ilikeburritos - Mock

Very Early 2012 Mock Draft

by ilikeburritos on Dec 26, 2011 12:34 PM EST

1) Houston Astros- Mark Appel RHP- If the Astro's are gonna get out of the cellar any time soon, they need help in the minors and quick too. Appel could become a rotation anchor and could go through the minors quickly.

2) Minnesota Twins- Mike Zuzino- C- The Twins could also use a good- hitting catcher, especially since it's doubtful Mauer would return to being a catcher any time soon. Of course they also need help with pitching and could go with McCullers or Giolito here too.

3) Seattle Mariners- Byron Buxton- OF- The Mariners need bats. Period. They have sufficient pitching and their rotation is top notch with Pineda and Felix, along with Hultzen in the minors, but they just can't hit. Buxton is raw, but he has talent across the board and can provide a good bat to go along with Ackley and Smoak. The Mariners may need more than Buxton to turn the lineup around, but it's a good starting point.


12) New York Mets- Carlos Correa- SS- With the loss of Jose Reyes, the Mets don't really have many players in the majors nor in the minors to fill the void. But Correa could fill that gap with solid defensive tools and outstanding power.

the rest of the list...  http://www.minorleagueball.com/2011/12/26/2661876/very-early-2012-mock-draft

New York Yankees 2012 Top 10 Prospects List

1. Jesus Montero, C – 11/28/1989, H: 6’4″ W: 225 lbs – (Mike Koepp’s take) Jesus Montero was signed to a $1.65 Million contract in 2006. The 16 year old started his first professional season the following year and has shown the Yankees he is worth every penny of his contract. Perhaps he was a steal for that price? .280 AVE, 3 HR, 19 RBI in rookie ball, combined .337 AVE with 347 at-bats split between High-A and Double-A. Plus he owned Triple-A with 21 HR. The Yankees knew the now 21-year-old was ready. His MLB debut in 2011 only consisted of 69 plate appearances, .328 AVE, 4 HR, 12 RBI but was impressive considering the caliber of the pitching he faced.

Our Instinct – (Tom Belmont’s take) Montero came in at #1 on our 2011 Top 100 List based on his advanced bat at a young age and making it all the way to Triple-A as a catcher. As we said in his Prospect Instinct, as perfect storm of events have led to him being in line for a shot at the catchers position in the Bronx. His contact ability is elite regardless of where he plays. He’ll have above average power as a 20-something and elite level power in his prime. How long he actually sticks at catcher is dependent of how well Joe Girardi and Tony Pena are able to cultivate him. But those two are the reason for my optimism of a future average regular on defense and glowing reviews on offense.

the rest of the list...  http://baseballinstinct.com/2011/12/23/new-york-yankees-2012-top-10-prospects-list/ 

BenMc's Top 125 Prospects

 

by BenMc5

I've been constructing this list for a little while and have done a lot of back and forth, but feel comfortable with the ordering now. However I really like feedback especially from a knowledgeable community like this one, and hoping to generate good conversion and get a lot of opinions as well. I decided to do 125 in order to include my group of "bubble" guys who might make their way onto other top 100s. Let me know what you think.

http://www.minorleagueball.com/2011/12/28/2666851/benmcs-top-125-prospects

1	Bryce Harper	WAS	OF
2	Mike Trout	LAA	OF
3	Matt Moore	TB	LHP
4	Jurickson Profar	TEX	SS
5	Julio Teheran	ATL	RHP
6	Shelby Miller	STL	RHP
7	Manny Machado	BAL	SS
8	Devin Mesoraco	CIN	C
9	Trevor Bauer	ARZ	RHP
10	Dylan Bundy	BAL	RHP
11	Anthony Rendon	WAS	3B
12	Jesus Montero	NYY	C
13	Tyler Skaggs	ARZ	LHP
14	Wil Myers	KC	OF
15	Gerrit Cole	PIT	RHP
16	Jameson Taillon	PIT	RHP
17	Danny Hultzen	SEA	LHP
18	Travis d'Arnaud	TOR	C
19	Jacob Turner	DET	RHP
20	Drew Pomeranz	COL	LHP
21	Nolan Arenado	COL	3B
22	Jarrod Parker	OAK	RHP
23	Taijuan Walker	SEA	RHP
24	Miguel Sano	MIN	3B
25	Bubba Starling	KC	OF
26	James Paxton	SEA	LHP
27	Francisco Lindor	CLE	SS
28	Xander Bogaerts	BOS	SS
29	Archie Bradley	ARZ	RHP
30	Jake Marisnick	TOR	OF
31	Carlos Martinez	STL	RHP
32	Anthony Rizzo	SD	1B
33	Yasmani Grandal	SD	C
34	Oscar Taveras	STL	OF
35	Yonder Alonso	SD	1B/OF
36	Martin Perez	TEX	LHP
37	Hak-Ju Lee	TB	SS
38	Nick Franklin	SEA	SS/2B
39	Arodys Vizcaino	ATL	RHP
40	Brett Jackson	CHC	OF
41	Christian Yelich	FLA	1B/OF
42	Anthony Gose	TOR	OF
43	Randall Delgado	ATL	RHP
44	Mike Olt	TEX	3B
45	Cheslor Cuthbert	KC	3B
46	Michael Choice	OAK	OF
47	Jake Odorizzi	KC	RHP
48	Rymer Liriano	SD	OF
49	Gary Brown	SF	OF
50	Zack Wheeler	NYM	RHP
51	Manny Banuelos	NYY	LHP
52	Matt Harvey	NYM	RHP
53	A.J. Cole	OAK	P
54	Jonathan Singleton	HOU	1B
55	Jedd Gyorko	SD	3B
56	Brad Peacock	OAK	RHP
57	Wily Peralta	MIL	RHP
58	George Springer	HOU	OF
59	Robbie Erlin	SD	LHP
60	Trevor May	PHI	RHP
61	Josh Bell	PIT	OF
62	Nick Castellanos	DET	3B
63	Gary Sanchez	NYY	C
64	Mike Montgomery	KC	LHP
65	Noah Syndergaard	TOR	RHP
66	Starling Marte	PIT	OF
67	Will Middlebrooks	BOS	3B
68	Billy Hamilton	CIN	SS
69	Matt Barnes	BOS	RHP
70	Casey Kelly	SD	RHP
71	Jonathan Schoop	BAL	SS
72	Jean Segura	LAA	2B
73	Taylor Jungmann	MIL	RHP
74	Joe Wieland	SD	RHP
75	Sonny Gray	OAK	RHP
76	Chad Bettis	COL	RHP
77	Ryan Lavarnway	BOS	C
78	Leonys Martin	TEX	OF
79	Daniel Norris	TOR	LHP
80	Zach Lee	LAD	RHP
81	Kolten Wong	STL	2B
82	Justin Nicolino	TOR	LHP
83	Drew Hutchison	TOR	RHP
84	Garin Cecchini	BOS	3B
85	Keyvius Sampson	SD	RHP
86	Tyrell Jenkins	STL	RHP
87	Javier Baez	CHC	SS
88	Jed Bradley	MIL	LHP
89	Nestor Molina	CHW	RHP
90	Wilin Rosario	COL	C
91	Zack Cox	STL	3B
92	Zack Cozart	CIN	SS
93	Deck McGuire	TOR	RHP
94	Eddie Rosario	MIN	OF
95	Matt Szczur	CHC	CF
96	Taylor Guerrieri	TB	RHP
97	Cory Spangenberg	SD	2B
98	Matt Davidson	ARZ	3B
99	John Lamb	KC	LHP
100	Daniel Corcino	CIN	RHP
101	Tim Wheeler	COL	OF
102	Jeurys Familia	NYM	RHP
103	Oswaldo Arcia	MIN	OF
104	Andrelton Simmons	ATL	SS
105	Jesse Biddle	PHI	RHP
106	Addison Reed	CHW	RHP
107	Jarred Cosart	HOU	P
108	Dellin Betances	NYY	RHP
109	Blake Swihart	BOS	C
110	Joe Benson	MIN	OF
111	Jonathan Villar	HOU	SS
112	Tyler Thornburg	MIL	RHP
113	Kelvin Herrera	KC	RHP
114	Brandon Jacobs	BOS	LF
115	Mikie Mahtook	TB	OF
116	Neil Ramirez	TEX	RHP
117	Mason Williams	NYY	OF
118	Luis Heredia	PIT	P
119	Marcell Ozuna	FLA	OF
120	Robbie Grossman	PIT	OF
121	Jose Campos	SEA	RHP
122	Garrett Richards	LAA	RHP
123	Trevor Rosenthal	STL	RHP
124	Anthony Ranaudo	BOS	RHP
125	Bryce Brentz	BOS	OF

John Sickles Top Mets Prospects

1) Matt Harvey, RHP, Grade B+:

2) Zack Wheeler, RHP, Grade B+:

3) Jeurys Familia, RHP, Grade B:

4) Brandon Nimmo, OF, Grade B: Borderline B

5) Cesar Puello, OF, Grade B-:

6) Kirk Nieuwenhuis, OF, Grade B-:

7) Jenrry Mejia, RHP, Grade B-:

8) Reese Havens, 2B, Grade B-: Borderline C+.

9) Wilmer Flores, 3B-SS, Grade B-: Borderline C+.

10) Cory Mazzoni, RHP, Grade C+: Borderline B-:

11) Michael Fulmer, RHP, Grade C+:

12) Jordan Valdespin, 2B-SS, Grade C+:

13) Phillip Evans, 2B-SS, Grade C+:

14) Cory Vaughn, OF, Grade C

15) Darin Gorski, LHP, Grade C+:

16) Collin McHugh, RHP, Grade C+:

17) Domingo Tapia, RHP, Grade C+:

18) Akeel Morris, RHP, Grade C+:  

19) Danny Muno, SS, Grade C+:

20) Juan Lagares, OF, Grade C+:

21) Logan Verrett, RHP, Grade C+:

OTHERS: Robert Carson, LHP; Darrell Ceciliani, OF; Albert Cordero, C; Matt den Dekker, OF; Josh Edgin, LHP; Erik Goeddel, RHP; Gilbert Gomez, OF; Chase Huchingson, LHP; Jack Leathersich, LHP; Zach Lutz, 3B; Brad Marquez, OF; Jefry Marte, 3B; Rafael Montero, RHP; Greg Peavey, RHP; Tyler Pill, RHP; Aderlin Rodriguez, 3B; Armando Rodriguez, RHP; Josh Satin, UT; Chris Schwinden, RHP; Juan Urbina, LHP; Taylor Whitenton, RHP.

Mack On Baseball - Leave Dickey Alone

I'm sitting here watching R.A. Dickey live on CNN talking about his upcoming climb of Mt. Kilimanjaro.

This is embarrassing.

Do the Mets actually need more bad press?

Can you imagine Fred Wilpon going into the office one day just after he fought his way through the parking lot to get away from both reporters and bill collectors... and one of his underlings (i.e.Jeff) come in and tell him one of his pitchers is going to climb a mountain.?

R.A. defended the Mets in their decision to send him a letter saying his salary would be void if he injures himself on the mountain. He even said he would have sent the same letter if he was in that position.

I think the world has heard enough of the bad side of this.

Let's just get behind the charity he's raising funds for. Human trafficking is a worldwide tragedy and the raising of funds to eradicate it have got my attention.

Revised 2012 Draft Order - Rounds 1 and 2

First Round:

1. Astros ($7.2M)
2. Twins ($6.2M)
3. Mariners ($5.2M)
4. Orioles ($4.2M)
5. Royals ($3.5M)
6. Cubs ($3.2M)
7. Padres ($3.0M)
8. Pirates ($2.9M)
9. Marlins ($2.8M)
10. Rockies ($2.7M)
11. Athletics

12. Mets

13. White Sox
14. Reds
15. Indians
16. Nationals
17. Blue Jays
18. Dodgers
19. Cardinals (from Angels for Albert Pujols)
20. Giants
21. Braves
22. Blue Jays (for unsigned 2011 first-round pick for Tyler Beede
24. Red Sox
25. Rays
26. Diamondbacks
27. Tigers
28. Brewers
29. Rangers
30. Yankees
31. Red Sox (from Phillies for Jonathan Papelbon)

Supplemental First Round:

32. Twins (for Michael Cuddyer)
33. Padres (for Heath Bell)
34. Athletics (for Josh Willingham)

35. Mets (for Jose Reyes)

36. Cardinals (for Albert Pujols)
37. Red Sox (for Jonathan Papelbon)
38. Brewers (for Prince Fielder)
39. Rangers (for C.J. Wilson)
40. Phillies (for Ryan Madson)
41. Astros (for Clint Barmes)
42. Twins (for Jason Kubel)
43. Cubs (for Aramis Ramirez)
44. Padres (for Aaron Harang)
45. Pirates (for Ryan Doumit)
46. Rockies (for Mark Ellis)
47. Athletics (for David DeJesus)
48. White Sox (for Mark Buehrle)
49. Reds (for Ramon Hernandez)
50. Blue Jays (for Frank Francisco)
51. Dodgers (for Rod Barajas)
52. Cardinals (for Octavio Dotel)
53. Red Sox (for Dan Wheeler)
54. Rangers (for Darren Oliver)
55. Padres (for unsigned 2011 supplemental first-round pick Brett Austin
56. Yankees (for Freddy Garcia)
57. Phillies (for Raul Ibanez)
58. Cubs (for Carlos Pena)
59. Pirates (for Derrek Lee)
60. Reds (for Francisco Cordero)
61. Blue Jays (for Jon Rauch)
62. Cardinals (for Edwin Jackson)
63. Blue Jays (for Jose Molina)

Second Round:

64. Astros
65. Twins
66. Mariners
67. Orioles
68. Royals
69. Cubs
70. Padres
71. Pirates
72. Padres (Heath Bell)

73. Mets (from Marlins for Jose Reyes)

74. Rockies
75. Athletics

76. Mets

77. White Sox
78. Reds
79. Indians
80. Nationals
81. Blue Jays
82. Dodgers
83. Angels
84. Giants
85. Braves
86. Cardinals
87. Red Sox
88. Rays
89. Yankees (for unsigned 2011 second-round pick Sam Stafford)  90. Diamondbacks
91. Tigers
92. Brewers
93. Rangers
94. Yankees
95. Phillies

Top 50 draft prospects for 2012: 25 thru 1

Written by: Dan Kirby

This is a list of the top-50 draft prospects from high school and college. This by no means is a projected draft order, just a ranking by talent and potential. With all of these players having another season to work on their games, a lot can change come draft time. This is the way I see it right now.
(50 thru 26 can be seen here)

12. David Dahl — 6’-2”, OF, Oak Mountain HS (AL)
Dahl is another member of U18 Team USA, and his recent play has his stock soaring up draft boards. He hit .364 with 11 runs, nine RBI and seven stolen bases batting leadoff for Team USA, while also playing stellar defense in the outfield at the Pan Am Championships. The lefty is one of the purest hitters in the draft, and his short, level swing allows for consistent contact, which projects to a high average hitter. Runs a 6.5/60 and should be a real threat on the base paths. Aside from his offensive prowess, Dahl also has a plus arm, and coupled with his speed and high baseball IQ, should be among the top 15 picks in the draft.

The rest of the list:  http://www.throughthefencebaseball.com/top-50-draft-prospects-for-2012-25-thru-1/15694/ 

Top 50 Shortstop Prospects

1. Jurickson Profar—Rangers
2. Manny Machado—Orioles
3. Francisco Lindor—Indians
4. Nick Franklin—Mariners
5. Xander Boagerts—Red Sox
6. Billy Hamilton—Reds
7. Hak Ju Lee—Rays
8. Jean Segura—Angels
9. Javier Baez-Cubs
10. Zach Cozart—Reds
11. Trevor Story—Rockies
12. Christian Colon—Royals
13. Levi Michael—Twins
14. Joe Panik—Giants
15. Tim Beckham—Rays
16. Andrelton Simmons—Braves
17. Tyler Pastornicky—Braves
18. Wilmer Flores—Mets
the rest of the list: - http://www.deepleagues.com/2011/12/12/top-50-shortstop-prospects/ 

Mack on Baseball - Back End Deals

The recent signings of Jose Reyes and Albert Puljois have caused an awful lot of Internet chatter on this subject. Let me chime in here.

• First of all, every contract that is signed by a baseball team and a baseball player has been agreed to by both parties. There doesn't seem to be any animosity by either Jose or Albert, nor do you read about their agent bitching every day on the net.

• Contracts like this are sometimes structured this way so the team can offer additional dollars to other free agents and, thus, make the team more talented for the original signer to play on. Pitcher C.J. Wilson was signed by the Angels because of the back-ended Puljois contract.

• All contracts like these are iron-clad and fully insured. The players involved can't spend in a year the amount of money they get now, so, frankly, this is a wonderful way for a superstar to insure he has the money needed to take care of generations of relatives.

The Mets could have easily participated in these kind of contracts this off-season; however, there has to be a desire by both parties to put something like this together.

Understandably, the Wilpons can't think past their current financial woes and agents/FAs avoid situations like this until they are played out.

Top 25 Pitchers in the New York Collegiate Baseball League

Top 25 Pitchers in the New York Collegiate Baseball League

Posted by Andrew on 10:28 AM

It was a season of change in the NYCBL as several of its former teams left to form the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League. The twelve-team league was dominated by the Utica Brewers, Webster Yankees and Oneonta Outlaws, with the Outlaws winning its first ever NYCBL title. This summer, the Rome Thunderbolts will relocate and become the Adirondack Trial Blazers and the Olean Oilers will join the league as an expansion team.

Petit

1. Jacob Petit RHP Utica Brewers---Warner Southern
Jacob was named the NYCBL's Pitcher of the Year for his performance this summer. He led the league with 7 wins and was first in the league with a remarkable 0.71 era in 50.2 innings pitched. He allowed just 30 hits, walked 17 and fanned 50 this season. On November 4th, I named him one of my top performers of this summer. You can view my report here.

2. Brent Krauss RHP Utica---St. Petersburg College
Brent went 4-2, with a 1.30 era in 41.2 innings of work. He allowed just 18 hits and fanned 36 batters this summer. He was third in the league in ERA this summer.

the rest...  http://www.collegesummerbaseball.net/2011/12/top-25-pitchers-in-new-york-collegiate.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter 

Frank Gray - MLB Free Agents 2012: 10 Low-Cost FAs Sandy Alderson and New York Mets Need

 

By

Frank Gray

(Featured Columnist) on December 22, 2011

The New York Mets made a string of low-budget moves last week at the winter meetings. They acquired some bullpen help and a center fielder that is capable of batting leadoff to replace Jose Reyes. With all that accomplished, the Mets still have a few needs.

They need depth at outfield, catcher, the starting pitching rotation and the middle infield. They also have limited funds left to acquire all of this. That's the bad news. The good news is that there are still many options available in the free-agent market to fill these voids in the roster.

If Mets GM Sandy Alderson is a smart shopper this holiday season, he could obtain one or more of several key players that would not only help the team now but in the long-term future.

While there are many names still out there, the ones on this list make the most sense at the most affordable price. Some names here may surprise, while others may be expected.

Overall, however, all are viable and realistic options that are worth the time and money the Mets would invest.

For more...  http://bleacherreport.com/articles/992096-new-york-mets-10-low-cost-free-agents-sandy-alderson-needs-to-pounce-on 

Top 31 Catchers in 2012 Draft

Ranking the top 31 catchers in the 2012 MLB Draft

AUTHOR: Robbie Knopf

I gave you some scouting reports on the best catchers available in the 2012 MLB Draft over the past few days, but here’s your rankings of those catchers. The order of the posts I did was based on the order from mlbdraftguide.com (even though the scouting report were all my own), so a lot of players were out of order in terms of how I would rank them. Here is my actual ranking.

1. Mike Zunino
2. Stryker Trahan
3. C.J. Saylor
4. Alex Bregman
5. Tom Murphy
6. Wyatt Mathisen
7. RJ Ybarra
8. David Houser
9. Josh Elander
10. Clint Coulter
11. Dane Phillips
12. Kevin Pawlecki
13. Stephen Sauter
14. Jason Goldstein
15. Tomas Nido
16. Chris Chinea
17. Peter O’Brien
18. Chad Morgan
19. Daniel Garner
20. Nelson Rodriguez
21. Spencer Kieboom
22. Carlos Escobar
23. AJ Kennedy
24. Ronnie Freeman
25. Darrell Miller
26. Blake Hickman
27. Bryan De La Rosa
28. Mike Fultz
29. Scott Williams
30. Boomer White
31. Mike Lubanski

Draft 2012: - Jake Barrett, David Dahl, Tom Murphy, David Dahl

12-2-11: - http://mlbdraftcountdown.wordpress.com/2011/12/02/2012-mlb-mock-draft-updated-top-15-with-final-mlb-standings - 14) Cincinnati Reds: Jake Barrett, RHP, Arizona State The Reds have a large cache of position talent, but are severely lacking in the pitching department. Arizona State right-hander Jake Barrett can help shore that up, as well as reach the majors rather quickly. The Reds last dip into the Arizona State well with Mike Leake worked out pretty well. The Blue Jays selected Barrett back in 2009 in the third-round. Toronto was so high on him back in 2009 because he had a big-league body (6’3″, 225 lbs), a good fastball (90-94 mph) and two pitches (curveball and splitter) with above-average potential.

http://mlbdraftinsider.com/2011/12/top-twelve-high-school-position-players/#more-602 4.David Dahl / OF / Oak Mountain HS (AL): Dahl is sort of the anti-Willams — not to say that he isn’t a talented player — in that the upside isn’t as high as most of the players listed below him, but his makeup and IQ are in the upper-echelon of prospects. A plus runner who hits from the left-side, Dahl should hit plenty of doubles with his line drive stroke and may have the best approach of any prep player in the class. He reminds me of a poor mans Dustin Ackley, and you could do far worse than that.

Tom Murphy has nice speed for a catcher, running a 6.75 in the 60 (like a 4.47 in the 40), and he is quick behind the plate as well, but his arm is just solid-average and it has been inaccurate at times. He blocks balls well behind the plate, but he still needs a lot of work. Evaluation: Murphy’s power potential makes him an intriguing prospect, but his just solid plate discipline and tendency for strikeouts limit him a bit and so does his inconsistency behind the plate. Murphy is a second to third round prospect, and if he fails to stay behind the plate, the Rays will have to consider him with their second or third pick in the draft because of his power. http://rayscoloredglasses.com/2011/12/21/taking-an-early-look-at-the-catchers-in-the-2012-mlb-draft-part-1  

12-2-11: - http://mlbdraftcountdown.wordpress.com/2011/12/02/2012-mlb-mock-draft-updated-top-15-with-final-mlb-standings - 15) Cleveland Indians: David Dahl, OF, Oak Mountain HS (AL) With Grady Sizemore on the outs, the Indians will be looking for a player capable of filling the very large space left in centerfield by the veteran outfielder. David Dahl isn’t going to get to Cleveland in two or three years, but he’s as talented an outfield prospect as there is next to Byron Buxton. Perfect Game calls his bat “of the highest level,” and even Baseball Americaconcedes that his bat right now is better than Buxton’s. The only reason Dahl isn’t considered the top overall high school position player isn’t because he’s lacking something; it’s because scouts are that in love with Buxton. Still, he would be an excellent pick up down here at pick 15.