Brickhouse

I know. You're amazing. You even knew I was going to write about Nostradamus before I did it. That's spooky good. You see everything coming. Well that is the implication in having opinions about baseball prospects probably, undoubtedly even. You might be onto something here. One day, if you work really hard at it, I mean really hone your craft, you might be able to predict that someone expected to be really good like the number one overall international free agent will be really good WITHOUT publicly patting yourself on the back for it.

Yet another prediction come true after the fact. You're good you. The hits keep on coming I know. You're amazing. You even knew I was going to write about Nostradamus before I did it. That's spooky good. You see everything coming.

Yet another prediction come true after the fact. You're good you.

Why wouldn't anyone believe you? He was the number 1 overall international free agent. And unless that employee was a hot dog vendor, most Cubs employees were thinking the same thing. Now if you told them, like you wrote here last year, that Kellogg would be better than Clifton, that would be a bold, unbelievable prediction. Remember when it was a thing that I was saying Clifton > Underwood? As the Cubs are sharp I would imagine actually being called the next big thing in a second/third pro season requires a little more than being the top 7/2 16 YO international FA from that one time. As grand and storied a title that is, probably something else needs to have happened two years later. Plus the Cubs had some SS, from that same 7/2 group, getting all the attention in full season ball that year. You're right. I give. You're greatest baseball Nostradamus since...well, Nostradamus when he foretold what many believe was the sport of baseball itself in 1564 with the famous quatrain:

Why wouldn't anyone believe you? He was the number 1 overall international free agent. And unless that employee was a hot dog vendor, most Cubs employees were thinking the same thing. Now if you told them, like you wrote here last year, that Kellogg would be better than Clifton, that would be a bold, unbelievable prediction.

Do scouts even go to watch Kellogg pitch? I'm truly asking.

I rarely comment but I read a lot of the comments here. I haven't read anyone calling Delacruz's inexperience as "purely a plus". If he were pitching in the majors it wouldn't be a plus but he's a prospect, so his inexperience means he still has more room left on his learning curve than a typical advanced A pitcher. I'd think that's pretty obvious why it would be used in evaluating him.

I agree that he's dropped in his prospect ranking. Last year was a bad year for him, but to say he hasn't done anything good as a pro seemed odd.

He's had a 2.50 ERA as a 19-year-old in the MWL and a 2.58 ERA as a 20-year-old in High-A. He lowered his opponent's batting average from .231 to .202 in those same years. He had a WHIP of 1.20 and 1.04 and got more ground ball outs over the same time frame (1.30 which is already pretty good to 1.46 in 2015). The main thing that he hasn't done well is strike people out and stay healthy, but the numbers he put up in 2014 and 2015 were well above average, weren't they? And he was years young for his level, wasn't he? I don't know as much as most people that post here and injuries and low strikeouts are definitely concerning, but to say he hasn't done anything good as a pro is just not accurate, is it?

Thanks! I'll add any names people want added. Cool. It's still too early for the 2016 draft guys and most of the 2015 IFA guys. I was more asking if that would be happening. Thanks!

Hudson's 19, more or less the same age those guys are on track to be in the NWL. There's not enough difference between what those guys are facing now and what Hudson was facing at the same age to really mince over it (if anything, Carrera's seen the most in his baseball life at/through 17). Carrera was with Isaac Paredes on Mexico's 15U national team in 2014, both guys pitched and hit (Carrera in the OF/CF and Paredes obviously as a SS). He's one of the more athletic pitchers in the system basically and has similar velocity to Hudson (t89 last year when signed) and is almost two years younger. Feel for a curveball, high baseball IQ.... Ocampo's a physical RH with a Matt Garza-y body type, contrast it with the gangly/loosey goosey type bodies of guys like Leal and Jesus Castillo when they were the same age. Typical FB/slider RH, could/should sit into the low-mid 90s once he's got his feet under him as a pro as long as he stays healthy. Not my favorite type of pitcher but at this stage that's not a thing. Really, the thing to take out is that the Cubs are slowly but surely building a pool of interesting arms and hopefully one emerges. My preference is one of the lefties, but we'll see how that looks in 2018+. ------ Here's a writeup from a seemingly thoughtful Cubs prospect blog on Hudson's outing last night: https://cubscentral.wordpress.com/2016/06/25/bryan-hudson-an-exercise-in-efficiency/ Thanks for the info, Tom!

There were reports from Mesa a couple months ago that Javier Assad, who started for the AZL Cubs tonight, was hitting mid-90s. I see he threw 5 scoreless innings tonight only giving up 3 hits. I wonder if he will be someone to watch.

Thanks, Tim. It's working well. This is a fun option to have on the site! I know it's still in development, but will you eventually be adding more names?

Blah on the velocity. Agreed. Frankly there's multiple arms that interest me more among the SS league players (Albertos, Cease, Marquez) and a few at least as much (Perez, Carerrera, Ocampo). I mean of this bunch if they even pull out one legit first division SP prospect it would be a win because pitchers. Really? Cool. I have heard reports of what Cease, Albertos, Marquez and Perez throw. What do you know about Carrera's and Ocampo's stuff? Velo? Secondaries? And do you think it matters their level of competition? Hudson is 18 and facing NWL hitters. Is the level of hitters Perez, Carrera and Ocampo are facing as 17 year olds similar? Thanks.

Nice. Off-speed and breaking balls were "vicious". It's rare to find such a young pitcher with such advanced secondary pitches. Do you think he's likely to add velocity as he fills out? I see he's 6'8".