Who is Redszone's #9 prospect?

[OnBaseMachine]

Prospect #1 - Aroldis Chapman, LHP
Prospect #2 - Devin Mesoraco, C
Prospect #3 - Yorman Rodriguez, CF
Prospect #4 - Yonder Alonso, 1B
Prospect #5 - Billy Hamilton, SS
Prospect #6 - Yasmani Grandal, C
Prospect #7 - Todd Frazier, IF/OF
Prospect #8 - Juan Francisco, 3B

[Homer Bailey]

This one should be quick. Cozart.

[Red Daddy]

I went Cozart but only cause he's a SS. I like Sappelt and have been pulling for him for a long time now. I think Sappelt can be a Billy Hatcher, Bill Doran type hitter with great defense and steals (he must improve that).

[SYCMiniBus]

Not on that Cozart bandwagon at all... He only OPS'ed higher than .770 in one month, a la Jonny Gomes, and is already 25. I just think Donnie Joseph is far more valuable going forward as a back end bullpen type of guy above Cozart's production with a .310 OBP.

[kaldaniels]

Went with Sappelt. Based on past polls Cozart's gonna win this easy. Its hard to change minds here but I'd just ask that you check out their batting stats/trends side by side...I think Sappelt's performance outweighs any defensive/positional value Zack brings. That's just me.

[camisadelgolf]

I completely understand not being on the Cozart bandwagon. In a lot of ways, he looks like a variant of the Paul Janish type. But when it comes to Joseph, as impressive as he's been, I'm nowhere near ready to pick a reliever at this point. I think I'm going to go with Ryan LaMarre next. He had a .361 OBP, showed some pop, stole same bases, and played good defense. How the heck was he still available in the second round?

[kaldaniels]

I completely understand not being on the Cozart bandwagon. In a lot of ways, he looks like a variant of the Paul Janish type. But when it comes to Joseph, as impressive as he's been, I'm nowhere near ready to pick a reliever at this point. I think I'm going to go with Ryan LaMarre next. He had a .361 OBP, showed some pop, stole same bases, and played good defense. How the heck was he still available in the second round?

LaMarre is on my radar in the next few slots as well.

[dougdirt]

Went with Brad Boxberger. I still like him as a starter until the Reds show otherwise, and even if he goes to the bullpen, he has closer like stuff that no one else really can match. In the bullpen he can hit 98 MPH and has an above average slider. I know he struggled coming out of the pen in AA this year, but I just can't see how that stuff doesn't get better results in the long run.

[Edd Roush]

I think I reached on this one more than on any other pick. This is the beginning of the tier of prospects where I wouldn't call them "top-prospects" any more. Therefore, I went with the player I would be most upset if the Reds traded and landed on Ismael Guillon. The sky is the limit with this kid and he has the most potential of any pitcher in the minor leagues (I'm clearly not including Chapman). I know he only has pitched 50 2/3 innings in the minor leagues, but the scouting reports have been glowing and the kid struck out 11.5/9 had a WHIP of 1.088 and only gave up one bomb. Laugh at me for this pick, but I'm going with Guillon.

[medford]

Cozart for the 5th and hopefully last try (I think, I've lost count)

Sappalt is likely next for me, but after that, I'm probably jumping hard on some low level guys before I get to Joseph. Guys like torreyes, Arias, Guillen grab me as a prospect before a reliever. I also think its time Felix Perez gets some attention. He's still a few slots away in my mind, but should be garnering attention. Guy could be a backup OF on opening day next year depending on what they do in the trade market (heisey) and in LF.

[dougdirt]

Cozart for the 5th and hopefully last try (I think, I've lost count)

Sappalt is likely next for me, but after that, I'm probably jumping hard on some low level guys before I get to Joseph. Guys like torreyes, Arias, Guillen grab me as a prospect before a reliever. I also think its time Felix Perez gets some attention. He's still a few slots away in my mind, but should be garnering attention. Guy could be a backup OF on opening day next year depending on what they do in the trade market (heisey) and in LF.

I am all for going with Arias and Guillen before a reliever like Joseph who doesn't profile to be a closer, but Torreyes is not on the same level of prospects as the other two guys. He is 5'10" and 130 pounds. Yes, he is very young, but I really don't think he should be in the conversation before Donnie Joseph is. Not at this point.

[bubbachunk]

Not on that Cozart bandwagon at all... He only OPS'ed higher than .770 in one month, a la Jonny Gomes, and is already 25. I just think Donnie Joseph is far more valuable going forward as a back end bullpen type of guy above Cozart's production with a .310 OBP.

Yea but the big difference is the position played. Gomes plays poor defense in LF while Cozart plays stellar defense at shortstop. You dont need to be a 900 ops bat at short if you are very good defensively.

[Brutus]

I went with Cozart, but I'm thinking of jumping on the Torreyes bandwagon for the next slot

I love that kid. From everything I've seen, heard & read, it seems all he does is hits.

[camisadelgolf]

I am all for going with Arias and Guillen before a reliever like Joseph who doesn't profile to be a closer, but Torreyes is not on the same level of prospects as the other two guys. He is 5'10" and 130 pounds. Yes, he is very young, but I really don't think he should be in the conversation before Donnie Joseph is. Not at this point.

I don't think you should let Torreyes' size hurt him too much. Yes, he's small, but he was only 17 years old this season, and every report I read said that they were surprised at the power coming from such a small frame. I'm sure he'll never be tall, but in five years, it's pretty much a guarantee that he'll be at least a little thicker.

Brian Roberts is another example of a small guy who has surprising power. He's generously listed at 5'9", and I don't think anyone thought power would have any part in his game. Granted, he is far from being a slugger, but he had enough power to lead the AL in doubles a couple times, and that's no small feat. In 1,329 minor league plate appearances, he hit only six homeruns, but he hit 18 homeruns at the age of 27.

[dougdirt]

I don't think you should let Torreyes' size hurt him too much. Yes, he's small, but he was only 17 years old this season, and every report I read said that they were surprised at the power coming from such a small frame. I'm sure he'll never be tall, but in five years, it's pretty much a guarantee that he'll be at least a little thicker.

Brian Roberts is another example of a small guy who has surprising power. He's generously listed at 5'9", and I don't think anyone thought power would have any part in his game. Granted, he is far from being a slugger, but he had enough power to lead the AL in doubles a couple times, and that's no small feat. In 1,329 minor league plate appearances, he hit only six homeruns, but he hit 18 homeruns at the age of 27.

Don't get me wrong, I have Torreyes in my Top 40. But he isn't a guy who has a real standout tool and he is undersized quite a bit at this point. I just can't see how Torreyes is a better prospect than say, Henry Rodriguez at this point. Torreyes has 114 plate appearances on American soil and 1 walk. Granted he only has 8 strikeouts too. Still, we are talking about an incredibly small sample size for a player who isn't showing standout tools and weighs 130 pounds. I just can't see him as a Top 20 prospect at this point.