The annual feature in the VineLine, "Fifty Names From The Farm" will be released in February's issue ... but as been the case in recent years, the Cubs' monthly publication handed out a preview before the Down on the Farm session last weekend.
Here's a look at the best in the Cubs system ... that might just include a few unfamiliar names.
Pitching
Best Command - Casey Coleman (RHP)
Runners up - J.R. Mathes (RHP), Hung-Wen Chen (RHP), Jeff Antigua (LHP)
Best Poise/Make up - Hung-Wen Chen (RHP)
Runners up - Chris Carpenter (RHP), Jeff Antigua (LHP), Casey Coleman (RHP)
Best Athleticism - Jay Jackson (RHP)
Runners up - Andrew Cashner (RHP), Brooks Raley (RHP), Casey Coleman (RHP)
Best Mechanics - Andrew Cashner (RHP)
Runners up - Trey McNutt (RHP), Chris Carpenter (RHP), Casey Coleman (RHP)
Best Durability (tie) - Mitch Atkins (RHP), Hung-Wen Chen (RHP), Casey Coleman (RHP)
Repertoire
Best Fastball - Rafael Dolis (RHP)
Best Curveball - Aaron Shafer (RHP)
Best Change-up - Jeff Antigua (LHP)
Best Slider - Andrew Cashner (RHP)
Best Other - Hung-Wen Chen (RHP)
Ryne Sandberg recently compared Casey Coleman to Greg Maddux. Coleman will be in big league camp this spring.
Hitting
Best Contact Hitter (tie) - Logan Watkins, Hak-Ju Lee
Runner up - Starlin Castro
Best Power Hitter (tie) - Rebel Ridling, Ryan Flaherty
Best Plate Discipline (tie) - Kyler Burke, James Adduci
Best Clutch Hitter - Rebel Ridling
Runners up - Kyler Burke, Starlin Castro
Best Situational Hitter - Rebel Ridling
Runner up - Starlin Castro
Fielding
Best Range
Catcher - Welington Castillo
First Base - Rebel Ridling
Second Base - Logan Watkins
Third Base (tie) - Ryan Flaherty, Jonathan Mota
Shortstop - Starlin Castro
Outfield - Jose Valdez
Best Arm Strength
Catcher - Welington Castillo
First Base - Jovan Rosa
Second Base - Logan Watkins
Third Base - Junior Lake
Shortstop - Starlin Castro
Outfield - Kyler Burke
On Junior Lake, "has the best arm strength of anyone in the organization and maybe baseball."
On Kyler Burke, "arm is his weapon, and clubs stop running when the ball is hit to him."
Best Throwing Accuracy
Catcher (tie) - Robinson Chirinos, Steve Clevenger
First Base - Rebel Ridling
Second Base - Marwin Gonzalez
Third Base - Marquez Smith
Shortstop (tie) - Nate Sampson, Hak-Ju Lee
Outfield - Kyler Burke
On Kyler Burke, "Governmental-level assassin. Can one-hop you on the money with the best. Intimidates third base coaches."
Best Footwork
Catcher - Welington Castillo
First Base - Rebel Ridling
Second Base - Logan Watkins
Third Base (tie) - Ryan Flaherty, Jonathan Mota
Outfield (tie) - Sam Fuld, Brett Jackson, Jose Valdez
Running
Best Raw Speed (tie) - Jose Valdez, Hak-Ju Lee
Runner up - Brandon Guyer
Best Base-Stealing Ability (tie) - Tony Campana, Hak-Ju Lee, Brandon Guyer
Runner up - Jose Valdez
Best Home-to-First (tie) - Jose Valdez, Hak-Ju Lee
Runner Up - Tony Campana
Best Baserunning Instincts - James Adduci
Runner up - Matt Camp, Brandon Guyer, Hak-Ju Lee
Intangibles
Best Heart/Work Ethic (tie) - James Adduci, Matt Camp
Best Competitiveness (tie) - Brett Jackson, Darwin Barney, Starlin Castro
Best Baseball IQ - Darwin Barney
The VineLine editors are predicting D.J. LeMahieu and Hak-Ju Lee to make the biggest splashes in Twenty-Ten.
Several of the position players and pitchers that are the best in the Cubs system will be in big league camp next month.
Casey Coleman, Andrew Cashner, Mitch Atkins (on 40-man roster), J.R. Mathes and Rafael Dolis (on 40-man roster) on the pitching side.
Steve Clevenger, Welington Castillo (on 40-man roster) and Robinson Chirinos behind the plate while Darwin Barney, Starlin Castro, Brett Jackson, James Adduci (on 40-man roster), Matt Camp and Sam Fuld (on 40-man roster) round out the position players.
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How far away is Burke? Year or two? Sounds like an Ichiro type arm. Been a long time since we had one of those in the outfield.
I would think two. He should start in Double-A this year, maybe a Sept call-up in 2011.
Hey neil, on the post it says Matt Camp(on the 40 man roster) is that right? or is it supposed to be next to James Adduci? I would like Matt Camp on the 40 man roster, for his versatility and he had a great winter down in mexico!
Patrick, thanks for catching. I have corrected. Adduci is on the 40-man, not Camp. Camp received a non-roster invitation to big league camp.
Nice report, Neil. Stuff you can't just pick up anywhere. Thanks!
You are more than welcome ... thank you.
Let's hope we can see some of these youngsters crack the big league roster this year.
I'd like to go back to some of the posts of late yesterday on the continued debate over Hendry. We can continue to evaluate the success of signings and trades (Soriano, etc). But the truth is that when you operate with one of the highest payrolls in all of baseball (now for several years), you have to deliver results (and that doesn't = a few division titles). When Hendry, viewed as "average" even by his supporters here, that's a pretty sad assessment again considering the $$$'s he's had to work with. And when you look at the present, how can anyone applaud Hendry when the team is so handcuffed with so many back-loaded, multi-year, no-trade contracts that affords little maneurevability. It's truly shameful.
I place similar accountability to the braintrusts of Rothschild and Pinella. Name a young pitcher that Rothschild has truly developed over the years into a consistent winner. He failed badly, really badly on Rich Hill. The same goes for Marshall, Samardzjia and others. Even Marmol and Zambrano are so erratic under his tutelage that it's scary to watch.
With Pinella we have the old school managing mentality. All sports (football, hockey, basketball) are recognizing that young coaches are the way to go, not because of the cost of their salaries but because they bring a fresh outlook and approach to the game. When you watch Pinella during his comatose 2009 season, and listen to his postgame senility, it just screams for Girardi or Sandberg as an immediate replacement. But yet Hendry continues to view him as "one of the best managers in baseball". Please!
What we continue to see at the Convention and other Cub events is organizational spin marketing at its best, and this club is indeed good at that.
Poor chemistry, no speed, minimal pure athleticism, increased age, and sleepwalking leadership all combine to yield a franchise going in the wrong direction...again, with the 3rd highest payroll in the game.
Well said, Bryan.
Please do not get me started on the Rich Hill fiasco. That guy could have been a solid 3 or 4 starter. One flaw Hill had though was that he was too hard on himself when he did not do well and that hindered his development. With Hill some of it became pyschological. Kind of likw what happen to Ankiel but not at the same extreme. I still do not understand why Rothschild didn't address it sooner though.
After this season though Lou and Rothschild both need to go if the Cubs are going to progress. The Cubs will need to view things from a different perspective. Neither to me has the patience for the young guys and if the Cubs want to develop their own talent and actually put them on the field then they need to go via a different approach and go with coaches that can relate to them better and have the patience do deal with their ups and downs.
Do you know personally any of the people whose psychological issues you're talking about? Did you read some medical digest study on Rich Hill? At what point do we stop pretending we have big league scouting skills and start putting some responsibility on players to figure things out and perform at the level we think they can? Because hey, if they don't, its not the end of the world. There are plenty of guys that never become Johan Santana, or even Doug Davis.
The game is as much mental as it is physical. Some can find it easier to deal with stress than others.
Yes, players need to be held accountable but also, especially young players may not recognize when they are doing something wrong and that is when veterans and the coaching staff need to step in and help them out. Yes, at some point enough is enough but Hill needed more time to work through his issues. The guy had talent and the team in my opinion gave up on him too quickly.
This is by the way coming from someone who served 23 years in the Army and 3 combat tours in Iraq so I know all about stress.
Confidence is the key to success in baseball like many things in life and when you lose that confidence it is hard to get it back and that is based on 35 years of observing baseball.
Well I haven't followed baseball as long as you have and I've never been in the armed forces / combat, so I guess I wouldn't know much about it, but Rich Hill is the least of my issues with Larry Rothschild, as he's done no better in the Orioles system with Leo Mazzone than he did with the Cubs. Also, he wasn't all that young when he spent a full year with the Cubs. 27 or 28 I think?
There are a lot of cases of players having issues with confidence, stress, and depression, and it seems like the league is starting to take all those things more seriously. But I think there are just as many cases where players have just lost their feel for the strike zone, and it seems like the Cubs and Orioles had given him ample chances to find it again.
I definitely agree you are right that Mazzone could not even help. It was just too bad that Hill lost it. He just stopped trusting his stuff and that I think is what has even more frustrated me. He could have been a really good pitcher with that sweeping curveball but unfortunately we will never know.
It just seems like that has just happened to so many Cubs prospects that can't find it.
Hopefully with the new crop things will get better and some of them will make it.
I will be going to see the Iowa Cubs play the Round Rocke Express this summer (assuming I do not have to do a business trip) and I am going to be sure to pass on that we are rooting for them to come up and do some good because the organizatin needs it and that there are a bunch of fans rooting for them to make it.
Guys...no debate necessarily on Rich Hill (he's long gone and so it goes). But I still remember him being on a reasonable track and then Rothschild tinkered with his mechanics (shortened his stride to keep guys from stealing)...and it was all downhill from there.
Baseball, like all sports, is so mentally driven as well as physical. That's why I wonder why teams don't invest in the "mental coach" aspect of the game with professionals (not necessarily retired players) to address this increasingly important component.
Oh that breaking ball was a thing of beauty when it was on. I liked the way he hid the ball behind his back too. I tried it once for fun at the park with a friend catching and it added a lot of pop to my otherwise quite underwhelming "fastball".
As far as shortening his stride, I think Rothschild was right on that point, because from the stretch guys at first would take off on Rich way too much. That's an adjustment everyone has to make.
Have fun at the Iowa games. I'm pretty excited to see how some of these fellas fare in Spring Training.
Except Rich Hill wasn't getting many baserunners with his delivery. That's why Larry failed. His ERA was in the 2's before Larry changed him. I'd rather have a guy who had a low 2 ERA that had every guy who reached on him steal second and third than I would a guy with a high 4 or 5 ERA that never had a guy steal on him. There was no reason to change him and he did, and the Cubs lost a top prospect because of it.
I'm betting on Rahim Morris vs Lou Pinella. Whats this world coming to? Its the typical football mentality when it comes to player developement and scouting that you get from alot of Chicago fans, because they dont understand the process.
Have the Cubs consider Randy Winn at all for a 4th outfielder?
Good idea but my guess is that Winn wants a starting job. I also think the Cubs are going after Dye or Nady more as insurance in case Soriano struggles again and ARAM gets hurt. The Cubs had little offense with ARAM out most relying on Lee and I think they want to avoid that again. Given that Winn only hit 2HRs in 149 games last year would be cause for some concern on the power drop.
It also probably boils down to his asking price which I have a feeling is higher than Dye's.
This is excellent Neil. Based on this I would speculate that we should see Cashner, Adduci and Castro for an extended stay sometime this year.
Now Castro maybe slowed down some as reports on FoxSports.com indicate that 3 teams are bidding for the services of Adam Kennedy. 2 of the 3 are reported to be looking for a starting 2B and the other a super utility player. The Cubs have been looking for a LH bat and we know the hole at 2B so I think we cannot rule out JH making a run. He would be a solid addition and give Castro time to further develop.
I think we would all be surprised given that the Cubs have reported no intent to go after a 2B and this is being kept really quiet but we may all get surprised. Getting him would definitely make Fotenot expendable.
Thank you. On Adam Kennedy, couldn't a player like Bobby Scales give the same production.
We all know Hendry loves second basemen, I hope he passes. I would rather see Darwin Barney added to the 40-man than Adam Kennedy.
I have been thinking about Bobby Scales also. He has definitely paid his dues and like some others agree he would be a good bench player given his versatility. My major concern with him is will he hit enough?
It is definitely be a toss up if adding Kennedy really brings any value. The main thing I would argue is that he is a proven producer and a winner and knows what it take to get to the WS. I also think because of defensive concerns he will probably end up platooning with Baker anyway and he also provides insurance at 3B in case ARAM gets hurt so then the Cubs would not have such a drop in productivity. Another thing he gives the Cubs is a guy that can actually steal a base besides Theriot as he had 20 last year.
In my opinion he would be worth the money for about a year.
To Scott and other's that support his views:
1rst, I think it's awesome that Neil has provided us with this incredible forum to share our divergent views on our
favorite team....and I absolutely love
the difference's we have...it's what makes baseball such a great pastime...that we can argue the merits of
this player, this team, versus another.
We all bring something a little different to the table.
2nd I belive that Aaron and Bryan's posts of today and yesterday have clarified the underlying viewpoint I have
of the current Cubs management.
While I was a proponent of trading DLee
last year,(for value), it's not because I don't like him...I do...but the day is almost upon us when he won't be here
anyway...so why not get young talent back to build the new core with?
(We know he won't waive his no trade so the point is moot)
And I agree Hoffpauir relacing Lee
would have been horrible.
One Year Fans????
Alot of stuff going on...makes it hard to wait for April.
I am not going to get into the Hendry conversation, you all know where I stand...Pretty slick comment though Bryan "When Hendry, viewed as "average" even by his supporters here, that's a pretty sad assessment again considering the $$$'s he's had to work with." That about sums it up.
Sheets-We can dream can't we...just does not feel as if we have the bank to make it happen. It would be a nice NICE addition.
Calero-Old, aging, injury risk veteran who met a career high in appearances. He will be a Cub.
2B-HA! We all see it, baseball sees it (MLB Network mentioned the Cubs need for a 2B) WHY DOES JH NOT SEE IT????????? Felipe Lopez would be a great addition in lieu of a "Blockbuster" trade for a minor league prospect at 2B.
OF-Dye, Older, limited at Defense, GREAT bat. For the right price absolutely!
-Nady--Injury concerns! There is a reason he is not back on the Yankees radar and makes me very nervous.
-Byrnes--2years ago HECK YEAH, now Maybe not.
Looking at the minor league system I am sooooooooo Excited to be a Cub fan. I am not however excited in how these prospects will be handled.
I am excited by the fire that this team is showing early. It may be spin but when JH asks Geo how HE is doing and he says something to the effect that this TEAM will not lose this season, I am encouraged.
In summary IF JH can land Sheets, Dye and Lopez this team is set to seriously contend this year.
He will instead land Calero and a Byrnes "type" and we will enter 2010 with ???????????'s and a hope that the youngsters get their shot.
Either way should be very interesting to see how this transition is handled, and what shape the team is in for 2011 and beyond.
Go Cubs Go!
Suzy
The one year fans comment was not directed at you.
But i do believe the glass is half full and not half empty as others do.
I also believe people have a tendency to over think based on stats
A lot of how a team finishes is how it matures, injures & just pure luck. After all thats why they play the games. (of course it does need skill also)
I think Byrd, Soto, Dempster & Z will have good years...
And there is no reason to think that Ramirez & Soriano wont bounce back and stay healthy based on their career stats.
I also think Neil has a great site. I've been a long time reader, but just started posting.
Keep up the good work all.
Do you really believe these players in the minor leagues are actually going to have such an impact? Hoffpauer replacing Lee? Matt Murton was the guy a couple of years ago, look where he is at? It is like the back up quaterback syndrome.
And for all of you that think these kids are going to be that good then you need to start giving Hendry some credit - 2 divisions in a row, 3 in 5 years.
Also, for you out there that don't think the coaches work with players on aspects of the game what do you think they do all day? They do work with players, they do teach, some players are just not good enough or don't listen.
A second baseman or a shortstop is a must if they are going to be a division contender this year. Another starter or one of the great kids will have to have a great year. Otherwise, it is second place.
It's great that we finally have some decent prospects, but I'm not sure I understand people's excitement about our minor league system. It's decent now (not poor like it was a couple years ago), but no where near as good as it was six or seven years ago. We don't have any Top 20 in the league type prospects yet (Castro might be close to that, but isn't there yet) and we only have a few Top 100 guys.
Its better now than ever was despite the rankings. It was over rated back then by quite a bit, none of those players really had much an impact.
The rumors keep spreading about Adam Kennedy being a possible Cub and that Fotenot will be used as trade bait. He would give the Cubs some pop with a LH bat and with Baker gives the Cubs some good flexibility so if the price is right I say JH should do it.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/329926-chicago-cubs-rumors-adam-kennedy-a-second-base-possibility
I don't like that move. I'd prefer a Fontenot and Baker platoon to Kennedy.
I didn't see the following names on this list:
Brooks Kieshnick
Earl Cunningham
Tye Waller
Felix Pie
Corey Patterson
Kevin Orie
Gary Scott
Luis Montanez
Scott Thompson
History shows that maybe 2 of these players will ever do anything in the majors.
You could also add:
Derrick May
Pat Tabler
Mel Hall (had a couple good years)
Jerome Walton
Mike Harkey
Don Schulze
I sure did love Scott Thompson's swing though.
Those are great lists ... many memories (and hopes) tied to those players. Reminds me that I'm still sitting on 100 Lance Dickson rookie cards awaiting the day he will fulfill all that potential!
Derrick May, boy I had high hopes for that kid.
O and Brant Brown...
Regarding Neil's thread...Best in the Cubs System...isn't it interesting that
Vitters is NOT mentioned anywhere?
Now that you mentioned it that is interesting. That would imply that he still has a lot of work to do and that his stock has leveled off. Maybe a change of position would be good but 1B may be out of the question given that Rebel Ridling seems to have started to corner the market there. Maybe Vitters should consider the outfield?
Diehard...one thing about the minor leagues...it's usually a pretty fluid situation.
Hak Lee is not going to stop be a ss
because Castro is in front of him.
(At some point, if both Lee and Castro
progress the Cubs will have to choose between the 2...and one or the other will be tried at second or traded.
The same will hold true for Vitters and Riding. I hope Vitters learns plate discipline...he does have great potential
and we will need replacements soon at both 1rst and 3rd...although I could see the Cubs moving Aram to first for a few years if Lee goes.
Suzy, Oneri Fleita talked about that 'problem' during the convention. He said one would be at short and the other at second. When he discussed the possibility his eyes lit up.
That really sounds promising Neil, Cool.
I know what you mean and agree that the Cubs need depth in their system. I just hope especially in the case of Vitters given all the hype that they can find a spot for him to reach his full potential but unfortunately in baseball that does not always happen.
The good thing is that Vitters does have some time but let us hope he makes some progress this year. Also, ala ARAM I hope he makes some progress on his defense.
I think in Arams case...it was his shoulder...let's hope it's not a factor this year...but I agree.
http://twitter.com/thekapman/status/8040614224
Regarding psychological challenged players: Ankiel tops the recent list of players that went from phenom to worthless at his position. Does everyone remember what happened to Chuck Knoblauch?? The guy was second to only Roberto Alomar at his position in the league, then the guy couldn't throw to first base base anymore. It ruined his career. What's the old saying, 90% of baseball is 50% mental or something like that?? If somebody knows the exact quote please let me know, I believe it was a Yogi Berra quote.
Suzy, you are right on about Lee. The Cubs never get value for their players in trades. They are talking about extending Lee, which I believe is a mistake. If Rudy turns out to be the miracle worker as advertised, the Cubs offense will be back this season. What happens if the Cubs are in it? Lee and Lilly will not be traded, instead needed for the stretch run. Yet again, Cubs receive no value in return for players that will walk. Now that the Red Sox signed Beltre to play third and have Youkilis at first - Gonzalez going to the Red Sox will be out the window. I believe this opens the door for the Cubs. What about a three team deal at the deadline sending Lee to Anaheim, the Cubs get AGon, and Padres get prospects (most from Anaheim) some from the Cubs??
Woody, I agree AGON is the prize this year and would be an excellent replacement for Lee.
There have been rumblings about a DLee
extension...I hope it would be of the sign and trade variety...with AGON coming here.
Alot would have to happen exactly right for us to end up with Agon...the speculation is the Pad's won't put him on the block until July....and of course,
would want the world for him.
We'll have to wait and see how the season develops...but if I'm the Cubs,
I'm formulating a battle plan to make that acquisition as soon as they can.
Do not forget to include Steve Sax about talking psychological issues. He had a stretch just like Knoblauch were he could not hit the broad side of a barn with his throws from second.
As for looking to trade Lee to get AGON, remember DLee has a "no trade clause" and I just do not see him waiving it unless the Cubs are completely out of it, he gets traded to a contender and they offer him a extension as part of the trade agreement.
Diehard...I didn't forget about his no trade clause...but he is in his last year of the contract...I'm sure if the Cubs come to him and say "we appreciate
all you've done...but the time has come...he'd waive it...if he was not in the plans for next year.
I haven't forgot about the fact that he is in the last year of his contract and again if the Cubs are in it, I do not see DLee waiving the no trade clause even if the Cubs say he is not in their plans.
I think DLee will end up signing a 2 yr extension given the limited other options unless the Cubs like you suggested consider moving ARAM to first.
Like anything we will have to wait and see about DLee. Let's wait and see how the season goes and then we can revisit this in late June. Of couse by this time the Cubs will be in 1st place so DLee will be a Cub when we win the WS in 2010.
How is that for optimism?
"Up, Up and Awaaaaaaay in my beautiful balloon" (5th Dimension) if we win it all in 2010. :) :) :) lol
check out Cubs.com for the Article on Baker hoping to be the starter at second.
Why would Anaheim make a deal like that involving the Cubs when they could just get Gonzalez (worth much more than Lee since he's signed signed at a well below market contract for 2011) directly from San Diego if he was available? Unless you see the Cubs dealing Vitters, Castro or Cashner to SD, the Angels would be better just kicking a couple more of their own mid level prospects and landing Gonzalez for themselves.
As for the Cubs "not getting value for their players in trades" ... consider that it might be that the Cubs players aren't really worth as much as Cubs fans think they are. That is much more likely to be the case, rather than professional baseball front offices consistently undervaluing players on the Cubs.
In this case, David, I think we're talking about DLee and getting something in return rather than letting him walk.
The Padres would have little interest in Lee due to his cost...and we don't really have a strong enough farm system in place to absorb the cost of Agon...without including DLee....so a 3 waty trade would be preferable.
You're right about Anaheim dealing directly with the Pads...I thought that
myself...but did not address it because it is so premature.
I do think for the Cubs to acquire AGON,
we may have to acquire other Padre desirable prospects...utilizing one of our MLB players...like Lee or Lilly.
As I said intially...things would have to fall exactly right for the Cubs to land him...and yes, it would have to include some of our "premium prospects".
I agree with the first point. If we're out of it, we should deal DLee in July rather than lose him for nothing (although I expect he'd be a Type A free agents that would land us 2 picks so the return in trade would have to be better than the picks). It just won't be in a 3 way deal that nets us AGon. The contending team would rather have AGon (if available) than Lee, given that they play the same position.
Next up on Baseball Prospectus' Future Shock list (prospect list) is the Cubs.
Goldstein said Vitters would be number one on his list a couple of months back.
I will post the list when released.
You wanna know what gets me. Three years ago, the cubs could have had Brian Roberts for Pie and Hill plus a mid level prospect. We wouldn't pull the trigger and Baltimore ended up getting them for nothing. That was Hendry's fault.
Disappointed,
I'm sorry...you're wrong here. We did not get Roberts because the Baltimore owner was in love with him...stepped in,
overrode McPhail...and Nixed the deal.
If you read my posts, you know I am not a huge fan of Hendry...but fair is fair.