Zimmerman for McCutchen?

Talking about trading one of your most popular franchise players is often not a wise thing to do; you don't see many Brewers fans chanting "trade Ryan Braun," Red Sox bandwagonites asking to get Tacoby Bellsbury out of town or Stuart Sternberg (the only Rays fan in existence) trying to find Evan Longoria a new cap. Yet here I stand, suggesting that the Nationals move Ryan Zimmerman for the apparently (and idiotically) available Andrew McCutchen.

Let me first start with why the Nats should entertain the idea of moving Zimmerman in general. One note: I'm not screaming TRADE ZIMMERMAN, as he is an immensely valuable player...simply stating that his value to the Nats may be at his highest now.

1) Zimmerman is relatively expensive now ($12 mil in 2012, $14 mil in 2013) and will be a free agent after the 2013 season. Adam Kilgore in August spitballed the idea of an 8 year, $175 million deal for Zim ($21.875 mil/year); an extension could end up lower than that, but we're still talking about a major, MAJOR investment. McCutchen, on the other hand, is under team control through 2015, still one season away from arbitration. MLB Trade Rumors suggests that the Justin Upton 6 year, $51.75 mil contract could be a model for a McCutchen extension, but even a 6 year, $60 million deal would be a bargain.

2) Zimmerman's injury history, while perhaps overstated, still exists. He played in only 106 games in 2008 due to a small tear in his left shoulder, couldn't finish the last 10 days 2010 season because of a rib sprain and missed significant time in 2011 due to abdominal injuries. I'm much more worried about Rendon's injury history than Zimmerman's, but it's still at least a minor point of concern. Besides missing a few games due to a bum hand from being hit by pitch, McCutchen hasn't been significantly injured in his 2 years of MLB service

3) Zimmerman is an elite 3B, but 3B's are a lot easier to come by than CF's. The Nats have Rendon in the system behind him already (top prospects aren't slam dunks, but Rendon >>> anything the Nats have in CF). It's basically impossible to find an elite CF, which makes an already above-average CF like McCutchen so valuable.


On July 18, Dave Cameron of FanGraphs listed Zimmerman as the player with the tenth greatest trade value. His write-up:

Zimmerman is one of the game’s best players, but also one of the game’s best kept secrets. He is consistently ignored in things like All-Star placement and MVP voting despite the fact that he’s one of the best players in baseball. Because he’s not a premier power guy or an up-the-middle player and his value is largely tied to his defensive excellence, his excellence gets lost in the crowd, but it shouldn’t. He’s awesome. At $26 million over the next two years, he’s also one of the cheapest elite players in baseball, though the lack a true long term deal drags him down a bit. Still, his present value is sky high, and offsets most of the lack of value beyond 2013.

McCutchen came in at number six on Cameron's list:

Already a terrific all-around player, McCutchen has added power this year and made himself into a legitimate MVP candidate at age 24. His broad base of skills suggests that he’ll age extremely well, there’s no injury history to worry about, and the Pirates control his rights for four more years after this one. They haven’t yet locked him up to a long term deal, but even if he goes through the arbitration process, he’ll still be a tremendous bargain. If you want to start handing out praise for why baseball is relevant in Pittsburgh again, start with McCutchen.

There are many factors that can't be measured objectively, such as Zimmerman's local ties (grew up in the Tidewater area and went to UVA) or his charity work with the ziMS Foundation, but from a strictly baseball-oriented point of view, I think the Nats would be foolish to not make a trade like this if it were ever on the table.

This all being said, the Pirates probably aren't really shopping McCutchen and despite his 2011 awfulness, Pedro Alvarez is still a solid prospect at 3B for them. But who knows.

Vote in the poll:

Ranking the Nats' minor league free agent pitchers

Baseball America releases a beautiful list of 500+ minor league free agents every November. In the past, I have attempted to do write-ups on all of them (or at least all of the relevant ones). This year, I'll simply rank the Nats' 26 minor league FA's and perhaps in a later post list some of the more intriguing names on the list from other organizations. Today, we'll look at the 8 pitchers who are now FA's.

One note - I will try to keep this updated as any of these players sign with other orgs or re-sign with the Nats. I haven't been able to keep up over the last week, though, so leave comments (with links) if you read anything on these guys.

1. LHP Oliver Perez
Perez' bugaboo across his entire career has been his control. His best 2 ML seasons control-wise featured walk rates of 3.7 (2004) and 4.0 (2007); coincidentally, those were his best 2 ML seasons overall, putting up a 2.98 ERA in 196 innings for the Pirates in '04 and a 3.56 ERA in 177 innings for the Mets in '07. That's what gives me so much optimism about Perez' 2011 season; after putting up BB/9's around 8 for the last 2 seasons for the Mets, Perez made it all the way down to 3.2 for Harrisburg this year. His K/9 rate suffered (6.9 this year, 9.5 career minor league rate), but he could still be a much more effective LOOGY than Doug Slaten. With a career major league line of .226/.317/.374 against lefties, I would be more than happy to see Perez return to pitch in the Nats' organization in 2011 (assuming there were no underlying attitude problems that I didn't hear about).
Fangraphs, Baseball-Reference

2. RHP Shairon Martis
Martis was a kinda bright spot for the 2009 Nats, starting out the season 5-0 despite having crappy overall numbers. After spending the second half of that season and all of last year in Syracuse, Martis found himself in Harrisburg for the entire 2011 season. What happened there was very intriguing. Martis finished the year with a 3.06 ERA and 2.79 FIP in 133 innings, with solid BB and K rates; Martis' 9.9 K/9 from 2011 is a huge improvement over his career numbers (7.3 across the minors for his entire career, 6.1 in AAA and 6.6 in his previous AA stays) and he lowered his BB rate an entire walk from 2010 to '11 (3.6 in AAA in 2010, 2.6 in AA in 2011). Inferior competition could be part of the explanation for his upswing in numbers, but we're still talking a very significant improvement. At 24 now (25 in March), Martis is still young enough to try to turn into a useful ML piece.
FanGraphs, Baseball-Reference

3. RHP J.D. Martin
While Martin's upside is low, he's an excellent guy to have around. His control is excellent (2.5 career ML BB/9, 1.4 BB/9 career AAA BB/9) and his results have been decent as well (2.66, 3.51 and 3.93 ERA's in his 3 seasons pitching AAA ball for the Nats and 4.32 ERA in 125 career ML IP). At 29 in January, he's still young enough to make an ML contribution for many organizations, but given the Nats' pitching depth, he will probably have to look elsewhere to get a better shot at getting back to the bigs. The 2012 Astros could very well be a haven for minor league lifers (like the 2006 Nats were), so I would advise Martin's agent to start calling Ed Wade.
FanGraphs, Baseball-Reference

4. RHP Garrett Mock
Mock has been a frustrating player to follow since the Nats received him in the Livan Hernandez-to-the-Diamondbacks deal in 2006. His stuff was both never the issue and always the issue, with major inconsistency problems despite having a mid-90s (albeit flat) fastball and solid secondary options. Todd Boss of Nationals Arm Race put it best, calling Mock "a guy with a plus fastball but who has proven time and again that he can’t produce consistent results stays in the system to provide continual tempting of the club management (the leader of whom Rizzo has a soft spot for him, having drafted him while working in Arizona)."

Mock missed most of the 2010 season due to injury and did not recover well this season, putting up a 6.39 ERA in 49 and 1/3 innings spread across four levels. His 9.3 K/9 rate from 2011 is slightly above his 7.8 career average across all levels, but he apparently lost all control of the strike zone at the same time, putting up a BB/9 rate of 5.3 this year. The walk rate is likely an anomaly, as Mock's career BB/9 in the minors is 2.7, but his time in the Nats organization is probably done. Mock is a Houston native, so that could also be a nice fit for him given the Astros' lack of talent across all levels.

5. RHP Luis Atilano
Like Martis, Atilano spent time in DC before being sent all the way down to Harrisburg in 2011. Unlike Martis, he was injured for basically the entire season and gave up 9 runs in 6 innings in the two starts he did make. Even when healthy, Atilano was not a key ML piece but rather a spot starter/injury call-up. Alex Remington of FanGraphs described Atilano best in his 2011 Second Opinion Profile: "The Quick Opinion: A fly-ball pitcher who doesn't miss bats or keep the ball in the park: basically, he's a No. 7 starter."
FanGraphs, Baseball-Reference

6. RHP Jimmy Barthmaier
Barthmaier came to the Nats in 2010 after being a highly-regarded prospect in the Astros system in 2005 and 2006, reaching the bigs for the Pirates in 2008 for a cup of coffee and missing all but 1 inning of the 2009 season due to Tommy John Surgery. He pitched well for Potomac in '10 and as a result spent '11 with Harrisburg, posting a nice 9.2 K/9 but failing to recreate his 1.9 BB/9 from the '10 season, posting a 4.1 BB/9 in '11. At 27 years old (28 in January), Barthmaier's role with the Nats if they bring him back is as an organizational soldier, so he might be best off looking for opportunities elsewhere.
FanGraphs, Baseball-Reference

7. RHP Sam Brown
After turning down a chance to join the Nats as a 7th rounder in 2006 to attend NC State, Brown finally found himself with the organization in 2011. The 24 year old was not very impressive, throwing 59 innings of 5.34 ERA ball. His 2.6 BB/9 and 7.3 K/9 are decent ratios, but not good enough to lead me to overlook his otherwise mediocre numbers.
FanGraphs, Baseball-Reference

8. RHP Carlos Martinez
This organizational soldier may soon have no organization; the 27 year old (28 in March) spent his 7th season with the Nats' organization across three levels, putting up a 6.26 ERA in 69 innings. Having only reached AAA for a grand total of 3 and 1/3 innings at the age of 27 without great rate stats (his decent 2.9 career BB/9 is majorly outweighed by his 4.9 career K/9), Martinez's time in the game is probably close to being up.
FanGraphs, Baseball-Reference

Nationals top prospect lists

The reader voting here has concluded, so I figured I'd put up a table comparing some top prospect lists. Please add links if you see any that aren't included here. My list is a slightly revised version of my original list made on August 7.

Community Top Prospect List: #20

Kevin Keyes won poll 19, gaining 41% of the votes. I think poll #20 will be the last one of the exercise, so rock the vote here!

Here's your list so far:
1. OF Bryce Harper (90%)
2. 3B Anthony Rendon (83%)
3. LHP Matt Purke (47%)
4. RHP Brad Peacock (39%)
5. RHP AJ Cole (44%)
6. RHP Alex Meyer (26%)
7. LHP Robbie Ray (31%)
8. C Derek Norris (41%)
9. 2B Steve Lombardozzi (50%)
10. OF Brian Goodwin (38%)
11. OF Destin Hood (44%)
12. LHP Sammy Solis (74%)
13. LHP Tom Milone (36%)
14. 1B Chris Marrero (52%)
15. RHP Brad Meyers (36%)
16. LHP Danny Rosenbaum (34%)
17. OF Eury Perez (35%)
18. 1B Tyler Moore (25%)
19. OF Kevin Keyes (41%)

Here's your new list. Remember, argue for your player in the comments section and leave a new name as well!




Since we're getting deeper into the prospect pool, here are some quick write-ups for the 10 candidates:

C David Freitas - Bat is good; hit .288/.409/.450 this year and .307/.408/.450 last season. Defense is still shaky, however; as Nationals Prospects notes, he's still relatively new to the catching position, but he still gave up 115 stolen bases in 154 attempts this season.
SS Rick Hague - 2010 3rd round pick missed almost all of 2011 due to a shoulder injury suffered in the season's first week. Hague's bat is for real; he is career .319/.388/.493 hitter. Unfortunately, he's made 22 errors in just 191 total chances (.885 fielding percentage). How far will his bat take him?
2B Jeff Kobernus - His 2nd round draft pedigree was seen at the time as a minor overdraft, but John Sickels at the end of the 2009 season liked him enough to rate him as a B- prospect (although he downgraded it to C+ before the 2010 season started). Kobernus is generally called "athletic" and "versatile," suggesting that he has a future as a utility guy. His walk rate sucks (4%) but his baserunning ability is legit (53 SBs in 61 attempts this season). Not a sure thing due to his lack of plate patience, but intriguing tools nonetheless.
OF Erik Komatsu - Komatsu is seen by most as a future 4th outfielder, with good defense in the corner positions. If he can play even average CF, his high-contact bat, good batter's eye and above average speed could turn him into a decent starter, though.
RHP Rafael Martin - At 27, he's older than everyone else on the list, but the Nats' second biggest recent international signing behind Yuniesky Maya had an absurdly good year in AA this season: 1.77 ERA, 26 hits allowed, 1 HR allowed, 9 walks and 44 strikeouts in 35 and 2/3 innings. He's been clocked as high as 96 MPH and has relatively little mileage on his arm.
1B Tyler Moore - The power is real; Moore has 31 HR in each of the past 2 seasons. The negatives: he's old for his level and has a lot more K's than BB's (30 BB and 139 K this year, 123/441 for his career). Still, the power is real. Really real.
3B Matt Skole - The 2011 5th round pick is known for having a solid bat but a mediocre glove. Hit .290/.382/.438 in his pro debut, but where's the power? (2011 Nats Draft Info page).
OF Michael Taylor - Taylor is a mixed bag, with great power and speed potential but mediocre performance to date. His 2011 "breakout season" featured a .253/.310/.432 triple slash line with 32 walks and 120 strikeouts. His game has holes, but if he can patch them up, he'll rise quickly, similarly to how Destin Hood did this season.
LHP Kylin Turnbull - The 2011 4th rounder throws in the mid-90s with some projection left in his arm. Lack of secondary options probably will leave him in the bullpen, but he could be a dominant lefty reliever (2011 Nats Draft Info page).
SS Zach Walters - The Nats grabbed Walters from the Diamondbacks in the Jason Marquis trade. I'm all for shortstops who can hit, and Walters has a career .299/.356/.451 line from both sides. Whether or not he can stick at SS is a question mark, but at this point in his career, that's the plan.

2011 DC-IBWA Awards and my votes

On Thursday, the DC Internet Baseball Writers Association released its 2011 player achievement awards. Below you will find the results as well as my votes and analysis.

Goose Goslin Most Valuable Player
(Player most valuable to the success of the Washington Nationals):

1st: Michael Morse (108 points, 19 first place votes)
2nd: Ryan Zimmerman (41 points, 2 first place votes)
3rd: Danny Espinosa (32 points, 3 first place votes)

Others receiving votes: Tyler Clippard (24-one first place vote), Jordan Zimmermann (11), Drew Storen (4), Stephen Strasburg (3), Wilson Ramos (3).

My vote:
1st: Michael Morse
2nd: Danny Espinosa
3rd: Wilson Ramos

My MVP vote was basically a choice between Morse and Espinosa for #1/2 and between Ramos and Zimmerman for #3. Morse edged out Espinosa, who semi-surprisingly held the team's WAR lead (3.5 to Morse's 3.3, Ramos' 3.1 and Zimmerman's 2.5). Still, I think Morse's .387 wOBA with "meh" defense trumps Espi's .325 wOBA with awesome defense. This year it does, at least.

Ramos and Zim were essentially a toss-up, but I picked Ramos for his slight edge in durability with similar other factors. While the difference between Ramos and Zim's games played were not that great (113 for Ramos to 101 for Zimmerman), I felt that a catcher playing in 7/10 of the team's games is pretty normal whereas a third baseman missing 60 games is not.


Walter Johnson Starting Pitcher of the Year
(Excellent performance as a starting pitcher):

1st: Jordan Zimmermann (125 points, 25 first place votes)
2nd: John Lannan (51 points)
3rd: Livan Hernandez (18 points)

Others receiving votes: Stephen Strasburg (13), Ross Detwiler (9), Jason Marquis (5), Chien-Ming Wang (2).

My vote:
1st: Zimmermann
2nd: Lannan
3rd: Hernandez

Zimmermann was obviously the #1 choice here, so I won't bother even discussing that. The choice between Lannan, Livo and Marquis for #'s 2 and 3. At the end of the day, I feel that Lannan pitched the most and the best out of the 3, with Livo pitching the second most and Marquis the second best. Since Livo put up 9 more starts than Marquis, I decided to go with him, but it was closer than most would think. While Stras, Detwiler and Wang were all pretty solid, I couldn't consider a pitcher with less than 100 IP one of the top 3 starters.


Frederick "Firpo" Marberry Relief Pitcher of the Year
(Excellent performance as a relief pitcher):

1st: Tyler Clippard (121 points, 23 first place votes)
2nd: Drew Storen (79 points, 2 first place votes)
3rd: Todd Coffey (11 points)

Others receiving votes: Henry Rodriguez (6), Ryan Mattheus (3.5), Tom Gorzelanny (1.5), Sean Burnett (1), Collin Balester (1).

My votes:
1st: Clippard
2nd: Storen
3rd: Coffey

The first two were easy; Clippard put up sick numbers and Storen put up slightly less awesome but still awesome ones. The third one was tough, but I felt that it was a choice between Coffey and MPH-Rod. Their ERA's and FIP's were similar (3.56/3.24 for Rodriguez and 3.62/3.41 for Coffey), but the difference came in the fact that Coffey thrived most in high- and medium-leverage situations while Rodriguez's best numbers were in low-leverage spots.


Sam Rice Hitter of the Year
(Excellence in all-around hitting, situational hitting and baserunning):

1st: Michael Morse (103 points, 18 first place votes)
2nd: Ryan Zimmerman (64 points, 6 first place votes)
3rd: Danny Espinosa (23 points)

Others receiving votes: Wilson Ramos (14), Ian Desmond (9), Laynce Nix (6-one first place vote), Jayson Werth (5), Jerry Hairston (1), Roger Bernadina (1), Rick Ankiel (1).

My votes:
1st: Morse
2nd: Zimmerman
3rd: Nix

Morse, once again, was head and shoulders above the rest of the team, so that was an easy choice. Zimmerman was a pretty clear-cut second choice to me given his "Mr. Walk-Off" performances. Not sure why I went with Nix here, to be honest. His OBP dropped below .300 by the end of the season and  his baserunning was nothing to write home about. Now that I think of it, I should have gone with Espinosa here.


Frank Howard Slugger of the Year
(Excellence in power hitting):

1st: Michael Morse (120 points, 24 first place votes)
2nd: Danny Espinosa (56 points)
3rd: Ryan Zimmerman (19 points)

Others receiving votes: Laynce Nix (9), Wilson Ramos (5), Jayson Werth (4).

My votes:
1st: Morse
2nd: Nix
3rd: Espinosa

Morse was 1st for obvious reasons (31 HR, .247 ISO). Nix finished solidly in second for me, with a .201 ISO and 16 HR despite only having 351 PA. Espi and Ramos were neck-and-neck in ISO, but Espi ended up passing the magic number of 20 HR, so I went with him as #3. And as much as I love Zimmerman, I don't see 12 HR and a .154 ISO as competitive with Morse, Nix, Espinosa or Ramos (or probably even Werth, who had 20 HR and a .157 ISO).


Joe Judge Defensive Player of the Year
(Excellence in fielding):

1st: Danny Espinosa (74 points, 11 first place votes)
2nd: Rick Ankiel (62 points, 8 first place vote)
3rd: Ryan Zimmerman (47 points, 4 first place votes)

Others receiving votes: Wilson Ramos (15-one first place votes), Roger Bernadina (6-one first place vote), Adam LaRoche (6), Michael Morse (5), Jayson Werth (4), Ivan Rodriguez (4), Ian Desmond (2).

My votes:
1st: Espinosa
2nd: Zimmerman
3rd: Ankiel

I toyed with putting Ankiel 2nd and felt that Ramos had at least an argument for top 3 consideration, but Espinosa and Zimmerman are both elite defenders with game-changing skills. Ankiel's arm is elite, but his range in CF is not amazing and I feel that 2B and 3B are much more valuable defensive positions than the corner OF's.


Mickey Vernon Comeback Player of the Year
(Player who overcame biggest obstacle in the preceding season to contribute on the field):

1st: Jordan Zimmermann (57 points, 8 first place votes)
2nd: Chien-Ming Wang (55 points, 6 first place votes)
3rd: Stephen Strasburg (52 points, 7 first place votes)

Others receiving votes: Jesus Flores (15-one first place vote), Jason Marquis (5), Rick Ankiel (5-one first place vote), Laynce Nix (3), Roger Bernadina (3), Michael Morse (3), John Lannan (3), Ross Detwiler (1), Ian Desmond (1).

My votes:
1st: Jordan Zimmermann
2nd: Chien-Ming Wang
3rd: John Lannan

My reasoning here was a bit jarbled; Zimmermann got my #1 vote for recovering from injury to play a full, awesome season. Wang got #2 because he recovered from years of injury to contribute at all. Lannan got #3 because he struggled enough last year to get sent to AA and rebounded for a full, successful year. Marquis would have likely taken spot #3 had he finished the year with the Nats and Detwiler got more consideration as the season's final month carried on.


Josh Gibson Humanitarian Player of the Year
(Player who meritoriously gave of himself to the community):

1st: Ian Desmond (65 points, 10 first place votes)
2nd: Ryan Zimmerman (50 points, 8 first place votes)
3rd: John Lannan (20 points)

Others receiving votes: Drew Storen (14-one first place vote), Ivan Rodriguez (12, one first place vote), Livan Hernandez (9-one first place vote), Danny Espinosa (4), Stephen Strasburg (3), Matt Stairs (2), Brian Bixler (1), Tyler Clippard (1).

I did not vote here because I did not feel like I could contribute anything more than simply a wild guess as to who was most involved with the community. Zimmerman would have been my #1 due to ZiMS, but I had nothing to contribute after that, so I abstained.


Minor League Player of the Year
(Minor league player most destined for big league success):

1st: Bryce Harper (74 points, 13 first place votes)
2nd: Brad Peacock (73 points, 7 first place vote)
3rd: Steve Lombardozzi (26 points, 2 first place votes)

Others receiving votes: Tom Milone (17, one first place vote), Chris Marrero (7), Roger Bernadina (5), David Freitas (3), Derek Norris (3), Tyler Moore (1), Sammy Solis (1), A.J. Cole (1).


My votes:
1st: Tom Milone
2nd: Bryce Harper
3rd: Matt Antonelli (didn't end up in the tally I suppose?)

I mis-read the description; obviously if future major league stardom was the definition, I would have gone with Harper first. Still, Milone had a great year, Harper had a nice one as well and I wanted to point out how good Antonelli's season was for Syracuse.

__________________________________________________

SURVEY QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

1. What player was the biggest surprise for the Nats this season? Michael Morse (10.5), Wilson Ramos (4), Ryan Mattheus (2), Rick Ankiel (2), Brad Peacock (1), Danny Espinosa (1), Chien-Ming Wang (1), Laynce Nix (.5).

1/2 Nix and 1/2 Morse were my votes.

2. What player was the biggest diappointment for the Nats this season? Jayson Werth (15), Adam LaRoche (4.5), Jim Riggleman (1), Sean Burnett (1), Ryan Zimmerman's injury (.5).

Werth's struggles trumped LaRoche for me.

3. Will Ryan Zimmerman sign a contract extension before the end of the 2012 season? Yes (16), No (6).

I said no, but he will sign one in that offseason.

4. Which players on the 40-man roster at the end of the season are least likely to return in 2010? Alex Cora (13), Ivan Rodriguez (13), Jonny Gomes (12), Doug Slaten (12), Laynce Nix (10), Livan Hernandez (9), Todd Coffey (6), Tom Gorzelanny (5), Collin Balester (5), Yunesky Maya (4), Chien-Ming Wang (3), Brian Bixler (3), Elvin Ramirez (3), Rick Ankiel (2), Chris Marrero (2), Roger Bernadina (2), Atahualpa Severino (2), Craig Stammen (1), Henry Rodriguez (1), Adam LaRoche (1), Corey Brown (1), Ross Detwiler (1), Jesus Flores (1), John Lannan (1), Steve Lombardozzi (1).

Todd Coffey, Elvin Ramirez, Doug Slaten, Pudge Rodriguez, Alex Cora, Rick Ankiel, Jonny Gomes and Laynce Nix were my choices.

5. Who is your favorite professional Nationals writer? Mark Zuckerman (12), Adam Kilgore (6), Dan Steinberg (1), Dave Kindred (1).

Mark Zuckerman was my choice.

6. Who is your favorite non-professional Nationals writer? Harper Gordek, Nationals Baseball (5), Dave Nichols, Nats News Network (4 1/3), Patrick Reddington, Federal Baseball (3), Andrew Kinback, Nationals Inquisition (2), Sue Dinem, Nationals Prospects (2), Nats Daily News Staff (1), Capitol Baseball (1), Nats GM (1/3), Brian Oliver, Nats Farm Authority (1/3).

I went for Sue Dinem, but am also feeling Brian from NFA could be the 201? comeback blogger of the year if he comes back soon!

Community Top Prospect List: #19

Tyler Moore finally won a poll with 25% of the votes, edging out OF Kevin Keyes (21%) and C David Frietas (19%). In the most evened-out poll to date, all 10 members got at least one vote. As suggested by commenter Will, 2009 2nd rounder Jeff Kobernus is the newest addition to the poll.

Here's your list so far:
1. OF Bryce Harper (90%)
2. 3B Anthony Rendon (83%)
3. LHP Matt Purke (47%)
4. RHP Brad Peacock (39%)
5. RHP AJ Cole (44%)
6. RHP Alex Meyer (26%)
7. LHP Robbie Ray (31%)
8. C Derek Norris (41%)
9. 2B Steve Lombardozzi (50%)
10. OF Brian Goodwin (38%)
11. OF Destin Hood (44%)
12. LHP Sammy Solis (74%)
13. LHP Tom Milone (36%)
14. 1B Chris Marrero (52%)
15. RHP Brad Meyers (36%)
16. LHP Danny Rosenbaum (34%)
17. OF Eury Perez (35%)
18. 1B Tyler Moore (25%)

Here's your new list. Remember, argue for your player in the comments section and leave a new name as well!




Since we're getting deeper into the prospect pool, here are some quick write-ups for the 10 candidates:

C David Freitas - Bat is good; hit .288/.409/.450 this year and .307/.408/.450 last season. Defense is still shaky, however; as Nationals Prospects notes, he's still relatively new to the catching position, but he still gave up 115 stolen bases in 154 attempts this season.
SS Rick Hague - 2010 3rd round pick missed almost all of 2011 due to a shoulder injury suffered in the season's first week. Hague's bat is for real; he is career .319/.388/.493 hitter. Unfortunately, he's made 22 errors in just 191 total chances (.885 fielding percentage). How far will his bat take him?
OF Kevin Keyes - Awful in his 39 game campaign last year after being drafted in the 7th round (.175/.321/.278), but rebounded to hit .263/.336/.510 in 2011. Plate discipline and defensive ability are two major question marks, but at this point he looks like a Michael Burgess-type hitter (albeit without the arm).
2B Jeff Kobernus - His 2nd round draft pedigree was seen at the time as a minor overdraft, but John Sickels at the end of the 2009 season liked him enough to rate him as a B- prospect (although he downgraded it to C+ before the 2010 season started). Kobernus is generally called "athletic" and "versatile," suggesting that he has a future as a utility guy. His walk rate sucks (4%) but his baserunning ability is legit (53 SBs in 61 attempts this season). Not a sure thing due to his lack of plate patience, but intriguing tools nonetheless.
OF Erik Komatsu - Komatsu is seen by most as a future 4th outfielder, with good defense in the corner positions. If he can play even average CF, his high-contact bat, good batter's eye and above average speed could turn him into a decent starter, though.
RHP Rafael Martin - At 27, he's older than everyone else on the list, but the Nats' second biggest recent international signing behind Yuniesky Maya had an absurdly good year in AA this season: 1.77 ERA, 26 hits allowed, 1 HR allowed, 9 walks and 44 strikeouts in 35 and 2/3 innings. He's been clocked as high as 96 MPH and has relatively little mileage on his arm.
1B Tyler Moore - The power is real; Moore has 31 HR in each of the past 2 seasons. The negatives: he's old for his level and has a lot more K's than BB's (30 BB and 139 K this year, 123/441 for his career). Still, the power is real. Really real.
3B Matt Skole - The 2011 5th round pick is known for having a solid bat but a mediocre glove. Hit .290/.382/.438 in his pro debut, but where's the power? (2011 Nats Draft Info page).
OF Michael Taylor - Taylor is a mixed bag, with great power and speed potential but mediocre performance to date. His 2011 "breakout season" featured a .253/.310/.432 triple slash line with 32 walks and 120 strikeouts. His game has holes, but if he can patch them up, he'll rise quickly, similarly to how Destin Hood did this season.
LHP Kylin Turnbull - The 2011 4th rounder throws in the mid-90s with some projection left in his arm. Lack of secondary options probably will leave him in the bullpen, but he could be a dominant lefty reliever (2011 Nats Draft Info page).
SS Zach Walters - The Nats grabbed Walters from the Diamondbacks in the Jason Marquis trade. I'm all for shortstops who can hit, and Walters has a career .299/.356/.451 line from both sides. Whether or not he can stick at SS is a question mark, but at this point in his career, that's the plan.

Community Top Prospect List: #18

OF Eury Perez emerged victorious from poll #17, gaining 35% of the total votes. 1B Tyler Moore finished second in the latest poll with 26%, followed by OF Michael Taylor in third with 22%.

Here's your list so far:
1. OF Bryce Harper (90%)
2. 3B Anthony Rendon (83%)
3. LHP Matt Purke (47%)
4. RHP Brad Peacock (39%)
5. RHP AJ Cole (44%)
6. RHP Alex Meyer (26%)
7. LHP Robbie Ray (31%)
8. C Derek Norris (41%)
9. 2B Steve Lombardozzi (50%)
10. OF Brian Goodwin (38%)
11. OF Destin Hood (44%)
12. LHP Sammy Solis (74%)
13. LHP Tom Milone (36%)
14. 1B Chris Marrero (52%)
15. RHP Brad Meyers (36%)
16. LHP Danny Rosenbaum (34%)
17. OF Eury Perez (35%)

Here's your new list. Remember, argue for your player in the comments section and leave a new name as well!

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Since we're getting deeper into the prospect pool, here are some quick write-ups for the 10 candidates:

C David Freitas - Bat is good; hit .288/.409/.450 this year and .307/.408/.450 last season. Defense is still shaky, however; as Nationals Prospects notes, he's still relatively new to the catching position, but he still gave up 115 stolen bases in 154 attempts this season.
SS Rick Hague - 2010 3rd round pick missed almost all of 2011 due to a shoulder injury suffered in the season's first week. Hague's bat is for real; he is career .319/.388/.493 hitter. Unfortunately, he's made 22 errors in just 191 total chances (.885 fielding percentage). How far will his bat take him?
OF Kevin Keyes - Awful in his 39 game campaign last year after being drafted in the 7th round (.175/.321/.278), but rebounded to hit .263/.336/.510 in 2011. Plate discipline and defensive ability are two major question marks, but at this point he looks like a Michael Burgess-type hitter (albeit without the arm).
OF Erik Komatsu - Komatsu is seen by most as a future 4th outfielder, with good defense in the corner positions. If he can play even average CF, his high-contact bat, good batter's eye and above average speed could turn him into a decent starter, though.
RHP Rafael Martin - At 27, he's older than everyone else on the list, but the Nats' second biggest recent international signing behind Yuniesky Maya had an absurdly good year in AA this season: 1.77 ERA, 26 hits allowed, 1 HR allowed, 9 walks and 44 strikeouts in 35 and 2/3 innings. He's been clocked as high as 96 MPH and has relatively little mileage on his arm.
1B Tyler Moore - The power is real; Moore has 31 HR in each of the past 2 seasons. The negatives: he's old for his level and has a lot more K's than BB's (30 BB and 139 K this year, 123/441 for his career). Still, the power is real. Really real.
3B Matt Skole - The 2011 5th round pick is known for having a solid bat but a mediocre glove. Hit .290/.382/.438 in his pro debut, but where's the power? (2011 Nats Draft Info page).
OF Michael Taylor - Taylor is a mixed bag, with great power and speed potential but mediocre performance to date. His 2011 "breakout season" featured a .253/.310/.432 triple slash line with 32 walks and 120 strikeouts. His game has holes, but if he can patch them up, he'll rise quickly, similarly to how Destin Hood did this season.
LHP Kylin Turnbull - The 2011 4th rounder throws in the mid-90s with some projection left in his arm. Lack of secondary options probably will leave him in the bullpen, but he could be a dominant lefty reliever (2011 Nats Draft Info page).
SS Zach Walters - The Nats grabbed Walters from the Diamondbacks in the Jason Marquis trade. I'm all for shortstops who can hit, and Walters has a career .299/.356/.451 line from both sides. Whether or not he can stick at SS is a question mark, but at this point in his career, that's the plan.

2011 DC-IBWA Pre-Season Ballot revisited

Dave Nichols of Nats News Network is a wonderful man for putting together the DC Internet Baseball Writers Association, which includes pre-and post-season awards voting by Nats blogs. Since the post-season award ballot got sent out today, I figured it was appropriate to re-visit the pre-season one now.

Here are the results from the pre-season questionable sent out by Dave in March:
1. Who will lead the Nats in home runs? Ryan Zimmerman (15 votes), Jayson Werth (4).
Barring a last week HR barrage by Danny Espinosa (19 HR) or Jayson Werth (19 HR), Morse has this one locked up (27 HR). Zimmerman is currently sixth on the squad with 12 HR, trailing the aforementioned three plus Laynce Nix (16 HR) and Wilson Ramos (13 HR).

2. Who will lead the Nats in RBIs? Zimmerman (10 votes), Werth (4) Adam LaRoche (4), Danny Espinosa (1).
Morse (86 RBI) wins this category as well despite receiving 0 votes. Espinosa is second on the team with 61 RBI, with Werth third (56 RBI), Zimmerman fourth (48 RBI) and Laroche twelfth (15 RBI).

3. Who will led the Nats in stolen bases? Nyjer Morgan (12), Espinosa (3), Ian Desmond (2), Roger Bernadina (1), Werth (1).
Can you believe it's just been six months since the Nats jettisoned the headache that is Nyjer Morgan/Tony Plush? Thank goodness he's gone. The poll was taken about two weeks before he was dealt, thus 12 first place votes. Morgan's 12 stolen bases would have only ranked fifth on the team this season, though, with Ian Desmond swiping 23, Werth and Bernadina grabbing 16 and Espinosa taking 14. I'll give the writers some credit here; they nailed the top 5 without any huge misses.

4. Who will lead the Nats in wins? Jordan Zimmermann (9), John Lannan (5), Livan Hernandez (2), Tom Gorzelanny (1), Tyler Clippard (1), Jason Marquis (1).
Lannan (9 wins) won this one with a little help from the month of September. While Lannan only has 1 victory in the month, both Livan Hernandez (8 wins) and Jordan Zimmermann (8 wins) have not pitched in the month. Amazingly, Jason Marquis ended up with 8 wins as well despite being traded at the deadline. Both Clippard and Gorzelanny have 3 wins to date (tied for eighth on the club with Chien-Ming Wang).

5. Who will lead the Nats in saves? Drew Storen (17), Sean Burnett (1), Todd Coffey (1).
I'm surprised nobody voted for Clippard here, to be honest. The only two pitchers with saves for the Nats this season were Storen (38 saves) and Burnett (4 saves).

6. Who will lead the Nats in starts? Hernandez (12), Lannan (5.5), Marquis (1.5).
Lannan has this one locked down, with 31 starts to date. Livan is second with 29, with Zimmermann (26) and Marquis (20) coming in third and fourth, respectively.

7. Which pitcher (Chien-Ming Wang, Yunesky Maya or Ross Detwiler) will make more starts for the Nats? Maya (8), Detwiler (8), Wang (3).
Oh ye of little faith! Wang has 10 starts for the Nats so far this season; Detwiler has 8 and Maya has 5. Both Wang and Detwiler have quietly put together pretty strong arguments for rotation spots next season.

8. Which utility player (Rick Ankiel, Jerry Hairston or Alberto Gonzalez) will get more at bats for the Nats? Ankiel (9), Hairston (8), Gonzalez (2).
Ankiel is currently 7th on the squad with 349 at-bats for the Nats (way too many, but that's another blog post). Hairston, somewhat surprisingly, is 10th with 213 AB's. Gonzalez was dealt to the Padres in late March and did not register an at-bat for the Nats.

9. Which catcher will get them most at bats for the Nats? Wilson Ramos (10), Ivan Rodriguez (7), Jesus Flores (2).
Ramos wins with 368 to date; Pudge is second with 118, with Flores scoring 78 AB's so far.

10. How many all-stars will the Nats have and whom? One (14), Two (5). Ryan Zimmerman (15), Jayson Werth (4), Danny Espinosa (1), Tyler Clippard (1), Jordan Zimmermann (1).
One person was right: Tyler Clippard was our sole rep.

11. Number of wins and place in division? Fourth (8), Fifth (6), Third (5). 82, 78, 77, 76 (3), 75 (4), 74, 73, 72 (3), 70, 68, 65, 58.
We'll revisit this in about a week, but the Nats have 72 wins and are in 3rd place so far.

12. Most important development for 2011? Develop young players (6), Recovery of Stephen Strasburg (4), the start of 2012 season (2), Development of Jordan Zimmermann (2), Development of young starting pitching (1), Development of team cohesion (1), Development of Desmond/Espinosa (1)
The "importance" can't really be measured, but Strasburg, Zimmermann, Ramos and Espinosa all developed nicely this season. Desmond was a disappointment and the young starting pitching, while not awful, has been a mixed bag, with Zimmermann having a great year but no other young starters making a real statement for a rotation spot behind them. Peacock and Milone had great minor league years and Detwiler pitched pretty well, but there was no 2008-era John Lannan this season (Lannan, by the way, is still only 26!).

Community Top Prospect List: #17

Danny Rosenbaum won poll #16 with 34% of the vote over Tyler Moore's 28% and Eury Perez's 25%.

Here's your list so far:
1. OF Bryce Harper (90%)
2. 3B Anthony Rendon (83%)
3. LHP Matt Purke (47%)
4. RHP Brad Peacock (39%)
5. RHP AJ Cole (44%)
6. RHP Alex Meyer (26%)
7. LHP Robbie Ray (31%)
8. C Derek Norris (41%)
9. 2B Steve Lombardozzi (50%)
10. OF Brian Goodwin (38%)
11. OF Destin Hood (44%)
12. LHP Sammy Solis (74%)
13. LHP Tom Milone (36%)
14. 1B Chris Marrero (52%)
15. RHP Brad Meyers (36%)
16. LHP Danny Rosenbaum (34%)

Here's your new list. Remember, argue for your player in the comments section and leave a new name as well!




Since we're getting deeper into the prospect pool, here are some quick write-ups for the 10 candidates:

C David Freitas - Bat is good; hit .288/.409/.450 this year and .307/.408/.450 last season. Defense is still shaky, however; as Nationals Prospects notes, he's still relatively new to the catching position, but he still gave up 115 stolen bases in 154 attempts this season.
SS Rick Hague - 2010 3rd round pick missed almost all of 2011 due to a shoulder injury suffered in the season's first week. Hague's bat is for real; he is career .319/.388/.493 hitter. Unfortunately, he's made 22 errors in just 191 total chances (.885 fielding percentage). How far will his bat take him?
OF Kevin Keyes - Awful in his 39 game campaign last year after being drafted in the 7th round (.175/.321/.278), but rebounded to hit .263/.336/.510 in 2011. Plate discipline and defensive ability are two major question marks, but at this point he looks like a Michael Burgess-type hitter (albeit without the arm).
OF Erik Komatsu - Komatsu is seen by most as a future 4th outfielder, with good defense in the corner positions. If he can play even average CF, his high-contact bat, good batter's eye and above average speed could turn him into a decent starter, though.
1B Tyler Moore - The power is real; Moore has 31 HR in each of the past 2 seasons. The negatives: he's old for his level and has a lot more K's than BB's (30 BB and 139 K this year, 123/441 for his career). Still, the power is real. Really real.
OF Eury Perez - Fell off the radar this season due to a .283/.319/.321 season in Potomac. Great speed and defense, but with poor patience, the question is can he get on base enough to be a big league player.
LHP Danny Rosenbaum - Rosenbaum doesn't have the greatest stuff or the pinpoint control that Milone does, but he has sparkling (and consistent) numbers from rookie ball to AA over three seasons: 2.35 career ERA, 7.6 H/9, 0.3 HR/9, 2.6 BB/9 and 7.4 K/9.
3B Matt Skole - The 2011 5th round pick is known for having a solid bat but a mediocre glove. Hit .290/.382/.438 in his pro debut, but where's the power? (2011 Nats Draft Info page).
OF Michael Taylor - Taylor is a mixed bag, with great power and speed potential but mediocre performance to date. His 2011 "breakout season" featured a .253/.310/.432 triple slash line with 32 walks and 120 strikeouts. His game has holes, but if he can patch them up, he'll rise quickly, similarly to how Destin Hood did this season.
LHP Kylin Turnbull - The 2011 4th rounder throws in the mid-90s with some projection left in his arm. Lack of secondary options probably will leave him in the bullpen, but he could be a dominant lefty reliever (2011 Nats Draft Info page).
SS Zach Walters - The Nats grabbed Walters from the Diamondbacks in the Jason Marquis trade. I'm all for shortstops who can hit, and Walters has a career .299/.356/.451 line from both sides. Whether or not he can stick at SS is a question mark, but at this point in his career, that's the plan.

Community Top Prospect List: #16

There was a three-way battle in poll #15, with Brad Meyers (36%) eventually emerging over Tyler Moore (25% and Danny Rosenbaum (21%). New to the list is OF Kevin Keyes.

Here's your list so far:
1. OF Bryce Harper (90%)
2. 3B Anthony Rendon (83%)
3. LHP Matt Purke (47%)
4. RHP Brad Peacock (39%)
5. RHP AJ Cole (44%)
6. RHP Alex Meyer (26%)
7. LHP Robbie Ray (31%)
8. C Derek Norris (41%)
9. 2B Steve Lombardozzi (50%)
10. OF Brian Goodwin (38%)
11. OF Destin Hood (44%)
12. LHP Sammy Solis (74%)
13. LHP Tom Milone (36%)
14. 1B Chris Marrero (52%)
15. RHP Brad Meyers (36%)

Here's your new list. Remember, argue for your player in the comments section and leave a new name as well!

http://twtpoll.com/rrsvk0


Since we're getting deeper into the prospect pool, here are some quick write-ups for the 10 candidates:

C David Freitas - Bat is good; hit .288/.409/.450 this year and .307/.408/.450 last season. Defense is still shaky, however; as Nationals Prospects notes, he's still relatively new to the catching position, but he still gave up 115 stolen bases in 154 attempts this season.
OF Kevin Keyes - Awful in his 39 game campaign last year after being drafted in the 7th round (.175/.321/.278), but rebounded to hit .263/.336/.510 in 2011. Plate discipline and defensive ability are two major question marks, but at this point he looks like a Michael Burgess-type hitter (albeit without the arm).
OF Erik Komatsu - Komatsu is seen by most as a future 4th outfielder, with good defense in the corner positions. If he can play even average CF, his high-contact bat, good batter's eye and above average speed could turn him into a decent starter, though.
1B Tyler Moore - The power is real; Moore has 31 HR in each of the past 2 seasons. The negatives: he's old for his level and has a lot more K's than BB's (30 BB and 139 K this year, 123/441 for his career). Still, the power is real. Really real.
OF Eury Perez - Fell off the radar this season due to a .283/.319/.321 season in Potomac. Great speed and defense, but with poor patience, the question is can he get on base enough to be a big league player.
LHP Danny Rosenbaum - Rosenbaum doesn't have the greatest stuff or the pinpoint control that Milone does, but he has sparkling (and consistent) numbers from rookie ball to AA over three seasons: 2.35 career ERA, 7.6 H/9, 0.3 HR/9, 2.6 BB/9 and 7.4 K/9.
3B Matt Skole - The 2011 5th round pick is known for having a solid bat but a mediocre glove. Hit .290/.382/.438 in his pro debut, but where's the power? (2011 Nats Draft Info page).
OF Michael Taylor - Taylor is a mixed bag, with great power and speed potential but mediocre performance to date. His 2011 "breakout season" featured a .253/.310/.432 triple slash line with 32 walks and 120 strikeouts. His game has holes, but if he can patch them up, he'll rise quickly, similarly to how Destin Hood did this season.
LHP Kylin Turnbull - The 2011 4th rounder throws in the mid-90s with some projection left in his arm. Lack of secondary options probably will leave him in the bullpen, but he could be a dominant lefty reliever (2011 Nats Draft Info page).
SS Zach Walters - The Nats grabbed Walters from the Diamondbacks in the Jason Marquis trade. I'm all for shortstops who can hit, and Walters has a career .299/.356/.451 line from both sides. Whether or not he can stick at SS is a question mark, but at this point in his career, that's the plan.

Community Top Prospect List: #15

Chris Marrero fell a lot further than I expected him to, but he was the overwhelming #14 pick, gaining 53% of the vote in the last poll. Danny Rosenbaum and Brad Meyers tied for second with 13% each.

Here's your list so far:
1. OF Bryce Harper (90%)
2. 3B Anthony Rendon (83%)
3. LHP Matt Purke (47%)
4. RHP Brad Peacock (39%)
5. RHP AJ Cole (44%)
6. RHP Alex Meyer (26%)
7. LHP Robbie Ray (31%)
8. C Derek Norris (41%)
9. 2B Steve Lombardozzi (50%)
10. OF Brian Goodwin (38%)
11. OF Destin Hood (44%)
12. LHP Sammy Solis (74%)
13. LHP Tom Milone (36%)
14. 1B Chris Marrero (52%)

Here's your new list. Remember, argue for your player in the comments section and leave a new name as well!




Since we're getting deeper into the prospect pool, here are some quick write-ups for the 10 candidates:

C David Freitas - Bat is good; hit .288/.409/.450 this year and .307/.408/.450 last season. Defense is still shaky, however; as Nationals Prospects notes, he's still relatively new to the catching position, but he still gave up 115 stolen bases in 154 attempts this season.
OF Erik Komatsu - Komatsu is seen by most as a future 4th outfielder, with good defense in the corner positions. If he can play even average CF, his high-contact bat, good batter's eye and above average speed could turn him into a decent starter, though.
RHP Brad Meyers - The 6'6" righty has excellent control (0.9 BB/9 this season) and has stuck around pretty well in AAA, throwing up a 3.46 ERA there this season (3.16 across all levels) despite missing almost all of the 2010 season due to injuries.
1B Tyler Moore - The power is real; Moore has 31 HR in each of the past 2 seasons. The negatives: he's old for his level and has a lot more K's than BB's (30 BB and 139 K this year, 123/441 for his career). Still, the power is real. Really real.
OF Eury Perez - Fell off the radar this season due to a .283/.319/.321 season in Potomac. Great speed and defense, but with poor patience, the question is can he get on base enough to be a big league player.
LHP Danny Rosenbaum - Rosenbaum doesn't have the greatest stuff or the pinpoint control that Milone does, but he has sparkling (and consistent) numbers from rookie ball to AA over three seasons: 2.35 career ERA, 7.6 H/9, 0.3 HR/9, 2.6 BB/9 and 7.4 K/9.
3B Matt Skole - The 2011 5th round pick is known for having a solid bat but a mediocre glove. Hit .290/.382/.438 in his pro debut, but where's the power? (2011 Nats Draft Info page).
OF Michael Taylor - Taylor is a mixed bag, with great power and speed potential but mediocre performance to date. His 2011 "breakout season" featured a .253/.310/.432 triple slash line with 32 walks and 120 strikeouts. His game has holes, but if he can patch them up, he'll rise quickly, similarly to how Destin Hood did this season.
LHP Kylin Turnbull - The 2011 4th rounder throws in the mid-90s with some projection left in his arm. Lack of secondary options probably will leave him in the bullpen, but he could be a dominant lefty reliever (2011 Nats Draft Info page).
SS Zach Walters - The Nats grabbed Walters from the Diamondbacks in the Jason Marquis trade. I'm all for shortstops who can hit, and Walters has a career .299/.356/.451 line from both sides. Whether or not he can stick at SS is a question mark, but at this point in his career, that's the plan.

Community Top Prospect List: #14

Tom Milone, who has gotten at least 2 votes in every poll since he joined the group of hopefuls, has finally made the top prospects list, winning 36% of the votes to Chris Marrero's 24% and Brad Meyers' 18%.

Here's your list so far:
1. OF Bryce Harper (90%)
2. 3B Anthony Rendon (83%)
3. LHP Matt Purke (47%)
4. RHP Brad Peacock (39%)
5. RHP AJ Cole (44%)
6. RHP Alex Meyer (26%)
7. LHP Robbie Ray (31%)
8. C Derek Norris (41%)
9. 2B Steve Lombardozzi (50%)
10. OF Brian Goodwin (38%)
11. OF Destin Hood (44%)
12. LHP Sammy Solis (74%)
13. LHP Tom Milone (36%)

Here's your new list. Remember, argue for your player in the comments section and leave a new name as well!




Since we're getting deeper into the prospect pool, here are some quick write-ups for the 10 candidates:

C David Freitas - Bat is good; hit .288/.409/.450 this year and .307/.408/.450 last season. Defense is still shaky, however; as Nationals Prospects notes, he's still relatively new to the catching position, but he still gave up 115 stolen bases in 154 attempts this season.
OF Erik Komatsu - Komatsu is seen by most as a future 4th outfielder, with good defense in the corner positions. If he can play even average CF, his high-contact bat, good batter's eye and above average speed could turn him into a decent starter, though.
1B Chris Marrero - The 15th overall pick of the 2006 draft made it to the bigs recently and has hit to the tune of .241/.290/.241 in 31 PA. Chris is a good overall hitter, but likely doesn't have enough power to be a league-average first baseman.
RHP Brad Meyers - The 6'6" righty has excellent control (0.9 BB/9 this season) and has stuck around pretty well in AAA, throwing up a 3.46 ERA there this season (3.16 across all levels) despite missing almost all of the 2010 season due to injuries.
OF Eury Perez - Fell off the radar this season due to a .283/.319/.321 season in Potomac. Great speed and defense, but with poor patience, the question is can he get on base enough to be a big league player.
LHP Danny Rosenbaum - Rosenbaum doesn't have the greatest stuff or the pinpoint control that Milone does, but he has sparkling (and consistent) numbers from rookie ball to AA over three seasons: 2.35 career ERA, 7.6 H/9, 0.3 HR/9, 2.6 BB/9 and 7.4 K/9.
3B Matt Skole - The 2011 5th round pick is known for having a solid bat but a mediocre glove. Hit .290/.382/.438 in his pro debut, but where's the power? (2011 Nats Draft Info page).
OF Michael Taylor - Taylor is a mixed bag, with great power and speed potential but mediocre performance to date. His 2011 "breakout season" featured a .253/.310/.432 triple slash line with 32 walks and 120 strikeouts. His game has holes, but if he can patch them up, he'll rise quickly, similarly to how Destin Hood did this season.
LHP Kylin Turnbull - The 2011 4th rounder throws in the mid-90s with some projection left in his arm. Lack of secondary options probably will leave him in the bullpen, but he could be a dominant lefty reliever (2011 Nats Draft Info page).
SS Zach Walters - The Nats grabbed Walters from the Diamondbacks in the Jason Marquis trade. I'm all for shortstops who can hit, and Walters has a career .299/.356/.451 line from both sides. Whether or not he can stick at SS is a question mark, but at this point in his career, that's the plan.

Community Top Prospect List: #13

Sammy Solis' cheering section came through in poll 12 over the long weekend, gaining 60 votes. Tom Milone got 20 votes, but came nowhere close to the victory.

Here's your list so far:
1. OF Bryce Harper (90%)
2. 3B Anthony Rendon (83%)
3. LHP Matt Purke (47%)
4. RHP Brad Peacock (39%)
5. RHP AJ Cole (44%)
6. RHP Alex Meyer (26%)
7. LHP Robbie Ray (31%)
8. C Derek Norris (41%)
9. 2B Steve Lombardozzi (50%)
10. OF Brian Goodwin (38%)
11. OF Destin Hood (44%)
12. LHP Sammy Solis (74%)

Here's your new list. Remember, argue for your player in the comments section and leave a new name as well!




Since we're getting deeper into the prospect pool, here are some quick write-ups for the 10 candidates:

C David Freitas - Bat is good; hit .288/.409/.450 this year and .307/.408/.450 last season. Defense is still shaky, however; as Nationals Prospects notes, he's still relatively new to the catching position, but he still gave up 115 stolen bases in 154 attempts this season.
OF Erik Komatsu - Komatsu is seen by most as a future 4th outfielder, with good defense in the corner positions. If he can play even average CF, his high-contact bat, good batter's eye and above average speed could turn him into a decent starter, though.
1B Chris Marrero - The 15th overall pick of the 2006 draft made it to the bigs recently and has hit to the tune of .241/.290/.241 in 31 PA. Chris is a good overall hitter, but likely doesn't have enough power to be a league-average first baseman.
RHP Brad Meyers - The 6'6" righty has excellent control (0.9 BB/9 this season) and has stuck around pretty well in AAA, throwing up a 3.46 ERA there this season (3.16 across all levels) despite missing almost all of the 2010 season due to injuries.
LHP Tom Milone - One of the most polarizing players in the entire prospect community, with great minor league numbers at all levels (3.05 career ERA, 1.5 BB/9, 8/1 K/9) but mediocre velocity and a questionable ability to get it done at the next level.  Hit a 3 run HR in his first ML game this weekend, but also gave up 4 runs in 4 and 1/3 innings.
OF Eury Perez - Fell off the radar this season due to a .283/.319/.321 season in Potomac. Great speed and defense, but with poor patience, the question is can he get on base enough to be a big league player.
LHP Danny Rosenbaum - Rosenbaum doesn't have the greatest stuff or the pinpoint control that Milone does, but he has sparkling (and consistent) numbers from rookie ball to AA over three seasons: 2.35 career ERA, 7.6 H/9, 0.3 HR/9, 2.6 BB/9 and 7.4 K/9.
3B Matt Skole - The 2011 5th round pick is known for having a solid bat but a mediocre glove. Hit .290/.382/.438 in his pro debut, but where's the power? (2011 Nats Draft Info page).
LHP Kylin Turnbull - The 2011 4th rounder throws in the mid-90s with some projection left in his arm. Lack of secondary options probably will leave him in the bullpen, but he could be a dominant lefty reliever (2011 Nats Draft Info page).
SS Zach Walters - The Nats grabbed Walters from the Diamondbacks in the Jason Marquis trade. I'm all for shortstops who can hit, and Walters has a career .299/.356/.451 line from both sides. Whether or not he can stick at SS is a question mark, but at this point in his career, that's the plan.

Community Top Prospect List: #12

Sammy Solis made things close, but Destin Hood emerged victorious in poll #11, winning with 44% to Solis' 28%

Here's your list so far:
1. OF Bryce Harper (90%)
2. 3B Anthony Rendon (83%)
3. LHP Matt Purke (47%)
4. RHP Brad Peacock (39%)
5. RHP AJ Cole (44%)
6. RHP Alex Meyer (26%)
7. LHP Robbie Ray (31%)
8. C Derek Norris (41%)
9. 2B Steve Lombardozzi (50%)
10. OF Brian Goodwin (38%)
11. OF Destin Hood (44%)

Here's your new list. Remember, argue for your player in the comments section and leave a new name as well!

If I were the GM: September Moves

September 1 is right around the corner, coming at you this Thursday. It's one of the most exciting days for prospect freaks like myself (along with the last week of Spring Training, the date of the MLB draft, the signing deadline and the date of the Rule 5 draft. It's going to be nice to see the fruits ripening from our suddenly deep farm system.

The Nats have a lot of decisions to be made, and most likely, I am going to end up disappointed. No team carries a full 40-man roster during September call-ups, so perhaps what I'm thinking is a bit unrealistic. Still, in the best interest of the future of the franchise, here's what I would do with the Nats on September 1:

CLEARING ROSTER SPACE
The Nats have a full 40-man roster right now...sort of. The Nats currently have four players on the 15-day DL who can be moved over to the 60-day DL: Cole Kimball, Ryan Mattheus (if they shut him down, which I think they will), Doug Slaten and Adam LaRoche. Slaten is on the rehabilitation track, but was nothing special when healthy, so I would outright him to AAA or release him. In addition, Adam Carr is out for the season and can be put on the 60-day DL as well.

I would DFA Garrett Mock, Craig Stammen and Alex Cora to create an extra 3 spots, giving the Nats 8 total. Mock's time has been up for quite a while and Stammen struggled in AAA this year. While I'm not opposed to keeping a veteran infielder around, Cora is a leech on the lineup, hitting .218/.282/.254 this season; under my plan, the Nats will have 2 extra middle infielders up that need lots of playing time.

There a a few other players that I could see the Nats DFAing (Maya, Severino and Brown), but all three have enough upside (or in Maya's case, the Nats have invested enough in him) that they'll almost certainly stick around at least until Spring Training next year.

GUARANTEED ADDITIONS TO THE 40-MAN
These guys are almost certain to be called up:
2B Stephen Lombardozzi: Everybody loves a switch-hitting second baseman who can hit for average and get on base. Lombo plays solid defense and has seen his power numbers rise throughout his time in the minors.

LHSP Tom Milone: 2.91 ERA in high A ball in 2009. 2.85 ERA in AA in 2010. 3.33 ERA in AAA in 2011. With solid performance, great control and an other-worldly 10.64 strikeouts per walk rate in AAA this year, Milone is certainly getting a chance this year. Milone is still 15 innings pitched shy of his 2010 finals as well, so he could conceivably throw another 30 innings at least.

C Derek Norris: Norris' prospect status has faded a bit due to a drop in batting average and power in 2010 and average again in 2011, but he's still a shiny prospect at a vital position to have depth at. His .203/.353/.429 bat won't get a lot of opportunities in September, but he'll be up to learn from Pudge, Ramos, Flores and the gang. I also wouldn't be surprised to see him get some innings at 1B.

RHSP Brad Peacock: Peacock has been awesome in 2011, going 14-3 with a 2.48 ERA in 141 and 2/3 innings. His walks have risen and strikeouts have fallen significantly in AAA compared to his AA stats, but he's still having a fantastic season. Peacock is basically at his 2010 workload, so he will probably not pitch a whole lot in September.

All four of these players are eligible for the Rule 5 draft in December, so they need to be September call-ups or added to the 40-man roster after the season to be protected.

MY 40-MAN ADDITIONS
2B Matt Antonelli: Am I the only one that is impressed with the fact that this guy went basically two years between competitive games and came back to hit .294/.383/.443 in AAA? The 2006 Padres first rounder is still only 26 and can attribute his minor league struggles to injuries rather than poor performance. I'm convinced that this is the real Matt Antonelli, not the one that was rushed to the Majors in 2008 only to hit .193/.292/.281. If Lombardozzi wasn't in the system, Antonelli would be a slam dunk call-up, but since there are at-bats to share, I guess we'll just have to see about Antonelli.

OF Erik Komatsu: This wouldn't be completely merit-based, as Komatsu has only hit .242/.296/.303 for the Nats in AA this year (after hitting .294/.393/.416 for the Brewers' AA affiliate, though). Rather, this would be a show-me situation; Komatsu is Rule 5 eligible after the season and could help the Nats as soon as next season as a 4th OF/defensive replacement type. By getting him some ML reps now, the Nats could make the decision of whether to go with Komatsu (or a guy like Corey Brown) next year or to continue to rely on veteran 4th OF types like Nix, Ankiel and Gomes.

RHP Rafael Martin: Dubbed "close to the big leagues" by Stan Kasten when he was signed out of Mexico in February of 2010, Martin turned a corner in 2011 after a mixed bag of results last season. In 40 and 2/3 innings, Martin has a 1.55 ERA and 12 saves to go along with his 10.8 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9. A lot of people have forgotten about Martin, but he legitimately deserves a shot, and at 27 years old, will likely get one soon.

LHP Oliver Perez: Okay, the former Padre/Pirate/Met isn't the same pitcher who struck out 239 batters in 2004 as a 22-year-old or the one that threw 371 innings of 3.91 ERA ball for the Mets in 2007-08, but he did improve himself in 2011. Ollie went 3-4 in Harrisburg with a 3.04 ERA in 68 innings, but I'm pretty impressed with his 2.9 BB/9; it's far from incredible by anyone's standards, but it was his second lowest walk  rate at any level in his entire professional career (after 2.3 K/9 in 47 and 2/3 innings of AAA ball in 2003). If the Nats don't call up Perez now, he's likely gone after the season, and I have a sneaking suspicion that they'll see if the 30 year old who got paid $12 million this year by the Mets to pitch for another team has anything left in the tank.

OTHERS OF NOTE
RHSP Erik Arnesen: Good control, overall performance in 2011. At 27, his window is closing.

1B/OF Michael Aubrey: Former top Indians prospect hit .273/.363/.471 in Syracuse this year. He's not a big power guy (despite having a 4 homer game, he hit only 11 total in 82 games), but walked more than he struck out this season and plays solid defense at 1B.

OF Gregor Blanco: Awful 2011 season will prevent him from getting a call-up, but he is a great base-stealer (24/26 this season) with .358 career OBP in the majors in 836 PA and solid defense. He's similar to Nyjer Morgan (with less power, better baserunning skills, less ego) and is still just 27.

OF Archie Gilbert: He is a 27 year old playing in AA for the third straight year, so I'm not expecting a callup. Still, Archie has good plate discipline (29 BB/35 K) and great speed (31/35 SB) and can play CF. His prospect window may have closed, but he could make it as a righthanded Nyjer-type (sorry to keep bringing that name up).

IF Tug Hulett: Another ML retread, Hulett is hitting .273/.343/.414 this season in AAA. While he's not a speed demon, power hitter or defensive whiz, he does everything just well enough to keep getting shots, and could help out the Nats if they needed a 2B/3B in a pinch. Unfortunately for Tug, the Nats have a ton of young talent blocking him, so he likely won't get the call.

RHRP Jeff Mandel: His 3.39 ERA, 2.6 BB/9 and 7.4 K/9 are all improvements over his career averages. His track record isn't that great (although he had a nice 2009 season in Potomac and Harrisburg), but could get a look at some point soon.

RHSP Shairon Martis: Remember me? We were all reminded of the guy who started out 5-0 for us in 2009 this week when he tossed a no-no in AA ball, but he really deserves another look. Martis' control has improved this season (2.7 BB/9, down from 3.0 career) while vastly improving his strikeout numbers (10.1 K/9 is almost 3 K above his career average and way better than he had done at any higher level in his career). Sure, it's AA, but it looks like Martis has legitimately changed himself as a pitcher.

RHSP Brad Meyers: After dominating AA to start the 2011 season (2.48 ERA, 0 BB/38 K in 36 and 1/3 innings pitched) Meyers has cooled off a little in AAA (3.57 ERA, 1.5 BB/9, 7.1 K/9 in 85 and 2/3 innings). Ultimately, he doesn't have the stuff of Peacock or the numbers of Milone, so he's my odd man out, but I bet he'll be added to the 40-man in the offseason to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.

1B Tyler Moore: I'm admittedly not a fan of Moore at all due to his horrendous plate discipline (24 BB and 132 K this season), but you can't argue with back-to-back 30-HR seasons. He's done both while playing at an older age for his level, but I wouldn't be surprised to see the Nats challenge him either here or in the Arizona Fall League before they have to decide on whether or not to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.

LHSP Danny Rosenbaum: Think Tom Milone, just a level lower. Rosenbaum has a 2.28 career ERA across all levels, but I'd like to see some improvement in his BB and K rates (2.6 BB/9 and 7.5 K/9 over his career, 2.8 BB/9 and 7.3 K/9 this season) before he gets a shot. He's still only 23 and will not be eligible for the Rule 5 draft this winter, so no rush on Danny boy.

C Jhonatan Solano: More of a contender for an ML role than I figured he would be at the beginning of the season, but with Ramos and Flores already up, Norris likely getting a shot and Pudge returning from the DL, Solano will likely have to do with a non-roster invitation to Spring Training next season.

RHRP Josh Wilkie: He should have gotten a shot in 2009 or 2010, but it's better late than never for the 27 year old Syracuse closer. While his 2011 stats aren't as great as his career numbers, a 3.10 ERA, 3.3 BB/9 and 8.8 K/9 isn't bad by any means.

LHRP Cory VanAllen: I wrote him off halfway through 2010 when he was back in Potomac with a 4.14 ERA as a 25 year old reliever, but he had a career resurgence this season, his second year in the pen. VanAllen threw 54 and 2/3 innings of 2.47 ERA ball, allowing 3.6 BB/9 but striking out 11.2 batters per 9. He's a nice LOOGY candidate and honestly can't be any worse than Burnett or Slaten right now.

RHRP Zech Zinicola: Another 2006 college pitcher who was thought to be a quick-mover, Zinicola has finally figured out the upper levels, throwing 37 innings of 1.95 ERA ball with 2.4 BB/9 and 10.5 K/9. Seeing guys like he and VanAllen have career resurgences is great, and they will likely get the chance to battle it out in Spring Training next year.


Here are some other resources if you want to think of your own September call-ups: Nationals Prospects (check the comments for Rule 5 eligibles) and Federal Baseball.