Looking ahead...question?

by cardsphan04 on Sep 26, 2007 11:10 PM EDT Comment 30 comments

I was looking at the cardinals current position overall in the standings and noticed that I believe we are currently 10th in the draft. Which is a pretty good position. I don't know the last time we drafted this high. Now I know the draft is a long ways away but who are the hot prospects to be up for the draft next year? Just wondering? I mean we don't have anything else to do. So I was hoping someone could shed some light. Furtheremore, Does anyone know when the baseaball america prospect book comes out? Rasmus appears to be on the cover. Don't know if this link will show it or not. anyways...

http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/ref=pd_ecc_rvi_1/601-3135462-1452946?ie=UTF8&asin=193239119 3

Who is everyones top 5 in the system?

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We should totally

draft Kyle Russell and then not sign him.

Let me get this straight...Rowand over Pujols??? Really, Tony?

by cardzfan24 on Sep 26, 2007 11:31 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

sounds like a plan!

by kyle man on Sep 26, 2007 11:33 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I don't remember his name

but I saw during a BP chat today something about a nasty college lefty that has huge upside still that should go in the first half of the first round so far that is the one guy I am most excited about
Here i found the link:

http://www.baseballprospectus.com/chat/chat.php?chatId=361
Lincoln (Denton): What do you think of Brain Matsz [sp?] from the University of San Diego? Have you seen him pitch or talked to people who have?

Kevin Goldstein: It's Matusz. I've seen him twice on video, and talked to plenty of scouts who have seen him on numerous occasions. He's probably the top college lefthander in the '08 draft and RIGHT NOW projects to go in the first half of the first round.

by StLHugo on Sep 26, 2007 11:47 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

It's so hard to say at

This point. Prospects that are on the radar as potential first round picks.

Here are some links with early picks

http://www.brewerfan.net/ViewArticle.do?articleId=269

http://soxprospects.wikispaces.com/2008+Draft+Watch

Any guesses at this point are wild speculation, but Jacob Thompson, who throws a heavy sinker with good control seems to fit the style and philosophy. RHP Zach Putman, who is also an elite hitter that can play right field, said to resemble Tim Hudson, could also fall in the mid first round range.

Infielders being considered early first round picks include Brandon Crawford, who gets a lot of comparisons to Chase Utley, Jemiel Weeks Ricky Weeks little brother, and Tim Beckam, a high school player with 30/30 potential.

If I had to guess I would say Thompson is the early favorite.

by Some witty name on Sep 26, 2007 11:51 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

2008 Draft

We currently have the 11th pick, and could drop down to 13th by the end of the season.

The guy I would like the Cardinals to go after is Tim Melville out of Wentzille, MO, who is a HS RHP. Although it's still entirely too early to determine if he's worthy of such a high pick. Also another guy we could go after is Aaron Crow who is out of Missouri and another RHP.

by bigboy1234 on Sep 27, 2007 5:47 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Other local talent--they should

look at David Phelps RHP in Jr year at Notre Dame and way under the radar RHP pitcher Matt Patterson
who just transferred from Jeffco to Creighton for his sophomore year. I know it's all a crapshoot sometimes, but my son played with/against these guys for years in select leagues, and every time these two were challanged, they just got better. I know they don't draft sophomores, but I wish someone would at least take a look see.

by jillsinmo on Sep 30, 2007 9:22 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Projecting out

If we end up with the 10th-13th pick, there will be a pretty decent shot that Tim Mehlville will still be on the board. If he is, I sincerely hope he would be the pick. Kid's nasty already. (I actually drove up to Wentzville this past spring to see him throw after I saw how highly he was ranked nationally.) With a top 15 pick, there should be at least one monster talent that falls to the Cardinals, maybe a guy with a little higher price tag than some of the earlier teams want to go. Of course, when that happens, I fully expect the Cards to pass and pick a guy who will sign for slot. Sigh.

The handbook usually comes out in early February, I believe. I won't swear to it, but I think it's usually a week or two before St. Valentine's Day.

My top five in the system:

Rasmus
Garcia
Perez
Herron
Anderson

I think.

Oh my god! Was that an iceberg? No, these chairs are just all out of whack.

by the red baron on Sep 27, 2007 7:03 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Top 5

I forgot to list a top 5 for me:

Rasmus
Garcia
Ottavino
Anderson
Perez

I like Perez but I think the starters rank above him.

Honorable mention in no particular order: PJ Walters, Mather, Mortenson, Herron those would probably round out my top 10.

by StLHugo on Sep 27, 2007 8:25 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Top 5

See, I'm not real high on Ottavino. He's got great velocity, but his K rate and K/BB took a bit of a nosedive this year, and I'm just not fond of his delivery. He's too slow, too passive with his body, for me. He also tends to tilt back, which causes him to get under the ball and really flattens out his slider. He does still have a lot of potential, though, but I just think there are a couple things he needs to do if he's ever going to make it.

Free to a good home.

by the red baron on Sep 27, 2007 8:51 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Otta

I haven't "seen" any of our prospects so that could be a very valid argument but from what I read I think he does have the chance to be very good if he can over come some of his issues. I think Herron would be my next highest pitching prospect then Mortenson and Walters would probably come in.

by StLHugo on Sep 27, 2007 9:00 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I'm not crazy about him

either. top five right now for me is 1. rasmus. 2. garcia. 3. anderson. 4. perez. 5. herron.

Future Redbirds

by erik on Sep 27, 2007 9:03 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Who to draft?

Who are the most signable players in the draft? Look for 2nd round talent and signable for that 1st round pick. (Just kidding, but not really) Stutes and Russell will likely be a good first round picks...oh, the Cards already drafted them, but wouldn't sign them.

Come on, front office...if you won't fork over the dollars in free agency, then pay for the premium talent in the draft. No more of this drafting because they are an easy sign...get the best guy available. And ignore this league suggested "slotting" BS. Other teams did, and that is a future "collusion case" waiting to happen. Do you think Steinbrenner cares about "slotting"?

How about handin' me another helpin' of those mashed taters...thank you very much!

by Elvis on Sep 27, 2007 9:39 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Russell

I think the team gets a very unfair shack on Russell. The guy may have set the NCAA record for HRs but during the summer he flames out with a wood bat. Now is he tired, or can he just not hit with wood? You don't give a guy that fell the 4th round for a reason 1st round money just because he wants it. I don't know how little they offered him but I would have to think it was 2nd or 3rd round money and if he wouldn't sign for that then he will either be disappointed this season or glad he waited. Either way he lost one year of youth for $1M or less if he is everything he is cracked up to be then he would make more then that by reaching the bigs 1 year quicker and getting to arbitration 1 year earlier, etc. Why don't we complain about players not betting on themselves once in awhile?

by StLHugo on Sep 27, 2007 9:49 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Whatever happened to

Jon Jay?

Well, let's go to the old mill anyway -- get some cider!

by Alxfritz on Sep 27, 2007 12:01 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Jay

Hurt his shoulder sliding into third base early in the season, was demoted to palm beach later in the season and went down with another injury late in the season. It was pretty much a lost season for Jay, but he is expected to be the starting center fielder for Springfield next season.

by Some witty name on Sep 27, 2007 1:09 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Thanks

Well, let's go to the old mill anyway -- get some cider!

by Alxfritz on Sep 27, 2007 1:32 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I don't follow the draft much

But my top 5 in our system right now is:

1-Rasmus
2-Garcia
3-Herron
4-Perez
5-Martinez

As for the draft, I hope we select an OF in the 1st round. Aside from Rasmus, we have very few OF prospects

Come on You Redbirds--Mike Shannon

by BluesDrummer85 on Sep 27, 2007 3:42 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

OF Prospects

First of all, I guess you rate Anderson in the top 10 at least. Secondly we may not have good OF Prospects but we have lots, Stavinoha, Mather, Jay, JRod, Haerther, Shorey, etc. But lets not confuse quantity with quality.

by StLHugo on Sep 27, 2007 5:11 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Ok, I'll bite.

1 Rasmus-a given

2 Perez-nice velocity, outstanding numbers, it's about time we get a young fireball strikeout pitcher!

3 Walters-great young groundball pitcher, decent strikeout numbers, a guy LaDunc would love to have in the rotation

4 Anderson-hits for average decently, not an outstanding defender. He is so low on my list only because of his defense. I think he will be an excellent trading chip this offseason, unless he is willing to change to an infielder

5 Craig-Amazing player, good average, good speed, good power, decent arm. What can't this kid do?

Honorable Mentions:

Mather/Hamilton/Buckman-All strike me as the same player (great first month or so, lot of HR's, did well enough after promotion)

Garcia-fine young pitcher. So low on my list because of injuries this year

Ottavino-I don't know why he isn't being promoted? Good overall pitcher

Herron-great player, should be promoted faster

Martinez-good young ss, similar numbers to Craig, just not enough time in the minors to be evaluated fairly

Mortenson-future #2 in rotation, great K rate & sinker. See comment above about time in minors

bring in livian hernandez!

by dunc4life on Sep 27, 2007 5:13 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

re: craig... what can't he do?

Get younger.

by mateodh on Sep 27, 2007 7:32 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

AFL

Tuesday Oct 30 to me will be the most interesting game of the AFL Team USA vs Mesa Solar Sox, Rasmus and Perez vs Mather, Hoff and Boggs.

Would be awesome if Boggs started that game and Perez relieved in it.

by StLHugo on Sep 27, 2007 5:21 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Help

From someone who is a bigger expert on the Cards's farm system than I.

Catcher- Anderson
1st Base- Hamilton, Buckner
2nd Base- Hauppaiur
Shortstop- Martinez, Kozma
3rd Base- Craig
LF - Jones
CF - Rasmus
RF - Jay

Are these guys the best bets to make the majors at their respective positions?

How about handin' me another helpin' of those mashed taters...thank you very much!

by Elvis on Sep 27, 2007 5:28 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

most of it looks good, only a few selections could

be better.

1st base-Mather has been great, & I assume by Buckner you mean Buckman

LF-Jones has a little promise, but has only been hitting near the .200's, with few to many stolen bases. I'd suggest Amaury Marti, the Cuban defector who played for Springfield this season.

bring in livian hernandez!

by dunc4life on Sep 27, 2007 5:58 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Hopefully

Mather can remain in the outfield, but if he can possibly cover third base as he did in A ball, I wouldn't mind giving Scott Rolen a reason to hit the ball.

by mateodh on Sep 27, 2007 8:40 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Draft/Top 5

If we draft Kyle Russell that high, we're going to pay him way more than we would have last year as a fourth rounder. I wouldn't take him if I were the Cardinals, just because of pride.
My guy up until now has been Quinton Miller, a HS righty. He fits the Cardinal philosophy, should be able to pitch to contact without getting burned but has decent upside as well. I'm used to looking at this type of guy in the 20-30 range, though. Now that we will probably have a top-15 pick, Miller probably shouldn't be taken that high. Maybe we can get him in the supplemental if we let Eckstein go(none of his potential suitors have unprotected first-rounders).

Colby Rasmus. Might be a top 5 prospect in all of baseball.
Jaime Garcia. Health concerns, but sharp curveball and ability to get both grounballs and strikeouts sets him apart from his peers in the system.
Bryan Anderson. Power still hasn't come, and he has trouble blocking balls behind the plate, but he's only 21 and poised for Triple-A.
Tyler Herron. Three above average pitches usually only makes for a great pitching prospect if he can consistently locate all three. 130/26 K/BB certainly suggests he can.
P.J. Walters. Remains to be seen if an 87 mph fastball can sustain him in the upper levels, but his August in Double A was his most dominant month of the year. Great numbers across three levels, largely due to very deceptive changeup and pinpoint control.

by mateodh on Sep 27, 2007 8:26 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Next 5, because I'm in the mood...

Chris Perez. Would be higher, but he really needs to improve his control if he wants to dominate Major League 9th innings. I also prefer the best pitchers to throw 200 innings a year instead of 60-70, no matter how important/difficult the 9th inning is.
Adam Ottavino. Very good stuff, but with his flyball tendencies he could have a higher cieling in another organization.
Jose Martinez. Athletic shortstop with a pretty good bat, should be next in line after Brendan Ryan.
Clayton Mortensen. Good sinking fastball had him outperforming expectations as an "overdrafted" supplemental pick.
Jarrett Hoffpauir. Short(5'9") and old for a prospect(24), but .323/.407/.473 for a middle infielder in the upper levels(.300/.394/.416 in Triple-A) is hard to look past. If not for Kennedy's contract, he'd have a great chance to be the everyday 2B in '08.

by mateodh on Sep 27, 2007 9:20 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Kyle Russell

does anyone ever get drafted and signed the next year by the same team they couldn't work out a deal with? I am not being smart-assy, I am just curious.

"Show me a guy who takes his time on the mound and I'll show you a damned loser." - Leo Durocher

by mattyfrommo on Sep 30, 2007 1:34 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Must... stop... at.... 15...

Joe Mather. Finally put it together last year, could be a Duncan-like late bloomer.
Mark McCormick. Has his work cut out for him. For me, he needs to stay healthy all year, advance two levels, and get his BB/9 down near 4 to remain a top 20 prospect. His stuff is still the best in the system, although Perez is close.
Pete Kozma. Hasn't proven anything yet, but early criticism doesn't sound a whole lot different than what was said of Rasmus when he debuted.
Mark Hamilton. Started to adjust to Double A pitching in August, but lacked the power you'd expect from a guy who slugged .520 in the FSL before the promotion.
Jess Todd. Since the draft many have opined that Todd, taken in the second round, was the better pick between he and college teammate Nick Schmidt, the Padres' more publicized first-rounder. Struck out 69 in 58.1 innings for short-season Batavia, along with a 59% GB rate.

by mateodh on Sep 27, 2007 10:53 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I think

We need to take a college third baseman, a high ceiling high school pitcher, and a polished college left-hander with our first 3 picks (including supp. picks.) I wish we could trade draft picks, Pedro Alvarez would be the perfect fit! It's not like the Rays need him, they have Evan Longoria and Iwamura. = (

I consider myself an avid follower of prospects, so,

My top 30 for the St. Louis Cardinals?

Colby Rasmus CF
Jaime Garcia LHP
Allen Craig SS
Bryan Anderson C
Tyler Herron RHP
Chris Perez RHP
Jarrett Hoffpauir 2B
Adam Ottavino RHP
Pete Kozma SS
P.J. Walters RHP
Clayton Mortensen RHP
Jose Martinez SS
Mark Worrell RHP
Mitch Boggs RHP
Brad Furnish LHP
Donnie Smith RHP
Tyler Norrick LHP
Joe Mather OF
Blake Hawksworth RHP
Nick Stavinoha OF
Mark McCormick RHP
Mark Shorey OF
David Kopp RHP
Luke Gregerson RHP
Tyler Greene SS
Shaun Garceau RHP
Blake King RHP
Arnoldi Cruz 3B
Tyler Henley CF
Armando Carrasco RHP

Pure speculation, of course. It's evident that the Cardinals don't really have any real talent near the major league level except for Rasmus and maybe Garcia. There are no power threats below AA in the Cardinals farm system except for maybe Brandon Buckman

by KeepOnRolen on Sep 29, 2007 12:40 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Prospects

Couple of thoughts...

Don't overlook RHP David Kopp. He was my #1 pitcher in the draft because he's a clone of Maddux.
I was a big fan of Jess Todd's mechanics. I liked him better than Duke Welker, who many liked more.
I like the run on Mortensen's ball. He's got some Peavy in him but with better mechanics.
In general, someone in the Cards system likes Maddux clones. You can see it in who they are drafting. PJ Walters is another good example of this with his pseudo-screwball.

Bottom line is that I think our pitching could solidify in 3 years or so, assuming nobody pulls a Dan Haren trade.

by thepainguy on Sep 29, 2007 7:44 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs