Chop Country's pre-2014 season Top 30 Prospects
:emot-siren.gif.17: Revised. Deal with it.
1. Lucas Sims (19, 6-2, 195), RHP. Scouts and writers will be beating a path to the Braves' minor league camp to get the lowdown on Sims, who will not be invited to the MLB camp. In the same vein, he will not be rushed and figures to have his innings limited the first half of Lynchburg's season.
2. David Hale (26, 6-2, 210), RHP. Anyone who watched his two late-season starts in Atlanta can understand this lofty placement. He's ready for a big league job, and not necessarily in a bullpen. His mixing of pitches as a starter allowed him to post an 11-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio. His time should be now, but it's a numbers game.
3. Christian Bethancourt (22, 6-2, 210), C. His assignment is the Gwinnett job in 2014, and with Laird and Doumit under contract, his permanent arrival in the major hinges on injury or a total flameout by Gattis.
4. Luis Vasquez (27, 6-4, 175), RHP. A gift as a free agent from the Dodgers' system, he was unhittable over the winter (3-0, 0.86 ERA) and will have to pitch himself out of a bullpen job in the spring.
5. Jason Hursh (22, 6-3, 190), RHP. Figures to have his Gwinnett innings restricted the first half of the season after spot duty led to a 1-1, 0.67 ERA in his 2013 debut. From there, anything is possible and the sky is the limit. Did not play winter ball.
6. Jose Peraza (19, 5-11, 167), 2B. A long way off, but his undeniable asset (speed) puts him on a different plane than any other Braves' prospect. Indecision about his long-term position (second or short) seems to be the only question about his future.
7. Shae Simmons (23, 5-9, 180), RHP. No one projected this guy to be a lights-out closer when he was plucked out of the 22nd round from SEMO in 2012. His all-star partial season in Rome was followed by a 0.90 ERA in nine AFL games.
8. Ryan Buchter (27, 6-4, 230), LHP. I cannot imagine a logical scenario where this big lefty isn't part of the Braves' bullpen. Devastating against lefties, he began getting everyone out during the winter league (1-0, 4 saves, 0.69 ERA in 12 games). After striking out 103 in 62 innings, he is a good bet to be the next Venters.
9. Tommy La Stella (25, 5-11, 185), 2B. This week's BBA Weekly article quotes Fredi saying Uggla WILL be the Braves' 2B; the article adds La Stella WILL be in Gwinnett. Someone high in the organization does not like him as a prospect or believe in his ability. Why no Sept. look-see? Why does Uggla still have a uniform? So I'm not sure what he has to do to win the job. To me, a much-needed type of hitter to add.
10. Victor Caratini (19, 6-0, 192), 3B. There's a lot to love about a switch-hitting teenage hitting machine. He began his career hitting doubles like crazy, marking him as another Terdoslavich – only with a four-year head start on his career.
11. Gus Schlosser (25, 6-4, 215), RHP. How in the hell can he drop in everyone else's ratings when he posted a 2.39 ERA for Mississippi? When he was named organizational Pitcher of the Year in '12, his ERA was 3.38. He had a short-term injury problem, but I am a results guy, and this sidearmer gives me a chance to win every time out.
12. J.R. Graham (24, 5-10, 195), RHP. Has his shoulder healed? Or will he waste another year putting off what I figure to be the inevitable surgery? Clock is ticking on his returning to top prospect status. I personally see too many red flags to believe without seeing.
13. Mauricio Cabrera (20, 6-2, 180), RHP. He's 20 and can throw 100, so why am I not higher on his prospects? Two words: Jose Capellan.
14. Cody Martin (24, 6-2, 210), RHP. To mix baseball metaphors, he's the on-deck hitter among prospective starters behind Hale and ahead of Hursh. A strong first half in Gwinnett should work wonders and further raise his stock.
15. Edward Salcedo (22, 6-3, 195, 3B. Forget that the Braves signed him way back in 2010. Instead, member that he got over 500 plate appearances in Double-A pitching last year and at times showed leadership traits. And he's 22.
16. Victor Reyes (19, 6-3, 175), OF. If, as expected, his power develops, his track is the fastest in the organization. The Braves love his tools and need an international win among their annual batch of signees. Can't rush him, though.
17. Carlos Perez (22, 6-2, 195) LHP. At age 22, his career has roller-coastered more than most. Now considered a matchup reliever, he allowed only 26 hits In 46 innings but had critical control problems. Still stuck in Class A.
18. Ian Thomas (26, 6-4, 210), LHP. One of the jewels snatched off the scrap heap of indy league rosters, Thomas followed an undefeated 2012 with a 2013 that showcased his versatility. He worked 104 innings, striking out 123 and allowing only 72 hits.
19. Wes Parsons (21, 6-5, 190), RHP. How did everyone miss him? An undrafted free agent from the 2012 draft, he was an indy leaguer for less than a month before the Braves jumped. He wound up an all-star for Rome.
20. Kyle Wren (22, 5-10, 174), OF. His remarkable start out of the gate (.335, 35 steals in 53 games) have him poised to begin his first full pro season in Double-A. The same kind of production in an injury-free year could put him on the cusp of the show.
21. Josh Elander (22, 6-1, 215) OF. His first half (.916 OPS) carried him to the Braves Minor Leaguer of the Year award, but scouts are much more concerned with his second half dropoff (four homers in 61 games) after moving up to Lynchburg. His power potential is the best in the system regardless.
22. Kyle Kubitza (23, 6-3, 190), 3B. Others like this big Texan more than me. To me, his 57 RBIs production is nothing special for 520 plate appearances. Still, drawing 80 walks is a positive sign, but more than offset by 132 strikeouts. Not moving ahead of Salazar this way.
23. Wilson Rivera (24, 6-1, 195), RHP. Since being converted to a pitcher, the former infielder has merely gone 10-0, 2.36 in 93 games with 200 strikeouts in 148 innings. Still only 24, he needs to be pushed but figures to be in Mississippi.
24. John Cornely (24, 6-1, 195), RHP. The numbers speak volumes – which is good, because little else has been said about this up-and-coming reliever. The 2013 season was his best as he cut down on walks and had a career-high 11 saves for Lynchburg.
25. Ryan Hinson (26, 6-3,2 220), LHP. My Sleeper pick, without a doubt. He was solid when plucked off the indy scrap heap (4-4, 2.48), the former Clemson stud was all aces in the A.A. for Wichita and worked a remarkable 50 winter league innings, holding hitters to a .240 average. No control problems, either. You saw it here first.
26. Mark Lamm (25, 6-4, 215) RHP Handled his first taste of AAA well enough to get a shot at closing some games. Curious to see how he holds up after back-to-back 50-game seasons.
27. Juan Jaime (26, 6-1, 230), RHP. Bullpen version of Cabrera. Velocity is impressive as hell, but went from 18 saves to zero and allowed way too many baserunners per inning. Less on the fastball might improve results.
28. Carlos Salazar (19, 6-0, 200), RHP. Can somebody please get this guy some live innings? So far, it's all promise, no returns for this big Cali righty.
29. Aaron Northcraft (23, 6-1, 225), RHP. If the AFL didn't kill him (1-5, 8.00), perhaps it made him stronger. His toe-hold on this list is slipping
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30. Elmer Reyes (23, 5-11, 160), SS. Unfair to post him this low, but is a guy that does some things fairly well but nothing remarkable. Needs to move back to second, but prefers short.
Missed cut: Todd Cunningham and Matt Lipka are slipping down the same slope, but both have this spring to impress. … Free agent reliever Lay Batista belongs, in my opinion, on the list more than Jaime and Northcraft, but I can't back that up this early. … Johan Camargo … eh, I could be persuaded, but what's the rush? All catchers step to the side and watch how a true prospect does it in Gwinnett this year.
David Jenkins
