Off Topic
2061 Season Snapshot
Unlike left field, the prospect list of guys who can play right field is a little more sparse. Perhaps this will work out OK, as we've got a few young guys we've brought up who can at least man the position and play a little bit of defense at moments. Steven Schmidt, for example, has had an interesting year as a rookie since being called up. His numbers are all over the place, but mostly down. Still he hits the long ball though, so I think his value is a little bigger than what the number crunchers will say.
This team news is about true prospects though, so we'll look down the line and see what's coming.
#1 Juan Ramos
When he was drafted in 2055, Juan Ramos looked like he would be a respectable enough hitter. Make a little contact, hit for occasional power. Probably top out somewhere in the upper ranges of the minor leagues. Not horrible for 4th rounder. Coming out of high school he spent five seasons hanging around Port-au-Prince in trying to hit Short A pitching without incredible success.
I moved him along to Lake City simply because we needed somebody to play up there, though retrospect forces me to say he did hit 12 homers at the end of that last season. But Lake City is where lightning apparently struck. He finished 2016 with 14 homers, a .392 wOBA, and a 154 wRC+. Now, I know stats in the minors have a certain sense of randomness to them. The talent profile of opponents sometimes makes things hard to judge. But you don't want to miss that kind of a jump, I think, and beyond that moving him up to AA this year resulted in further potential bumps, and the solid 2.6 WAR season. I actually pushed him into AAA for the last game of the year. What the hell, right?
Bottom line is that with that big arm, one Ramos is suddenly a serious prospect. We're going to hope that his slip from "5" contact to "4" contact means he's on the upper end of that bar, and that with a little attention perhaps he can be back into is originally drafted "5" zone. When we're dreaming, we could see it jumping to a six. In our best dreams, that comes from an improvement in his strikeout rate. Regardless, his power/eye combination is looking elite, and that can make for a very useful player in the BBA.
2062 Projection: Spring training, an assignment to AAA, and perhaps a late season call up.
#2 Kelvin Maxwell
Maxwell was a fun little prospect. I drafted him in the fourth round of the 2060 selection process, and in his year and a half at rookie ball he's had some pretty fair numbers. Of most interest is that he's growing into his power fairly quickly, which is translated to the field with thirteen home runs in his 63 games last year. The contact numbers have been reasonable for an 18 year old, also. It's enough to make me excited about him going forward.
The downside right now is that as a left-handed hitter, splits are already appearing, which means he will likely need a platoon mate If and when he gets to the majors. That's not a problem, of course. I like me some platoons, and as long as he can rake right-handed pitchers you'll have a place on the roster. Eventually.
2062 Projection: Maxwell will be 19 next year, and I'm hoping he'll be able to handle a full season at Port-au-Prince (Short A).
#3 Kusuma Prawiranega
I should have had Kusuma Prawiranega up at AA earlier this year, But Juan Ramos was already up there and I wanted to get him the higher quality at bats. This is partially because Prawiranega it's not as sexy that'll be a prospect. He's more a meat and potatoes kind of guy, right? Left-handed hitter who had solid enough, with the glove that'll play pretty well. He doesn't run much, he won't hit a ton of home runs. But he's a guy, right? Something you went around, but not somebody who's super high on the radar.
That said, he is a lefty who can hit lefties. And as noted, he can play defense. His numbers at able are massive, but he's 24, and really there's nothing to say he couldn't play a role on a BBA team today. He is unhappy right now because he's now playing at the Major League level. While sometimes I think the game screws up in this way, if i squint a little bit i can kind of see that. Here is a guy who believes in himself. I like that.
2062 Projection: I was thinking he would be playing AA next year, but I don't know. It probably makes sense to start him at AAA, really. And who knows what the fates will bring? If the krill are struggling it might be fun to see what he could do right now.
#4 Jesus Gonzalez
The thing I like the most about Jesus Gonzalez right now is his story. He's an 18th round draft pick, after all. His numbers in five years following up the minor league scales have been solid. Or, if not solid, at least respectable for a kid. While his profile does not scream future BBA guy, it wouldn't take a lot to change that. A bump here that turned him into a centerfielder, or a bump there that got him on base a little more often. Neither would make him a star, but either would probably make it capable for him to play a little bit. And once you're a major leaguer, they can't take that away from you.
2062 Projection: We'll see if some time in AA can push Gonzalez's ratings. That would be cool, I'm rooting for him. If they don't bump a little, however, this is probably his last year as a real prospect.
Unlike left field, the prospect list of guys who can play right field is a little more sparse. Perhaps this will work out OK, as we've got a few young guys we've brought up who can at least man the position and play a little bit of defense at moments. Steven Schmidt, for example, has had an interesting year as a rookie since being called up. His numbers are all over the place, but mostly down. Still he hits the long ball though, so I think his value is a little bigger than what the number crunchers will say.
This team news is about true prospects though, so we'll look down the line and see what's coming.
#1 Juan Ramos
| Juan Ramos (RF) | Age | OVR | CON | BABIP | AvK | GAP | POW | EYE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Level: AA | 22 | 45/55 | 4/4 | 5/5 | 4/4 | 5/5 | 7/8 | 8/8 |
| Age: 22 | * | IFR | IFE | IFA | TDP | OFR | OFE | OFA |
| Bats-Throws: R/R | * | 2 | 2 | 9 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 10 |
| Height: 6'4" | * | SPD | AGR | STE | RUN | CBK | CFR | CAR |
| Weight: 195 | * | 5 | 9 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Source: D55.4 |
I moved him along to Lake City simply because we needed somebody to play up there, though retrospect forces me to say he did hit 12 homers at the end of that last season. But Lake City is where lightning apparently struck. He finished 2016 with 14 homers, a .392 wOBA, and a 154 wRC+. Now, I know stats in the minors have a certain sense of randomness to them. The talent profile of opponents sometimes makes things hard to judge. But you don't want to miss that kind of a jump, I think, and beyond that moving him up to AA this year resulted in further potential bumps, and the solid 2.6 WAR season. I actually pushed him into AAA for the last game of the year. What the hell, right?
Bottom line is that with that big arm, one Ramos is suddenly a serious prospect. We're going to hope that his slip from "5" contact to "4" contact means he's on the upper end of that bar, and that with a little attention perhaps he can be back into is originally drafted "5" zone. When we're dreaming, we could see it jumping to a six. In our best dreams, that comes from an improvement in his strikeout rate. Regardless, his power/eye combination is looking elite, and that can make for a very useful player in the BBA.
2062 Projection: Spring training, an assignment to AAA, and perhaps a late season call up.
#2 Kelvin Maxwell
| Kelvin Maxwell (RF) | Age | OVR | CON | BABIP | AvK | GAP | POW | EYE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Level: R | 19 | 20/60 | 3/5 | 2/6 | 3/5 | 4/5 | 6/8 | 3/5 |
| Age: 19 | * | IFR | IFE | IFA | TDP | OFR | OFE | OFA |
| Bats-Throws: L/L | * | 2 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 8 |
| Height: 6'0" | * | SPD | AGR | STE | RUN | CBK | CFR | CAR |
| Weight: 175 | * | 3 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Source: DR60.4 |
Maxwell was a fun little prospect. I drafted him in the fourth round of the 2060 selection process, and in his year and a half at rookie ball he's had some pretty fair numbers. Of most interest is that he's growing into his power fairly quickly, which is translated to the field with thirteen home runs in his 63 games last year. The contact numbers have been reasonable for an 18 year old, also. It's enough to make me excited about him going forward.
The downside right now is that as a left-handed hitter, splits are already appearing, which means he will likely need a platoon mate If and when he gets to the majors. That's not a problem, of course. I like me some platoons, and as long as he can rake right-handed pitchers you'll have a place on the roster. Eventually.
2062 Projection: Maxwell will be 19 next year, and I'm hoping he'll be able to handle a full season at Port-au-Prince (Short A).
#3 Kusuma Prawiranega
| Kusuma Prawiranega (RF) | Age | OVR | CON | BABIP | AvK | GAP | POW | EYE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Level: A | 24 | 40/40 | 5/5 | 6/6 | 5/5 | 6/6 | 5/5 | 6/6 |
| Age: 24 | * | IFR | IFE | IFA | TDP | OFR | OFE | OFA |
| Bats-Throws: L/L | * | 3 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 10 |
| Height: 6'6" | * | SPD | AGR | STE | RUN | CBK | CFR | CAR |
| Weight: 200 | * | 4 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Source: D54.6 |
That said, he is a lefty who can hit lefties. And as noted, he can play defense. His numbers at able are massive, but he's 24, and really there's nothing to say he couldn't play a role on a BBA team today. He is unhappy right now because he's now playing at the Major League level. While sometimes I think the game screws up in this way, if i squint a little bit i can kind of see that. Here is a guy who believes in himself. I like that.
2062 Projection: I was thinking he would be playing AA next year, but I don't know. It probably makes sense to start him at AAA, really. And who knows what the fates will bring? If the krill are struggling it might be fun to see what he could do right now.
#4 Jesus Gonzalez
| Jesus Gonzalez (RF) | Age | OVR | CON | BABIP | AvK | GAP | POW | EYE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Level: A | 23 | 20/40 | 4/6 | 3/5 | 5/6 | 7/7 | 4/4 | 4/5 |
| Age: 23 | * | IFR | IFE | IFA | TDP | OFR | OFE | OFA |
| Bats-Throws: R/R | * | 4 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
| Height: 6'3" | * | SPD | AGR | STE | RUN | CBK | CFR | CAR |
| Weight: 185 | * | 4 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Source: D57.18 |
2062 Projection: We'll see if some time in AA can push Gonzalez's ratings. That would be cool, I'm rooting for him. If they don't bump a little, however, this is probably his last year as a real prospect.