Braves Top 20 Prospects - per Minor League Ball

by willamos2 on Nov 16, 2007 2:23 PM CST Comment 12 comments

My question:

I'm not that familiar with the Braves prospects (seems like a LOT of B+'s and B's), but where would Elvis Andrus, Matt Harrison, Beau Jones, and Neftali Perez rate on this list if they were still in their system?

Jason Heyward, OF, Grade B+
Jordan Schafer, OF, Grade B+
Brandon Jones, OF, Grade B+
Tommy Hanson, RHP, Grade B+
Joey Devine, RHP, Grade B
Brent Lillibridge, SS, Grade B
Gorkys Hernandez, OF, Grade B
Jair Jurrjens, RHP, Grade B (worried about his health)
Cole Rohrbough, LHP, Grade B
Brandon Hicks, SS, Grade B
Jeff Locke, LHP, Grade B-
Steve Evarts, LHP, Grade C+
Jamie Richmond, RHP, Grade C+
Jose Ortegano, LHP, Grade C+
Kris Medlen, RHP, Grade C+
Julio Teheran, RHP, Grade C+ (all hype and scouting reports at this point)
Tyler Flowers, C-1B, Grade C+
Chad Rodgers, LHP, Grade C+
Jose Ascanio, RHP, Grade C+
Cody Johnson, 1B, Grade C+

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Prospects

Harrison and Andrus would each rank within the top 5 rather easily, I would think, with Andrus probably #1 or #2. Neftali perhaps near the low teens, Beau Jones somewhere in the mid-teens.

Just a guess.

Baseball Time in Arlington

by jamcadbury on Nov 16, 2007 2:20 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

Beau Jones

I don't think he makes a top 20 list for them. I'd put Feliz in the C+/B- crowd with Harrison and Andrus as B+. If Salty was eligible he'd be an A candidate

by bushe on Nov 16, 2007 2:27 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

+1

"On-base percentage is great if you can score runs and do something with that on-base percentage," Baker said. "Clogging up the bases isn't that great to me."

by jparks77 on Nov 16, 2007 3:15 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Harrison

I have a hard time seeing him as a B+. The numbers are great, but guys with mediocre stuff get caught up to at the higher levels frequently enough (COUGH, Mario Ramos, COUGH) that I have to devalue him a little. B/B- for me, and probably closer to B-.

Also, here are Sickels' rankings from last year when all those guys were in the system. Andrus got a B+. Harison got a B. He was very down on Salty after his rough '06, giving him a B. Feliz got a C+ with the note, "(terrific arm but a long way from the majors)", which is just as true now as it was last year. And Beau Jones was listed as an "other".

Ben Franklin. Gandhi. Jackie Robinson. Winston Churchill. Martin Luther King. Jesus Christ. And now... Dwyade!!!

by thedirkatron on Nov 16, 2007 3:40 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

How does

Harrison compare to Gabbard, Koronka, A.J. Murray and Rheinecker? Seems like he has a better arm than all of them.

by Rangerchick on Nov 16, 2007 4:53 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

At the moment

Gabbard seems to be regarded pretty well by the Rangers. But just on prospect status as they approach the majors, Harrison is way ahead of where the others were. Rheinecker was pretty highly regarded at one point, but not really after the injuries.

by Brett Perryman on Nov 16, 2007 5:03 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

lower level pitching

generally I agree with you about pitching success at lower levels catching up (and I think several Ranger farmhands fit this mold for me), but I think Harrison is different.

For one, he throws harder than the guys I usually lump into that category. Mario Ramos didn't know that radar guns went up to 90. Harrison consistently pitched 89-91 when I saw him which surprised me (because I had him slotted as you described).

Also, his stuff is a little better than mediocre. It is good enough to play in the majors if he uses it right and from what I saw, he has a better idea how to set up hitters, keep them off balance and hit his spots than most pitchers at his age and level. He knows how to stay down in the zone reducing the number of potential mistake pitches. Based on his control rates, I'd guess that this is a large part of why he has been successful thus far.

Lastly, being a big guy who doesn't appear to throw with a lot of effort, one would think endurance won't be an issue. I am not sure if his injury this year is cause for concern in that regard, but if it weren't for that I'd peg him as a future 200 inning eater. Plus with his size, it is not unreasonable to project the ability to add velocity (like Chris Young did after he joined the Rangers).

Still, he probably doesn't miss enough bats on pure stuff to grade out as a B+, but I think he's a solid B.

by Brandon Wilson on Nov 16, 2007 5:03 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

I agree

I generally agree with all of his other predictions, but I'd be really surprised if Harrison got a B+.

by Brett Perryman on Nov 16, 2007 5:04 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Everybody else was about where I thought they'd be

But Feliz, I thought he was pretty highly regarded. Is he a C+ guy to you? And if so, why?

Brett Gardner is big, we are little.

by Brian Thomas on Nov 16, 2007 7:40 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

No, he'd be higher to me

probably B, and I think more B- than C+ for Sickels, but he was still only in short season ball, and I could easily see Sickels only giving him that B-.

by Brett Perryman on Nov 16, 2007 8:22 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs