RyCubsFan

Wow, that's a loaded top 20! Wow. Admittedly I'm bias, but I think Pie should be higher. His defense, for instance, is far superior to any of the other prospects on the list. I wonder if we were to look back at this list in 15 years who will have the best career...go Felix! Murton really impressed to be rated so highly. Only four spots below Pie! Like most of us, it looks like they call a tie b/n hill, nolasco, and pinto. i wonder how close marshall and ryu came to making it. same with sing.

I know that much isn't right. (plus I would put him in the top 10) Ha, good catch! Corrected now for da man's REAL name. :oops: I had a hard time rating him since he's so new to the Cubs system...and he's so far down the system. I thought the 11 spot was generous. After all, he's above Pinto, among others. Pinto has had outstanding double A numbers, where as Pawelek just cracked Boise. You're right though that he has great potential. Who would you replace in the top ten? The thing is, he has by far the highest potential out of any of the prospects in the system (of players not named Guzman). Despite the fact that he is low in the system, he pretty much dominated rookie ball (outside of the wildness) and has really good stuff. I'm not sure who I would replace but I would probably put him in the 6-8 range. You're right that his potential is very high. In part this is because of his age, so we're not sure what he is capable (or not capable) of yet. So we can let our imaginations run wild. Since he is so young and has not had the chance to pitch a fullseason in professional baseball yet, it hasn't even been determined that his arm can handle a full season. Like Petrick last year, he could get hurt and fall into seeming obscurity. For this reason, I chose to be a little conservative on him. Anyone hear about Petrick btw? Any word on how his recovery has been? Is he expected to be back and healthy next year?

Ha, thanks Tim! I like how Fox's power numbers improved as the year went on. I think Fox has a lot of potential. PLUS he's a Michigan guy, which is always a plus in my book (I used to go to all the UM games). Any reports on how Fox is progressing defensively? Any big changes you would make to the list Tim? Yes, but my top 30 list won't be coming out for a while! :D I'd move Aardsma down - but I always am tough on relief prospects. Marmol is too low. Pawelek is too low. There's more, but I don't want to ruin the surprise. ;) Yes, but you actually never came out with a list of your own last year! :wink: PLUS I challange you to come out with a list BEFORE Baseball America (among others) comes out with their lists. After all, it's too easy to see how the others do the rankings...and then do them, right...? I like the group moderator top 30 prospects that you came up with...however, I'd welcome you doing your own list as well this year. I wanted to have Aardsma a little further down as well to be honest. I also wanted to fit in McGehee somewhere...he's in there with the 20-30 group I believe. I'd be interested to know how you rank the lefties: Marshall, Hill, Pawelek, and Pinto...

Thanks Tedward! Yeah, I cheated by including them. But I like them too much to have kept them off! I mean, I restrained myself by not ranking Mitre. He would have been a top ten for me. I still have a lot of faith in Sergio.

That's a great point. It's a reflection of Matt's work ethic probably. He's really had a tremendous year. Way to go Matt! I like what Hendry said about him on MLB.com....that after he had a few defensive miscues, he worked his ass off overtime to improve his play in the outfield. I'd venture to say that's a big reason why he shot up the list.

Like you, I like Aardsma. Who you would you replace on the list though. I think Aardsma being so low reflects strongly on the Cubs system (and not negatively on David). I think everyone in the top 30 has a very good chance at playing in the majors. Indeed, some of them already have!

Ha, thanks Tim! I like how Fox's power numbers improved as the year went on. I think Fox has a lot of potential. PLUS he's a Michigan guy, which is always a plus in my book (I used to go to all the UM games). Any reports on how Fox is progressing defensively? Any big changes you would make to the list Tim?

I know that much isn't right. (plus I would put him in the top 10) Ha, good catch! Corrected now for da man's REAL name. :oops: I had a hard time rating him since he's so new to the Cubs system...and he's so far down the system. I thought the 11 spot was generous. After all, he's above Pinto, among others. Pinto has had outstanding double A numbers, where as Pawelek just cracked Boise. You're right though that he has great potential. Who would you replace in the top ten?

Now that the season is done, I’d like to hear people’s opinions on the Cubs prospects. It seems to me that the Cubs—though lacking many top surefire prospects—still have a deep system. Take pitchers such as Nolasco, Pinto, Ryu, and Marshall from Double A: all are legitimate prospects with a chance to be a solid #3 starter, however none of the four projects to be a future ace. That said, here’s a shot at a Cubs top 30 list. Do I have any glaring omissions? Any prospects you feel are way too low or way too high? What would be your top 30? 1. Felix Pie 2. Matt Murton 3. Ronnie Cedeno 4. Angel Guzman 5. Ryan Harvey 6. Sean Gallagher 7. Eric Patterson 8. Sean Marshall 9. Brian Dopirak 10. Rich Hill 11. Mark Pawelek 12. Renyel Pinto 13. Brandon Sing 14. Ricky Nolasco 15. Scott Moore 16. Carlos Marmol 17. Jae Kuk Ryu 18. Sam Fuld 19. David Aardsma 20. Jake Fox 21. Grant Johnson 22. Geovanni Soto 23. Jermaine Van Buren 24. Donald Veal 25. Bobby Brownlie 26. Luis Montanez 27. Adam Greenberg 28. Ryan Theriot 29. Mike Fontenot 30. Mark Reed Honorable Mention: Billy Petrick, Chad Blasko, Luke Hagerty

Here here.

1. Greg Maddux going for 15 wins 2. getting above .500 3. getting past milwaukee im still watching :wink: 4. For Murton to tear it up, increasing his chances to be the Cubs opening day leftfielder next year. 5. For Corey to have a great last week (either raising his trade credentials or turning a corner for next year).

I think Arizona would at least consider it. I'd do it. The Cubs get huge salary relief. Webb makes the rotation dangerous. Tracy is a step down from Lee, but gives the Cubs OBP, and the ability to still go out and get a big bat. =P~ I think some people here are against trading Lee too much. His value will never be higher, and it's untelling what they could get for him. I'm too impressed by Lee as a ballplayer and as a person to consider trading him...even if could potentially improve the Cubs. Lee is someone the Cubs should continue to build around.

I agree with you Raw. The Cubs pitching staff led the league in strike outs, and ranked only behing Houston in hits allowed. Yet, the staff is in the middle of the pack in ERA. Why? Walks. On the offensive side, the Cubs have the second highest team batting average in the league. They have hit more home runs and doubles than than any other team in the NL, save the Reds. Yet, they rank in the middle of the pack in runs scored? Why? Too few walks. So my priorities in the offseason: --Picking up players with high OBP (ehemm...Giles) --Signing a bullpen pitcher or two that have excellent control

I have to disagree with you about Ortiz. Yes, he's had a great year. But ARod certainly is more valuable. While their offensive numbers are equally impressive, ARod plays defense (and a good one at that), while Ortiz DH's. This tips it to ARod imo. I put Clemens just behind Carpenter. Carpenter has 7 complete games. That's the primary factor that tipped it for me. He goes deeper into games. He's also been the leader of the Cards staff this year. And while W/L records should not mean much, there is at least something minimally to be said about the fact that his ratio of W/L is much better than Clemens. And I'm sticking with Lee over Pujols. He may have cooled off, but his yearly numbers still equal Pujols'.

Oh, I agree that he won't win it. There are just my picks about who SHOULD win the awards. Since he and Pujols' offensive numbers are essentially a wash, I think Lee's defensive superiority SHOULD give him the award over Pujols. The Cubs minus Lee this year would lose more games than the Cards minus Pujols. Jones, who will probably be Pujols' biggest competition for the award, should be third in my opinion.

He won't be a rookie next year. Regardless of whether he gets the at-bats, he's got more than 45 days of service time already. Oh well, no ROY chance for Matty. Guess he'll have to go for the MVP!! :D

If the season were to end today, how would you dish out the league awards? Here’s my take: AL CY Johan Santana (Runner up: Colon) AL MVP Alex Rodriguez (Runner Up: Ortiz) NL CY Chris Carpenter (Runner Up: Clemens) NL MVP Derek Lee (Runner Up: Pujols) Agree? Disagree?

What about Walker, Williams, Nolasco, and Sing for Dunn? (I'm trying to think of a realistic package that the Reds would go for...)

Just a side question: Will Murton qualify as a rookie next year? (I'm assuming the answer is "no" if Murton has over 130 AB's, which he projects to have. Am I right on this?)

Right, but their stats are not too dissimilar. And Murton did it two levels higher, three levels higher, and in the bigs! Aren't they nearly the same age?

I think Rawaction (or someone) gave Theriot's name in the nomination process, along with other sleeps (like Wells).

Sing's 24! Pitchers are players too! While Nolasco is deserving, if you want to vote for a pitcher, Hill, Gallagher, and Pinto have all had better years than Nolasco. Vote for Murton here. Cedeno had too few at bats, or he would have had my vote. Sing and Patterson were too old for their levels of competition, which is why I went away from them. If Pie had played longer, he probably would have had my vote.

Complete game Mitre!!! :D Call him up! He should be starting instead of Rusch. It's much more in the interest of the Cubs future to see if he can be a consistant starter. We know he has it in him!

What a great night by Sam Fuld! This guy continues to impress. On base 5 times! Anyone have his stats minus the slump to begin the season? Murton adds onto his case tonight for Minor League POTY.

I don't think that hitting leadoff has affected his numbers much. However, hitting in the monstrosity called RFK (where balls simply do not carry) certainly has. As much as I love Wikerson though, I simply do not see the Nationals trading him.