The 4th annual handbook arrived in the mail today. Not surprisingly, BA didn't give the Giants' system much respect (talent ranking of 24th overall, down from #11 last year. LA is #2, up from #14 in 2003 and #25 in 2002) and only one Giant prospect showed up in the writer's top 50 -- Merkin Valdez, who ranged from as high as #15 (Will Lingo's list) to #50 (Allan Simpson's). Compare that to last year when Jesse Foppert was the consensus #1 pitching prospect (if you didn't count Jose Contreras) with Jerome in the 40's on three of the lists.
Before I move onto the top 30, here's a quick look at some of the other teams and prospects of possible interest. Top five organizations in terms of prospect talent ranking: Brewers, Dodgers, Angels, Braves, Twins. And starting from the bottom: Expos, Astros, Cardinals, Yankees, Reds. General consensus top five prospects: Joe Mauer (Twins), B.J. Upton (D-Rays), Delmon Young (D-Rays), Rickie Weeks (Brewers), Edwin Jackson (Dodgers). By the way, another Dodger pitcher -- Greg Miller ranged from #6 to #11 on the four writers' lists. And Kaz Matsui -- technically a rookie, also ranged from #6 to #11. It still bothers me that the Giants failed to recognize the huge impact Matsui's signing could've had on the team, not only on the field, but in the stands and in the community.
Note: the first ten was posted in this section several weeks ago. Here's the complete list.
1. Merkin Valdez (rhp)
2. Matt Cain (rhp)
3. David Aardsma (rhp)
4. Dan Ortmeier (of)
5. Todd Linden (of)
6. Kevin Correia (rhp)
7. Travis Ishikawa (1b)
8. Craig Whitaker (rhp)
9. Fred Lewis (of)
10. Brian Buscher (3b)
11. Todd Jennings (c)
12. Nate Schierholtz (3b)
13. Erick Threets (lhp)
14. Lance Niekro (1b)
15. Noah Lowry (lhp)
16. Brooks McNiven (rhp)
17. Justin Knoedler (c)
18. Jon Armitage (of)
19. Jamie Athas (2b/ss)
20. Glenn Woolard (rhp)
21. Pat Misch (lhp)
22. Cody Ransom (ss)
23. Josh Habel (lhp)
24. Angel Chavez
25. Jason Ellison
26. Carlos Valderrama
27. Tim Hutting (ss/2b)
28. Kelyn Acosta (rhp)
29. Jeremy Accardo (rhp)
30. Brian Wilson (rhp)
Comments and other stuff to follow...
-Dave
Before I move onto the top 30, here's a quick look at some of the other teams and prospects of possible interest. Top five organizations in terms of prospect talent ranking: Brewers, Dodgers, Angels, Braves, Twins. And starting from the bottom: Expos, Astros, Cardinals, Yankees, Reds. General consensus top five prospects: Joe Mauer (Twins), B.J. Upton (D-Rays), Delmon Young (D-Rays), Rickie Weeks (Brewers), Edwin Jackson (Dodgers). By the way, another Dodger pitcher -- Greg Miller ranged from #6 to #11 on the four writers' lists. And Kaz Matsui -- technically a rookie, also ranged from #6 to #11. It still bothers me that the Giants failed to recognize the huge impact Matsui's signing could've had on the team, not only on the field, but in the stands and in the community.
Note: the first ten was posted in this section several weeks ago. Here's the complete list.
1. Merkin Valdez (rhp)
2. Matt Cain (rhp)
3. David Aardsma (rhp)
4. Dan Ortmeier (of)
5. Todd Linden (of)
6. Kevin Correia (rhp)
7. Travis Ishikawa (1b)
8. Craig Whitaker (rhp)
9. Fred Lewis (of)
10. Brian Buscher (3b)
11. Todd Jennings (c)
12. Nate Schierholtz (3b)
13. Erick Threets (lhp)
14. Lance Niekro (1b)
15. Noah Lowry (lhp)
16. Brooks McNiven (rhp)
17. Justin Knoedler (c)
18. Jon Armitage (of)
19. Jamie Athas (2b/ss)
20. Glenn Woolard (rhp)
21. Pat Misch (lhp)
22. Cody Ransom (ss)
23. Josh Habel (lhp)
24. Angel Chavez
25. Jason Ellison
26. Carlos Valderrama
27. Tim Hutting (ss/2b)
28. Kelyn Acosta (rhp)
29. Jeremy Accardo (rhp)
30. Brian Wilson (rhp)
Comments and other stuff to follow...
-Dave
