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This is a round up of the Marlins Minors May 2010. It is not intended to be complete, but rather highlight the top dozen hitters in the system, significant sleepers, and anyone else absolutely drilling baseballs. If you feel the need to add a player, feel free to reply as it only benefits everyone reading.
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April 2010 Round Up - http://soflamarlins.com/showthread.php?t=2081
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Lou’s Top 10 Hitting Prospects as of this writing
1. Mike Stanton
2. Logan Morrison
3. Matt Dominguez
4. Kyle Skipworth
5. Jake Smolinski
6. Bryan Petersen
7. Scott Cousins
8. Osvaldo Martinez
9. Brett Hayes (there is really nothing after Martinez so these are fillers)
10. Marcell Ozuna
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Greensboro Grasshoppers (Class A Affiliate)
C - Kyle Skipworth (20 years old, 2008 first round pick)
2009 (A) - 264 AB, .208/.263/.348 (.612), 7 HR, 18/81 BB/K
April 2010 - 77 AB, .234/.314/.468 (.781), 4 HR, 9/25 BB/K
May 2010 - 94 AB, .298/.350/.564 (.913), 6 HR, 5/34 BB/K, 36% whiff rate
Total 2010 - 171 AB, .269/.333/.520 (.854), 10 HR, 14/59 BB/K, 35% whiff rate
Compared to 2009 he is doing amazing, but that BB/K is disgusting for A ball. It’s hard to criticize a guy who is coming around after an abysmal year, but Greensboro is a drastic hitter’s environment which is certainly helping the power somewhat and Skip is just flat out making terrible contact. I am encouraged he is doing something, but discouraged at the lack of plate discipline and contact. This is a major area that needs improvement. He needs to take a few more walks, and drop his strike out percentage into at least the low 20s. Good news is, he has 3-4 years to figure this out and is very raw. Great start to the year, now build off of it.
Quick Notes: Tom Hickman (.802 OPS, 4/22 B/KK) is back and still striking out way to much a player his age... Marcell Ozuna has not played since April 13th and listed on the DL... Justin Bass, 19th round 2008, is showing some power hitting 11 HR in route to a .248/.325/.526 line, but the 10/35 BB/K and Greensboro as a hitting environment does not suggest he is more than an organizational player....
Jupiter Hammerheads (High A Affiliate)
The Hammerheads are truly an awful hitting team. There is no way around it when the top hitter on the team, Paul Gran, is at a .709 OPS. It gets worse from there.
3B - Jake Smolinski (21 years old, 2007 Second Round Pick of Washington Nationals)
2009 (A) - 279 AB, .283/.379/.448 (.827), 7 HR, 38/45 BB/K
April 2010 - 80 AB, .225/.289/.350 (.639), 1 HR, 7/20 BB/K
May 2010 - 97 AB, .247/.270/.340 (.610), 1 HR, 2/16 BB/K
Total - 177 AB, .237/.279/.345 (.624), 2 HR, 9/36 BB/K
The BB/K is very surprising after his excellent rates in 2009. The power disappearing in Jupiter as most players not named Mike Stanton don’t hit a ton of HR here, but Smolinski is simply getting killed right now. Hopefully, much like Matt Dominguez last year, the learning curve has just hit him hard and he starts hitting like last year.
Quick Notes: Isaac Galloway has been injured since May 17, sporting a robist .482 OPS in the month of May before that, and .552 on the year. It's a small sample size, but he has done nothing as a professional. This is starting to look like Greg Burns 2.0, all tools and projection, relatively no performance.
Jacksonville Suns (Double A Affiliate)
OF - Mike Stanton (20 years old, 2007 Second Round Pick)
2009 (AA) - 299 AB, .231/.311/.455 (.766), 16 HR, 31/99 BB/K
2009 (A+) - 180 AB, .294/.390/.578 (.968), 12 HR, 28/45 BB/K
April 2010 - 77 AB, .338/.490/.805 (1.295), 10 HR, 22/22 BB/K
May 2010 - 96 AB, .271/.379/.594 (.973), 8 HR, 17/28 BB/K, 29% whiff rate
Total - 173 AB, .301/.431/.688 (1.118), 18 HR, 39/50 BB/K, 29% whiff rate
Not much to be said except, I sincerely hope expectations are tempered because the power is no doubt for real, but he misses a lot of baseballs and there are going to be a significant amount of strikeouts. If he hits like his 2009 AA in the majors this year, that has to be viewed as an enormous success and great potential for the future as he learns how to fight off breaking pitches. He is hitting lefties and righties equally as hard, however he has a (hilarious) home/away split of 1.413 home vs .813 away. I’m not sure if that is something to be concerned about because the sample size is low, but that’s so big it becomes notable. Regardless, I suspect he is with the Marlins within two weeks once all Super 2 issues have expired.
SS - Osvaldo Martinez
April 2010 - 85 AB, .318/.408/.376 (.785)
May 2010 - 109 AB, .352/.454/.444 (.898), 2 HR, 17/5 BB/K
Total - 193 AB, .337/.434/.415 (.849), 2 HR, 29/19 BB/K
Mike Stanton is so powerful he makes those around him awesome as well. The last 10 days of May, Martinez has struggled (.171/.326/.171(.497)) so his hot streak may be over, but you can’t take away what he is doing in AA right now. It will be interesting to see how he hits without Stanton around giving him preferably pitches to hit, but it’s a toss up between Martinez and Skipworth of who the breakout bat of the year is in the minors. Right now, have to go with Martinez because of those awesome awesome contact and walk rates. He is also exquisite defensively, so if he even hits a little, he could turn into a very positive player at 2B or SS down the road.
3B - Matt Dominguez (20 years old, 2007 First Round Pick)
2009 (AFL) - 48 AB, .188/.227/.396 (.623), 2 HR, 2/9 BB/K
2009 (AA) - 97 AB, .186/.292/.320 (.612), 2 HR, 14/24 BB/K
2009 (A+) - 381 AB, .262/.333/.420 (.753), 11 HR, 38/68 BB/K
April 2010 - 68 AB, .206/.325/.368 (.693), 1 HR, 12/17 BB/K
May 2010 - 106 AB, .226/.297/.406 (.702), 4 HR, 10/23 BB/K
Total - 174 AB, .218/.308/.391 (.699), 5 HR, 22/40 BB/K
Still struggling in AA. He started very slow last year as well so we shall see if he can pick it up over the summer. Also important to note, Dominguez is the 4th youngest player in the Southern League so he is going against competition much older. It’s not an excuse for hitting .218 on the year, but it’s reasonably for him to have extra growing pains as the Marlins aggressively promote him through the system.
Quick Notes: Brandon Tripp is still hitting the crap out of the ball (.393/.431/.623 in May). He is a fringe OF prospect, but if Petersen, Raynor, Cousins, and Carroll all fail for another year and Tripp is still around, could sneak his way into a backup OF slot.
New Orleans Zephyrs (Triple A Affiliate)
*Overall stats through June 2nd around 6:00pm, as opposed to May 31st for everyone else*
1B - Logan Morrison (22 years old, 2005 22nd Round Pick, Draft and Follow)
2009 (AA) - 278 AB, .277/.411/.442 (.854), 8 HR, 63/46 BB/K
April 2010 - 40 AB, .300/.383/.600 (.983), 2 HR, 6/6 BB/K
May 2010 - 32 AB, .281/.395/.469 (.863), 1 HR, 5/3 BB/K
Total - 74 AB, .284/.393/.527 (.920), 3 HR, 13/9 BB/K
Morrison returned May 24th after being out for 5 weeks with a shoulder injury. The hitting has resumed being the same. He is close to MLB ready, and if Gaby falters in a month or two will probably replace him as I think it goes without saying Morrison is the future at 1B. The Marlins could really use his lefty stick.
CF - Scott Cousins (25 years old, 2006 third round pick)
2009 (AA) - 482 AB, .263/.323/.448 (.771), 12 HR, 42/107 BB/K, 27/9 SB/CS
vs RHP - 365 AB, .279/.336/.460 (.796), 7 HR, 35/69 BB/K
April 2010 - 62 AB, .210/.292/.290 (.582), 1 HR, 7/13 BB/K, 2/0 SB/CS
May 2010 - 39 AB, .282/.300/.487 (.787), 1 HR, 1/7 BB/K, 1 SB
Cousins only played the first 13 days of May and unfortunately got injured because it looked like he was starting to hit a little bit. He returned June 1 and went 1/4.
Bryan Petersen and Brett Hayes - Played most of May with the MLB squad so their stats are not posted because they are rather insignificant.
John Raynor, selected by Pittsburgh in the Rule5 draft, was returned to the Marlins. He is batting .292/.280/.375 in his limited at bats since his return, and is currently injured.
Emilio Bonifacio hit .299/.396/.333 (.729), with an astonishing 14/14 BB/K in May. On the year he is at 142 AB, .289/.361/.352 (.713). If he can do that line in the bigs, he could become a pretty solid spot starter and roll player for the team.
Quick Notes: Donnie Murphy, a 27 year old MILB free agent this past winter, is hitting the bejesus out of the ball with a .361/.410/.708 May, and .969 OPS through 130 PA. Murphy was out all of 2009 with an injury, but is making most of his time. He is primarily playing SS, but he is in the vein of a 2B/SS/3B backup. If the team sours on Barden, he may be ahead of Bonifacio to fill the “Amezaga” bench spot... Another MILB free agent, this one more recognizable, Hector Luna has a .287/.365/.478 line on the year and would probably be an adequate backup infielder. He is not known for his glove however... Brad Davis is 4th on the Marlins catcher depth chart and has a .282/.328/.436 line. His ceiling is probably a marginal backup catcher, but that is valuable for organizational depth purposes.
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April 2010 Round Up - http://soflamarlins.com/showthread.php?t=2081
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Lou’s Top 10 Hitting Prospects as of this writing
1. Mike Stanton
2. Logan Morrison
3. Matt Dominguez
4. Kyle Skipworth
5. Jake Smolinski
6. Bryan Petersen
7. Scott Cousins
8. Osvaldo Martinez
9. Brett Hayes (there is really nothing after Martinez so these are fillers)
10. Marcell Ozuna
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Greensboro Grasshoppers (Class A Affiliate)
C - Kyle Skipworth (20 years old, 2008 first round pick)
2009 (A) - 264 AB, .208/.263/.348 (.612), 7 HR, 18/81 BB/K
April 2010 - 77 AB, .234/.314/.468 (.781), 4 HR, 9/25 BB/K
May 2010 - 94 AB, .298/.350/.564 (.913), 6 HR, 5/34 BB/K, 36% whiff rate
Total 2010 - 171 AB, .269/.333/.520 (.854), 10 HR, 14/59 BB/K, 35% whiff rate
Compared to 2009 he is doing amazing, but that BB/K is disgusting for A ball. It’s hard to criticize a guy who is coming around after an abysmal year, but Greensboro is a drastic hitter’s environment which is certainly helping the power somewhat and Skip is just flat out making terrible contact. I am encouraged he is doing something, but discouraged at the lack of plate discipline and contact. This is a major area that needs improvement. He needs to take a few more walks, and drop his strike out percentage into at least the low 20s. Good news is, he has 3-4 years to figure this out and is very raw. Great start to the year, now build off of it.
Quick Notes: Tom Hickman (.802 OPS, 4/22 B/KK) is back and still striking out way to much a player his age... Marcell Ozuna has not played since April 13th and listed on the DL... Justin Bass, 19th round 2008, is showing some power hitting 11 HR in route to a .248/.325/.526 line, but the 10/35 BB/K and Greensboro as a hitting environment does not suggest he is more than an organizational player....
Jupiter Hammerheads (High A Affiliate)
The Hammerheads are truly an awful hitting team. There is no way around it when the top hitter on the team, Paul Gran, is at a .709 OPS. It gets worse from there.
3B - Jake Smolinski (21 years old, 2007 Second Round Pick of Washington Nationals)
2009 (A) - 279 AB, .283/.379/.448 (.827), 7 HR, 38/45 BB/K
April 2010 - 80 AB, .225/.289/.350 (.639), 1 HR, 7/20 BB/K
May 2010 - 97 AB, .247/.270/.340 (.610), 1 HR, 2/16 BB/K
Total - 177 AB, .237/.279/.345 (.624), 2 HR, 9/36 BB/K
The BB/K is very surprising after his excellent rates in 2009. The power disappearing in Jupiter as most players not named Mike Stanton don’t hit a ton of HR here, but Smolinski is simply getting killed right now. Hopefully, much like Matt Dominguez last year, the learning curve has just hit him hard and he starts hitting like last year.
Quick Notes: Isaac Galloway has been injured since May 17, sporting a robist .482 OPS in the month of May before that, and .552 on the year. It's a small sample size, but he has done nothing as a professional. This is starting to look like Greg Burns 2.0, all tools and projection, relatively no performance.
Jacksonville Suns (Double A Affiliate)
OF - Mike Stanton (20 years old, 2007 Second Round Pick)
2009 (AA) - 299 AB, .231/.311/.455 (.766), 16 HR, 31/99 BB/K
2009 (A+) - 180 AB, .294/.390/.578 (.968), 12 HR, 28/45 BB/K
April 2010 - 77 AB, .338/.490/.805 (1.295), 10 HR, 22/22 BB/K
May 2010 - 96 AB, .271/.379/.594 (.973), 8 HR, 17/28 BB/K, 29% whiff rate
Total - 173 AB, .301/.431/.688 (1.118), 18 HR, 39/50 BB/K, 29% whiff rate
Not much to be said except, I sincerely hope expectations are tempered because the power is no doubt for real, but he misses a lot of baseballs and there are going to be a significant amount of strikeouts. If he hits like his 2009 AA in the majors this year, that has to be viewed as an enormous success and great potential for the future as he learns how to fight off breaking pitches. He is hitting lefties and righties equally as hard, however he has a (hilarious) home/away split of 1.413 home vs .813 away. I’m not sure if that is something to be concerned about because the sample size is low, but that’s so big it becomes notable. Regardless, I suspect he is with the Marlins within two weeks once all Super 2 issues have expired.
SS - Osvaldo Martinez
April 2010 - 85 AB, .318/.408/.376 (.785)
May 2010 - 109 AB, .352/.454/.444 (.898), 2 HR, 17/5 BB/K
Total - 193 AB, .337/.434/.415 (.849), 2 HR, 29/19 BB/K
Mike Stanton is so powerful he makes those around him awesome as well. The last 10 days of May, Martinez has struggled (.171/.326/.171(.497)) so his hot streak may be over, but you can’t take away what he is doing in AA right now. It will be interesting to see how he hits without Stanton around giving him preferably pitches to hit, but it’s a toss up between Martinez and Skipworth of who the breakout bat of the year is in the minors. Right now, have to go with Martinez because of those awesome awesome contact and walk rates. He is also exquisite defensively, so if he even hits a little, he could turn into a very positive player at 2B or SS down the road.
3B - Matt Dominguez (20 years old, 2007 First Round Pick)
2009 (AFL) - 48 AB, .188/.227/.396 (.623), 2 HR, 2/9 BB/K
2009 (AA) - 97 AB, .186/.292/.320 (.612), 2 HR, 14/24 BB/K
2009 (A+) - 381 AB, .262/.333/.420 (.753), 11 HR, 38/68 BB/K
April 2010 - 68 AB, .206/.325/.368 (.693), 1 HR, 12/17 BB/K
May 2010 - 106 AB, .226/.297/.406 (.702), 4 HR, 10/23 BB/K
Total - 174 AB, .218/.308/.391 (.699), 5 HR, 22/40 BB/K
Still struggling in AA. He started very slow last year as well so we shall see if he can pick it up over the summer. Also important to note, Dominguez is the 4th youngest player in the Southern League so he is going against competition much older. It’s not an excuse for hitting .218 on the year, but it’s reasonably for him to have extra growing pains as the Marlins aggressively promote him through the system.
Quick Notes: Brandon Tripp is still hitting the crap out of the ball (.393/.431/.623 in May). He is a fringe OF prospect, but if Petersen, Raynor, Cousins, and Carroll all fail for another year and Tripp is still around, could sneak his way into a backup OF slot.
New Orleans Zephyrs (Triple A Affiliate)
*Overall stats through June 2nd around 6:00pm, as opposed to May 31st for everyone else*
1B - Logan Morrison (22 years old, 2005 22nd Round Pick, Draft and Follow)
2009 (AA) - 278 AB, .277/.411/.442 (.854), 8 HR, 63/46 BB/K
April 2010 - 40 AB, .300/.383/.600 (.983), 2 HR, 6/6 BB/K
May 2010 - 32 AB, .281/.395/.469 (.863), 1 HR, 5/3 BB/K
Total - 74 AB, .284/.393/.527 (.920), 3 HR, 13/9 BB/K
Morrison returned May 24th after being out for 5 weeks with a shoulder injury. The hitting has resumed being the same. He is close to MLB ready, and if Gaby falters in a month or two will probably replace him as I think it goes without saying Morrison is the future at 1B. The Marlins could really use his lefty stick.
CF - Scott Cousins (25 years old, 2006 third round pick)
2009 (AA) - 482 AB, .263/.323/.448 (.771), 12 HR, 42/107 BB/K, 27/9 SB/CS
vs RHP - 365 AB, .279/.336/.460 (.796), 7 HR, 35/69 BB/K
April 2010 - 62 AB, .210/.292/.290 (.582), 1 HR, 7/13 BB/K, 2/0 SB/CS
May 2010 - 39 AB, .282/.300/.487 (.787), 1 HR, 1/7 BB/K, 1 SB
Cousins only played the first 13 days of May and unfortunately got injured because it looked like he was starting to hit a little bit. He returned June 1 and went 1/4.
Bryan Petersen and Brett Hayes - Played most of May with the MLB squad so their stats are not posted because they are rather insignificant.
John Raynor, selected by Pittsburgh in the Rule5 draft, was returned to the Marlins. He is batting .292/.280/.375 in his limited at bats since his return, and is currently injured.
Emilio Bonifacio hit .299/.396/.333 (.729), with an astonishing 14/14 BB/K in May. On the year he is at 142 AB, .289/.361/.352 (.713). If he can do that line in the bigs, he could become a pretty solid spot starter and roll player for the team.
Quick Notes: Donnie Murphy, a 27 year old MILB free agent this past winter, is hitting the bejesus out of the ball with a .361/.410/.708 May, and .969 OPS through 130 PA. Murphy was out all of 2009 with an injury, but is making most of his time. He is primarily playing SS, but he is in the vein of a 2B/SS/3B backup. If the team sours on Barden, he may be ahead of Bonifacio to fill the “Amezaga” bench spot... Another MILB free agent, this one more recognizable, Hector Luna has a .287/.365/.478 line on the year and would probably be an adequate backup infielder. He is not known for his glove however... Brad Davis is 4th on the Marlins catcher depth chart and has a .282/.328/.436 line. His ceiling is probably a marginal backup catcher, but that is valuable for organizational depth purposes.
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