OTM Top Prospects List: Almost halfway through!

by Randy Booth on Dec 19, 2007 8:25 PM EST in Minors

OverTheMonster.com's top prospects list has been updated through slot No. 9. Nick Hagadone earned the honors at No. 8 while Brandon Moss slid in behind him. Now it's time to hit double digits.

Leftover from the previous poll are "toolsy" Will Middlebrooks, "youngster" Oscar Tejada and "the power threat" Chris Carter. Let's add two new names to the discussion:

Aaron Bates - 23 yrs old - 1B - 6'4", 227 - PROFILE
Josh Reddick - 20 yrs old - OF - 6'2", 180 - PROFILE

Personally, I like Bates more than Reddick as No. 10 on this list. A lot of people think Bates will just kind of fizzle out, but how can you not like a man with that kind of OBP? In 98 games at Lancaster, Bates hit .332 with a .456 OBP.

Reddick displayed a lot of skills in Greenville last year. He hit .306 with 18 home runs in 369 at-bats. Reddick is still pretty raw, but has a lot of upside.

I'm going to cut the voting off once we get 50 votes. I think it'll speed up the process a little more. So start voting now!

Poll

Who should be No. 10 on OTM's top prospects list?

0 recs | Comment 16 comments

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Comments

Re: OTM Top Prospects List: Almost halfway through

I don't understand how Moss is a top 10 prospect. His ceiling is a possible 4th outfielder..

by Albert Chang on Dec 19, 2007 11:13 PM EST 0 recs

Re: OTM Top Prospects List: Almost halfway through

A lot of people see good things in Moss. Personally, I agree with you. I think he'd be a solid 4th or 5th outfielder and might do a decent job as a starter, but I don't think he's going to be an amazing player. If I ranked 'em, he'd be mid to late teens. But this is why the community is so important... :)

OverTheMonster.com

by Randy Booth on Dec 19, 2007 11:23 PM EST up 0 recs

Re: OTM Top Prospects List: Almost halfway through

He's not in my top 10 (top 15 perhaps), but at least he's pretty much guaranteed to get a shot at a Major League career. If you could graduate everyone from your top 10 at any point, you'd be doing very well. On this point, check out SP's rankings history: cherrypicking some names from old top 10s, Ian Bladergroen's retired, I think; Abe Alvarez (as high as three!) has stalled; Juan Cedeno's still in AA. And so on.

This poll, for me, was about picking between TejEda, Middlebrooks and Reddick - three exciting, untested talents. I think you have to give the edge to TejEda here because of his position (as it seems more likely that Middlebrooks will move to 3B), and his tools, which have scouts foaming at the mouth. I think I'll go for Reddick next, then Middlebrooks. Don't think Carter should be in the discussion for a while - he's old and a defensive butcher. I'll think about Bates from about #12.

Looking at SoxProspects, which I love, I feel they have Wagner and Cox too low (perhaps Navarro too?), Lin and Johnson too high. I have almost no belief in Place. It'll be interesting to watch Dent, Rizzo, Mailman, Britton, etc.

Bottom 9th B:1 S:0 O:0 With Bill Mueller batting, Dave Roberts steals (1) 2nd base.

by britsoxfan on Dec 20, 2007 3:31 AM EST up 0 recs

Re: OTM Top Prospects List: Almost halfway through

Although unproven in regular season minor league ball, Middlebrooks' performance at SS and his 400+ batting average at instructs offers a glimpse of his potential. Ranking him at this point is hard to do.

by nwcajun on Dec 20, 2007 2:58 PM EST up 0 recs

Re: OTM Top Prospects List: Almost halfway through

It's time to go with upside, potential, pizzazz (however you spell it), sizzle, highside, uptick, potenzazz, sizztick... you know what I mean. That's Tejada, baby.

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by Hughie Jennings on Dec 19, 2007 11:58 PM EST 0 recs

Re: OTM Top Prospects List: Almost halfway through

You're talking about selling the sizzle, not the steak, right?

Tejada has a LOT of upside. He's only 17 years old. He could be amazing, or he could fall through the cracks. He'll be really fun to watch this season.

OverTheMonster.com

by Randy Booth on Dec 20, 2007 12:21 AM EST up 0 recs

Re: OTM Top Prospects List: Almost halfway through

Of course. No mention of steak from me re: Oscar.

The steak is already on the list.

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by Hughie Jennings on Dec 20, 2007 10:43 AM EST up 0 recs

Tejeda

I hear nothing but good things about Tejeda. He's young and raw, but hot sh*t. Not to mention I'd love to hear "Osca-h" in Beantown. My vote goes to Oscah.

"You know you're having a bad day when the fifth inning rolls around and they drag the warning track." - Mike Flanagan, Baltimore Orioles pitcher, 1992.

by SoxDevil on Dec 20, 2007 10:21 AM EST 0 recs

We're old

Just as a point of reference, Oscar Tejeda was born December 26th, 1989. 1989! Pearl Jam's Ten came out when he was one and change. Sheesh.

"You know you're having a bad day when the fifth inning rolls around and they drag the warning track." - Mike Flanagan, Baltimore Orioles pitcher, 1992.

by SoxDevil on Dec 20, 2007 10:23 AM EST up 0 recs

Re: We're old

I will find it 'difficult' when the first player born in the 90s makes the majors.

Bottom 9th B:1 S:0 O:0 With Bill Mueller batting, Dave Roberts steals (1) 2nd base.

by britsoxfan on Dec 20, 2007 10:27 AM EST up 0 recs

Why Moss?

Ok... first and foremost, let me start out by apologizing and stating for the record, I am NOT attempting to be cynical, apparently it just comes naturally for me.

BUT... how can Brandon Moss be a prospect when he is already listed on the teams 40-man roster. I mean, he's already made it to the bigs. Some of us would DIE to simply make the team to sit on the bench and watch these guys play the game. Fly first class, get treated like royalty at restuarants, etc. I'm sorry... but if we're going to state he is a prospect, then he 'deserves' to be in the position he is in, not 15 or somewhere else... my two cents.

Now on to more serious business. My votes are:

10) Carter 11) Bates 12) Reddick 13) Tejeda 14) Middlebrooks.

Dennis

The Red Head

by the red head on Dec 20, 2007 10:32 AM EST 0 recs

Re: Why Moss?

He's made it to the bigs, but only as a September call-up. He's still a prospect because he's got potential and he hasn't had a huge stint in the majors yet. I think the cutting-off point is when the player is no longer eligible to be a rookie in the MLB and/or is 26+ years old.

OverTheMonster.com

by Randy Booth on Dec 20, 2007 10:40 AM EST up 0 recs

Re: Why Moss?

Ryan Church was still considered a prospect at age 26, if I remember correctly.

"You know you're having a bad day when the fifth inning rolls around and they drag the warning track." - Mike Flanagan, Baltimore Orioles pitcher, 1992.

by SoxDevil on Dec 20, 2007 12:12 PM EST up 0 recs

Re: Why Moss?

Randy:

Willing to agree to disagree.

Dennis

The Red Head

by the red head on Dec 21, 2007 8:53 AM EST up 0 recs

Re: Why Moss?

I agree to agree to disagree. :)

OverTheMonster.com

by Randy Booth on Dec 21, 2007 11:08 AM EST up 0 recs

Re: Why Moss?

Here's what SoxProspects.com uses as their guidelines:

A player graduates as a prospect once he: (1) has more than 130 at bats in the majors; (2) has pitched more than 50 innings in the majors; (3) has been on a major league roster for more than 45 days (not including September call-ups); or (4) turns 26 years old (27 for catchers). Prospect eligibility is left to the discretion of the Staff, but we almost universally follow these guidelines.

OverTheMonster.com

by Randy Booth on Dec 21, 2007 10:20 PM EST up 0 recs