Harvesting the Farm - Part 3

On the farm, some things take longer to grow then others. Baseball players are no different. Part 3 of this series is going to focus on some players that will more then likely be late call ups at best but are still considered top prospects. You want to know these names as they may surprise us this year, and should be on your radar for next (especially those of you in keeper leagues).

Justin Smoak, 1B, Texas Rangers - I must admit, I am very impressed with what the Rangers have going. They have some good young pitchers (including some real studs in their farm), and they continue to have great hitting. It's almost unfair that they have Justin Smoak. Smoak is a switch hitting 1B - ala Mark Texeira. At 23 he has nice power which should keep increasing. The only thing that has slowed him down is good AAA pitching. Before AAA he had a .320+ AVG, but it took a dip down to .244 in 54 games when he reached the Pacific Coast League. As talented a hitter as he is, expect him to adjust. Another concern is that his strikeout rate is about 25% (in AAA). Not too good (but better then Texas' current 1B, Chris Davis). Again, he needs some adjustments. If/when he adjusts, it will be hard for the Rangers to not bring him up - but they just don't have a spot for him yet. However, unless Davis improves, Smoak may overtake him as soon as this year.

Pedro Alvarez, 3B, Pittsburgh Pirates - Alvarez is all about power. It is easy to see him as a 40 HR guy. It was much easier to see that before last year. His fast track to the majors took a major detour to the tune of a .234 AVG. Not sure why he struggled so much, but assuming he turns it around in the minors this year, he could be huge in 2011. At 23, it's also not far fetched to see him contribute this year, but not likely until after the All-Star break, and even then not likely as an everyday player. With all that said, the potential of Alvarez commands our attention.

Madison Bumgarner, SP, San Francisco Giants - Of the three guys mentioned in this article, Bumgarner has the best chance to play the most in the majors. He is a left handed pitcher who throws in the low 90's (he's been clocked above 95, but did not show that kind of velocity for much of the year). He got a taste of the bigs last year with a spot start and faired well (but one start is not much to gauge). He has a chance to make the rotation, but he will have a serious innings limit (he is only 20 years old). My guess is that they will wait to bring him up and use him for a late fall push (or at least to get his feet wet for 2011). How good is he? In the last two years (AA and A+), he has an ERA of 1.65 and strikes out almost a batter an inning (8.4 per nine). You have to imagine that those numbers will not be that good against big league hitting, but the potential for success is there. Depending where he ends up when camp breaks, he may just be a guy to keep an eye on, or he may be worth a late round flier.

-Scout Monkey

( scout_monkey@gmx.com)

Finally the strikeout machine is gone!

BYE BYE Chris Davis! Been nice knowing ya! The Rangers announced after tonights game that they are activating Josh Hamilton from the DL and to make space they will send Chris (Big Whiff) Davis to AAA Oklahoma City where he will split time with Justin Smoak, until Smoak is promoted that is. Well, in my opinion this demotion was a long time coming. Yes, Davis had 15 HRs and yes he played solid Defense at first but the one thing he excelled at is getting K'd. To say that Davis has been a disappointment is a HUGE understatement, this guy has been an absolute disaster in his sophomore year. In 258 AB's Davis was able to hit 15 HRs which sounds nice but look a little closer. Davis hit 15 HRs and drove in only 33 runs which means most were solo shots. Davis had a underwhelming 256 OBP and a sub 2.00 BA after tonight's game, he had 113 strikeouts in 258 AB's which put him on pace for almost 235 which would have shattered Mark Reynolds record of 204 from last year. Also he manged to kill more rallies then start with a 221 BA with RISP. Now he did hit 285 last year so the skills are there but he was unable to make the adjustments needed at the big league level, so he will be back but it might not be till next year(Reference Nelson Cruz if you want to know how the Rangers might handle this situation). The big story now, is that the Justin Smoak watch has officially begun, he was moved to AAA Oklahoma city over the weekend which I think was a calculated move by the Rangers to Prep him for a second half call up. Smoak has been tearing up the minors From single A to AAA to the tune of a 335 BA, 35 runs scored, 8 HRs 34 RBI and a 456 OBP (200 BA and 429 OBP in AAA so far) in 194 ABs. He's the next big thing in Texas and I think he will be up shortly after the break. The Bay State Scout