| Rank | Hitters | Pitchers |
|---|---|---|
| 21 | Mark Gildea | Yader Peralta |
| 22 | Aaron Seuss | PJ Dean |
| 23 | Edgardo Baez | Federico Tanco |
| 24 | Garrett Bass | Jack Spradlin |
| 25 | Alejandro Hodge | Marcos Frias |
| Francisco Soriano | Juan Jamie | |
| Yeurys Tejeda |
Gildea was a 2007 9th round draft pick out of Florida State as a draft-eligible sophomore. In his 178AB for the Lake Monsters, Gildea hit 247/362/348. The 21-year old switch-hitting outfielder shows patience at the plate. His line-drive swing has the potential to develop into more extra base power as he transitions to wood bats. His speed on the basepaths is above average (16/23 SB in 52 games). He should start 2008 in Hagerstown.
Peralta was acquired by the Nats from the Boston Red Sox in September of 2005 for a weekend’s worth of Mike Stanton. Peralta made the biggest impression in Hagerstown where he had a 3.19ERA, 1.06WHIP, 54 strikeouts and only 22 walks over 48IP. He is likely to begin 2008 with the P-Nats in Woodbridge.
Louis J. | 23-Jan-08 at 9:56 am | Permalink
Brian
Did you get a chance to see Gildea play. I’ve had conflicting comments about his ability to hit.
Brian Oliver | 23-Jan-08 at 10:23 am | Permalink
Louis - I have not seen him play and I too have received conflicting reports. We are in the area of the top 25 where it’s a crapshoot
Ryan Sullivan | 23-Jan-08 at 10:39 am | Permalink
Brian and Louis-
I saw Gildea play about 10-12 times this past season while he was at FSU, although always on television so keep that in mind: he looks very fast, and has some real skill in CF, with a mediocre if not better arm. To me, he resembles a slightly more frail Ryan Church in a uniform. With the bat, I remember him hitting many line drives to the gaps, especially to right center from the right side. I would not expect him to hit for much, if any power, but he could for a decent average. I do not remember either way his ability to get on base, but he hit 9th for them most of the time to jumpstart the top of the lineup (of course, the Florida St. lineup was ridiculous). I am not sure he will hit enough to ever get to the majors, but if things break right, he could become a more skilled, more of a baseball player, than a Nook Logan- nice defensive 4/5th OF with speed and some grit… not a bad gamble for a 9th rounder
Louis J. | 23-Jan-08 at 2:04 pm | Permalink
Ryan ……Thank you for the comments.
Brian…… I appreciate your effort in assembling the top 50 lists and realize that you have not seen all of the players. I was only using your large audience to obtain additional information about some of the prospects. Keep up your great work. I have an 8-day Spring Training Trip planned in early March to see some of the prospects in person.
Ryan Sullivan | 23-Jan-08 at 2:17 pm | Permalink
Louis and Brian-
I feel like I know Gildea pretty well, so if there are more questions I can answer for you, please let me know-
On another topic, I was curious if you, or anyone, could expound upon Peralta? His numbers seem pretty good, and his age seems appropriate: is he a future starter or reliever in the majors? How strong or legitimate are his aspirations for the big leagues? Just curious how excited we should be about him and his numbers from last season-
Thanks and keep up the great work!
Brian Oliver | 23-Jan-08 at 2:41 pm | Permalink
Ryan - I got to see Peralta a couple of times in Potomac last year. His numbers there were not very good (but the sample size was small). He’s a RP through and through. I doubt that starting will ever be a consideration. His stuff isn’t overpowering but he seems to know how to get guys out. He’s not a big guy (6′1″ 170lbs). In a perfect world, I see him as a Saul Rivera type of guy
Hendo | 23-Jan-08 at 7:11 pm | Permalink
Looks like Gildea knows how to take a walk (28 BB in ~206 plate appearances). That .362 OBP would be a fine enhancement to the MLB squad — maybe even leadoff hitter material — if he can hold it up.
Hendo | 23-Jan-08 at 7:13 pm | Permalink
I’m liking Peralta’s K:BB ratio, too (74:30 across VMT, HAG, and POT).