Top 10 Pitching Prospects Per Project Prospect

[mwashuc06]

1 Aroldis Chapman Upside is as a dominant No. 1; may end up in the pen 22.8 MLB CIN LHP

2 Matt Moore Made big strides w/ his changeup and command in 2010 21.5 A+ TB LHP

3 Shelby Miller Love his FB; CB and CH both may already be above-ave. 20.1 A STL RHP

4 Jarrod Parker Half tier below Strasburg, stuff-wise; health is a concern 22.0 AA ARI RHP

5 Randall Delgado Excellent command & movement; likely No. 3 or better 20.8 AA ATL RHP

6 Zach Britton Could be a No. 2 as soon as 2010; mechanics concern us 22.9 AAA BAL LHP

7 Jeremy Hellickson Plus CH & command; shoulder injury history is a concern 23.6 MLB TB RHP

8 Mike Minor Improved stuff from '09 to '10; No. 3 long-term, though? 22.9 MLB ATL LHP

9 Kyle Drabek Stuff to be a No. 2; injury history & command isn't great 23.0 MLB TOR RHP

10 Martin Perez Solid bet to rebound; stuff is there -- needs confidence 19.7 AA TEX LHP

HM: Manny Banuelos, Simon Castro, Matt Harvey, Casey Kelly, Jordan Lyles, Mike Montgomery Michael Pineda, Tanner Scheppers Jamison Taillion, Julio Teheran and Zach Wheeler

http://projectprospect.com/article/2010 ... -prospects

 

[200lbhockeyplayer]

Some strange (and seemingly "unpolished") brief write-ups.

 

[Huffamaniac]

Surprised not to see Julio Teheran make the top 10

 

[shephech]

Shocking to me that Jacob Turner is not mentioned at all...

Shep :ugeek:

 

[nborton]

Seems weird that they project some guys to be #3s and are still top 10. Either their list is jacked up, or the pitching is seriously weak in the minors.

 

[blazers091]

why is jared parker at #4 and teheran isn't even on the list?

 

[shephech]

Seems weird that they project some guys to be #3s and are still top 10. Either their list is jacked up, or the pitching is seriously weak in the minors.

This.

Shep :ugeek:

 

[sheetskout]

This list = Puke.

Uhh. Tyler Matzek?

 

[TGutta]

I know he probably isn't #1 material but I'm surprised to see no mention of Kyle Gibson either..

 

[blitzerlover]

Julio Teheran being left off is crazy.

 

[tm decomposer]

This list makes PP lose every bit of credibility that I've given them. Embarassing list, crappy write ups.

 

[sheetskout]

Jameson Taillon should be a top five guy too. His tools scream true ace.

 

[topprospectalert]

No Betances either. Teheran behind Delgado is a joke.

 

[All The Hype]

No Betances either. Teheran behind Delgado is a joke.

Teheran not in the top 3 is a joke.

 

[Firebirds11]

Shocking to me that Jacob Turner is not mentioned at all...

Shep :ugeek:

Yeah, that is defiantly shocking. Turner is considered to be better than Miller (as many people think). And Miller is 3rd? ::facepalm::

http://www.minorleagueball.com/2010/9/1 ... lby-miller

 

[hail2thevictors]

This list means nothing to me. Some pretty poor rankings there, no doubt.

 

[AdamF]

Thanks for the link.

200lbhockeyplayer, sorry for the short writeups. I had to room to go a little longer and you aren't the first person who has brought up that they could have been written better. We'll have detailed reports on each player on this list and every player in our top 100 in the 2010 Digital Prospect Guide -- ranging from 150-350 words each. We'll also have edited video of most of our Top 100 guys.

Huffamaniac, Teheran didn't make the list because I see him as more of a thrower than a pitcher. He didn't exhibit much command when I saw him pitch last spring and I haven't heard that he showed many signs of improvement in that area during the season. His upside is very high, though. He ranked 12th for me, narrowly missing this list.

shephech, I have some reservations about the amount of effort in Turner's delivery.

nborton, No. 3 starters have a lot of value. If I'm very confident in a guy as a No. 3 starter or better, I don't see a problem with putting him inside a list like this.

blazers091, I've seen Parker and Teheran pitch. Pre-injury, Parker's stuff was a bit better than Teheran's and his command was significantly better. I've gotten reports that Parker was touching 95-96 MPH with his fastball again in instructs and I think he's going to have an impressive 2011 season. He could spend a good portion of the season in the Diamonback's rotation and produce right away, though I don't see him as a guy who's going to settle in as a durable starter long-term.

sheetskout, the reports I got on Matzek this year were uninspiring. I liked him a lot as a draft prospect and still think he holds promise, but he's not someone who I'd put in a Top 100 right now, let alone a Top 10 pitching prospect list.

TGutta, we have concerns about Gibson's health and upside. His strikeouts dropped significantly with each promotion. I don't think that's a good sign, though his walk and GB rates were promising.

blitzerlover, other people like Teheran more than I do. I think there's a much higher chance that he'll end up as a reliever than a lot of people want to think right now. That's ultimately why he was ranked just outside our top 10.

sheetskout, I spoke with a scout about Taillon for about 30 minutes this evening. I was underrating his command in my initial evaluation of him. I think you're right that he belongs inside the top 5 on this list. He'll probably be inside our Top 25 overall prospect list when we release that in a few weeks. We're always trying to gather more information and sharpen our opinions.

topprospectalert, I want to see Betances do it over a full season. I saw Teheran face Delgado from right behind the plate in a minor league spring training game last spring. I realize that Delgado hasn't yet gotten tons of high marks by media members, but the dude's legit. Even if you like Teheran a lot more than I do, you're missing out if you think the distance between him and Delgado is huge. Delgado could easily go on to have a better big league career. And I've discussed both pitchers with a handful of scouts. Delgado isn't quite a sleeper at this point, but I think his stock is going to skyrocket over the next few years.

Firebirds11, I'm a huge fan of Miller's plus velo and movement to go along with two off-speed pitches that could be above-average, in his curve and now changeup, a pitch he really improved last season. He's the complete package for me, a solid bet to become a top-of-the-rotation starter. Miller and Turner are very different pitchers. Both have a lot of upside. I think Miller is the better bet to have a career as an impact starter.


Thanks again for the link and I'm happy to respond to any additional comments/questions. I'll keep checking this thread.


Adam

 

[Firebirds11]

"shephech, I have some reservations about the amount of effort in Turner's delivery."

What's wrong with his delivery? Looks fine to me. His pitches are outstanding if you have ever saw him in person.

 

[AdamF]

Here's a .gif of Turner's mechanics from before the draft:

I'm not sure how much he has changed things since then, but he was really coming across his body with some head-banging at the end. I don't know how many big league starters have long careers while throwing with that kind of effort. Again, maybe he's cleaned things up and this could have just been one max-effort pitch in an outing where he was trying to impress. I'll see if I can get some more recent info on him.

 

[AdamF]

I can make a .gif from this video tonight, but there's a decent shot of him throwing a live-game pitch from May of 2010 around the 55 second mark. Though this isn't as good of an angle to see if he's still throwing as much across his body, I still see the head jolt.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THW1Y7Ca3W4