Top Performers for Pacific Coast League Prospects
Tuesday, May 14th, 2013Below are some of the top performers from the Pacific Coast League who are prospects. For many of these players their performance has led to a major league callup.
Mariners
Mike Zunino C (.229, 6, 31) - Mike is considered one of the best catching prospects in the game. With Jesus Montero getting an opportunity to catch full time for the Mariners there is no rush to promote Mike. He has been driving in runs, but has been having trouble making contact with 38 whiffs in just 28 games. He is far superior on defense than Jesus and has all the offensive tools.
Alex Liddi 3B/OF (.261, 7, 30) - His power is intriguing but his inability to make contact is maddening. He leads the Pacific Coast League with 61 K’s in just 38 games. He has a 13/61 walk to K ratio. His inability to make contact shows his lack of recognition of pitch types. He appears to be a mistake pitcher, which will not allow him to survive in the major leagues.
Nick Franklin SS (.339, 4, 16) - The Mariners are having trouble finding offense from their major league shortstop. Nick could provide a solution to that, though the Mariners would take a hit defensively. Some believe his best position is second base. He has a nice 24/16 walk to whiff ratio which bodes well for his offensive production in the major leagues.
James Paxton LHP (2-3, 3.93) - His ERA is a bit high but he has struck out 44 in 36 innings pitched. James is a step away from pitching for the Mariners.
Giants
Kensuke Tanaka 2B (.348, 0, 13) - He signed as a free agent out of Japan and at 32 years of age is not really a prospect. If the Giants are looking for immediate help he is available. He has a 15/15 walk to whiff ratio and stolen 11 bases in 15 attempts.
Brett Pill 1B (.341, 9, 47) - Brett is a Brandon Belt slump away from getting a major league opportunity. His nine homeruns are tied for the league lead and his 47 RBIs leads the next closest player by 14 RBIs. He just needs to up that average to be considered the Triple Crown.
Gary Brown CF (.213, 1, 14) - Gary was once the top prospect of the Giants with his assault of High A pitching. He has not had that success as he rises up the ladder. He’s only stolen four bases in 8 attempts and he has a 9/40 walk to whiff ratio, not the kind of numbers you want to see from your leadoff hitter.
Dodgers
Scott Van Slyke OF (.397, 9, 30) - The son of Andy was also putting up Triple Crown numbers. He led the league in hitting and was tied for first in homeruns. He was still short of Pill for the RBI lead. He has a .503 OBA. Those numbers were so impressive the Dodgers could not ignore him anymore and called him up.
Dee Gordon SS (.314, 0, 12) - Some questioned his ability to hit. Others were concerned with his inconsistency on defense. No one questions his speed. He leads the Pacific Coast League in stolen bases with 14 in 16 attempts. The Dodgers needed help so he has also been called up.
Athletics
Michael Choice OF (.294, 8, 31) - With Josh Reddick missing time because of a hand injury Michael is showing the power that makes it tempting to call him up. He has been making better contact with only 31 strikeouts in 38 games. He also has walked 23 times putting his OBA at .404.
Sonny Gray RHP (4-1, 2.19) - His 5′11″ height gives many pause for his ability to have success in the major leagues. He is making some noise with his good start in the Pacific Coast League. He already has one complete game to his resume and should be an innings eater.
Diamondbacks
Chris Owings SS (.339, 2, 25) - His numbers are confirming he will be an offensive shortstop. His 32 runs scored are tied for second in the league. He has also stolen 7 bases in 9 attempts. The one cause for concern is his 5/32 walk to whiff ratio, which could drive down the average once he reaches the major leagues.
Cardinals
Jamie Romak OF (.276, 6, 20) - Jamie is a 2012 first round pick out of Florida State and is making pitchers in the Pacific Coast League fear him as much as his college brethren. With both Matt Holiday and Carlos Beltran getting older his opportunity could come next year.
Kolten Wong 2B (.311, 1, 13) - He looked like the Cardinals second baseman of the future until Matt Carpenter switched positions and shows the ability to play second. Kolten would be the better defensive player but is less of a stick than Carpenter. He is a perfect 5 for 5 in stolen bases.
John Gast LHP (3-1, 1.16) - A Jake Westbrook injury led to a call-up to the Cardinals. He was leading the Pacific Coast League in ERA. The Cardinals have a number of hard throwers in their system, but Gast is not one of them.
Michael Wacha (4-0, 1.99) - He opened some eyes in spring training. Like Jamie he is a 2012 number one pick, selected as the 19th pick, four selections ahead of Ramsey. Michael has only given up 27 hits in 40 innings but he does have a troubling 13/24 walk to whiff ratio, meaning his mid-90s fastball is not getting a lot of swings and misses.
Astros
Jonathan Villar SS (.308, 3, 21) - Marwin Gonzalez is currently occupying the position. Villar could be the future. He has 13 stolen bases in 17 attempts.
Jimmy Paredes OF (.366, 3, 15) - Those numbers got him a callup to the Astros. His defense is something left to be desired, but he will get an opportunity to show he deserves an opportunity in the major leagues. A 14/19 walk to whiff ratio is promising.
Jared Cosart RHP (4-0, 2.08) - Jared is benefiting from the tag team pitching rotation the Astros have established this year for all their minor league systems. In the past he has had command problems, but those have not yet surfaced in the Pacific Coast League. He has struck out 43 hitters in 39 innings.
Mets
Wilmer Flores SS (.272, 3, 22) - For a number of years he was the Mets top minor league prospect. The Mets continue to play him at short even though he lacks the defensive chops to play the position. His best hope may be the outfield, though his bat is not as strong as originally projected.
Zack Wheeler RHP (2-1, 3.74) - The way he is pitching Zack is major league ready with 47 whiffs in 43 innings. Though the Mets deny this, they do not want to promote him too early to get his arbitration clock clicking.
Rockies
Nolan Arenado 3B (.364, 3, 21) - The third baseman of the future is the third baseman of the present. He drove in those 21 runs in only 18 games and stroked 11 doubles.
Drew Pomeranz RHP (5-0, 3.18) - The Rockies are winning and at some point they are going to need pitching. Drew should be the first one for consideration based on his early start. He has struck out 44 in 40 innings of work.
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hopes to be given an opportunity at third if the Dodgers can not find one in a trade. Alex Castellanos (.359, 9) is another bat that is smoking in the desert air, but when given the opportunity along the coast struggled (.143). Despite the offensive numbers put up in New Mexico, John Ely (8-6, 3.22) is pitching well. He is averaging close to 10 strikeouts per nine innings pitched while walking less than two. Down in AA top prospect Ethan Martin (7-5, 3.14) is hurling. He still needs to improve his command, walking more than four hitters per game.