9-News: 42.022 – Prospect Rankings – Rotation

[RonCo]

Top o' the Order to you, Sir!

Level	Player	Age	T	OVR	STU/MOV/CON	Pitches
AAA	Al Colbert	22	R	45/45	6/7/9 -	92 MPH. 7/2/8
AAA	Josh Henson	22	L	45/45	5/7/8 -	93 MPH. 8/1/9
SA	Bartolo Bermudez	19	R	20/50	5/6/7 -	94 MPH. 8/8/7
R	Kenny Moss	17	R	20/50	5/6/6 -	94 MPH. 7/8/8
SA	Kandy Soufax	19	L	25/50	8/5/3 -	100 MPH. 9/10/4/9
A	Dean Stranaghan	20	R	30/35	6/6/3 -	99 MPH. 9/5/6
AAA	Frank Cameron	23	R	35/35	4/7/4 -	97 MPH, 7/7/5
AA	Antonio Delgado	22	R	35/35	6/5/3 -	95 MPH. 9/7/6
AA	Jimmy Ferguson	23	R	30/30	6/1/7 -	95 MPH. 9/4/7/6

The bad news is that, for the first time in a while, there are no startling prospects at the top of this list. No Carlos Valle, Ernesto Ramos, Carlos Pineda, or Tomas Ramirez. Perhaps not even a Luis Colon--though we do hope that's not true. The good news is that all five of those guys graduated up in a staggered fashion over the seasons, and with a little luck will keep the rotation in pretty good stead for a few years while a couple of these guys maybe can develop to take their place.

Calling Kandy Soufax, calling Kandy Soufax.

Yeah, I admit it. If I had one OOTP wish that could be fulfilled it would be that Kandy Soufax go on a tear, and become the next great Nine development project. It happened with Valle, basically. And it happened with Ramos. Could lightning strike three times? Probably not, but we can dream.

Regardless, at this time, despite having the liveliest arm in the system, and the most interesting repertoire, Soufax’s control drops him down the rankings a bit. Instead we see Al Colbert and Josh Henson as the top two candidates right now. If you’re paying attention, you know they sit in the relivers list, too. That’s because, while we see them as passable in a rotation, they’re really just better off if we can move them to the pen. This would leave Bermudez and recent IC find Kenny Moss as the top two “true” rotation guys. Then Soufax. Ultimately, if all three of those guys manage to become something, we’re in pretty kay shape.

The next tier: Stranaghan, Cameron, Delgado, and Ferguson, are all in the category of needing a bump to prove they can handle the top level, but being young enough to still qualify. Cameron has been a particular disappointment, as he’s a 1-time first rounder who we converted to a starter and has since nose-dived (in a perfect world, he would have been the next stud in line). Stranaghan and Ferguson are both interesting minor league free agents who have developed up enough to catch my eye.

[jleddy]

The bad news is that, for the first time in a while, there are no startling prospects at the top of this list.

So what you're saying is there's hope for the rest of us?

I'm selfishly rooting for The Boychick from New Brunswick and his potentially devastating curve.

[HoosierVic]

Ok, so here's a question: would a guy like Ferguson ever bump from a "1" movement to better than that? Or is that pretty much locked in from the start?

[RonCo]

Movement can bump. It's unlikely to happen, but possible. He's 23, so he's getting out of the range, but he's been moving up in other areas for the past season or two, so I hold some small hope.

[RonCo]

On the other hand, I'm thinking of spending PPT on a new "merge pitchers" reward and mush Cameron and Ferguson together to get:

Jink Camerguson: 10/8/11, 192 MPH

That would avoid the whole development issue, eh?

[HoosierVic]

Dr. Kochershmeltz over in California might be able to work something out for you! Would it be a deal breaker if your merged pitcher had bright emerald eyes?