 |
 |
|
| | Thursday, April 20 Devil Rays minor-league report | |||||
| By John Sickels Special to ESPN.com System overview Every expansion team talks about how they are going to build from within. The Devil Rays were no exception. Tampa Bay general manager Chuck LaMar contributed the Foreword to my 1999 STATS Minor League Scouting Notebook. In it, he wrote: "As the finances of Major League Baseball continue to spiral upward ... organizations must continue to find cost-effective ways of producing a championship club. We all know that the most time-proven method of achieving this goal is through a productive scouting and player-development system." Couldn't have said it better myself, Chuck. The D-Rays have been willing to spend money on the farm system, most impressively when they signed loophole free agent pitchers Matt White and Bobby Seay in 1996. But the enticement of immediate success has led them increasingly down the road of the expensive veteran. Witness the signing of three free agents in 1997, which gutted the 1998 draft class, as well as the recent moves that brought Vinny Castilla and Greg Vaughn to town. Tampa is probably the most "tools" intensive team in baseball today, even more so than the Marlins. The D-Rays emphasize high school talent in the draft, especially strong athletes with football backgrounds. As a result, Tampa has several high-ceiling but unpolished players in the system, but with little depth surrounding them. Such an approach can yield great rewards, but is also very risky, and the early results have not been good. 1999 Minor League W-L Percentage: .508, (ranked 11th)1999 amateur draft Tampa owned the first slot in the 1999 draft, and used it to select Josh Hamilton, a high school outfielder from North Carolina who instantly became the best prospect in the system, and one of the best in baseball. The second round pick was Carl Crawford, a Houston high school outfielder with a football scholarship to Nebraska. Crawford passed up college and signed. He is Hamilton's equal in tools, but is much less refined, and will take longer to develop. Doug Waechter, drafted in the third round, and Seth McClung, picked in the fifth slot, are raw, hard-throwing high school pitchers who will take time to mature. The fourth-round slot was used on Alex Santos, a solid college pitcher from the University of Miami who should move through the system quickly, but has little star potential. The same can be said for seventh-rounder Andrew Beinbrink, a third baseman from Arizona State. The sixth and eighth round picks didn't sign. Twins Nathan and Jason Cromer, high school lefties from Des Moines, were picked in the 10th and 11th rounds. This is a high-risk, high-reward draft if there ever was one. Hamilton will be fine, but Crawford, Waechter, McClung, and the Cromers are not sure things, and will take time to develop in any event. Top prospects 1) Josh Hamilton, OF: Everything you want in a prospect. Excellent athlete, hits for power and average, runs well, strong arm in the outfield, plays the game hard and is relatively polished. Could be in the majors in two years, if his strike zone judgment holds up. 2) Jason Standridge, RHP: 1997 first-round pick put his game together. Throws hard, throws strikes, excellent attitude. Needs to sharpen his breaking stuff, but should be able to do so. 3) Aubrey Huff, 3B: A solid, if unheralded, prospect. Lefty power bat and a decent glove, but now blocked by Vinny Castilla. 4) Travis Harper, RHP: Good combination of stuff and command. Will reach the majors sooner than more-famous pitchers in the system. 5) Jared Sandberg, 3B: Nephew of Ryne. Good power, defensive skills, and work ethic. Excessive strikeouts are a worry. Others of note Matt White, RHP: 1996 loophole free agent. Throws strikes with 95 mph fastball, but his performance has been mediocre. Increasingly disappointing. Bobby Seay, LHP: Like White, he has a great arm and decent control, but for some reason hasn't been consistently effective in the minors. An enigma. Alex Sanchez, OF: Cuban speedster excites scouts, but his poor strike zone judgment caught up with him in Double-A. Kenny Kelly, OF: Better known as a college quarterback. Could be an outstanding player if he devotes his time to baseball. Ramon Soler, SS: Fast, flashy glove, stole 46 bases with 56 walks. Lacks power, and hit just .237 in the Sally League, but very young. Steve Cox, 1B; and Scott McClain, 3B: Minor league veterans with good bats, now trapped behind McGriff and Castilla. Other names to know: Cedric Bowers, LHP; Jorge Cantu, SS; Toby Hall, C; Paul Hoover, C; Issrael Osorio, 1B; Josh Pressley, 1B; Eddy Reyes, RHP; Juan Salas, SS; Dan Wheeler, RHP. John Sickels is the author of the 2000 STATS Minor League Scouting Notebook. You can email your questions to him at JASickels@AOL.com. | ALSO SEE Hot Stove Heaters: Devil Rays ESPN.com's Hot Stove Heaters  | |||||