2013 BA MWL Top 20 Prospects

[CaliforniaRaisin]

http://www.baseballamerica.com/minors/2013-midwest-league-top-20-prospects-with-scouting-reports/

 

6. Albert Almora

Unlike most of the other players in the top 10, Almora doesn’t have overwhelming tools. But the sum of his parts adds up to one of the safer prospects in low Class A. He turns in above-average but unspectacular running times, but he plays like a plus-plus runner. His excellent jumps in center field allow him to cover plenty of ground, and his plus arm helped him throw out seven baserunners in just 59 games.

 

At the plate, Almora projects as a potential .300 hitter with 15-20 home runs. His feel for hitting is extremely advanced for his age. His biggest problem in 2013 was staying healthy. He missed the first month with a hamate injury and was shut down in early August because of a groin problem.

10. Pierce Johnson

In a Cubs system that has a multitude of impact hitting prospects but few pitching prospects, Johnson is one of the club’s best hopes for the future.

 

“He has the total package,” a third AL scout said. “He has the changeup, the curveball and pitchability.”

 

Johnson’s hard 81-83 mph curveball is his best pitch. He locates it well and has shown the ability to tighten it for strikes in the zone or make it bigger to get hitters to chase. His fastball, usually sitting 91-95 mph with average life, isn’t bad either. He can locate it to both sides of the plate.

 

Johnson doesn’t use his changeup as much, but it’s an average pitch as well. His command was among the best in the league, earning him a mid-June promotion to the Florida State League.

17. Dan Vogelbach

Few hitters in the MWL are more polished than Vogelbach and he also has some of the best raw power in the league. So why is he near the back of this list? It all comes down to a lack of athleticism and concerns about the rest of his game.

 

“He’s really a softball first baseman” is how one scout described him. Vogelbach is a bottom-of-the-scale runner, and despite plenty of work he remains nearly as poor as a defensive first baseman. Barring the DH coming to the National League, multiple evaluators questioned whether Vogelbach could ever play for the Cubs.

 

However, Vogelbach will keep getting chances to improve because he can hit. At the plate, he has an advanced approach that leads to plenty of opposite-field line drives. Unlike many young lefthanded hitters, he puts together competitive at-bats against southpaws as well.

[EhDubya]

I'm just curious - does anyone here who knows more about Vogelbach's prep career than I do (next to nothing), know if he was ever tried out at catcher?

 

I'm not advocating for this move now, trust me (unless it could work, of course!). I'm just wondering if during his time in high school his coaches or parents never realized that his future as a pro would amount to DH, below average 1B or bust?

[sneakypower]

that seems to signal Almora (behind Seager & McCullers) won't be top-25 on their list, and Pierce (ahead of Eflin, Berrios, Ross) might even be top-100

[The-Kris-Bryant]

I wouldn't read much into it. This is one guys list. The top 100 is a collective list. JJ Cooper also has no idea what makes a baseball player good. Almora will be higher than Seager and McCullers, possibly Stephenson too.

[Guest]

I wouldn't read much into it. This is one guys list. The top 100 is a collective list. JJ Cooper also has no idea what makes a baseball player good. Almora will be higher than Seager and McCullers, possibly Stephenson too.

 

McCullers, yes. I could see a very good case for Seager being ahead of Almora.

 

FYI, JJ Cooper is one of three guys who come up with BA's top 100 list.

[Tangled Up in Plaid]

Is Badler one of the guys now? Because I know he's in love with Almora.

[toonsterwu]

Haven't really been following, but the placement looks solid enough based upon past history and criteria of BA lists.

 

Pierce should be top 100. I think he's almost been a bit ... over-looked? If he's healthy, and if the stuff shows as well as it did this past year, he's a very good and complete pitching prospect with solid upside.

[Guest]

Rock Shoulders (Limbo): Besides a kickass name, what else do I have going for me? Did I get any support for your list?

 

J.J. Cooper: Not really. The general sentiment was that Shoulders is a good minor league bat, but not someone who has an advanced enough approach to be a big league regular.

 

Roger (Greenville, SC): If Vogelbach were a 45 defender at 1B and a 30 runner, where would he rank?

 

J.J. Cooper: Probably 10-15. Scouts are really, really, really skeptical about his ability to play first base even adequately. Vogelbach by all accounts is driven and will do everything he can to make it work at first, but scouts were near unanimous in saying he was really bad at first. I asked one scout if there are any comparisons to Prince Fielder defensively (another big guy who was always big as a minor leaguer) and the answer I was given is that Fielder moved way better than Vogelbach does.

 

Brendan (Indiana): I'm a little surprised that Almora was only 6th. Was his health a concern that knocked him down a couple spots or was it based on something else?

 

J.J. Cooper: Who ahead of him can he jump past? Buxton is the best prospect in baseball, Correa very well may be in the top five and is definitely in the top 10. Stephenson is one of the best pitching prospects in the minors. Seager and McCullers just have significantly louder tools then Almora. Almora is a very good prospect, but his ceiling is more limited than all of those guys because he has less plus-plus tools.

 

scott (stl): Vogelbach or Bird for you?

 

J.J. Cooper: Personally, Vogelbach. Better power. Yes, he likely ends up as a DH, but I think it’s a better bat long-term.

 

a.j. (dallas): Is Fried more of an upside, development pick as Pierce Johnson seems more polished?

 

J.J. Cooper: Yes. That sums it up well.

 

Jack (Toronto): If CJ Edwards qualified, where would he have ranked?

 

J.J. Cooper: Ask that question when I do the South Atlantic League chat in a couple of days. He didn’t throw a pitch in the MWL.

 

Bob Sacamento (Ft. Myers, FL): Dan Vogelbach seems like he can really be a threat at the plate but has little chance to play the field due to his lack of athleticism. I know he's not a Prince Fielder but how apt of a comparison is he to Matt Stairs?

 

J.J. Cooper: Sorry don’t see that comp. People forget how athletic Stairs was at one point. You may be thinking of the fire hydrant Stairs was when he retired, but Stairs played a lot of third base, some second base and even some shortstop when he was a minor leaguer. Vogelbach is already a defensively limited 1B before he turns 20.

[Guest]

Is Badler one of the guys now? Because I know he's in love with Almora.

 

I was just looking back - 2013 was the first year they used seven people to come up with their top 100 rather than just Jim Callis, JJ Cooper, Will Lingo and John Manuel. Besides those four, they also used Matt Eddy, Conor Glassey and Nathan Rode.

 

Callis, Glassey and Rode have left BA, I imagine Badler will be added if they want more than four opinions.