With all of the lists slowly coming out, I took the time to re-evaluate my Top 30 list from October 17. Since then, the Nationals have had players excel/struggle in the Arizona Fall and Hawaii Winter Leagues. Not to mention, the acquisition of several players from trades and the Rule 5 draft in December. I’ve added a page on the righthand side that tracks some of the Top 10/20/30 lists of Nationals prospects.
Given the chance to look back, here is my new top 30 list (with the 10/17 one provided for comparison):
| Rk | New | Old |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Collin Balester RHP | Collin Balester |
| 2 | Kory Casto 3B-OF | Kory Casto |
| 3 | Chris Marrero OF | Chris Marrero |
| 4 | Jesus Flores CA | Shairon Martis |
| 5 | Shairon Martis RHP | Colton Willems |
| 6 | Colton Willems RHP | Matt Chico |
| 7 | Esmailyn Gonzalez SS | Garrett Mock |
| 8 | Matt Chico LHP | Zech Zinicola |
| 9 | Zech Zinicola, RHP | Stephen King |
| 10 | Stephen King SS | Clint Everts |
| 11 | Clint Everts RHP | Stephen Englund |
| 12 | Emiliano Fruto RHP | Glenn Gibson |
| 13 | Glenn Gibson LHP | Jhonny Nunez |
| 14 | Larry Broadway 1B | Larry Broadway |
| 15 | Garrett Mock RHP | Ian Desmond |
| 16 | Jhonny Nunez RHP | Dee Brown |
| 17 | Justin Maxwell OF | Craig Stammen |
| 18 | Marco Estrada RHP | Frank Diaz |
| 19 | Brett Campbell RHP | Esmailyn Gonzalez |
| 20 | Frank Diaz OF | Brett Campbell |
| 21 | Stephen Englund OF | Justin Maxwell |
| 22 | Ian Desmond SS | Adam Carr |
| 23 | Rog Bernadina OF | Cory VanAllen |
| 24 | Dee Brown OF | Michael Daniel |
| 25 | Craig Stammen RHP | Rogearvin Bernadina |
| 26 | Adam Carr RHP/1B | Ryan Delaughter |
| 27 | Cory Van Allen LHP | John Lannan |
| 28 | Michael Daniel OF | Marco Estrada |
| 29 | John Lannan RHP | Yunior Novoa |
| 30 | Yunior Novoa RHP | Luis Atilano |
The two additions to the list both jumped towards the top of the list. CA Jesus Flores immediately becomes the top catching prospect in the minor leagues. Given that he is required to spend the entire season on the 25-man roster, his development from playing time is certainly going to be stunted, but he’s a talent the Nationals would be wise to retain.
Joining Flores on the list is RHP Emiliano Fruto who was acquired from the Seattle Mariners for Jose Vidro. Fruto should compete for a spot in the 2007 bullpen, but I still believe with four average to above average pitches, he could be consideration for the starting rotation. I was torn on whether to add OF Chris Snelling who has only played 59 major league games, but given his over two years of service time [DL stints count] I considered him beyond the scope of this list.
Dropping off of the list were OF Ryan Delaughter and RHP Luis Atilano. Delaughter is still really raw as a hitter, while Atilano is likely to miss most of the 2007 season after 2007 Tommy John surgery.
I also did a bit a shuffling of the middle of the list. The biggest jump was Esmailyn Gonzalez. After some time to ruminate, I believe I underrated Gonzalez. From folks I have spoken with, it appears that while the comparisons to Miguel Tejada may be a bit premature, Gonzalez is well-regarded enough by baseball scouts to move him from #19 to the top 10 list.
The overall point of most if not all of the rankings thus far is that the Nationals prior to 2006 were not very strong in the minors. There is still going to be quite a bit of volatility in this list over the next season or two as some high ceiling guys flame out, former top prospects rebound, and new additions are made to the farm system. With a full staff of scouts and more importantly the access to the money necessary to bring in top level talent, the Nationals have begun to lay a foundation which hopefully will lead to future success … what the Nationals have accomplished in roughly 6 months is impressive. But bigger steps are necessary.
Homer | 05-Jan-07 at 10:12 am | Permalink
Your list is much better(IMO) than any of the others. Broadway still should be higher, and I still like Diaz higher. And I think Englund and Carr will rise higher this coming year. Has everyone given-up on Hinckley?
Brian J Oliver | 05-Jan-07 at 10:22 am | Permalink
Thanks Homer. Broadway is really in his make or break year in 2007. With Johnson reportedly out for the first month of the season, Broadway now has his chance to prove whether he can produce. He’ll have spring training to demonstrate to Acta that he can handle the position at better than a replacement level. With Fick in camp, he’ll have his competition. Diaz is an intriguing guy, he has a good CF glove but it’s still an unknown whether his bat can produce at the major league level. Given the CF candidates as of today, he doesn’t have a huge roadblock in front of him. It will be interesting how he produces in Columbus and whether the Nationals will give him a shot if Logan struggles, Escobar is injured, or Church is traded. Hinckley really had forgettable 2006. From the 3 or 4 times I saw him pitch, he was struggling with Carolina League players. Not sure what happened to him, but that 2005 injury seemed to majorly derail him.
Sam | 05-Jan-07 at 10:37 am | Permalink
I just don’t get the re-signing of Fick. With Flores required to be on the 25 man, and with Broadway well deserving of a “fish or cut bait” shot in the majors, what does he really bring us?
Other than his sunny disposition.
And it’s nice to see the ME bandwagon growing! ;)
JammingEcono | 05-Jan-07 at 11:48 am | Permalink
Great list, Brian. The amalgamated list of all the prospect lists is also a great tool. I might just have to make use of that in the future…
Nate | 05-Jan-07 at 12:09 pm | Permalink
What Fick gives us is a servicable back-up C in case Schnieder goes down for any length of time. I’m all about giving young guys a shot, but I’d rather not see Flores attempt to catch 60 games this season. Toss in the fact that Fick can spell Broadway at 1B too, and it makes sense to have him around.