Baseball's Top Prospects for 2010
Remember: This list evolves and changes daily.
LHP, BAL
A very big, sturdy lefthander from California, Hobgood is a fastball-curve pitching machine who projects as an innings-eating workhorse someday. He's a few years away, though, and he'll definitely need to develop a changeup before he can be set loose on advanced hitters.
More Scouting Book Info on Matt Hobgood >
191
OF, SD
The San Diego Padres third round pick of the 2006 MLB Draft, Hunter dominated the rookie league with a league-best .371 average immediately after signing. Moved up to the Midwest league the following year, he began to show off plus speed, both of the legs and wrists variety. He combines a preciously-good batting eye with gap-power and good outfield defense. A bump to high-A in 2008 did nothing to slow him down, either, as he put up a .318/.362/.442 line against the better pitching, adding a dozen steals and eleven homers just to salt things. AA did slow him down in 2009, though not to any great degree (.261/.294/.331, 13 steals in 16 attempts), which means another year of practice should have him lined up for possible MLB duty in 2011.
More Scouting Book Info on Cedric Hunter >
192
RHP, ATL
Righthander Randall Delgado is a wiry power pitcher with three quality pitches and developing control. His fastball, which can touch 95, lives more in the 92mph range with significant late movement. His control is about where you'd expect it to be in such a youngster: some days he can blow hitter away, while on other days he looks lost on the mound. He struggled a bit in his first full season of pro ball in 2009, but finished strong, with 141 strikeouts to balance against only 49 walks. There's no room for him at higher levels of the Atlanta system (the Braves farm is stacked in pitching) so he's likely to spend 2010 in class-A Rome, even though he's probably ready for a bigger challenge than that.
More Scouting Book Info on Randall Delgado >
193
RHP, CLE
A big-bodied ace in waiting with a 98mph heater, ex-Phillies pitcher Jason Knapp is one of the many young prospects in a refreshed Indians system. He enters 2010 as a 19 year old, but he's already one of the three best pitchers in the Cleveland farm. Arthroscopic shoulder surgery in September 2009 went swimmingly, and he's expected to be at full strength for 2010. He'll probably start at high-A and end the year in AA. He's on target for full-on arrival in 2012 or so.
More Scouting Book Info on Jason Knapp >
194
LHP, COL
A strikeout machine with plus movement and superior velocity, lefthander Rex Brothers gets scant attention in a system with so many live lefty arms. But he should: the Shelbyville (TN) native chewed up A-ball in 2009, striking out 28 while walking only 8 in 22 innings. And lest you worry about the small sample size, that's in line with his NCAA performance, where over three seasons he struck out 322 college hitters over 286 innings while walking only 142 of them. He's a bit behind some of the other Rockies talent developmentally, but he's definitely got the stuff to be a front-line starter someday. Don't forget about him.
More Scouting Book Info on Rex Brothers >
195
C, TOR
Until Travis D'Arnaud arrived, JP Arencibia looked like Toronto's clear-cut catcher of the future. Now that he has some competition, he'll need to step up his game to stay ahead.
More Scouting Book Info on J.P. Arencibia >
196
RHP, MIN
A tall, powerful strikeout artist, Guerra has been considered in both starting and bullpen roles for the last couple of years. He should be easy to lock up in the late rounds of a deep draft this year, but he promises to be much more attractive (and widely known) next year. With electric stuff but not much pro experience under his belt yet, Guerro could be one of those guys who blows through the league, Jared Weaver-like, at least once.
More Scouting Book Info on Deolis Guerra >
197
RHP, SEA
Near-forgotten since elbow problems sidelined him in 2008, Michael Pineda is a lanky Dominican righthander who is once again zooming up the prospect charts in Seattle. Some scouts have concerns about Pineda's delivery: at 6-5 his shoulders and hips don't always seem to be following the same gameplan, and he sometimes shows some scary snap-back on his follow-through. Despite those reservations, though, Pineda looks like an advanced pitcher for his age and bracket already, and is definitely one of the top two or three pitchers on the depleted Mariner farm. His fastball hovers around the 92mph mark, nothing special in itself, but it comes in with reliable, natural sink that can give hitters fits, and when he mixes in his above-average slider and change, he can be almost untouchable. Watch for him to threaten for a Mariner rotation spot in 2012 or so.
More Scouting Book Info on Michael Pineda >
198
OF, SD
A slugger who many downgrade because of his less-than-giant proportions, the small but mighty Kellen Kulbacki might get a little more attention now that Dustin Pedroia has blazed a trail for diminutive bashers. Kulbacki was drafted by San Diego in 2007's supplemental first round after hitting .464 in his junor year in college. He took a step back to a mere .300 in 2007 but looked like his old dominant self again in 2008, slashing .332/.428/.589 (that's a 1.017 OPS) at high A Lake Elsinore. Injuries held him back in 2009, but he should be back in business for 2010, and on the short list of possible impact bats the Padres may look to before the season is finished.
More Scouting Book Info on Kellen Kulbacki >
199
OF, PHI
Tyson Gillies is a Canadian center fielder who came as part of the wild winter trade of 2009. While most noticed him when he stole two bases in the Futures Game, he also put together a standout season overall, stealing 44 bases and batting .341/.430/.486 while playing for High Desert in the California League. His speed is off the charts, but that basestealing wasn't as good as it seems, since he was also thrown out 19 times. With a percentage that low, he won't get many green lights, so he'll need to work on the art of the steal before the tool becomes a real plus skill. Gillies will get his first taste of AA ball in 2010, with a shot at an MLB bench job for 2011. If he does make the majors as a reserve, he'll also provide an extra valuable benefit to the team: as a hearing-impaired player, he's an excellent lip-reader, which could come in awfully handy on the field.
More Scouting Book Info on Tyson Gillies >
200
191. Matt Hobgood
192. Cedric Hunter
193. Randall Delgado
194. Jason Knapp
195. Rex Brothers
196. J.P. Arencibia
197. Deolis Guerra
198. Michael Pineda
200. Tyson Gillies
191 to 200 of 484
