Who Is RedsZone's #9 Prospect?

[Ron Madden]

Big struggle between Shafer, Loo and Medlock.

I'll go with Medlock.

[jmcclain19]

I voted Medlock simply because I think he rates highest on the "Most likely to help the Reds in a positive way one day" among those on that list.

[lollipopcurve]

Medlock -- recent reports that his fastball is 93+ have boosted his stock for me.

[M2]

Josh Hamilton is not a prospect.

[TRF]

Josh Hamilton is not a prospect.

Damn straight. He's a novelty, one I think we are all rooting for, but not a prospect.

[lollipopcurve]

Damn straight. He's a novelty, one I think we are all rooting for, but not a prospect.

Well, novelty and prospect are just words. If by novelty you mean he has no reasonable chance of becoming a major leaguer, I think it's too soon to make that assessment. We're talking about a guy who had prodigious talent and who may be coming in to camp on a mission. I would vote for him at #10 if he doesn't end up taking this round.

[camisadelgolf]

I went with Milton Loo because I thought he deserved it over Hamilton.

[M2]

Well, novelty and prospect are just words. If by novelty you mean he has no reasonable chance of becoming a major leaguer, I think it's too soon to make that assessment. We're talking about a guy who had prodigious talent and who may be coming in to camp on a mission. I would vote for him at #10 if he doesn't end up taking this round.

Though it's just words, he's officially a soap opera. And he's been around long enough to make the assessment that unless something drastic changes, he's got next to no chance to become a major leaguer of any quality.

Frankly, no one even knows how much raw talent he's still got at this point. For all anyone knows, he's a guy who had talent and he's lost it thanks to hard living and years of inactivity. He sure wasn't flashing much talent in his rookie ball return last year. B.J. Szymanski, about whom I have few good things to say, is a better prospect than Hamilton at this moment in time.

[dougdirt]

I tend to agree with M2 on Hamilton....and I think very little of Szymanski. The only tool that I know Hamilton still has left is his power, and those reports come from batting practice sessions before games.

[lollipopcurve]

Frankly, no one even knows how much raw talent he's still got at this point.

I understand all the skepticism about Hamilton -- several years off, a nasty drug habit and injuries are enough to put most careers in the dumpster. But this guy was a monster prospect -- the first pick in the country, ahead of Josh Beckett. In my view, the talent is retrievable with reps -- it's the mental challenge of dealing with failure (that's baseball), public scrutiny and loudmouth fans that will be his biggest obstacle. Huge power, decent speed, huge arm. That stuff doesn't go away in your mid-20s. If his head is really on straight now, I think he's got a real chance.

[M2]

I understand all the skepticism about Hamilton -- several years off, a nasty drug habit and injuries are enough to put most careers in the dumpster. But this guy was a monster prospect -- the first pick in the country, ahead of Josh Beckett. In my view, the talent is retrievable with reps -- it's the mental challenge of dealing with failure (that's baseball), public scrutiny and loudmouth fans that will be his biggest obstacle. Huge power, decent speed, huge arm. That stuff doesn't go away in your mid-20s. If his head is really on straight now, I think he's got a real chance.

Frankly, I always thought he was overblown. Didn't help that he got into one of the worst teaching organizations in the business.

So you've got what he missed over the previous four years, what he hadn't learned the previous four years before that and what he might not have had in the first place. Surely he's lost some reaction time/bat speed to boot -- stuff that he's not going to recover. He'd do well to hit above the Mendoza line in the FSL. Intriguing as he may be to some people, I just don't see any way to call him a "prospect" at this juncture. Not playing winter ball also speaks volumes. If anyone thought he had some semblance of a game together, he'd be getting reps this winter.

Anyway, I just can't see according prospect status to a "maybe he's Roy Hobbs" line of thinking.

[lollipopcurve]

Not playing winter ball also speaks volumes. If anyone thought he had some semblance of a game together, he'd be getting reps this winter.

I think he's trying to gain some stability in his life. First things first. Heading down to Latin America on his own? Probably not the right thing for him at this point. From what I have read, he's back with his young family and working for his brother (or something like that). Training hard, planning to come in to ST in great shape. I would not underestimate the Narron connection -- it goes back to his youth, in the days before he was an abject failure. I'd think that would be a huge psychological relief for Hamilton. Narron (Jerry) has visited him a few times this offseason already.... So, I'm not concerned about him not playing winter ball (remember, too, that he's coming off minor knee surgery) -- he appears to be honing his life skills first, which seems like a good idea.

[M2]

I think he's trying to gain some stability in his life. First things first. Heading down to Latin America on his own? Probably not the right thing for him at this point. From what I have read, he's back with his young family and working for his brother (or something like that). Training hard, planning to come in to ST in great shape. I would not underestimate the Narron connection -- it goes back to his youth, in the days before he was an abject failure. I'd think that would be a huge psychological relief for Hamilton. Narron (Jerry) has visited him a few times this offseason already.... So, I'm not concerned about him not playing winter ball (remember, too, that he's coming off minor knee surgery) -- he appears to be honing his life skills first, which seems like a good idea.

I think it's a great idea to have his life together before he plays baseball, but he already came back to baseball in 2006. So did he jump the gun last summer? How stable is he if he can't do the thing that professionally he most needs to do (play baseball)?

Honestly, if this is about what's best for Hamilton, the answer probably is to get on with his life and not worry about playing baseball because that ship has most likely sailed. If it's about getting Hamilton to the point where he could be a good baseball player, then I don't see much reason for optimism. He didn't play well this summer. He isn't playing this winter. He was always raw. He's missed tons of time and he's not a spring chicken.

[lollipopcurve]

If it's about getting Hamilton to the point where he could be a good baseball player, then I don't see much reason for optimism. He didn't play well this summer. He isn't playing this winter. He was always raw. He's missed tons of time and he's not a spring chicken.

No doubt the odds are against him -- but seven and a half years ago he had more going for him as a baseball player than anybody his age on the planet. I don't buy that he was raw in comparison to his peers -- check out his age 18 season in the Appy League -- absolute domination. And he had success at a young age in high A too. All young players are raw to an extent -- if Hamilton was raw and at the same time dominant, then that's testimony to how much talent he had. I wouldn't say I'm optimistic -- I'm neither optimistic nor pessimistic about him. If I was wildly enthusiastic about his chances, I'd have voted for him above #10 -- putting him at #10 on my list is simply an acknowledgement of his superior talent and his apparent desire to embrace a great opportunity.

[Danny Serafini]

I think it's a great idea to have his life together before he plays baseball, but he already came back to baseball in 2006. So did he jump the gun last summer? How stable is he if he can't do the thing that professionally he most needs to do (play baseball)?

The issue isn't playing baseball, it's living in a foreign country without his family and support system around him.