The Preliminary 2013 Watchlist, Part Two
Picking up where we left off, now you can see how I’ve decided to change things a bit. Obviously, the most disturbing is the long list of pitchers that have been hurt or had surgery. And it’s by no means comprehensive. But right now, it’s impossible to ignore them (the term “Nationals elbow” proffered in the comments would almost work, too) since a great deal of the system’s perceived value is predicated on their recovery to pre-surgery expectations.
Secondly, you can see that I’ve decided to group the DSL guys together. In fairness, I probably ought to do the same with the GCLers for much the same reasons — it’s purely numbers-based on small sample sizes. I’ve also had a spotty track record picking these guys, which reminds me of what the prospect gurus warned about getting too excited about the short-season guys.
Finally, the last two columns are a means of acknowledging the ones that don’t quite merit full-fledged watchlist treatment, but are often discussed or mentioned (e.g. Jhonatan Solano). Perhaps it’s a pre-emptive strike (“Hey, what about __________?”), or maybe it’s a nod to the “fan” compartment of the site. As a former newspaperman, I’d like to think the age-old axiom about names (“good or bad, people like to see names in the paper”) translates online.
Hope folks like the changes. Let me know in the comments.
| RHPs | LHPs | DSL Guys | M*A*S*H | Notables (Bats) | Notables (Arms) |
| Garcia | Rosenbaum | O. Abreu | B. Meyers | Brown | Lehman |
| E. Davis | Ray | Bautista | Selik | Komatsu | Kimball |
| Demny | Grace | Diaz | Solis | Solano | W. Estevez |
| A. Meyer | Meza | E. Gomez | Applebee | Ramsey | Schwartz |
| Karns | Lee | Novas | Purke | Nieto | Pineyro |
| Wort | Mooneyham | Read | Jordan | Mesa | C. Davis |
| Holland | Barrientos | Je. Rodriguez | McGeary | S. Perez | I. Heredia |
| Barrett | Ruiz | Anderson | Jennings | Williams | |
| Rauh | Silvestre | M. Rodriguez | |||
| Encarnacion | Valerio | Giolito | |||
| Hudgins | |||||
| Mendez | |||||
| Vasquez |
Luke, has Jordan Taylor gone back on the DL? I know he pitched at Auburn and Hagerstown last season at the end and I saw him in Viera before that.
No, I don’t think so — he’s in the M*A*S*H column because he’s had surgery. There’s obviously some crossover between the notables and the surgicals. As the comment below this notes…
Thanks. He was pretty well thought of by the people in the know prior to his injury.
Why is Meyer on the M*A*S*H list he didn’t have any surgeries that I’ve heard?
Ooops skip that got Meyer and Meyers confused again. Bradley has had injury issues.
I might have put Komatsu in the MASH unit. Will be interesting to see if he can revive his prospect status if he ever has a healthy year (although, I guess the Cards gave him his shot).
I agree on the DSL & GCL guys. Just not enough there to really know.
Now if we can only get someone down to the Dominican Republic to scout for us.
Your annual disrepect for Solano DOES continue, just in a different form.
Looking at Corey Brown’s name, you just have to hope Rizzo trades him so he can get a chance to play.
I agree on Corey. His last good shot passed by when TyMo got the call instead (and played well enough to hold on to it). However, I think there is one VERY slim remaining possibility. If Adam signs elsewhere, and Rizzo takes the Boswell “stand pat” route rather than signing a big ticket outfield replacement, I could see a scenario where Corey plays well in ST and they decide to go forward with Moore, Bernadina, and Corey competing for time in LF and as a LH PH. Very soon though, others will have passed him by and he just needs to hope for that trade.
And Turnbull was considered a good selection in the draft.
Wondering about Smoker, Luke. I gather you believe that ship has sailed.
Last I heard, Smoker went to Viera on rehab/realignment for two months made a couple of GCL appearances and a couple w/ the Suns and was hit hard. If he’s not hurt, then he’s likely done. Not the first hard thrower that couldn’t quite master the strike zone.
Turnbull got a lot of hype, but didn’t live up to it. Not the first, won’t be the last, but I don’t think that’s enough to put him on the list again.
Ray? Seriously? A very generous placement.
That begs a question: Am I being too generous to him or too harsh on Wirkin Estevez (youth is the common denominator)? Ray was durable and left-handed and got knocked around, but did it at High-A whereas Estevez spent considerable time on the DL and had slightly better rate stats, though still subpar and at a lower level.
Don’t get caught up in Rays stats. The developement guys spent alot of time working his mechanics and his numbers don’t reflect the final product. You should see a major jump in efectiveness this season.