Three P-Nats Named To BA’s Carolina League Top 20
Derek Norris, Mike Burgess, and Tyler Moore make the cut
The shutout from Baseball America’s Top 20 lists is over with the naming of three P-Nats to the Carolina League Top 20 Prospects — catcher Derek Norris (#11), outfielder Mike Burgess (#14), and first-baseman Tyler Moore (#18).
This, quite frankly, is a bit of a surprise. With no disrespect to Mike Burgess, but off the top of my head I can think of two outfielders the same age that had better years and showed equal, if not more, promise: Brandon Short and Ronnie Welty. Likewise, the omission of Steve Lombardozzi is baffling to me — particularly when Kinston’s Jason Kipnis spent just 54 games in the league yet somehow made this list.
Here’s the highlights from each scouting report…
NORRIS
Norris has plus power and can drive the ball out of the park to all fields, projecting as a .260-.270 hitter with 20 or more homers annually in the big leagues. Though he does a good job of working counts and drawing walks, he needs to make adjustments against offspeed pitches and make more consistent contact. He has a solid arm and threw out 51 percent of CL basestealers who tested him, but he lacks soft hands and his receiving skills are substandard.
BURGESS
Burgess continues to chase pitches outside the zone, but he has toned down his aggressiveness and is using the opposite field more. He has well above-average raw strength, and he’s searching for a happy medium between power and patience. Though he’s a below-average runner, he plays a quality right field and opponents know not to challenge his arm.
MOORE
Moore’s game is all about strength and power. He has some holes in his swing and isn’t very selective, so he probably won’t ever hit for a high average. Offspeed stuff can still give him fits, though he improved significantly this year. Though he lacks speed and quickness, he’s a solid defender at first base, and Cathcart said Moore has enough arm strength to play the outfield.
The last quote there is a little telling, seemingly cobbled from interviews with league managers versus a true scouting report like we got on Norris and Burgess. In fact, the subscriber-only version of this list has a quote from manager for nearly every prospect, which has a certain amount of use, but not what I really want to see because managers are loathe to criticize players.
The Eastern League is scheduled for Friday, and I’ll pass along any highlights from this afternoon’s chat.
It seems that BA has given short shrift to Lombardozzi all along. He doesn’t grade out well in any toolset, just grinds along with a .280+/.340/.370+ & has soft hands defensively. He gets the most out of his ability, but that leaves him off of most ‘prospect’ lists.
I am a big Lombo fan….and knowing that Espinosa might be the plan at second, I could surely see him at another midfield position.
TBR – Don’t get me wrong, as I’m a Lombardozzi fan as well. I just think the big names in minor-league coverage under-appreciate players like him, because he does everything well, but doesn’t catch the eye of an occaisional viewer.
oh no, I am thinking on the same lines. He’s JP Ramirez “-esque”…just does his job, nothing flashy, nothing super. I saw Lombo play this past weekend and i’m impressed. Just interested in him at a different position that might not be as much of a road block (i.e. shortstop).
Doesn’t have the arm for it.
Lombardozzi is one reason I would not be totally averse to dealing Desmond for somebody like Greinke if it was feasible to get him. You’d shift Espinosa to his more valuable position, exercise the option on Kennedy and then prep for Lombardozzi or a free agent upgrade in Strasburg’s return year.
This is fanciful and crazy speculation, though. I’m real surprised that Tyler Moore made that list. I’m almost surprised that Burgess made the list. I guess they like ceilings more than floors. Lombardozzi seems to me to be a low ceiling, low floor kind of guy.
Now it will be real interesting to see if Milone gets shut out of the Eastern League.