Baseball America Top 100 Prospects. 4 Reds

[dougdirt]

Homer Bailey came in at #5.
Jay Bruce came in at #14.
Joey Votto came in at #43.
Drew Stubbs came in at #88.

Here is what I dont get, in the comments for the players it says this for Jay Bruce "Beat out Maybin and Upton for top-prospect honors in the Midwest League last summer". Then Maybin ranks #6 and Upton at #9. No sense there.....
Also note that Johnny Cueto was listed as someone who barely missed the list, so the Reds were a few Japanese imports away from having 5 Top 100 players.

Check out the entire list Here at baseballamerica.com

[M2]

I'm surprised at the Stubbs rating.

Best showing for the Reds in a long time, the real key will be that the system's top six guys don't slide in 2007.

[bucksfan2]

Did they rank the organization as well??

[edabbs44]

They have Stubbs flagged as a "risk factor", with his ceiling being Cameron and his floor being Keith Reed.

[dougdirt]

They have Stubbs flagged as a "risk factor", with his ceiling being Cameron and his floor being Keith Reed.

For what its worth, they also have Brandon Wood flagged.

[edabbs44]

For what its worth, they also have Brandon Wood flagged.

Not taking a shot at Stubbs, just flagging it for informational purposes.

[dougdirt]

This is from the Baseball America Chat

Q:Bertram from Taiwan asks:
Drew Stubbs in the top 100?!?! Are you serious?

A: Jim Callis:
Yes, we are. I think people miss the point on Drew Stubbs. Stubbs may never hit for a high average. But if he hits .250, he still probably will be a 20-20 guy playing Gold Glove defense in center field. That's a very valuable player.

[15fan]

But if he hits .250, he still probably will be a 20-20 guy playing Gold Glove defense in center field. That's a very valuable player.

That sounds like the kind of guy who can have a home in the AL. But in the NL where the pitcher has to bat, that makes 2 of the 9 batters pretty easy outs each time through the lineup. Puts more pressure on the other 7 bats to be high performers.

[dougdirt]

Q: J.P. from Midwest asks:
Just how close was it between Hughes & Bailey for their respective rankings? What's the split between your Baseball America staff when answering the question of which of them has the higher ceiling?

A: Jim Callis:
Very close. Of the four of us who did the most work putting together the Top 100, three of us had them next to each other on our lists. Three of us gave the advantage to Hughes, one to Bailey. Bailey's ceiling might be a little higher because I think at his best his stuff is a little better, but Hughes has a little more polish right now.

[dougdirt]

The only prospect from NYY/NYM/BOS I take seriously as deserving their ranking is Phil Hughes.

[Nugget]

The issue I see with the REDSZONE problems with Stubbs is the same as with Gonzo. The REDS have been an all offense team and have been blessed with some above average offense in the key defensive positions. But if you look at the historical prototypical SS and CF, they aren't your Larkin, Griffey, Jeter types but your Dave Concepcions and Mike Camerons.

[cincyinco]

Dont forget Fmart... I normally agree that the "major" markets get overhyped prospects, but Tabata, Fmart, Kershaw are 3 that I believe to be nothing but legit outside of Hughes.

[Outshined_One]

NYY/NYM/BOS minor league guys I'm fine with rankings-wise:

Phil Hughes (might be a tad overrated, but aside from Homer, I can't think of a potentially better pitching prospect right now)
Humberto Sanchez (weight issues concern me, but he's been well-thought of since his DET days)
Daniel Bard (I liked him coming out of college, should be fun to see howhe develops)

That's pretty much about it. Everyone else I either think should be lower on the list or shouldn't be on the list to begin with.

[blumj]

NYY/NYM/BOS minor league guys I'm fine with rankings-wise:

Phil Hughes (might be a tad overrated, but aside from Homer, I can't think of a potentially better pitching prospect right now)
Humberto Sanchez (weight issues concern me, but he's been well-thought of since his DET days)
Daniel Bard (I liked him coming out of college, should be fun to see howhe develops)

That's pretty much about it. Everyone else I either think should be lower on the list or shouldn't be on the list to begin with.

I think Clay Buchholz is going to really surprise some people. I actually don't like the Bard ranking, throw a professional pitch or show me an off-speed pitch worth discussing.

[mbgrayson]

In last years top 100 from BA, the Reds only had 2 players: Bailey at #38, and Bruce at #76. Nice to see the Reds moving up. This, in addition to winning more minor league games last year, is a good sign for coming years.