Royals Review Prospect Pulse: July

by nwroyal on Jul 2, 2009 1:43 PM EDT in Royals Minor Leagues Comment 39 comments

Minor League season is in full swing with the Royals having 7 affiliates (plus their Dominican team) up and running. The short season guys have just a few innings/at bats under their belts so beware sample size. We have a special emphasis on our international players this month. We've invested more resources down there the past couple of years and are starting to see the talent show up in our low minors. I hope to write up a little something about the international signing day--which is today (July 2). Our top two hitters: Eric Hosmer and Mike Moustakas are scuffling. I still believe in them but they need to start heating up to justify top prospect status. On the flip side many of our pitchers are doing well. For pitchers, I've changed up the stats to K/9--BB/9--FIP and the hitters remain the same. We are still in the midst of moving and have been house shopping--so I haven't had time to incorporate other stats--but I have expanded the list to 50 names. It is very nice to see that even down at the bottom, there is still some very interesting talent.

Rank	Name	Last Month	Age	Level	Month Stats	YTD	Comment
1	Eric Hosmer-1B	1	19	Low-A	211/278/310	250/353/373	Hurt some in June, I'm hoping that what hurt his numbers after a very encouraging May.
2	Mike Moustakas-3B	2	20	High-A	238/278/357	261/299/420	He seems to be heating up but you never like to see OBP % start with a 2.
3	Aaron Crow-RHP	NA	22	NA	NA	NA	Hopefully he'll sign soon, get some innings and perhaps also pitch in the AFL.
4	Dan Duffy-LHP	3	20	High-A	6.7/2.9/3.59	7.8/2.5/3.41	Still cruising along
5	Mike Montgomery-LHP	5	20	Low-A	7.7/1.7/2.38	8.0/3.4/2.89	He's becoming one of my favorite prospects--cruising along in the MWL.
6	Jeff Bianchi--SS	8	22	AA	250/306/364 500/545/700	307/364/437(A) 500/545/700(AA)	About as hot as you can get. Defense is getting good reviews--becoming a very legit prospect.
7	Kila Kaaihue-1B	4	25	AAA	259/360/459	269/402/502	A bad month for him but that still results in 820 OPS
8	Tim Melville-RHP	6	19	Low-A	5.5/4.3/4.88	6.1/3.7/4.80	Scuffling a little bit--too many walks, not enough Ks
9	Dan Cortes-RHP	7	22	AA	5.1/5.7/4.70	6.0/5.7/4.51	Continues to walk more than he K's. Scouts say stuff is still there.
10	David Lough-CF	13	23	AA	278/297/528	323/373/477	Another fast riser. Should be interesting to see how he does in AA.
11	Dan Gutierrez-RHP	9	22	NA	NA	NA	The saga continues...
12	J. Giavotella-2B	10	22	High-A	253/364/349	236/361/350	I keep saying this-he's about to bust out.
13	Jordan Parraz-RF	23	24	AA	407/473/704	358/451/553	Forcing us to take him seriously--continues to get on base and now adding power.
14	Will Myers-C?	NA	19	NA	NA	NA	He has signed but it won't be announced until August 17th
15	Kelvin Herrera-RHP	11	19	DL	NA	1.7/0.0/3.50	I was wrong about him returning in June. Don't know what the issue is--I'm worried.
16	Carlos Rosa-RHP	12	24	AAA	7.2/5.6/5.07	9.6/5.0/4.85	Inconsistent year but still think he could be useful next year on the big club.
17	Disco Hayes--RHP	21	26	AAA	3.3/0.0/3.72	4.0/1.4/3.19AA 3.3/0.0/3.72AAA	Not as dominant at AAA but still very good.
18	John Lamb-LHP	19	18	SS	4.0/1.0/2.91	4.0/1.0/2.91	2008 draftee finally pitching in pro ball--pretty good in 2 outings so far.
19	Chris Nicoll--RHP	14	25	AA	5.8/6.6/5.12	7.5/3.4/3.35	Rough month--hopefully just a bump in the road.
20	Blake Wood--RHP	15	23	AA	5.2/2.8/3.07	5.8/2.9/4.32	On DL but seemed to be getting a little better.
21	Tyler Sample--RHP	17	20	AZ	11.3/4.5/3.07	11.3/4.5/3.07	Let's see if he can harness that stuff.
22	Carlos Fortuna--RHP	NR	19	SS	7.2/4.5/4.67	7.2/4.5/4.67	Very good arm, watch out for him.
23	Greg Holland--RHP	20	23	AA	6.8/3.8/3.17	8.6/3.2/2.80	We have some of the deepest minor league bullpens I've ever seen.
24	Salvador Perez--C	24	19	SS	440/517/560	189/230/236 (Low-A) 440/517/560 (SS)	Overmatched in MWL, but feelign at home in Pioneer League--a hiters' league.
25	Yowil Espinal	NR	18	SS	371/436/629	371/436/629	An International signing two years ago, starting to show his talent--keep an eye on him.
26	Sean McCauley--C	28	20	Low-A	385/467/385	237/305/331	I think he's been hurt this past month--not many at bats.
27	Jose Bonilla--C	26	20	Low-A	268/288/423	250/293/372	Continuing to struggle in Iowa
28	Chris Dwyer	NA	21	NA	NA	NA	Our 4th round pick, I'm guessing we sign him at the deadline.
29	Henry Barrera--RHP	17	23	Low-A	12.3/12.3/4.89	12.3/12.3/4.89	Fighting injury and ineffectiveness
30	Nick Francis--OF	22	23	Low-A	231/253/359	288/34/489	...coming back to earth
31	Chris Lubanski--OF	24	25	AAA	N/A	308/388/462	Still out with a hammy.
32	Paulo Orlando--CF	29	23	High-A	321/328/393	240/275/352	Superficially, a better month.
33	Blaine Hardy--RHP	31	22	Low-A	7.9/1.6/2.12	8.5/1.6/2.57	Continuing to do well, wonder if we will see him at Wilmington soon?
34	Joe Dickerson--OF	18	22	AZ	250/400/250	230/338/317AA	Hurt, tough season
35	Barry Bowden--RHP	35	24	Low-A	8.8/6.6/3.77	10.0/4.2/3.47	Lost some control this past month.
36	Keaton Hayenga--RHP	NR	21	SS	6.0/0.0/2.14	6.0/0.0/2.14	2007 draftee is back from shoulder surgery. We gave him $300,000 knowing he wouldn't pitch for 2 years--has good stuff.
37	Derrick Saito--LHP	NR	21	Low-A	9.0/2.3/3.35	10.5/2.2/3.53	2008 draftee coudl be lefty specialist.
38	Brian McFall--1B	27	25	AA	167/308/314	252/338/431	It very close to time to take him off this list.
39	Jason Taylor--3B	NR	21	Low-A	333/391/667	333/391/667	He's baaack.Started at SS and is now assigned to Burlington, IA.
40	Mike Lehman--RHP	32	20	Low-A	5.4/4.2/4.30	5.0/4.0/4.50	Non-descript month.
41	Malcolm Culver--3B	NR	19	SS	267/450/800	267/450/800	2008 draftee is very good athlete--interesting to see how his bat does.
42	Nick Van Stratten--OF	37	24	Low-A	310/408/491	325/404/445	Good numbers but old for league.
43	Mario Lisson--SS	NR	25	AAA	264/295/505	252/276/463	Had a good month and could see some time with the big club.
44	Hilton Richardson--CF	NR	20	SS	409/458/455	409/458/455	2007 draftee is premium athlete in CF, if he can hit, he could be special.
45	Brian Paukovits--RHP	NR	22	SS	11.0/6.0/3.60	11.0/6.0/3.60	2006 draftee is a big righthander who has been hurt but still has some upside.
46	Everett Teaford--LHP	NR		AA	4.2/2.8/4.42	6.8/1.7/3.94(A) 4.2/2.8/4.42(AA)	Has been flying under the radar--AA has been a little difficult for him so far.
47	Brandon Sisk--LHP	NR	23	High-A	14.3/0.8/0.59	10.8/1.9/2.17	With those numbers, he cannot be ignored.
48	Robinson Yambati--RHP	NR	18	AZ	9.0/9.0/11.57	5.9/3.3/3.57(DSL) 9.0/9.0/11.57(AZ)	Young Dominican making transition to ball stateside.
49	Luis Del Rosario--OF	NR	19	SS	389/421/611	389/421/611	Another guy from DR, started strong last year and tailed off.
50	Jerico Blanco	NR	17	DSL	227/344/400	227/344/400	One of our big international signings from 2008--he's shown some good tools but is miles from the majors.

Player of the Month:

I've already done Jeff Bianchi who probably deserve this but I'll go with Jordan Parraz. Picked up from the Astros--who messed with his stance--Parraz had some alive in AA. He's been an on base machine and has started hitting for more power recently. He's not young at 24, but not old by any means. He won't be a star but in an organization starved for outfield talent he is a very welcome addition.

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How old is espinall?

I’m assuming 18 or 19 since he was signed 2 years ago?

How much did he sign for?

Fire Everyone

by billybeingbilly on Jul 2, 2009 12:57 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Espinal

turned 18 in april. I think he signed for between 200,000-300,000

by nwroyal on Jul 2, 2009 1:04 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

good deal..i'll have to keep an eye on him...

is he likely to stay at shortstop?

Fire Everyone

by billybeingbilly on Jul 2, 2009 1:30 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

love this stuff

by royalsreview on Jul 2, 2009 12:58 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

i also love this stuff, rec'd, as always

ALso

He seems to be heating up but you never like to see OBP % start with a 2.

Maybe he thinks he’s still a SS in the KC organization?

I'm not a sabermetrician, but I do play one at Driveline Mechanics.

by devil_fingers on Jul 2, 2009 1:01 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

then he even sucks at being a royals SS...

b/c he should know that a 299 OBP is not acceptable

Fire Everyone

by billybeingbilly on Jul 2, 2009 1:03 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

CLOGGING UP THE BASEPATHS

I'm not a sabermetrician, but I do play one at Driveline Mechanics.

by devil_fingers on Jul 2, 2009 1:14 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

also -- was Hosmer injured? I guess I missed that.

although Iprobably missed it because I haven’t been following it other than people updating here.

I'm not a sabermetrician, but I do play one at Driveline Mechanics.

by devil_fingers on Jul 2, 2009 1:02 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I think it was a finger/hand issue

only missed a few games but I’m guessing its messed with his hitting for longer.

by nwroyal on Jul 2, 2009 1:05 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

well, luckily he was hurt before he got to Kansas City.

If you were thinking, you wouldn't have thought that.

http://sonsofsamhorn.net/index.php?showforum=129

by Warden11 on Jul 2, 2009 11:01 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think I was vaguely excited about Joe Dickerson at some point

by royalsreview on Jul 2, 2009 1:15 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

i was excited about him enough that

i created him as a player in MLB The Show and brought him up to the ML team

by benfunke on Jul 2, 2009 1:19 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

how did he do?

by royalsreview on Jul 2, 2009 1:32 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

He got hurt

by Gopherballs on Jul 2, 2009 2:14 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

damn, these games are too real.

If you were thinking, you wouldn't have thought that.

http://sonsofsamhorn.net/index.php?showforum=129

by Warden11 on Jul 2, 2009 11:01 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

did we mismanage the injury and set him back a year?

Coffee. The NEW Performance Enhancing drug for Sport's Writers. Just ask Ken Rosenthal.

by 306008 on Jul 3, 2009 9:34 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

he would mostly bunt for hits

i think he developed some power after 5 or 6 seasons

by benfunke on Jul 6, 2009 12:16 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

What's the deal with Will Myers being signed but not announced until next month?

by RoyallyJeff on Jul 2, 2009 1:35 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

yea, I am confused by that as well

by royalsreview on Jul 2, 2009 1:40 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

same thing that happened with melville last year....

teams dont want to announce picks far over slot until the deadline b/c they fear the wrath of bud….and bud thinks it will give other signability guys more leverage….stupid

Fire Everyone

by billybeingbilly on Jul 2, 2009 1:46 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah

the commissioner’s office has to “approve” every deal above slot, so to avoid other draftees from using the above slot deals as leverage (which is really a fiction because the other agents all know what the agreements are anyway), the commissioner’s offices sits on them until the signing deadline. I doubt the practice will change until the teams start complaining enough about the missed development time for players they have already “signed.”

by Gopherballs on Jul 2, 2009 2:13 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

that's correct

what is a little bit different is that Myers was working out with the Burlington, NC Royals this week (he’s from NC)

by nwroyal on Jul 2, 2009 4:39 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

i dont see that as markedly different than highly drafted guys coming to kc to throw a bullpen session or hit BP...

although, i do wonder what would happen if Myers seriously injured himself in these surely light workouts.

Fire Everyone

by billybeingbilly on Jul 2, 2009 11:23 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

But if it's been leaked to us

Then surely those agents know exactly what it is and how much they’ve signed for…. just announce it and let the player start his career

Coffee. The NEW Performance Enhancing drug for Sport's Writers. Just ask Ken Rosenthal.

by 306008 on Jul 3, 2009 9:35 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Great stuff as always

Relive Royals History at royalsretro.blogspot.com

by RoyalsRetro on Jul 2, 2009 1:49 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Hilton Richardson has been getting a lot of buzz at Royals Scout

What do you think of him nwroyal?

Relive Royals History at royalsretro.blogspot.com

by RoyalsRetro on Jul 2, 2009 2:20 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

how many of these guys can we have?

Duarte, Richardson, Orlando…

by royalsreview on Jul 2, 2009 4:20 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I like Richardson with the normal caveats

about being young and raw. I think he’s a little different from Orlando/Robinson in that he has more power. The Royals philosophy seems to be (at least in 07/08) to draft a ton of these very athletic, very young players (Fernando Cruz, Richardson, Malcolm Culver, Alex Llanos) in rounds 5-10 and hope that one of them turns into a very poor man’s Grady Sizemore

by nwroyal on Jul 2, 2009 4:55 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

forgot about llanos...

nick van stratten appears to be the exception, and he’s old

by royalsreview on Jul 2, 2009 5:08 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

oh and Dan Cortes was arrested last night...

http://www.wreg.com/sns-ap-bbm—naturals-cortesarrested,0,6174482.story

for peeing on a fence while drunk (I’m guessing the “while drunk” part is redundant).

by nwroyal on Jul 2, 2009 5:05 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

It's Arkansas

I was at a friends house, and her sons jumps out of the pool, walks behind the bushes, and let’s it rip. Why wasn’t he arrested?

Coffee. The NEW Performance Enhancing drug for Sport's Writers. Just ask Ken Rosenthal.

by 306008 on Jul 3, 2009 9:36 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

When did Lisson move to SS?

I thought he played third in AA.

by BrRoyal on Jul 2, 2009 5:34 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Seems like he's bounced around the infield in his career

Future Bloomie!

Relive Royals History at royalsretro.blogspot.com

by RoyalsRetro on Jul 2, 2009 5:40 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

amen

by royalsreview on Jul 2, 2009 5:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

NW

First, thanks for these posts. I enjoy them.

Is there any way (if you have the time) that you can pick one or two and give us a full write up on their career and all kinds of interesting facts? I just want more in depth coverage… maybe once every three weeks post something…

Coffee. The NEW Performance Enhancing drug for Sport's Writers. Just ask Ken Rosenthal.

by 306008 on Jul 3, 2009 9:38 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs