Baseball America Hot Sheet (#9 Yorman)

[New Fever]

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today...09/268625.html

9. Yorman Rodriguez, CF

Team: Rookie-level Billings (Pioneer)
Age: 16
Why He's Here: .428/.538/.810 (9-for-21, 2 2B, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 5 BB, 8 Ks).
The Scoop: Rodriguez was one of the most divisive signees from the 2008 Latin American class of 16-year-olds. The Reds saw a five-tool talent with a solid swing, while other scouts worried that he'd never swing the bat well enough for his tools to matter. It's way too early for judgment on who was right, but Rodriguez has more than held his own. The Reds promoted him from the Gulf Coast League to Billings last Friday and he responded by tearing up the league in his first six games. Overall he's now hitting .305/.388/.419 with six steals in six attempts, which is a pretty impressive start for a raw 16-year-old. He has everything at 16 that Dominic Brown had at 18, a scout who saw him recently said, but with more raw power.

[GIDP]

He has everything at 16 that Dominic Brown had at 18, a scout who saw him recently said, but with more raw power.

[RedsFanatic]

The strikeout rate is pretty damn high but he has obviously exceeded expectations thus far. Great to see. Keep it up Yorman!

[Homer Bailey]

He has everything at 16 that Dominic Brown had at 18, a scout who saw him recently said, but with more raw power.

Wow that's a telling quote.

[aubashbrother]

JAYPERS (IL): Juan Francisco put together a good week, did he get any love?

J.J. Cooper: Definitely on the worksheet. In fact got some votes for Team Photo, so he was very close. It's crazy to say that a player with 17 walks and 83 strikeouts has really improved his plate selectivity, but for Francisco that is a big improvement. At the same time, he'll have to improve it a lot more to not be carved up by big league pitchers.




Deywane (Memphis, TN): Do you think that Yorman Rodriguez will get Top 100 consideration after the season?

J.J. Cooper: If he keeps this up, yes




Russ (Who Dey): Lots of talk recently about Travis Wood. Not a great second start in AAA. Whats his ceiling? 2nd or 3rd starter?

J.J. Cooper: Because of his stuff I'd still have to say No. 4 starter, but then, I would have never predicted he'd have a sub 1.30 ERA in late July, so I could be wrong again.




Dale (Atlanta): Why do you think that the Reds are not promoting Drew Stubbs to the majors when they need outfield help? Is it because, as some people believe, that they have lost faith in him?

J.J. Cooper: It's definitely not a vote of confidence for him. I know teams don't want to rush players, but in Stubbs' case he's a 24-year-old who has had 430 Triple-A at-bats (and nearly 500 plate appearances). He now has 1,500 minor league at-bats after coming out of a major college program. If the Reds don't believe he can help out when the team has lost two of its starting outfielders and puts Wily Taveras (.240/.279/.290) out there every day, it's hard to see how they think Stubbs will be ready to help them come next spring training.





Alonso (Florida): How does 16 year old Yorman Rodriguez compare to fellow 16 year old phemon Bryce Harper if they were both eligible for the draft in 2010?

J.J. Cooper: Harper's a much better prospect. Nothing against Rodriguez, but there are some scouts who don't like his swing. Scouts can't gush enough about Harper at the plate.









Jim (Minneapolis): The Reds just traded Yonder Alonso and Encarcion for Scott Rolen! Is there something I missed? How can the Reds make a trade like this?

J.J. Cooper: Actually it's Zack Stewart, Edwin Encarnacion and Josh Roenicke for Scott Rolen. Alonso and EE for Rolen would have been historically bad in the Kazmir-Zambrano bracket of bad trades. This one still seems absolutely baffling for the Reds. They pick up a 34-year-old 3B with an 11-million contract for next year who traded straight up for Troy Glaus just a year and a half ago. Rolen makes the Reds a better team for the rest of the year, but the difference between being a 74 and a 78 win team is absolutely meaningless. Our Reds correspondent John Fay reported recently that the Reds payroll for next year will likely be static or down from this year's payroll, signing Rolen adds another expensive, injury-prone player on the downside of his career to a club that needs some more young, cheap talent. It's a great trade for the Blue Jays as Stewart could be an impact arm either as a very solid starting pitcher or as a potential closer, Roenicke is a plus-arm reliever who needs to sharpen his command and Encarnacion is a much younger and cheaper third baseman than Rolen who has been a solid hitter when healthy.

[GIDP]

quick trade Yorman for Eugenio Velez

[11larkin11]

Yorman for John Franco and Jesse Orosco?

You heard it here first.

[Degenerate39]

Where will Yorman start at next year? Will he be back in Billings?

[BuckeyeRedleg]

Quick, trade him for Griffey. He's just a prospect anyway. lol.

[BRM]

Dale (Atlanta): Why do you think that the Reds are not promoting Drew Stubbs to the majors when they need outfield help? Is it because, as some people believe, that they have lost faith in him?

J.J. Cooper: It's definitely not a vote of confidence for him. I know teams don't want to rush players, but in Stubbs' case he's a 24-year-old who has had 430 Triple-A at-bats (and nearly 500 plate appearances). He now has 1,500 minor league at-bats after coming out of a major college program. If the Reds don't believe he can help out when the team has lost two of its starting outfielders and puts Wily Taveras (.240/.279/.290) out there every day, it's hard to see how they think Stubbs will be ready to help them come next spring training.

I can see Walt trading Stubbs this winter.