MINOR LEAGUE/PROSPECTS Thread

Discussion in 'Los Angeles DODGERS' started by irish, Apr 3, 2016.

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  1. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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    Calhoun had a hard hit single (probably should have been fielded) and MADE A PLAY on a routine ground ball in his first game action yesterday, so yay!

    The other two of the big 3 have looked pretty solid thus far in Verdugo and Bellinger. Bellinger continues to flash that 70 glove and pantie-wetting bat speed. I may have missed it, but they seem to only have played him at 1B so far which was said to not be the case going into spring. Would guess we start seeing OF AB's here soon.

    Verdugo has held his own with the stick, but has also flashed why his defense is rated more in the average range. He has had some bad read/routes thus far, but that could also be the time of year and whether you believe/understand it, that AZ sky is actually pretty fucking brutal sometimes.

    Dickson has had some good AB's and may be showing that he could be a quality UTL player. He finished strong last year, so hopefully this is somewhat a sign he is figuring things out.

    Cash has had some decent innings thus far and would like to see if he can put it together this year. He was a high pick a couple years back with a good secondary pitch.

    I've liked what I have seen from Oaks and I think he above all else is why the team was likely comfortable moving De Jong.

    Still VERY early in spring, but some nice stories thus far.
     
    Last edited: Mar 6, 2017
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  2. Doughty8

    Doughty8 DSP Legend

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    Darnell Sweeney has been a pleasant surprise.
     
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  3. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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    Interesting bit of info on the teams Int'l signings from last year. Not much they could do financially, so they had to get a little creative, but a couple intriguing pieces.

    Top 2016-17 signing: SS Albert Suarez, Dominican Republic, $300,000.

    Total signings: 34.

    During the 2015-16 signing period, the Dodgers invested around $97 million between signing bonuses and tax money on international prospects subject to the bonus pools. Much of that money went toward signing three Cuban players—righthander Yadier Alvarez, outfielder Yusniel Diaz and second baseman Omar Estevez—and doesn’t include the six-year, $30 million deal they gave Cuban righthander Yaisel Sierra, who was exempt from the pools. Not long after that signing period opened, the Dodgers also fired vice president of international scouting Bob Engle, Latin American scouting coordinator Patrick Guerrero and the majority of their international scouting staff.

    In the organization’s first year (2016-17) under the international direction of Ismael Cruz, the Dodgers were under the penalty and couldn’t sign anyone for more than $300,000. Since the 2016-17 signing period opened, they gave a $300,000 bonus to one player, 17-year-old Dominican shortstop Albert Suarez, on July 2. Suarez is a true shortstop and one of the best defenders at the position in the 2016 class. Though small and frail at 5-foot-11, 150 pounds, Suarez doesn’t have the physicality of fellow Dodgers shortstop Ronny Brito but he is a more polished fielder, with excellent hands and footwork, quick reactions and good instincts. He’s a smart player with average speed and an average arm that could become plus once he gets stronger and already plays up because of his quick release. The question mark on Suarez is his bat, largely because he has so little strength right now. He has a smooth lefty stroke with good hitting mechanics and makes a lot of contact but with little damage, as he’s a spray hitter with minimal power. Suarez will never be a power hitter, but his physical development the next few years will be important for his offensive game to progress. Suarez trained with Juan Rodriguez.

    The Dodgers gave six figures to two other players last year once the 2016-17 signing period opened, including $130,000 for Dominican shortstop Luis Diaz in August out of Wilton Guerrero’s program. Diaz, 17, is 5-foot-11, 170 pounds with the opposite skill set of Suarez, standing out more for his physical strength, bat and chance to develop average raw power. He’s an offensive-minded player who will split time between shortstop and third base this year, likely fitting best at third base. He has a plus arm but will need to focus on his range and footwork.

    In August the Dodgers also signed 17-year-old Venezuelan righthander Aldry Acosta for $120,000. He shows starter ingredients with a big frame (6-foot-4, 200 pounds) and feel for three pitches. His fastball has good sink and has touched 93, while his slider is a potential out pitch and he shows ability to manipulate a changeup at times when he keeps the ball down.

    Before the clock expired on their near $100 million signing class of 2015-16, the Dodgers made several other signings, most notably Cuban outfielder/first baseman Yordan Alvarez for $2 million when the signing period closed on June 15. Alvarez never played a game for the Dodgers though, as they quickly traded him to the Astros two weeks later for righthander Josh Fields.

    Last year in February, the Dodgers signed Mexican righthander Oscar Arzaga for $300,000. Unlike the overwhelming majority of players major league teams sign from Mexico, Arzaga was not with a Mexican League team, instead signing out of the academy run by Edgar Gonzalez, the brother of Dodgers first baseman Adrian Gonzalez. After signing, Arzaga went to the Rookie-level Arizona League and posted a 4.00 ERA and a 26-16 K-BB mark in 36 innings. Arzaga, 18, is 6-foot-4, 200 pounds with broad shoulders and a power arm, touching the low-90s when he signed but having since reaching 96 mph. His feel for pitching isn’t as advanced as some of the top pitching prospects who have come from Mexico in recent years, so he’s still honing his command and defining his secondary pitches, with his changeup more advanced than his breaking ball.

    Another $300,000 signing, 18-year-old Dominican righthander Dalwyn Lantigua, is the nephew of Pablo Lantigua, the former Red Sox scout who trained him. After signing in April, the 5-foot-11, 165-pound Lantigua posted a 3.34 ERA in 29 2/3 innings with 18 strikeouts and 13 walks as a reliever in the Dominican Summer League. The Dodgers liked his fastball/slider combination, with his fastball up to 92 mph, and a chance he could transition to a starting role next year having had more time to get acclimated to the organization.

    Carlos Alejo, another Dominican righthander signed for $300,000 in April, has already seen his stock increase. Alejo, 17, signed at 6-foot-1, 165 pounds with a heavy fastball that touched 93 mph. Since then, his velocity has climbed to reach 98. Alejo has a quick arm and is a good athlete who has shown feel for an upper-70s breaking ball, but he’s still learning to maintain his body control in his delivery and become more than just a hard thrower. Alejo had a 4.50 ERA with 19 strikeouts and 10 walks in 24 innings mostly in relief last year in the DSL. He trained with Chiqui Mejia.

    Just before the DSL season started in May, the Dodgers added 19-year-old Dominican lefty Jose Hernandez, who trained with Javier Rodriguez, for $200,000. He had a 6.75 ERA and an 11-8 K-BB mark in 9 1/3 innings in the DSL, but the Dodgers liked Hernandez’s ability to throw strikes with a fastball up to 92 mph and a tight slider from a 6-foot-3, 170-pound build.
     
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  4. Based God

    Based God DSP Legend

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    Mitch White - 2nd round pick last year

    Pitched 95-97 today and had a slider at 90 mph
     
  5. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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    This....This is good. Where did you see that?
     
  6. Based God

    Based God DSP Legend

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  7. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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  8. Fall Winslow

    Fall Winslow McRib

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    Velo was White's strength when they drafted him, was gunning it up to 98-99
    A solid change up would be nice
    There were some questions about his future role initially
     
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  9. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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    Where did you see those numbers? Everything I've seen was his rise was due to him starting to hit the mid 90's with his fastball, but still worked low 90's. His bread and butter was a high 80's +Cutter that Law says the club is calling it a slider. Sheffield was the one with the high 90's fastball. Getting the change up to average seems to be the really important step to elevating him to the next level.
     
  10. Fall Winslow

    Fall Winslow McRib

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    The day they drafted White it was said that he was able to gun it up to 98-99 at times, but wasn't living there.
    Big K numbers in school behind velo
     
  11. LASports96

    LASports96 DSP Legend

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    That wasn't a slider ... definitely the cutter

    Nonetheless adding a change up would be nice but still an encouraging sign... think he goes straight to Tulsa?
     
  12. Fall Winslow

    Fall Winslow McRib

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    I forgot who it was on MLBTV, but it was a pretty good pitcher and they were sorta giving him shit about not knowing what to call his pitch..a slider or a cutter.
    Might have been Scherzer or Verlander, not sure, but probably Verlander.
    Similar breaking actions, and have seen some high octane sliders in the past that could've been called cutters as well.
    Tough to know what to call it..long as umps call hitters O-U-T, I guess it's all good
     
  13. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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    Yeah, don't tell Keith Law that or he'll get angry... dude is such a prick. Hard to see White make that huge of a jump, but who knows!
     
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  14. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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    I am not trying to be argumentative, as you may be right, but I am not seeing that anywhere. Everyone I am reading (BA, FG, MLB, MiLBall) all had him topping out at 94 or 95 in college and that was where his rise came from. He was living in the low 90's which a jump to the high 90's would be substantial. Sheffield was the guy that they said could ramp it up to 98-99 on occasion, but that's not what I am seeing in regards to White. Sources! I want sources dammit!
     
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  15. fsudog21

    fsudog21 DSP Legend

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    Slider, cutter? Not properly located they're batting practice fastballs.

    Who gives a fuck?
     
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  16. Fall Winslow

    Fall Winslow McRib

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    They'd said White could move fast as a reliever, so whatever it is it's a legitimate out pitch or at least has a chance to be one in the bigs



    Sauces! Lol
    I was more so remembering the scouting report from Eric Stephen and SD Gasparino when he was signed back in June.
    Gasparino may have been being generous or it was lost in translation, but he said he was at 95 back then.
    Either way, if you're looking at BA alone right now you're doing more than I was doing so I'm just gonna roll with you on it



    Won't argue w/that either
    At one point last season Kenley's cutter seemed to lose bite and even he was served
     
  17. Dodgers99

    Dodgers99 DSP Legend

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  18. Fall Winslow

    Fall Winslow McRib

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    Damn.
    Potentially a lefty heavy rotation's dream.
    Bring Otani into the mix, all of a sudden we'd have some talented RHP @ the big league level.
    What if Buehler proves to be even better than Urias? Lol
     
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  19. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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    Some good news from around camp. Anyone have ESPN insider to post that Mitchell White piece?

    GLENDALE, Arizona -- After sitting around with a lot of time to think, Walker Buehler has one thing on his mind.

    "I just want to win games, to be honest with you," he said. "There's no other way to explain it. When you sit down for a year, all you want to do is come and win games. I want to stay healthy and compete for a ring, no matter where that is."

    The Dodgers' No. 5 prospect and MLB.com's No. 93 overall was off the diamond for roughly the first 12 months of his career after undergoing Tommy John surgery in August 2015, not long after Los Angeles selected the Vanderbilt standout with 24th pick of the Draft. Active in Spring Training for the first time, Buehler is thrilled to be here and eager to get going in his first real season as a professional.

    "I've told people the mental side of having surgery like that is probably tougher on you than the physical stuff ... " the 22-year-old right-hander said. "It's one of those things a lot of people end up having to go through, and I'm kind of glad I got mine done early and in the past and now I'm ready to get going."

    Buehler got into three games in the regular season last year -- one in the Rookie-level Arizona League and two in the Class A Midwest League - for a total of five hitless, scoreless innings. He struck out six, walked three and hit a batter. Making a pair of brief playoff starts for Great Lakes en route to the Midwest League championship, he worked five shutout frames and allowed two hits while fanning five.

    "The cool part about that whole experience for me was, the first game back, it's not some meaningless thing," he said. "You go to a team that struggled early in the year and kind of made a run, and to be able to join that team was a really fun deal for me, especially coming from college, where we played some playoff-type games. It's always fun to play in games that mean that much."

    With meaningful regular-season games just around the corner, the Kentucky native will leave camp with a pared down repertoire.

    "This spring, we've kind of moved into that three-pitch mix and slowed down on the slider, slowed down on the two-seamer and kind of worked with some numbers, seeing what we can do fastball-curveball-change," Buehler said. "The slider's something I've thrown forever, but I think there's the idea of renting a couple or owning a couple or owning one. At least for the spring right now, it's just the three pitches."

    Where he's headed when camp breaks has yet to be determined, but Buehler isn't putting much thought into speculation that his advanced stuff would tempt the Dodgers to move him into a relief role to get him to the big leagues faster.

    "That's not my call and that's not my goal. My goal is to be a starting pitcher in the Major Leagues at some point in my career," he said. "Obviously, pitching in the big leagues at all is a big honor."

    "[Former Vanderbilt teammate and White Sox prospect Carson Fulmer] got to go [to the Majors as a reliever], but he wants to start. It's one of those things where you do what they ask of you, and I do have some experience relieving. In college, I would throw midweek and then relieve on the weekends once in a while and stuff like that. It [would be] an adjustment but not something that really scares me."

    Whatever role he ends up filling, at whatever rung of the organization ladder, he'll be thrilled about embarking on a full season of competitive action.

    "Absolutely," Buehler said. "You get to know people for a year and a half and you've got teammates you've never gotten to play with, so I'm really excited."

    Notes from camp
    Alvarez aiming high: Yadier Alvarez, the Dodgers' second-ranked prospect who struck out 81 while walking 21 over 59 1/3 innings in 14 starts between Rookie ball and the Loons last year, hopes to earn an aggressive assignment out of the gate this season.

    "The biggest thing is just to try to get up to the higher levels of the Minors because my training this offseason has been good in preparing myself for that," Alvarez said through senior manager of player development and translator Matt McGrath, "but my biggest goal this year is just to move along as fast as I can."

    In the meantime at Camelback Ranch, he said he's "basically just building everything up. One of the biggest things I'm focused on right now is my curveball and slider, just my control with those two and developing my changeup as well."

    Got the first one out of the way: Gavin Lux, the 20th overall pick in last year's Draft, logged a hit in his first-ever Minor League Spring Training game. On Monday in Surprise in a Class A Advanced game against the Rangers, the 19-year-old left-handed-hitting shortstop grounded a ball up the third base line against Michael Lagrange. Brallan Perez made a spectacular diving stop to rob Lux of extra bases, but the Dodgers' No. 7 prospect was pleased with the hit.

    "That was my third at-bat and having to face a [6-foot-8] lefty submarine pitcher in my third at-bat ... it was good to see that and get a little bit of a result from that," he said.

    Lux's club won, 10-2.

    Calhoun pleased with defense: Willie Calhoun bashed 27 homers while compiling a .317 on-base percentage in the Texas League last year before earning MVP honors in the Arizona Fall League's Rising Stars Game. But he knows he's got work to do on defense.

    "This Spring Training, I'm focusing on my defensive side, the majority, trying to get better at second base. That's something I've been doing since I showed up early in January," he said. "I've been working with Woody [Chris Woodward], our infield coach and been strength training with [strength and conditioning coach] Brandon [McDaniel] and the strength guys a lot.

    "It's footwork and the range part," on which he's been particularly focused, he said. "That's something I attacked early in the Spring Training and now that I'm getting deeper into it, it's starting to get a lot easier."
     
  20. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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    I believe this will be Calhoun's first start tonight. He hasn't made a mistake yet(though he looked slow on an attempted turn), but the early reports are good for him. He's worked exceedingly hard this spring and has fully bought in to what the org has pushed on him.

    Bellinger is also getting the start. His numbers have been poor this spring and he is blaming his hands for this. I guess he came to camp and his mechanics were a little out of whack and he has not been able to regularly fix them. It has been noted by the staff as well as his set up is kind of all over the place right now.
     
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