have a good day!

A:

 

Jim Callis: It didn't turn my stomach, but I laughed when I saw that mug shot. His cap does look ridiculous.

 

Oh, and another waste of time question:

 

Q: Rex from Miami asks:

Since I failed as a NFL QB, what are my chances of making it as a Cubs prospect? Sincerely, Rex Grossman

A:

 

Jim Callis: Lots of bitter Bears fans up here. Rex played poorly, but I didn't like the offensive or defensive gameplans either. Rex has a better future in the NFL, though I don't like him as a longterm starter. Just too inconsistent and I don't think he reads defenses well enough.

 

And from someone who doesn't follow the Cubs closely but asks questions in a prospect chat:

 

Q: Joe from Dallas asks:

Has the sun set for Luis Montanez?

A:

 

Jim Callis: In Chicago, definitely. The Orioles claimed him on waivers. He might get a cup of coffee, but that will be about it.

 

I wish Callis would have answered 3 serious current Cubs questions instead. At least he didn't go on about Jessica Alba. :evil:

[CUBZ99]

Also, not great news on Pawelek. I was almost certain there were reports that he finally regained his velocity once he got back in shape? Will be interesting to see how he progresses this year.

 

I heard conflicting reports about his velo - I think a lot of that had to do with his sporadic mechanics. He needs to stay consistant with them to keep his velocity up. I think it will help that Boise pitching coach is going to be at Peoria this coming season.

 

Callis didn't answer my Petrick question in the chat. :(

 

But he answered the Samardzija cap question. :D

 

 

 

Come on, you can't tease us like that without giving a short explanation. :D

 

Q: Chip from Richmond, VA asks:

Does it make your stomach turn like it does mind to see pics of guys like Samardzija or any other player with their hats cocked to the side? There is a way the hat is supposed to be worn....do these guys realize they're not "being original" or "showing their personal style" any more? It just looks ridiculous. Sorry, I just had to blow off a little steam. Have a good day!

A:

 

Jim Callis: It didn't turn my stomach, but I laughed when I saw that mug shot. His cap does look ridiculous.

 

Oh, and another waste of time question:

 

Q: Rex from Miami asks:

Since I failed as a NFL QB, what are my chances of making it as a Cubs prospect? Sincerely, Rex Grossman

A:

 

Jim Callis: Lots of bitter Bears fans up here. Rex played poorly, but I didn't like the offensive or defensive gameplans either. Rex has a better future in the NFL, though I don't like him as a longterm starter. Just too inconsistent and I don't think he reads defenses well enough.

 

And from someone who doesn't follow the Cubs closely but asks questions in a prospect chat:

 

Q: Joe from Dallas asks:

Has the sun set for Luis Montanez?

A:

 

Jim Callis: In Chicago, definitely. The Orioles claimed him on waivers. He might get a cup of coffee, but that will be about it.

 

I wish Callis would have answered 3 serious current Cubs questions instead. At least he didn't go on about Jessica Alba. :evil:

 

Thanks, I thought you meant "cap" as in ceiling, not "cap" as in baseball cap. :lol:

[BeerHere]

Also, not great news on Pawelek. I was almost certain there were reports that he finally regained his velocity once he got back in shape? Will be interesting to see how he progresses this year.

 

I heard conflicting reports about his velo - I think a lot of that had to do with his sporadic mechanics. He needs to stay consistant with them to keep his velocity up. I think it will help that Boise pitching coach is going to be at Peoria this coming season.

 

Callis didn't answer my Petrick question in the chat. :(

 

But he answered the Samardzija cap question. :D

 

Come on, you can't tease us like that without giving a short explanation. :D

 

Q: Chip from Richmond, VA asks:

Does it make your stomach turn like it does mind to see pics of guys like Samardzija or any other player with their hats cocked to the side? There is a way the hat is supposed to be worn....do these guys realize they're not "being original" or "showing their personal style" any more? It just looks ridiculous. Sorry, I just had to blow off a little steam. Have a good day!

A:

 

Jim Callis: It didn't turn my stomach, but I laughed when I saw that mug shot. His cap does look ridiculous.

 

Oh, and another waste of time question:

 

Q: Rex from Miami asks:

Since I failed as a NFL QB, what are my chances of making it as a Cubs prospect? Sincerely, Rex Grossman

A:

 

Jim Callis: Lots of bitter Bears fans up here. Rex played poorly, but I didn't like the offensive or defensive gameplans either. Rex has a better future in the NFL, though I don't like him as a longterm starter. Just too inconsistent and I don't think he reads defenses well enough.

 

And from someone who doesn't follow the Cubs closely but asks questions in a prospect chat:

 

Q: Joe from Dallas asks:

Has the sun set for Luis Montanez?

A:

 

Jim Callis: In Chicago, definitely. The Orioles claimed him on waivers. He might get a cup of coffee, but that will be about it.

 

I wish Callis would have answered 3 serious current Cubs questions instead. At least he didn't go on about Jessica Alba. :evil:

 

QFT x Eleventy million

[Guest]

 

Q: Chip from Richmond, VA asks:

Does it make your stomach turn like it does mind to see pics of guys like Samardzija or any other player with their hats cocked to the side? There is a way the hat is supposed to be worn....do these guys realize they're not "being original" or "showing their personal style" any more? It just looks ridiculous. Sorry, I just had to blow off a little steam. Have a good day!

A:

 

Jim Callis: It didn't turn my stomach, but I laughed when I saw that mug shot. His cap does look ridiculous.

 

Oh, and another waste of time question:

 

Q: Rex from Miami asks:

Since I failed as a NFL QB, what are my chances of making it as a Cubs prospect? Sincerely, Rex Grossman

A:

 

Jim Callis: Lots of bitter Bears fans up here. Rex played poorly, but I didn't like the offensive or defensive gameplans either. Rex has a better future in the NFL, though I don't like him as a longterm starter. Just too inconsistent and I don't think he reads defenses well enough.

 

And from someone who doesn't follow the Cubs closely but asks questions in a prospect chat:

 

Q: Joe from Dallas asks:

Has the sun set for Luis Montanez?

A:

 

Jim Callis: In Chicago, definitely. The Orioles claimed him on waivers. He might get a cup of coffee, but that will be about it.

 

I wish Callis would have answered 3 serious current Cubs questions instead. At least he didn't go on about Jessica Alba. :evil:

 

Just be thankful nobody ask about the "long-term" potential of such great Cub greats, like Gary Scott and Lance Dickson.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

I wish Callis would have answered 3 serious current Cubs questions instead. At least he didn't go on about Jessica Alba. :evil:

 

Or 24. :roll:

Edited February 6, 2007 by CaliforniaRaisin

[MPrior]

More fun stuff:

 

PROJECTED 2010

LINEUP

Catcher Michael Barrett

First Base Derrek Lee

Second Base Eric Patterson

Third Base Aramis Ramirez

Shortstop Ronny Cedeno

Left Field Alfonso Soriano

Center Field Felix Pie

Right Field Tyler Colvin

No. 1 Starter Carlos Zambrano

No. 2 Starter Mark Prior

No. 3 Starter Donald Veal

No. 4 Starter Ted Lilly

No. 5 Starter Sean Gallagher

Closer Jeff Samardzija

 

No Rich Hill? Is that because they think he'll have left for another team, or that he won't stay in the majors?

[CaliforniaRaisin]

More fun stuff:

 

PROJECTED 2010

LINEUP

Catcher Michael Barrett

First Base Derrek Lee

Second Base Eric Patterson

Third Base Aramis Ramirez

Shortstop Ronny Cedeno

Left Field Alfonso Soriano

Center Field Felix Pie

Right Field Tyler Colvin

No. 1 Starter Carlos Zambrano

No. 2 Starter Mark Prior

No. 3 Starter Donald Veal

No. 4 Starter Ted Lilly

No. 5 Starter Sean Gallagher

Closer Jeff Samardzija

 

No Rich Hill? Is that because they think he'll have left for another team, or that he won't stay in the majors?

 

In the chat, Callis admitted that that was a mistake.

[Mephistopheles]

Q: Dan Williams from Sutton, MA asks:

I see Sean Marshall didn't make your Cubs' future rotation. What's your outlook on him?

A:

 

Jim Callis: I like Sean Marshall and think he'll have a decent to solid big league career. There just wasn't room after I put Zambrano, Prior, Veal, Lilly and Gallagher on there. I actually screwed up and left Rich Hill off the rotation--he should have been on there.

[Brian]

I don't see Barrett with us in '10

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Got my Prospect Handbook today so I thought I'd toss a few things out about the guys in 11-30.

 

- Mark Reed has made major strides defensively.

- Billy Petrick's heavy sinker was back after the labrum surgery at around 92 mph.

- Mark Holliman was down around 88-91 mph all season.

- Larry Suarez has been compared to Z because of his size and nationality. At age 16 (now 17), he's already 6'5" 240 lbs and conditioning is a concern. Had a minor back strain at instructs.

- Rocky Roquet has a plus FB (91-97) and a plus slider.

 

Callis also said in the chat that the Cubs believe Samardzija is their top prospect.

[CoolHandLuke]

I don't see Barrett with us in '10

 

For the projected lineups they always assume a player currently on the team stays on the team.

[craig]

...

- Billy Petrick's heavy sinker was back after the labrum surgery at around 92 mph.

....

 

Cal, thanks for mentioning that. BA's spin basically is that his arm was back to what it was before surgery. When I got my book and read that, I was surprised by that, and the lack of any further comment.

 

Because my recall was that he came up, did fine at Boise (despite low K's and high hits), got bumped to Daytona, got hammered (24 hits/9K/16 innings) and then got returned to the DL for the last several weeks of the season. So when the season ended, I wasn't that optimistic about a post-op who ended up right back on the DL after only a couple of weeks.

 

So I was surprised that Callis spun it like he's back with a heavy 90's sinker again, as if his arm was fine. Without addressing the fact that he'd gone right back to the DL in short order.

 

Any thoughts about this? Possibilities I see:

1) Optimistic. Guy was coming back from surgery, rehab summer. He showed he had the arm at Boise. By the time he hit Daytona his arm had gone through a lot, maybe was tired. Nothing wrong with his arm, they just thought it made sense to shut him down a little early. Perhaps he was back in Instrux, and they again saw his arm being fine and his heavy fastball in the 90's.

 

2) Pessimistic. I'm not sure how much discussion Callis has, or how good of notes he takes, on guys towards the 2nd half of his list. We know that if he ever gets enthused about a guy, he has a hard time letting go (see Kelton, Brownlie, Dopirak, Harvey...), and Petrick was a guy Callis liked a lot at one time. So, he got a report during Boise that Petrick was back and throwing 90's, he knows he's still 22 so age isn't a problem. So he popped him into top-20 without even realizing that he'd ended up DL with perhaps more problems?

 

Anybody hear anything about Petrick, other than via Callis? I'm thinking that possibility 1 seems much more reasonable than possibility 2. I'd be surprised if Callis really didn't know that Petrick ended on DL, or without talking to some Cub people. So I tend to trust that the positivity about Petrick and his arm recovery and the lack of mention of his ending back on DL is informed, and reflects that whatever put him back on DL didn't seem like anything substantial to the Cubs. It would certainly be cool if Petrick could re-emerge as a prospect of some interest.

 

Not sure how far you go with a 91-92 sinker that's actually often 88-90, and with no good slider or change to match it. But, you never know.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Well, my chat question was about Petrick's health and it went unanswered. One possibility was that the Cubs just weren't forthcoming about health questions for the guys eligible for the Rule 5 (Campusano, Petrick) to try to keep them. Callis also said Petrick would start at high-A Daytona, so another mention of no health issues there. I could easily see option 1 - or a slight injury that isn't serious but because he's coming off major surgery, the Cubs just completely shut him down.

 

If I remember right about Billy's 3 Daytona starts, a couple of them were affected by the big inning (one of which I remember was the 6th inning after 5 shutout innings with limited hits) so hopefully that's a positive thing to look at in his disappointing stint at high-A.

[roadster]

Got my Prospect Handbook today so I thought I'd toss a few things out about the guys in 11-30.

 

- Mark Reed has made major strides defensively.

- Billy Petrick's heavy sinker was back after the labrum surgery at around 92 mph.

- Mark Holliman was down around 88-91 mph all season.

- Larry Suarez has been compared to Z because of his size and nationality. At age 16 (now 17), he's already 6'5" 240 lbs and conditioning is a concern. Had a minor back strain at instructs.

- Rocky Roquet has a plus FB (91-97) and a plus slider.

 

Callis also said in the chat that the Cubs believe Samardzija is their top prospect.

 

This comment pretty much sums up the status of the Cubs farm system. If Callis thinks that the best prospect is a future reliever, then there are not much impact players down on the farm.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Got my Prospect Handbook today so I thought I'd toss a few things out about the guys in 11-30.

 

- Mark Reed has made major strides defensively.

- Billy Petrick's heavy sinker was back after the labrum surgery at around 92 mph.

- Mark Holliman was down around 88-91 mph all season.

- Larry Suarez has been compared to Z because of his size and nationality. At age 16 (now 17), he's already 6'5" 240 lbs and conditioning is a concern. Had a minor back strain at instructs.

- Rocky Roquet has a plus FB (91-97) and a plus slider.

 

Callis also said in the chat that the Cubs believe Samardzija is their top prospect.

 

This comment pretty much sums up the status of the Cubs farm system. If Callis thinks that the best prospect is a future reliever, then there are not much impact players down on the farm.

 

Callis thinks the Cubs top 2 prospects are Pie and Veal - the Cubs themseles believe it's Samardzija. They obviously don't think so highly of Samardzija if they don't think he'll remain a starter.

 

Q: Mr. Colvin from Flip-Flopping, U.S.A. asks:

Was Samarzdija's new contract the sole reason for him and Tyler Colvin swapping spots on your Top 10?

 

A: Jim Callis: When the Prospect Handbook went to print, there was a very realistic possibility that Samardzija would leave baseball for football, so that had to be held against him. After the Cubs locked him up, I jumped him up a spot in the issue Top 10. The Cubs' internal belief is that Samardzija is their top prospect. Upside, yes. But I think it's safer to go with Pie at No. 1 and Veal at No. 2, and their upsides are nice as well.

 

I see quite a few potential impact players at the lower levels of the Cubs system (Peoria, Boise, Mesa, Dominican).

[CuseCubFan69]

I think the Cubs were recruiting Smartz to sign and that was the reason a lot of people think that way.

[Mephistopheles]

what did it say on

 

21. Baez

26. Roquet

28. Taylor

29. Atkins

[craig]

If Callis thinks that the best prospect is a future reliever, then there are not much impact players down on the farm.

 

Callis thinks the Cubs top 2 prospects are Pie and Veal - the Cubs themseles believe it's Samardzija. They obviously don't think so highly of Samardzija if they don't think he'll remain a starter.

 

I think there's some over-reading stuff going on.

 

1. They are only listing 6 pitchers, so they routinely put in rotation prospects in the "closer" spot on their list. And inevitably that's the guy who throws real hard.

 

2. Callis made that list before Sam had signed. I got my prospect book a couple of weeks ago. Not sure I received mine before he signed. But the book went to press at least weeks if not a month or more before he signed. I'm surprised they included him at all. I think that they did speaks to how interesting they think he is, rather than that the fact that they didn't project him into rotation speaks to how bad he and the system is.

 

3. That Callis didn't even give that projection enough thought to include Hill speaks to how little thought went into it. Drawing too many conclusions from such a thoughtless exercise is silly.

 

4. Callis likes Veal a lot. He had him among his top 15 pitching prospects, ahead of Sam, by a little. He still has him ahead of Sam. So it's not that surprising that if he's going to choose Veal or Sam to list in his rotation, that he chose Veal for rotation and Sam for closer.

 

5. Also not surprising that if he was going to include both Gallagher and Sam (by mistake, since he forgot Hill), that Gallagher's wide array of pitches and supposedly non-dominant fastball does not profile him for closer. No surprise that well-rounded Gallagher would get slipped into the rotation slot and power Sam into the closer spot.