Farm Aid

[Frayed Knot]

The state of the farm system post-Santana deal (acc to BA):

1. Fernando Martinez, OF
So far ahead of the rest of the system, but still a long way from his ceiling

2. Eddie Kunz, RHP
It's not a good sign when a reliever from the most recent draft is your No. 2 prospect

3. Brant Rustich, RHP
It's worse when a reliever from the most recent draft is your No. 3 prospect as well

4. Jon Niese, LHP
Young lefty with solid stuff will pitch in Double-A at age 21

5. Nathan Vineyard, LHP
Sandwich pick last June has the potential for three average or better pitches

6. Robert Parnell, RHP
Gets whiffs with his fastball and slider, but must refine his changeup to stay a starter

7. Joe Smith, RHP
Sidearm reliever made his big league debut 10 months after getting drafted

8. Scott Moviel, RHP
He's 6-foot-11 and already touches 94 mph, though his breaking ball needs work

9. Danny Murphy, 3B
His third-base defense is an issue, but he has the second-best bat in the system

10. Wilmer Flores, 3B/SS
Signed out of Venezuela for $750,000, he draws some Miguel Cabrera comps


Also:
In our organization rankings in the (already completed) Prospect Handbook we had, based on the Twins' depth and the Mets' lack thereof, New York (ranked) at No. 17 and Minnesota at No. 18. With the exodus of four of their best prospects, the Mets now have Fernando Martinez (who has a ton of upside but is far from a sure thing) and not much else. When we update our rankings in our Minor League Preview issue in March, I suspect that New York will drop to No. 27, ahead of only the Tigers, Astros and White Sox.



Restocking obviously needs to be a priority in the near future.
The good news - aside from the presence of Santana being the reason it took such a sudden hit - is that they own picks #18, #22, and #33 in this June's draft. Between that and the int'l market there'll definitely be some pressure to land decent talent in order to keep them from depending solely off the trade/FA market for the next half-decade or more.

[Elster88]

Joe Smith #7??

[Frayed Knot]

Elster88 wrote: Joe Smith #7??

You need remember that this isn't a list of who's closest to MLB but rather one trying to figure out the best long-term career potential - and a side-winding middle reliever only has so much up-side to him.

Or, if you're wondering why he's even on the list at all, it's because he didn't pitch enough innings last year to kill his rookie status.

[smg58]

I wouldn't be too concerned if Danny Murphy's defense at third base doesn't cut it.

Miguel Cabrera comps? For a guy who's ranked 10th in a depleted system?

Two relievers are ranked ahead of Joe Smith, who looks to actually have a harder road to Shea this year than he did last year. Selling (relatively) high now on Smith would be preferable to burying him.

[smg58]

Hey, now I'm Bill Pecota! You're going to love me!