Now this is a nice collection of prospects for us to follow in the AFL:
Pitchers:
- David Kopp (Palm Beach)
- Lance Lynn (Springfield)
- Mike Parisi (rehabbing from TJ surgery)
- Adam Reifer (Palm Beach)
Position Players:
- Bryan Anderson (rehabbing from shoulder surgery*)
- Daniel Descalso (Springfield/Memphis)
- Daryl Jones (Springfield)
- Tyler Henley (Springfield)
I’d guess you’ve got at least 4 of the system’s top 10 prospects in that group and maybe more. We’ll have AFL updates once the games start in October.
*Correction: As Derrick Goold points out, Anderson did not have shoulder surgery instead opting for rehab.
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I just posted these in the DFR but I missed Reifer somehow. Nice group and makes me slightly understand why Descalso is getting less playtime in Memphis right now.
Good to see Reifer and Anderson on the list, Reifer because it shows the team believes that really has turned a corner in the last few weeks and Anderson because they still see him as a prospect or at least trade bait.
It is ironic that, in a year when our system was decimated by injuries, trades and poor performance, we have a more interesting group of prospects in the AFL than I can ever remember. Usually our entrants puzzle me but I don’t think I could come up with a better group than these guys. We probably should hold off on our top ten lists until we see what they do. Good performances could put all but Parisi and maybe Kopp on mine.
I’m thinking Henley could really launch himself into prospect discussions with a good fall showing.
Looking forward to this big time. Do they have AFL.tv?
The only question I have is why Hamilton wasn’t in the mix. He’s had a terrific season (identical .942 OPS in AA and AAA, with more OBP in Springfield and more SLG in Memphis), but he’s missed a lot of playing time the past two years.
Maybe all the first-base/DH slots were spoken for?
Easy, where do you see Kopp fitting in now? I know the year he was drafted everyone was higher on him than they are now, call it the honeymoon syndrome or something, but do you still see him as a top 20 or maybe 15 type guy? I don’t think he is in the top 10 but I could easily see him as one just below the cut line. Maybe I have just been higher on him than anyone else but I think Kopp is going to be my new pet prospect for awhile.
Hugo, thanks for asking but I really don’t know what to think of Kopp. We hear good reports on his stuff and mechanics but he’s been injured too much to get a handle on his potential. I know nothing about mechanics and I never actually see these guys so I do a stats vs. age analysis and mix in what I hear from more knowledgable people on this site and elsewhere. The AFL stint could tell a lot about Kopps. He’s healthy and been doing well at Palm Beach. If he has good outings against AFL level of competition I could get excited about him. If you’ve been following him closely I’d be interested in what you know about him. Also, in regards to your question I certainly think that he’d be in most people’s 15-20 range but I don’t know how much that means this year.
I know this has been answered before, but i can’t remember…about what level of comp is the AFL?
I would’ve rather seen Ottavino in there instead of Lynn just to see if Otto could keep up his recent success.
Vols, I seem to remember it being in the AAA range since most of the invitees are from the higher levels (A+, AA and AAA) teams and are usually slated for promotions and maybe NRI to spring training.
Yea I heard that it’s pretty much for players who are close within a year or a year and a half from the Major Leagues.
FanGraphs has with write-ups on player from the Surprise Rafters.
Cardinal profiles for Lance Lynn, Bryan Anderson and Tyler Henley.
http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/afl-preview-surprise-rafters