T2E

http://www.iowacubs.com/aspx/news.aspx?id=2135

Holliman has signed. http://story.scout.com/a.z?s=228&p=2&c=426350 Thanks for the report.

Yep.

I've use adjusted OPS, but the additional (1-avg) adds weight to the batting avg. which makes sense. Although OPS is already using average twice because OPS can be broken down to AVG + ISOW (OBP) + AVG + ISOP (SLG).

The only thing is that there really is very little difference between say, the A's and the Cubs. To get a starter to throw 100 pitchers, the A's would bring about 26 batters to the plate (100/3.86) and the Cubs would bring about 27.5 (100/3.61). One and a half batters a game really does not make that much of a difference in the long hall. I don't think that translated to more than a few runs difference per season. Looking at actual production is more important than P/PA.

Holliman, Graham, Mueller, Ware and Ruhlman are the only top 25 picks yet to be signed. I expect Holliman to sign. Ruhlman, Graham and Ruhlman are likely to be difficult to pull in, and Ware might be attending JC.

Lewis is now hitting .325 with a very respectable BB/K ratio which I like to see. He's a little old for Mesa and the home run power hasn't come yet, but I think he's got a chance.

Harris played for Old Dominion last year. He hit just .258 with weak secondary numbers. Harris, 6'3" outfielder, had a much better season in 2004 when he hit .352 and was named second all-CAA. Looks like a roster fill.

In addition to the Cape Cod League list, BA has posted their top prospects for each additional summer league (free). http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/college/050825summerlists.html

I'll disagree here and say that Encarnacion has a good chance to be a perennial all-star. You have a 22 year old prospect hitting .314/.388/.548 in the pitching favored International League. In addition, he plays good defense and has plus tools pretty much all the way around. I see a lot too like and not much to dislike.

Full list (free): http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/college/cape2005.html

DOPE SLAP!!! Good to see these becoming more and more frequent.

Here's a post a made a while back comparing Ryno and Morgan: ..... Sandberg Morgan OBP.. 0.344 0.392 SLG.. 0.452 0.427 ISO.. 0.167 0.156 BB/AB 0.091 0.201 K/AB. 0.150 0.109 SBR.. 39 109.5 Does Sandbergs .25 points in slugging make up for Morgan's .48 points in OBP and much better Stolen Base Runs? Uh No. Defensively they were both excellent and while Sandberg has a slighly lead in FP% and RF, Morgan turned a slighly greater number of double plays per game. But one thing that is forgotten in all of this raw stating is context. There are two main forms of context to be dealt with. 1. The league averages 2. Park effects Morgan played in a time much different than what the game is now. Although for most of his career, the mound was lowered he still played in a different era. During Morgan's career the average hitter hit just .260 with a .326 OBP and a .384 SLG. Morgan, who hit .271/.344/.452 during that time, sees his number get a boost when you consider that Sandberg's league averaged .269/.337/.404. And when you factor in that Morgan already had a higher OPS, his OPS compared to the league is significantly higher than Sandberg's. The other factor to consider is park effects. Here are the batter park effects for seasons with 300 or more at-bats (100=averge, above 100= hitters park): Sandberg 1982 103 1983 105 1984 109 1985 111 1986 108 1987 104 1988 105 1989 107 1990 107 1991 105 1992 103 1993 102 1996 101 1997 102 AVG. 105.14 Morgan 1965 93 1966 93 1967 97 1969 98 1970 96 1971 97 1972 94 1973 95 1974 99 1975 102 1976 102 1977 102 1978 100 1979 101 1980 92 1981 98 1982 100 1983 99 1984 93 AVG. 97.42 Morgan pretty clearly played in tougher ballparks. Park effects don't make a player, but they certainly give Morgan yet another advantage. Although they Morgan played slightly better at home, Sandberg has a huge advantage from Wrigley based on their Retrosheet available splits. There is no doubt in my mind that Morgan was the better player. Of course, he is an arrogent, biased, etc... and his refusal to attend the HOF ceremonies is pretty weak.

Well, at least Stephen Randolf has been excellent for the Cubs......oh wait Or how Carlos Vasquez is tearing is way through the minors........nevermind But John Koronka has made it all worthwhile.....no? Sorry, but the Cubs made a big mistake with this one.

Of freaking course it would be a 2:00 start. I have to play golf on Sunday after a couple of partners asked me to join them for a tee time at 1:00. Crap. You can't seriously be considering missing the game to play golf? You can't seriously be suggesting I blow off my bosses? I know. Just giving you a hard time.

Of freaking course it would be a 2:00 start. I have to play golf on Sunday after a couple of partners asked me to join them for a tee time at 1:00. Crap. You can't seriously be considering missing the game to play golf?

If you are only taking into account this years numbers than yes, Moore would rate higher than Dope. But Dope has shown in the past that he can be a legit 40 home run guy. Clearly he hasn't shown that this year, but the potential is undoubtedly there for him to be an above-average offensive first baseman. Moore, who is a full year older than Dope, has many of the same concerns (as you mention) and he doesn't have the immense power potential the Dope possesses. I worry that Moore won't be able to hit enough to play every day at first base (assuming he can't handle third). Dope is only a month younger than Moore. To me it seems that both players have had one big year, and one down year, with Moore's and Dopirak's switched between Low and High A. Neither did anything at Low A at age 19, but Moore got promoted while Dope didn't. My mistake on the age thing. I wouldn't really consider Dope to have recieved a full season at Lansing when he was 19, but that's just nitpicking. The real problem that I have with your argument is saying that "they both had one big year." It is somewhat truthful, Dope has had one season that has gotten him attention, same for Moore. But comparing the two doesn't make sense. Dope hit 39 home runs and hit for a .307 average. Moore is likely to hit about .275 with his home run total in the low-20's. When you take into account league, the difference is smaller, but it is still large. Dope hit 39 home runs, when Moore hits that many and sustains a .300 average I'll start getting really excited about him. I just don't see the same power potential.

If you are only taking into account this years numbers than yes, Moore would rate higher than Dope. But Dope has shown in the past that he can be a legit 40 home run guy. Clearly he hasn't shown that this year, but the potential is undoubtedly there for him to be an above-average offensive first baseman. Moore, who is a full year older than Dope, has many of the same concerns (as you mention) and he doesn't have the immense power potential the Dope possesses. I worry that Moore won't be able to hit enough to play every day at first base (assuming he can't handle third).

So far so good for Gallagher, 4 scoreless thus far. Mr. Bo Flowers has two hits, two RBI, a run scored a triple as Peoria leads 6-nil.

Am I the only one who doesn't get the big stink about this guy? Yes he has pretty good power, but his plate discipline is poor (averaging a strikeout a game this year and throughout his professional career) and he's really only having a solid year at a level he played at last season. At least Brandon Sing walks a lot and destroyed the levels that he's repeated. I feel like if Moore had been drafted in the 20th round instead of 8th overall, nobody would think anything of him. I'd also like to point out his errors so far at third base this season. Good point. Scott Moore the first baseman is far less attractive than Scott Moore the third baseman. He's become a solid prospect, but I wouldn't rate him in the top 5. My top five in no particular order: Pie Harvey Dope Cedeno Murton

Paulino is 24 He can mash. Hill was actually sent down, but I recall him loafing down the line as well. I was impressed with Sadler's tools. Unfortunately, he has no command of the strikezone.

I've seen a bunch of Indians baseball, so here are some comments: - Bobby Hill plays for the Indians as does Ray Sadler. - Bullington was the former #1 overall selection from the 2002 draft. His stock has fallen some, and he is now seen as a back of the rotation guy. He throws strikes but doesn't strike many batters out. - Nate McClouth has had a solid season. He hits for a good average, makes contact and runs well. The power is the only question. - Ty Wiggington and Grahm Koonce have seen some major league time and have some power, but have never shown the ability to hit for a consistant average.

Are you referring to the 8 strikeouts when you say "remember that it is still Mesa" or to all of what he's doing? Because quite a few other folks down in the AZL seem to be racking up the strikeouts, so I thought his 8 strikeouts was quite impressive. I like Lewis, from your writeup and from his box scores. While he hasn't hit any HRs, at least he's been hitting doubles and triples. Not bad for a 25th rounder. By the way, is the Ware kid from Georgia supposed to be a hard sign? He sounds like an intriguing pick too. No, I'm referring to his overall numbers (especially his average) when I said "remember that it is still Mesa." His low strikeouts have been very impressive. Ware is without a doubt the toolsiest (is that a word?) position player the Cubs drafted. He's got plus-plus speed, a cannon arm and a very fast bat, and I'd love to see the Cubs take a shot at him. There is some chance he will attend a Junior College which means the Cubs have another shot at him. I hope they're able to sign Ware.

IDK, but I sure would like to get at least ONE decent positional prospect out of this draft, and right now he seems like our best bet. Lewis and Episcopo are both putting up numbers in Mesa that make them seem decent enough. Granted, they might hit a wall somewhere down the line. But for now, they haven't done too bad for themselves down there. Lewis probably has the highest ceiling of the Cubs' signees thus far. The power has yet to come but the potential certainly is there. It's great to see him with just 8 strikeouts so far in Mesa. But remember that it is still Mesa. Episcopo is hitting above .300 but it's a fairly empty .300 as he isn't hitting for much power. There is hope; Episcopo hit nine home runs this past season, but I'm not overly excited about his chances especially since he has already played two years of Junior College ball.

Updated with the new signings. Although Holliman is expected to sign soon, he has yet to be officially inked so I took him off. Once he signs, Dylan Johnston will be the only remaining pick left unsigned from the first ten rounds. He said he wanted to go pro, but I haven't seen anything about the negotiations since the draft.