04.21.07

Prospect Watch

Posted in Baseball at 10:01 pm by Valentine

Sorted by soxprospects.com rankings, the premier source for information on Red Sox Prospects:

  • Jacoby Ellsbury (AA) 19-40, .475/.523/.750, 9 XBH, 4-1 SB-CS
    • Pawtucket’s outfield is crowded by David Murphy, Brandon Moss, and fifth-outfielder reserve Alex Ochoa, so Ellsbury got sent back to Portland. No surprise that he’s romping like Jerome Bettis in a Pop Warner game! First injury (at either the major league or AAA level) and he’ll be promoted.
  • Clay Buchholz (AA) 3.72 ERA, 9.2 IP, 10 K, 2 BB
    • This is a bit of a jump for Buchholz, as he spent almost all of 2006 in middle-tier A-ball. Doesn’t seem terribly fazed by the move, though his numbers aren’t quite as good as they were in Greenville. I expect Buchholz will spend the entire year with Portland, and will contend for the Eastern League honors.
  • Michael Bowden (A+) 1.15 ERA, 15.2 IP, 15 K, 4 BB
    • Could he be joining Buchholz in a month or two? The California league is a tough environment for pitchers, so you probably don’t want to leave a top prospect there too long.
  • Bryce Cox (AA) 0.00 ERA, 7.0 IP, 3K, 3 BB
    • Hard to say anything useful about this line. He’s been working two innings at a time, separated by (roughly) three days rest, though he projects as a short reliever. Relief pitchers have been known to jump successfully from AA to the majors, so an August callup isn’t impossible.
  • George Kottaras (AAA) .235/.366/.353
    • He’ll still be there whenever he’s needed. There is greater concern over his defense than his offense, but recent comments have been positive.
  • Lars Anderson (A) .357/.429/.536, 7 XBH, 1 SB
    • Keep an eye on this kid, drafted out of HS just last year. There aren’t any other serious 1B prospects in the system, so this is a position of need for the organization. I still wouldn’t expect to see him in the majors before 2010, at the tender age of 23.

I’ll skip over Daniel Bard, Justin Masterson, Jason Place, David Murphy… Keep little kids away from their stat lines! Bard and Masterson are stuck in Lancaster, NOT an easy place to pitch. They are good prospects and will figure it out. Place is known to be a raw talent and will take time to develop. Murphy? The sand has almost run out of his hourglass. He needs to improve those numbers NOW if he wants to remain in professional baseball.

Last, but not least…

  • Brandon Moss (AAA) .308/.357/.538
    • The first two averages are consistent with his prior lines, but the third represents a MAJOR bump in power. While it is too early to know if this represents real improvement or a fluke, that’s exactly what he needs to turn himself into a quality prospect. He has always hit a fair number of doubles, and is 23 this year, so a power bump wouldn’t be surprising at all. A strong start at AAA could put him in line for a major league tryout if (when?) JD Drew gets injured.

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