BA's Prospect Hot Sheet

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Finally two Cubs make it:

 

May 15 Hot Sheet[/url]"]6. Eric Patterson, 2b, Triple-A Iowa (Cubs)

 

Few batters were hotter than Patterson last week, as he went 15-for-30 with three home runs and 11 runs scored. With five homers already, Patterson is already half-way to his 2006 total.

 

10. Mark Holliman, rhp, Double-A Tennessee (Cubs)

 

Wow, two Cubs in the top 10. Holliman took his first loss on Monday, but before that the 2005 third-rounder went 5-0, 0.44 in 41 innings.

 

They waited till Holliman had a bad start to finally get him on there.

[Guest]

Finally two Cubs make it:

 

May 15 Hot Sheet[/url]"]6. Eric Patterson, 2b, Triple-A Iowa (Cubs)

 

Few batters were hotter than Patterson last week, as he went 15-for-30 with three home runs and 11 runs scored. With five homers already, Patterson is already half-way to his 2006 total.

 

10. Mark Holliman, rhp, Double-A Tennessee (Cubs)

 

Wow, two Cubs in the top 10. Holliman took his first loss on Monday, but before that the 2005 third-rounder went 5-0, 0.44 in 41 innings.

 

They waited till Holliman had a bad start to finally get him on there.

I'm guessing Pie has to make it next time if he continues this kind of pace.

[Guest]

May 21 Hot Sheet[/url]"]4. Jake Fox, c/of/1b, Double-A Tennessee (Cubs)

 

On fire. Six straight multi-hit games before having that streak snapped on Saturday. Batted .552 with four homers last week while playing three different positions.

[C.C.]

No love for Pie?

[Guest]

Still no love for Pie.

 

May 29 Hot Sheet[/url]"]NOT-SO-HOT

 

Brian Dopirak, 1b, high Class A Daytona (Cubs)

 

BA national writer Chris Kline predicted a comeback year for Dopirak. Chris Kline was wrong. But hey, it's only May and Dopirak has already been reassigned from Double-A Tennessee to another turn through the Florida State League where he's struck out 11 in his first 42 at-bats.

[don_kessinger_was_good]

Still no love for Pie.

 

May 29 Hot Sheet[/url]"]NOT-SO-HOT

 

Brian Dopirak, 1b, high Class A Daytona (Cubs)

 

BA national writer Chris Kline predicted a comeback year for Dopirak. Chris Kline was wrong. But hey, it's only May and Dopirak has already been reassigned from Double-A Tennessee to another turn through the Florida State League where he's struck out 11 in his first 42 at-bats.

 

Is Brian Dopirak the worst player currently on a big league 40-man roster? Seriously, wow. Done. Finis. Sayonara....

[Guest]

Another not-so-hot entry for the Cubs:

 

June 4 Hot Sheet[/url]"]NOT:

 

Jeff Samardzija, rhp, high Class A Daytona (Cubs)

 

Yes, the fifth-rounder who signed a major league contract worth $10 million was pretty good in his second-to-last start when he allowed a run on two hits over five innings against Fort Myers. But Samardzija has allowed nine hits or more in five of his 11 outings and has proven very hittable in his first full season. In 52 innings, the 22-year-old righthander and former Notre Dame wideout has allowed 76 hits and fanned just 20.

[Guest]

June 11 Hot Sheet[/url]"]5. Tyler Colvin, of, high Class A Daytona (Cubs)

 

A 2006 first-rounder, Colvin is holding his own among the top outfield prospects in the FSL--including Jay Bruce and Cameron Maybin, hitting .311/.342/.500 in 228 at-bats. Last week, he overshadowed both, hitting .441 with a pair of bombs.

[Laura]

nice to read something positive.

[BDWeav71]

I am currently interning with the Augusta GreenJackets, and Henry Sosa is one hell of a prospect. Too bad he's in an organization that is sloooooow to promote their players...

 

I hope he gets a much deserved promotion to high A after the all star break to see how he adjusts.

[CoolHandLuke]

I am currently interning with the Augusta GreenJackets, and Henry Sosa is one hell of a prospect. Too bad he's in an organization that is sloooooow to promote their players...

 

I hope he gets a much deserved promotion to high A after the all star break to see how he adjusts.

 

What kind of stuff does he have?

[Guest]

I am currently interning with the Augusta GreenJackets, and Henry Sosa is one hell of a prospect. Too bad he's in an organization that is sloooooow to promote their players...

 

I hope he gets a much deserved promotion to high A after the all star break to see how he adjusts.

 

What kind of stuff does he have?

 

Mid-90s FB and a curve.

[BDWeav71]

I am currently interning with the Augusta GreenJackets, and Henry Sosa is one hell of a prospect. Too bad he's in an organization that is sloooooow to promote their players...

 

I hope he gets a much deserved promotion to high A after the all star break to see how he adjusts.

 

What kind of stuff does he have?

 

Mid-90s FB and a curve.

 

A fastball between 92-98, a good curveball, and a show-me changeup he uses mainly against lefties. I see him eventually being a reliever, but if he continues to improve his secondary pitches he could one day start.

 

This is his first year pitching at a full-season professional level, so he still has some improving to do.

[CoolHandLuke]

I am currently interning with the Augusta GreenJackets, and Henry Sosa is one hell of a prospect. Too bad he's in an organization that is sloooooow to promote their players...

 

I hope he gets a much deserved promotion to high A after the all star break to see how he adjusts.

 

What kind of stuff does he have?

 

Mid-90s FB and a curve.

 

A fastball between 92-98, a good curveball, and a show-me changeup he uses mainly against lefties. I see him eventually being a reliever, but if he continues to improve his secondary pitches he could one day start.

 

This is his first year pitching at a full-season professional level, so he still has some improving to do.

 

Thanks!

[BDWeav71]

Nooot a problem!

 

Augusta's team is full of decent prospects. They have three pitching prospects who are pretty good. I see Henry Sosa being a spot reliever one day, same as Adam Cowart. The other prospect is Clayton Tanner, he's a 19 year old lefty with plus stuff. The Giants will be slow to promote him, he will be with the GreenJackets for the rest of the year continuing to work on his weaknesses. Right now he throws a LOT of changeups trying to improve on his approach against righties. I see him projecting to be a #3-#5 starter in the league one day.

[Guest]

June 18 Hot Sheet[/url]"]BLAST FROM THE PAST

Josh Kroeger, of, Double-A Tennessee (Cubs)

 

Kroeger, the minor league batting leader with a .389 mark, is no stranger to huge seasons. Now with his third organization, the 24-year-old outfielder batted .332/.376/.587 in half a season with Triple-A Tucson in 2004--and hit almost identically well at Double-A El Paso that year. Kroeger, who was selected by the Diamondbacks in the fourth round of the 2000 draft, has hit .542 in June to wrestle the batting title lead from Nathan Haynes and to bump his season line to .389/.456/.620.

[Post Count Padder]

June 18 Hot Sheet[/url]"]BLAST FROM THE PAST

Josh Kroeger, of, Double-A Tennessee (Cubs)

 

Kroeger, the minor league batting leader with a .389 mark, is no stranger to huge seasons. Now with his third organization, the 24-year-old outfielder batted .332/.376/.587 in half a season with Triple-A Tucson in 2004--and hit almost identically well at Double-A El Paso that year. Kroeger, who was selected by the Diamondbacks in the fourth round of the 2000 draft, has hit .542 in June to wrestle the batting title lead from Nathan Haynes and to bump his season line to .389/.456/.620.

I didn't realize he was hitting that well. :shock:

[Guest]

July 30 Hot Sheet[/url]"]10. Donald Veal, lhp, Double-A Tennessee (Cubs)

 

Enigma of the year. After getting shelled to the tune of an 8.86 ERA in April, Veal has turned it around. The 2005 second-rounder went 2-3, 3.00 with 28 strikeouts in 24 innings this month and is finally being more consistent.

 

Since April, Donnie Veal has pitched 77.2 innings to the tune of a 3.94 ERA, 79 K/41 BB and a BAA around .250.

[seanimal]

July 30 Hot Sheet[/url]"]10. Donald Veal, lhp, Double-A Tennessee (Cubs)

 

Enigma of the year. After getting shelled to the tune of an 8.86 ERA in April, Veal has turned it around. The 2005 second-rounder went 2-3, 3.00 with 28 strikeouts in 24 innings this month and is finally being more consistent.

 

Since April, Donnie Veal has pitched 77.2 innings to the tune of a 3.94 ERA, 79 K/41 BB and a BAA around .250.

 

Barring any major regression or injury, do you foresee Veal starting out at AA next year or getting the bump up to AAA?

 

Also, what circumstances determine whether a player plays in a winter league or not?

[Outshined_One]

Barring any major regression or injury, do you foresee Veal starting out at AA next year or getting the bump up to AAA?

 

Part of that depends on how Veal finishes out the season.

 

In spite of his recent success, Veal still has had a BB/9 of 4.75, which is pretty bad. For comparison's sake, Carlos Zambrano's BB/9 on the season is 3.89. We all know about Carlos' troubles with keeping his walks down and how they come back to haunt him. Veal's BB problem is markedly worse.

 

Here's the thing about Veal. He only gave up one HR in April and actually had a comparable K/9 to what he's sported since April (a little over 9, which means he Ks over a batter an inning). Two things killed him in April. His BAA was .277 (it has gradually been going down each month, with a .236 BAA in July). His BB/9 was a mind-boggling 8.44. Now that he's finally walking less guys and is giving up less hits, his numbers have improved dramatically.

 

The key for him is going to be keeping his BBs down. If he can somehow channel Carlos Zambrano and get to a point where he'll strike out enough guys and keep his BAA low enough to minimize any damage his walks could create, then he'll be a keeper. However, the problem is, Zambrano tends to be the exception more than the norm.

 

August and September should be interesting for Veal. He might get a AAA callup at the end of the season if he does well enough and certain factors play in his favor.

 

Also, what circumstances determine whether a player plays in a winter league or not?

 

It depends.

 

The AZ Fall League usually features a bunch of pitchers who are rehabbing from injuries and missed time during the regular season. Most teams don't like getting extra work for their top pitching prospects out there because of the risk of injury and overworking guys. The quality of hitters will almost always vastly outweigh the quality of pitchers there, especially considering teams like getting their best hitters some extra work.

 

With winter baseball leagues in other countries, I'm not quite sure what criteria goes into that determination.

[Guest]

To add to what Outshined said, you'll normally see AA or higher guys in the AFL (each team sends 7 guys to the AFL) and the top Latin American winter leagues (Dominican, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Venezuela). The new Hawaiian Winter League is more for A-ball and maybe AA guys - we saw more late draft signees there (for example Ian Kennedy and Joba Chamberlain were big in Hawaii last year).

 

For the Latin leagues, the priority goes to fellow countrymen in each league. These leagues are highly competitive so you'll mostly see AA, AAA and big leaguers (for example Henry Blanco got a lot of playing time in the VWL). Some of the other countries (Colombia, Nicaragua) have younger players and fewer veterans.

[Guest]

August 6 Hot Sheet[/url]"]20. Geovany Soto, c/1b, Triple-A Iowa (Cubs)

 

Among the Cubs better all-around catching prospects, Soto has had a monster year in the Pacific Coast League—a year that only seems to be getting better. The 24-year-old, an 11th round pick from Puerto Rico in 2001, has hit .386/.456/.773 with eight homers in 23 games since July 1 and leads the league (and all minor league catchers) with a .345 average. His .631 slugging percentage also leads the PCL, and ranks behind only Steven Pearce's .633 mark among minor leaguers.

[seanimal]

August 6 Hot Sheet[/url]"]20. Geovany Soto, c/1b, Triple-A Iowa (Cubs)

 

Among the Cubs better all-around catching prospects, Soto has had a monster year in the Pacific Coast League—a year that only seems to be getting better. The 24-year-old, an 11th round pick from Puerto Rico in 2001, has hit .386/.456/.773 with eight homers in 23 games since July 1 and leads the league (and all minor league catchers) with a .345 average. His .631 slugging percentage also leads the PCL, and ranks behind only Steven Pearce's .633 mark among minor leaguers.

 

Normally a guy in AAA who is raking is usually very encouraging. In this case however, it is depressing.

[CyHawk_Cub]

August 6 Hot Sheet[/url]"]20. Geovany Soto, c/1b, Triple-A Iowa (Cubs)

 

Among the Cubs better all-around catching prospects, Soto has had a monster year in the Pacific Coast League—a year that only seems to be getting better. The 24-year-old, an 11th round pick from Puerto Rico in 2001, has hit .386/.456/.773 with eight homers in 23 games since July 1 and leads the league (and all minor league catchers) with a .345 average. His .631 slugging percentage also leads the PCL, and ranks behind only Steven Pearce's .633 mark among minor leaguers.

 

Normally a guy in AAA who is raking is usually very encouraging. In this case however, it is depressing.

 

And how... Should have traded him at the deadline for something useful on the big club if he's not gonna get a legit shot... [j/k.......sorta]

[Skyballer]

Does anyone else have high hopes for Tyer Colvin?