Top Baseball Prospects for 2012
Now updated for 2012's Top Prospects
Scouting Book's Top Prospects list is a Combined List, a calculated summary of the overall valuations of the entire prospect universe.
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A headline acquisition as part of the trade of pitcher Matt Garza, Hak-Ju Lee is a big, powerful shortstop from Korea who's now prominently positioned in the Tampa Bay system. Already a polished hitter (.317/.389/.442 at high-A Charlotte last year), Lee seems to have the footwork and arm to stick at shortstop, too, and he's shown improvement in the field every season. His 32 steals in 2010 is also a highlight worth remembering. He should get a shot at Tampa life come September, and compete for a job in 2013.
Full Scouting Report for Hak-Ju Lee
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A flamethrowing lefthander, Montgomery was grabbed early by the Royals in the 2008 draft. So far, he's looking pretty legitimate, if unspectacular. He's assembled a 3.47 ERA, a 1.24 WHIP and a 349/148 collection of strikeouts versus walks. He's only 22 years old, and he could probably use another year of polish after his stumbles in AAA last season, but the nothing-to-lose Royals might take a look at him sooner than that.
Full Scouting Report for Mike Montgomery
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In addition to having the best name in the 2008 draft class, Yonder Alonso is also one of the strongest power hitters of his generation. While his bat is certainly impressive, the Cincinnati Reds draft choice was an odd selection, since they already had young MVP-caliber Joey Votto just settling in for the next decade. The Reds seemed to realize this eventually, and moved him to San Diego in 2011's offseson. Despite the crippling effects of Petco, he should still be one of a handful of premium rookie bats in 2012, especially in the power department. He's adequate but no gold-glover in the field, which means he's probably locked at first base.
Full Scouting Report for Yonder Alonso
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One of three top prospects acquired in winter 2011 from the Nationals, AJ Cole is a six-foot-five, lanky righthander who can already touch 95mph with his fastball. Cole also mixes in a power curve and passable changeup that could develop into plus pitches with good coaching and support. He's already drawing comparisons to Justin Verlander, who was a similar pitcher at the same age.
Full Scouting Report for AJ Cole
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Taken by Boston in the fifth round of the 2007 First-Year Player Draft out of Liberty-Eylau High School in Texarkana, third baseman Will MIddlebrook is a sharp line-drive hitter with advanced baseball savvy. An offensive machine, he raked .302/.345/.520 with 18 homers for the AA franchise in 2011 before a late season taste of AAA. His fielding, on the other hand, is lagging behind, and he'll need to get a lot more sure with the glove and arm before he's ready for everyday MLB duty, especially at third base. But if the BoSox grow injury-riddled again, they may decide some power is worth a few kicked grounders: he's probably the most potent in-house bat available to the team for the next year or two.
Full Scouting Report for Will Middlebrooks
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The seventh overall pick in the 2010 draft, Matt Harvey is a tall righthander from Mystic, Connecticut who pitched his college ball at UNC, where a few tweaks to his high-school delivery paid off with extra cheese on his fastball. He can dial that smooth, easy heat up to 98mph and has a propensity for throwing ground balls. His command is spotty, but nothing out of the norm for such a young, high-upside arm. He should move quickly through a pitching-poor Mets system, and it wouldn't be a shock to see him in Flushing sometime in 2012.
Full Scouting Report for Matt Harvey
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He might sound more like a law firm than a pitcher (and there have indeed been a few ballplayers who've needed a good DUI lawyer in Chicago lately) but Addison Reed is actually a big, burly fireballer from Rancho Cucamonga who could push his way into the front of the White Sox bullpen as soon as this season. In seven innings.
Full Scouting Report for Addison Reed
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It's always nice when you can trade away a fading veteran for a team's top prospect, and that's what the Mets did in acquiring Zack Wheeler from the Giants as the best move in their sudden fire sale rebuilding plan.
Full Scouting Report for Zack Wheeler
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Originally a supplemental first round pick for the Brewers, this tall righthander has a smooth and easy delivery that portends well for his future in the system. He's still a couple of years away from serious attention, but he's worth keeping an eye on. A part of the prospect package that moved Zack Greinke to Milwaukee, Odorizzi should have a quicker path to the big leagues in Kansas City, too.
Full Scouting Report for Jake Odorizzi
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A good all-around ballplayer with a solid bat, infielder Zack Cozart has a great shot at breaking Spring Training with the Reds in 2012. After putting up a stellar .310/.357/.467 line in 77 games with the AAA Bats and then showing off in September by going 12-for-37 (.324) with the big league club, there's just not much more left to prove. Cozart has plus hands, great first-step range and a cannon arm in the field, making shortstop seem like his proper position from here on out. He's also an exceptionally smart baserunner who will pickpocket more than his share of prizes from inattentive pitchers. If he wins the shortstop gig outright this spring, he'll be able to rack up at-bats and could become a decent bet for the crapshoot known as Rookie of the Year. If not, he'll still be able to contribute whenever the Reds do call.
Full Scouting Report for Zack Cozart
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Prospects
Top Prospects 2012
Combined Ranking
40 to 50 of 500 Prospects
