100

Baseball America released their top 100 prospects for 2009. That link is to the top 20. You can click through to the rest of the list from there.

Let's see where ex-Rattlers wound up on this list.

This guy...he was with the Rattlers in '07...got traded to the Orioles...for Erik Bedard.

Chris Tillman at #22

Greg Halman ('07) is at #57

Michael Saunders ('06) is at #65

Carlos Triunfel ('07) at #89

Phillippe Aumont ('08) at #93

Potential future Rattler Brett Lawrie checks in at #81.

Check the rest of the list to see if I missed anyone. (Ex-Rattlers and potential future Rattlers only, please).

Who wants to be a LumberKing?

Dave Lezotte takes a run at a possible Clinton LumberKing roster at his new LumberBlog.

First up:

During our Hot Stove banquet in January, Mariners' special assistant John Boles didn't bring up a lot of names when it came to possible players, but did toss out two in specific, former Wisconsin Timber Rattlers outfielder Daniel Carroll and 20-year-old third-base prospect Mario Martinez.

Interesting.

Next:

Could Carroll be one of two former second-round picks roaming the Clinton outfield? Dennis Raben (second round in '08) had some nice power numbers from the left side of the plate last year in short-season Everett. He slugged five homers and drove in 14 RBI while hitting .275 (.560 slugging, .411 on-base) in 27 games. Bound to be a LumberKing? Hopefully.

What about pitching?

Could we see a third stint out of righty Nathan Adcock (2-5, 3.72 ERA in 2008), whose curveball was ranked the best in the system by BA? How about second seasons out of Donnie Hume (6-2, 2.44), Edward Paredes (7-11, 4.63) and Keith Renaud (1-5, 5.14), all who made at least 11 starts with Wisconsin last year?

I'll answer those in order with educated guesses: Maybe, No, Yes, No.

Or, it could be newcomers. Pulaski boasted solid arms like Nick Czyz (6-5, 4.08), Brooks Mohr (6-4, 3.27) and Fabian Williamson (4-3, 4.10) last season. In Everett, there weren't too many starters with ERA's under four, but Nolan Gallagher (1-1, 2.94), Bobby LaFromboise (2-2, 3.46) and Brett Lorin (1-0, 2.82) fared well in limited action. Lorin ended up making six starts with the Rattlers by season's end. Then there's high-rounders Ben Pribanic (1-2, 15.43 in AZL) and Steven Hensley (2-1, 5.22) who both struggled after being selected in the third and fourth rounds, respectively.

I'll only point out that Williamson is unlikely to be a LumberKing this season...or any season in the near future.

The Red Sox acquired left-hander Fabian Williamson from the Mariners in exchange for right-hander David Aardsma on Tuesday[, January 20].

The rest of those are possible.

Remember that the first time the Rattlers face the LumberKings is at the start of a series in Clinton on April 16.

Prospects, prospects, prospect (UPDATE)

MLB.com has Prospects to watch for both the American League and the National League.

Apparently, there are only three players in the Milwaukee system on their list, one of whom just got into the system. None of whom are likely to be in a Timber Rattler uniform anytime soon.

Mat Gamel: He dropped off during the second half of 2008 but still posted solid Minor League offensive numbers: a .329 average, 19 home runs and 96 RBIs in 127 games at Double-A Huntsville. He shared the organization's Minor League Player of the Year Award with Alcides Escobar. Gamel still needs to improve defensively, and he didn't win any fans in the front office when he was slow to reveal an elbow injury last September.

Alcides Escobar: The slick-fielding, free-swinging shortstop has passed Gamel on many prospect lists. He only turned 22 in December and is coming off a season in which he hit .328 with eight homers, 76 RBIs and 34 stolen bases in 131 games at Huntsville. An injury to Hardy might mean an instant promotion for Escobar.

Chase Wright: Acquired in an early February trade with the Yankees, Wright provides some depth at Triple-A Nashville. Wright spent all of 2008 in the Minors, going 10-3 with a 2.72 ERA for three of New York's affiliates. His season included two early-season appearances at rookie-level Tampa after he developed a tired arm, but he called that a minor setback and said that it didn't affect the rest of his season.

Just looking at the Seattle prospects for ex-Rattlers:

Mike Wilson: The power-hitting Wilson belted 27 home runs for Double-A West Tennessee last season, but he also struck out 117 times in 406 at-bats. The former second-round Draft choice (in 2001) ranked third in the Southern League with a .549 slugging percentage and was named to the All-Star and post-season All-Star teams.

Matt Tuiasosopo: The former three-sport star in high school made his MLB debut last September and held his own for the most part, rarely looking overmatched. His first career hit, off Yankees left-hander Andy Pettitte, came in his first career start. How well he plays at Triple-A Tacoma this season could determine how hard the organization tries to re-sign third baseman Adrian Beltre.

Greg Halman: The organization named Halman its Minor League Player of the Year in 2008 after he hit 29 home runs and drove in 83 runs for Class A High Desert and West Tennessee. The 21-year-old outfielder from The Netherlands figures to start the '09 season at either West Tennessee or Triple-A Tacoma.

Adam Moore: Rated by Baseball America as the Mariners' sixth-best prospect, Moore will get plenty of catching duty during Spring Training. He could be the best overall catcher in the organization, combining good defense with a productive bat. His likely destination coming out of camp is Triple-A Tacoma.

Yep. All four are ex-Rattlers.

Anyone else with an Appleton tie-in? Baltimore? Ah, of course:

Chris Tillman: The 20-year-old righty, who came over in the Erik Bedard trade, had an excellent first season in Baltimore's organization. The hard-throwing Tillman thrived at Bowie despite being one of the youngest players in the league, and if he continues his success, he'll likely be in line for his big league debut sometime after the All-Star break.

Good to see them drop that trade thing in there. Not too many people know about that.

Cleveland? Yep.

IF Luis Valbuena: Acquired from the Mariners, Valbuena will likely begin the season at second base at Triple-A Columbus, though he could be with the big league club by season's end. As a left-handed hitter, he's a nice complement to the Indians' infield.

At second, though, Valbuena is stuck behind Cleveland's current second baseman, former Timber Rattler Asdrubal Cabrera..

EDIT: As Jay pointed out in the comments, Asdrubal Cabrera is the second baseman for the Indians...Not Oswaldo Navarro as I originally posted. Navarro is still with the Mariners.

The Wind

It's not just the name of Warren Zevon's last album.

It's also....Well, let me back up a second.

Baseball America has released their first ever 32nd team. This is a list of 17 prospect profiles who did not make the Prospect Handbook or the 31st team, which is the #31 prospect of every team. Confused yet? I know I am.

Anyway. There is a scouting report for an ex-Rattler on this list. This is where the wind comes back into the story...

Alex Liddi, 3b, Mariners

Born: Aug. 14, 1988. B-T: R-R. Ht.: 6-4. Wt.: 176. Signed: Italy, 2005. Signed by: Wayne Norton/Mario Mazzotti.

The lone Italian position player in the minor leagues, Liddi has struggled through two years in low Class A since ranking fifth in the Arizona League batting race at .313 during his promising 2006 debut. He has batted just .240/.306/.365 in 249 games for Wisconsin, but the Mariners think his opposite-field swing and the winds at Fox Cities Stadium have cut into his production. Other MWL observers criticize him for not making the necessary adjustments. Lean and athletic, Liddi shows impressive strength and power to center and right-center field. He often looks like he's feeling for the ball, but his smooth swing gives him the chance to hit for average as he matures. He's an average runner. He has a plus arm, soft hands and enough agility to make plays at third base, but he could outgrow the position. Liddi receives uniformly high marks for his work ethic, but he would do much to reassure his believers by playing well in high[-A] as a 20-year-old this year.

I have both bolded and italicized the important parts and done a little research. I have also added a [-A] where there should have been one.

Liddi at home '08: Average: .235/ On Base %: .312/Slugging %: .332/K's: 56
Liddi on the road '08: .251/.314/.381/59

Liddi at home '07: .230/.288/.395/ 63
Liddi on the road '07: .250/.327/.375/ 60

The wind! It's conclusive!

The wind? Really?

Will the the wind that blows out all the time in High Desert aid production while hurting his development?

Late Round Steal

Here is the first of two posts based on content from BaseballAmerica.com.

This one is about an ex-Rattler who is considered to be a late round steal by the people at BA.

Shawn Kelley, rhp, Mariners: The Mariners farm system is a tad light on pitching, particularly in arms acquired in the draft (though having Chris Tillman back would beef up that contingent). Kelley, a 13th-round pick from Austin Peay State in 2007, might be the team’s best pitching prospect in the upper minors, even though he is a reliever. Kelley, who will be 24 in April, joined Double-A West Tenn in June and finished the year there with a 2.11 ERA in 42 2/3 innings, 44 strikeouts and 13 unintentional walks. After the regular season, Kelley went to Venezuela for winter ball and racked up a nasty 21-2 K-BB ratio for Lara in 14 2/3 innings with a 3.68 ERA. The deception in Kelley’s delivery makes his stuff play up, but his low-90s fastball that touches 94 and hard slider give him two legitimate weapons to retire big league hitters. He should soon fit into the Mariners’ bullpen mix, perhaps as early as this season.

Let's go Peay!

Plus, gotta love the gratuitous Tillman reference from BA. Also, is 13th considered a late round? I mean, there are 50 rounds in the draft.

The second in the series is next.

A little news for Clinton

On Saturday, Lookout Landing and USS Mariner hosted a meetup for their readers and members of the Seattle Mariner Front Office. It lasted three and a half hours.

USS Mariner has a bit of a recap here.

Here is the news for our friends in Clinton from their new parent club.

Draft: draft the best guys. College/high school, pitcher/hitter, doesn’t matter. I asked about Bavasi’s “two sets of eyes on every prospect” and the massive investment in infrastructure the team’s made during his time. They’re pro-that.

On this draft: they didn’t say much. No hand-tipping.

...

Player dev: sounds like it’s going to slow a little, and the push-until-dramatic-failure philosophy’s been at least relaxed. On position switches: as much as possible, they don’t want to move someone until it’s clear that they’ll be switching to the position they’ll be at long-term

Sounds like it was an interesting Saturday in Seattle.