Baseball's Top Prospects for 2010
Remember: This list evolves and changes daily.
RHP, Japan
Righthander Naoyuki Shimizu is a starting pitcher from NPB, where he played 10 seasons with the Chiba Lotte Marines before signing last winter with the Yokohama BayStars on a one-year deal. He also played with Japan in the 2006 World Baseball Classic. Naoyuki's fastball can touch 94mph, but he works most of the time in the 86-90mph range, relying on deceptive delivery and late motion to befuddle hitters. He works both sides of the plate and mixes in a change in the low to mid-70's to keep hitters perpetually off-balance. While he's only got a few more peak years left, he could be a good fit on any number of MLB ballclubs.
More Scouting Book Info on Naoyuki Shimizu >
271
RHP, SD
Adis (or sometimes, inexplicably, Adys) Portillo is a hard-throwing right-hander who shows more polish than most Venezuelan prospects. Portillo exhibits a dominating mound presence and great composure, featuring a moving fastball that tops out at about 94mph. It's the raw stuff he wields with three possible plus pitches, though, that puts him into the upper ranks of pitching prodigies.
More Scouting Book Info on Adis Portillo >
272
OF, ARZ
A lumbering slugger, 1B/OF Marc Krauss is one of many corner bats simmering in the Arizona farm system. Krauss hit .304 at A-level South Bend in 2009, posting an .855 OPS in his first exposure to pro ball, but he'll need to light up more scoreboards to get past some of the team's brighter prospects.
More Scouting Book Info on Marc Krauss >
273
RHP, STL
A tall, lanky Canadian righthander who was the Cardinals top-rated prospect as far back as 2004, Blake Hawksworth is now a mature prospect on the cusp of landing a full-time job in major league baseball. After posting a 5-4 record (3.58 / 1.11 WHIP) for the AAA Memphis in 2009, Hawksworth got a taste of MLB, going 4-0 in 40 innings of mop-up duty. His 2.03 ERA while handling that low-leverage trial demonstrated enough ability to gain the righthander consideration for bullpen or spot-starting duty in 2010. He won't be a Cy Young winner, not even with Dave Duncan around, but he could be a capable and effective major league pitcher for most of the next decade, given the opportunity.
More Scouting Book Info on Blake Hawksworth >
274
RHP, SEA
Another late inning specialist, Fields has no real place in the Mariners of today or the near future, so we can only guess that they're going to attempt some sort of bizarro-world Brandon Morrow trick here, and turn this sure-thing reliever into a maybe-starter. He chose not to sign with Atlanta last year, so it's no sure thing that he'll prefer Seattle this time around. Even if he does sign, he might end up being a trade piece in the near future. Fields is a terrific ball of potential, and it'd be a shame to see him wither in a Mariners system that has no place for him.
More Scouting Book Info on Joshua Fields >
275
SS, LAD
The Dodgers Minor League Player of the Year for 2008, DeJesus doesn't have much left to prove in the minors. Apparently inspired by Baseball America's description of him as a 'below average' hitter, DeJesus took the Southern League to task in 2008, when he swatted an eye-opening .324/.419/.423 at AA Jacksonville. The young infielder led the entire Southern League with a .419 OBP in his first AA season, testimony to his disciplined plate approach. When he makes contact, he's a hitter in the Howie Kendrick style: gap to gap line drives with excellent bat control. In the field, he has soft hands and excellent (inherited?) baseball instincts.
More Scouting Book Info on Ivan DeJesus >
276
RHP, COL
How many closers do the Rockies need, exactly? Vanderbilt's elite fireman (31 saves, 0.93 WHIP) was originally drafted by the Tigers in 2006, but after re-entry was snapped up by Colorado in 2007.
More Scouting Book Info on Casey Weathers >
277
LHP, ARZ
A big lefty from Boston College, Arizona's Mike Belfiore was selected 45th overall by the Diamondbacks in 2009. A closer and first baseman in college, he combines easy heat with a plus slider: the perfect combination for a closer. While his big body and strong bat could play in the field, the Diamondbacks are looking at Belfiore as a starting pitcher first: he went 2-2 over 11 starts for Rookie Missoula in 2009, striking out 55 while walking 13.
More Scouting Book Info on Mike Belfiore >
278
RHP, MLW
Wily Peralta is an intriguing young righthander in the Brewer system. Currently a two-pitch pitcher who flashes an occasionally plus curve, Peralta looked pretty good in A ball in 2009. Used as a sometime-starter and sometime-reliever in Wisconsin, Peralta produced a composite 1.32 WHIP and 3.47 ERA. He struck out an impressive 118 batters in only 103 innings, but it was the Midwest League, after all. His walk rate was a bit too high, and his propensity for getting deep into counts prevented him from getting deep into games too often, but he's still young, and worth keeping an eye on.
More Scouting Book Info on Wily Peralta >
279
LHP, LAD
A big, strong lefty, Aaron Miller was a power-hitting outfielder as well as an overpowering pitcher during his time at Baylor, but the Dodgers are thinking of him as a pitcher and nothing else, according to the exec who selected him, Dodger scouting AGM Logan White. He looked awfully good in 30 innings of A-level ball, but he'll need a lot more than that before he's ready to join his old high school buddy Clayton Kershaw as a front-line Dodger starter.
More Scouting Book Info on Aaron Miller >
280
271. Naoyuki Shimizu
272. Adis Portillo
273. Marc Krauss
274. Blake Hawksworth
275. Joshua Fields
276. Ivan DeJesus
277. Casey Weathers
279. Wily Peralta
271 to 280 of 484
