Pioneer League Top 20 Prospects

[redsof72]

8. Tony Cingrani
10. Ryan Wright
12. Sean Buckley
19. Kyle Waldrop

Good representation. If Radhames Quezada had stayed healthy, he might have gotten some consideration. I am told James Allen is very, very good, but tough for a reliever to get on the list.

[Edd Roush]

Just for reference, there are 8 teams in the Pioneer League, so the Reds/Mustangs have more representation than average.

[lollipopcurve]

8. Tony Cingrani
10. Ryan Wright
12. Sean Buckley
19. Kyle Waldrop

Good representation. If Radhames Quezada had stayed healthy, he might have gotten some consideration. I am told James Allen is very, very good, but tough for a reliever to get on the list.

Not bad. I was hoping for higher for Cingrani. 72, have you heard whether the Billings group (i.e., the 2012 Dayton group, more or less) as a whole is considered to be a good one?

[mace]

Interesting that Ryan Wright impressed more than Buckley, who was more productive, and Waldrop, who is younger. I would have had those three in reverse order.

I'll strongly consider Waldrop for my top 10-15 this time around. I suspect, though, that his lack of walks will hurt his standing.

[redsof72]

A credible source who had seen the Billings team told me "not much of a drop-off for Dayton in 2012."

The exact order of the rankings of the players do not mean as much to me as the simple fact that four Reds players impressed enough to be talked about. Keep in mind, Baseball America does not have scouts. The rankings are based on phone conversations with Pioneer League managers and other observers that they feel have a credible opinion. Some managers are more willing to talk than others. Some speak in more animated terms about the players they were impressed with. Some managers see players when they are hot, others when they are slumping. The managers don't put the players in order, they just talk about who impressed them and why. Then the writer has to go back and make some sense of it all. To try to sit down at the end and say this guy is 6 and this guy is 8 and then this guy is 10 is somewhat of a guessing game.

You are going to have probably two players in a league of that size that really stand out in most years and then the next group is a larger group of 10-12 guys that get mentioned.

In the Midwest League this season, in the East, you had four position players in that top group: Billy Hamilton, Rymer Liriano, Jake Marisnick, and Nick Castellanos. Not sure about the West and not factoring in the pitchers. Each of those four will have supporters, but those four should be the top four position players from the East on the list.

[lollipopcurve]

A credible source who had seen the Billings team told me "not much of a drop-off for Dayton in 2012."

Good deal. It's an older group, so it could be the prospect quotient isn't as high, but we'll see.

You are going to have probably two players in a league of that size that really stand out in most years and then the next group is a larger group of 10-12 guys that get mentioned.

Makes sense. I'm like you -- I just like to see Reds guys get onto the lists. If they're at the top, so much the better, but even that is no guarantee.

In the Midwest League this season, in the East, you had four position players in that top group: Billy Hamilton, Rymer Liriano, Jake Marisnick, and Nick Castellanos. Not sure about the West and not factoring in the pitchers. Each of those four will have supporters, but those four should be the top four position players from the East on the list.

Will look forward to your comments on that list when it comes out!

[dougdirt]

The Pioneer League doesn't look like it had as much talent as it has in the past. Compared to the Appy League, the top 5 guys all would rank ahead of the #2 Pioneer League guy. I like the guys on the list from the Reds, but not one of them really jumps out to me as a guy I would even be remotely upset about if we lost them in a trade as a throw in. I don't think anyone on this list is a Top 15 prospect off the top of my head. Perhaps Cingrani is near the back end of 15, need to get a few more reports on him.... but yeah, I am just not all that impressed by the talent that went through the league this year on the whole and the Reds four guys making the list is more about the league than the Reds players who aren't chump meat or anything, but aren't exactly world beaters either.

[icehole3]

who's a good comparison for Lutz?