Archive for February, 2009

We’ve talked about the Total Zone Ratings already now available at minor league splits. You can read more about them here. These are the players who had the best gloves in the system last year, by position.

1B – Josh Phelps – 9 runs, 11 runs per 150 games
2B – Jose Martinez – 3, 5 p/150
3B – David Freese – 8, 12 p/150
SS – Pete Kozma – 11, 19 p/150
OF – Jon Jay 16, 25 p/150
OF – Antonio DeJesus 16, 36p/150
OF – Tommy Pham 10, 19p/150

Rasmus was 9 and 15 per 150, in case you were wondering.

- I’m rooting for Josh Phelps to win the 1B job for the Giants.
- Our depth at 2B is thin, thin, thin.
- Pete Kozma and Freese can pick it pretty well.
- Pham is a four tool stud missing one very important tool – the ability to make contact.
- DeJesus is flying under the radar a bit. Good OBP, great glove and no power whatsoever. Could grow into an interesting bench player.
- Jon Jay is the Chief Justice of Center Field.

Mark Diapoules – One of the last draft and follows and an interesting sleeper. Diapoules posted some nifty numbers at the Quad Cities, striking out nearly a batter per inning (52 in 55.2) while getting two ground-outs for every air-out. Diapoules was promoted to his home town of Palm Beach, and his hit, strikeout and walk rates all trended in the wrong direction, but he didn’t embarrass himself. A tall and lean bodied hurler, Diapoules can touch 93, but gets better sink on his fastball when he’s throwing it in the 86-91 MPH range. He throws from a high 3/4 arm slot and is said to have effortless mechanics. Diapoules also throws a tight slider and a change-up, both with average potential. He still has some projectability to his body and could be someone that blossoms into an above average major league starter. He will need to refine his command a little bit to take it to the next level. I look for him to start his season playing again for the home crowds at Palm Beach.

Anthony Ferrara – Ferrara was a well-known prep prospect for some time and was thought to be a potential first rounder, but his draft stock took a tumble when fears about the health of his shoulder arose. Dr. Jim Andrews prescribed rest rather than surgery. He throws a 89-91 MPH fastball but has been clocked as high as 95 in shorter stints. Ferrara also has a curve and a change with the potential to be average or a little better. Ferrara was assigned to the GCL this past season, and there struck out 36 in 30 innings. Getting a high upside arm like Ferrara’s in the 7th round of the draft could prove to be a real steal. We probably won’t see him again until the short season squads start, it’s most likely Johnson City for his next stop.

Deryk Hooker – The kid has been a strikeout machine since being drafted in the 7th round in 2007, with 120 of them in just 96 professional innings. He’s also shown exceptional command of the plate, with a sterling 4:1 K:BB ratio. Following his 2007 debut where he shredded the Gulf Coast League (8.4 BB%, 35.9 K%, 1.92 FIP in 31.0 IP), Hooker was similarly dominant in the Appy in 2008 (7.9 BB%, 31.1 K%, 2.65 FIP in 42.2 IP). Upon being promoted to the Quad Cities, Hooker’s rates took a hit (6.5 BB%, 19.4 K%, 3.80 FIP in 22.1 IP), but he remained solid. At 6-4, Hooker throws from a downhill plane with a heater in the 89-92 range, touching 94. He also has a true 12-6 yakker and the makings of a solid average changeup, which explains the results. Now for the bad: Depending on who you talk to, Hooker’s mechanics are iffy to horrid. He’ll fly open on his right side and is also said to throw across his body. The first flaw is easily fixed, the second could relegate his ceiling to relief. Look for Hooker to put up solid numbers again for the Quad Cities.

When people bark that players like Walters should do great in the majors based off of his minor league numbers, here’s one place where we can point them.  When you look at the associated major league graph or this composite one, you can see that velocity in the majors correlates with success* than in the minors.  The short version is that velocity is more important in the majors than the minors.  Here’s the take away line from the Cameron’s minor league analysis:

There are a good number of pitchers who miss bats without a big fastball. When looking at minor league pitching numbers, you have to keep this in mind – gaudy statistics do not mean that you can automatically infer major league quality stuff.

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Sounds like he’s out about a month. That addition to the 40-man roster continues to look foolish.

Azru note: We put this together about a month ago and then I let it languish in the drafts.  It took a while to put together but the depth of the subject required it.  You might not find some sleepers that we’ll wind up discussing next year; guys like Jonathan Edwards or Tommy Pham but we’ve covered a pretty hefty gauntlet in this post.  The Cardinals have a lot of depth in their minor league outfield. If some of this reads a little dated, well, roll with it.

azruavatar: The Cardinals have a gift for drafting outfielders. Jeff Lunhow started things off in 2005 with the draft of Colby Rasmus in the first round.  A true blue chip prospect, he’s been the poster child for the farm system for 3 years now.  Obviously the best prospect in the system (it’s really not close in my opinion), the question remains where his 2009 season will begin.  When talking about the outfield, Rasmus is the obvious place to start.  Pull out your crystal balls and tell me what you see for Colby in 2009 and beyond.

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John Vuch has been with the Cardinals ever since he was a teenager, and has has played a vital role in several departments before settling into the role of being the Director of Minor League Operations. Few, if any, know more about the Cardinals and the inner workings the farm system. After settling down in Jupiter for spring training, John was kind enough to answer questions from myself and the other writers at FR. Good stuff, as always. Enjoy.

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Can’t live without BA, but right now I’m researching Deryk Hooker and all I get is conflicting information.

2007:

Hooker produces easy velocity from a steep, downhill plane, with a fastball that sits at 90-93 mph and tops out at 94. He commands his heater to both sides of the plate and complements it with a true 12-to-6 curveball. His changeup also has the potential to be a plus pitch.

He’s mechanical at times in his delivery, and when he gets too deliberate he’ll fly open on his front side. But that’s an easily correctable flaw.

So he’s young and has three solid pitches? Awesome.

From a chat, 2007:

He throws from a steep, downhill plane anywhere from 90-94 mph that he commands to both sides of the plate and has an above-average 12-to-6 curveball. Changeup still coming, and an effective third pitch will be key to dictate future success.

Wait, I thought he already had a changeup?

2008:

He pitches at 89 and touches 92, and he commands the pitch to both sides, but he throws across his body, leading to questions about his delivery and arm action. All of Hooker’s secondary offerings are below-average — his curveball is a lazy floater that he gets underneath most times, his slider is a sweeper that moves across only one plane, and he slows his arm down to throw his changeup.

Wow. Now I’m really confused. Now he has one pitch, it’s a tick or three MPH’s down from the year before, and his breaking pitch and changeup are now garbage?And why didn’t the scout they talked to the year before mention his awful mechanics. All they said his he can fly open at times, just a correctable flaw.

Which one is it BA?

Don’t get me wrong, I love Baseball America. I think their writers are fantastic. I buy the book every year, subscribe to the site, and they’re the first magazine I grab off the rack when I go to the local bookstore. Butthis conflicting information is a little aggravating. Is it because a scout saw Hooker during a bad outing or two and another scout saw him in pure form before? Did he regress? Thoughts, anyone?

Check them out at Bird Land.

Interesting blurb on each pitcher:

Salas had a season in Class AA last season that had results “parallel to Kyle McClellan,” Mozeliak said. And while the Cardinals don’t see a McClellan like leap to the majors this spring for Salas, Mozeliak added: “We wouldn’t be afraid to bring him up to the big leagues.”

Salas throws strikes.

Samuel throws hard.

The lithe Dominican Republic native has an easy delivery and instant velocity. His speed appears to pop from an effortless arm swing. “Electric,” said one official.

Pitchers and catchers have reported. The world just feels right. No more hiatus. I’ll be back in the saddle tomorrow.

Things you never want to read.

Mitchell Boggs, the righthanded starter vying for a spot on the Cardinals’ depth chart as their No. 6 starter, has experienced tightness in his right shoulder during early bullpen sessions. Boggs will be evaluated by team doctors today as part of the pre-spring physicals, but management acknowledged that Boggs has felt some discomfort that has merited mention on the initial medical reports presented to the front office Friday.

Updated 3:19PM. Update on Boggs from Leach, things may not be as bad as initially feared:

Mitchell Boggs got some good news about his tight right shoulder. The tentative plan is to rest him for a few days, let the anti-inflammatory medication take effect and re-evaluate him early next week, but we were told that the concern level is lower than it was yesterday.

Update: We are now full. Thanks, everyone.

Nothing major, just standard 5×5, ten teams, Yahoo. We all put in $10, winner takes all. Well, 2nd place may get an FR mug or t-shirt. We can hash those things out later.

email me or simply comment if you are interested, I can just get your address from the admin screen. I won’t take just anyone, I’d like to try and stick with the regular FR readers if possible.

eriknmanning AT gmail DOT com