Fantasy Minor Recap- Hitters

Now that the 2020 calendar has begun, I can start thinking about baseball and my minor league fantasy draft that I try to write about here and there.
I finally won the Jim Bouton Baseball League after many years of trying and I was more than happy on the night that I finally won that elusive title.

However, in our league where you keep all of your players, you have to continue to move forward and plan for the future.
In our league, you can only have 17 players in your minor system and you have to have fewer than that to draft more, so it's a constant concept of culling prospects.
Today, I'll be looking back at the hitters from 2019 and discuss if they have a future with the "Akron Rubber Ducks".

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 3b Toronto Blue Jays
.272 15 HR 69 RBI Toronto
Guerrero fell just 36 at-bats short of forcing a decision for me as in our league, once a player has 500 MLB at-bats, the team has to either bring him up or release him.
Guerrero spent very little time with AAA Buffalo (9 games) with his "arbitration" send-down time being eaten by a spring training injury.
I have three excellent third basemen (Anthony Rendon, Nolan Arenado, and Rafael Devers), but I'll find a place for Guerrero's bat.

The remaining eight players didn't spend any major league time in 2019, so they are still projections as far their future will be.
Some will stay, some will leave and with one or two others, I am still undecided on keeping them or not.
I'll start with the catchers and work my way around the diamond.

Joey Bart C San Francisco Giants
234 AB .265 12 HR 37 RBI High A San Jose
79 AB .316 4 HR 11 RBI AA Richmond
Bart was just starting to hit his stride when he suffered a broken hand with San Jose but upon his return hit very well at AA Richmond.
I paid a high price to move from eleventh to first in the first round in Shane Bieber to draft Bart last season and although I liked Bieber I was surprised with his elite performance last season.
For that deal to be worthwhile in the long run (assuming Bieber keeps that level of performance), Bart will have to be an elite offensive catcher and not just above average.
I think he's capable of that.
Bart should start at AAA Sacramento and finish the season with the Giants.

William Contreras C Atlanta Braves
190 AB .263 3 HR 22 RBI High A Florida
191 AB .246 3 HR 17 RBI AA Mississippi
The younger brother of Willson Contreras, William split the season between High A and AA  and his numbers were average.
Contreras played most of the season at 21, which made his a little young for AA and the Braves were pleased enough to move him to AA  at mid-season.
I'll be keeping Contreras around for this season, but this is a key year for him.
Contreras will likely return to AA Mississippi to start in 2020.

Miguel Vargas 3B Los Angeles Dodgers
280 AB .325 5 HR 45 RBI Low A Great Lakes
211 AB .284 2 HR 32 RBI High A Rancho Cucamonga
Vargas played the entire season as a 19-year-old and I think he is a star in the making.
The Cuban might eventually become a first baseman and his power numbers were a little low, but with his frame (6'3 205 lbs), I think as he grows into his body, the power will come along.
The hype around the Dodgers farm system is around Gavin Lux right now and rightfully so, but by this time next year when Lux is an established major leaguer, the top minor leaguer could be Miguel Vargas.
Vargas could start with AA Tulsa if the Dodgers really want to challenge him, but my guess is that he starts with High A Rancho Cucamonga and if all goes as expected, Vargas could be in Tulsa by mid-May.

Elehuris Montero 3B St.Louis
224 AB .188 7 HR 18 RBI AA Springfield
Montero shows what can happen when a player is moved too soon as after he dominated the low A Midwest League in 2018 and less than 100 at-bats in high A in the same season, Montero was surprisingly assigned to AA Springfield for 2019.
Montero missed much of the season, struck out 74 times and hit under .190 in never getting untracked.
Still, his seven homers give me hope and Montero only turned 21 with two weeks to go in the season.
I'm still trying to decide on Montero, but I'm leaning towards blaming the team and not the player and seeing if Montero will bounce back.
Montero should return to AA Springfield for a second chance to conquer the Texas League.

O'Neil Cruz SS Pittsburgh
136 AB .301 7 HR 16 RBI High A Bradenton
119 AB .269 1 HR 17 RBI AA Altoona
The tallest shortstop (6'7) that you are likely to see, Cruz, like Montero, battled injuries early in the season and didn't turn 21 until after the season.
Unlike Montero, Cruz started at High A and after his return from injury and an excellent July, only then did Cruz move to AA.
I'm not sure if Cruz plays shortstop at the major league level, but I think his bat is going to play-if the Pirates can be patient and allow him to develop.
Cruz should return to AA Altoona to start in 2020.

Heliot Ramos OF San Francisco
294 AB .306 13 HR 40 RBI High A San Jose
95   AB .242  3 HR 15 RBI AA Richmond
Ramos, like so many in my system, fought injuries early in the year but hit very well with High A San Jose.
Ramos didn't turn 20 until after the season and considering that Ramos held his own after a final month with AA Richmond.
There is plenty to prove, but being young for both levels, I'm very encouraged about the future of Ramos.
Ramos should start 2020 with AA Richmond and finish with AAA Sacramento.

Luis Robert OF Chicago White Sox
75 AB .453 8 HR 24 RBI 8 SB High A Winston-Salem
226 AB. 314 8 HR 29 RBI 21 SB AA Birmingham
202 AB .297 16 HR  39 RBI 7 SB AAA Charlotte
Robert had battled injuries in a disappointing 2018 after I selected him with my first pick in that draft and I was hoping to see a bounceback year.
Robert more than bounced back with a season to be remembered, especially those 75 at-bats to start the season with High A Winston-Salem, which was about as destructive as an outfielder could be as an offensive force.
Robert was almost as dominant at AA and AAA and has nothing left to prove.
The White Sox signed Robert to a six year contract last week and since that contract eliminates the arbitration issue with service time, Robert will likely make the ChiSox team coming out of spring training.

Jhailyn Ortiz OF Philadelphia
430 AB .200 19 HR 65 RBI High A Clearwater
Ortiz didn't turn 21 until the season was over, but I was surprised to see the Phillies start Ortiz at High A Clearwater after a mediocre 2018 (.225 13 homers) at Low A Lakewood.
While you have to like the 19 homers in the Florida State League, a noted pitchers league, there is little else to like from Ortiz's season.
An average that ended exactly on the Mendoza Line and 149 strikeouts (over a strikeout in every three at-bats) at High-A doesn't give me confidence in his future.
The talent is there for Ortiz, but I don't currently believe that he is going to make enough contact to eventually be a big-league level player.
Ortiz is young enough that I wouldn't rule him out as a prospect yet, but two years with a combined 297 strikeouts isn't enough to keep him in my system.

Of my positions players entering the draft year, my current feelings are these.
Promoted to the Ducks- Vladimir Guerrero Jr

Will be promoted to the Ducks sometime this season barring an injury- Luis Robert

Retaining rights and hoping for big things-
Joey Bart
Heliot Ramos
O'Neil Cruz
Miguel Vargas

Protecting, but 2020 make or break
William Contreras

Questioning to protect or not and 2020 make or break
Elehuris Montero

Going to be Released
Jhailyn Ortiz

I plan on doing a similar post on my eight pitchers sometime next week.

Fantasy Minor Picks; 2018

Now that the season is over, I wanted to update the players that I selected in my minor league fantasy draft last winter.

It's a mixed bag between great seasons, disappointing ones due to injuries and some just taking time to develop.
Nonetheless, I'm still fairly pleased and with one possible exception, I think I'm going to keep these guys around for 2019.

Round One: Luis Robert OF Chicago White Sox
Low A Kannapolis 13 Games .289, 0 HR 4 RBI 4 SB
High A Winston-Salem 32 Games .269, 0 HR, 11 RBI 8 SB

The 21-year-old Cuban defector had a rough year as he played in just fifty games between a spring training wrist injury and an in-season thumb injury and didn't hit a homer.
Still, wrist and thumb injuries can take away power so I can excuse that and Robert is playing very well in the Arizona Fall League, hitting .369 with a homer in 49 at-bats.
Hopefully, 2019 will show more of the true talent of Robert.
Robert will likely return to High A Winston-Salem, but it's possible he could start with AA Birmingham with a strong spring training.

Round Two: Heliot Ramos OF San Francisco
Low A Augusta: 124 Games  .245 11 HR 52 RBI 8 SB

Ramos, who didn't turn 19 until the season was challenged with an assignment to Low A Augusta and it was a decent, but not great full-season debut.
The average was a little low, but Ramos showed pop with 24 doubles and 8 triples, so the power potential is there. Ramos struck out 136 times which is a lot, but I'll hope that as Ramos gains experience some of those strikeouts will go away.
At 19, Ramos may return to Augusta to start 2019, although he might be assigned to High A San Jose.

Round Three: Jesus Luzardo P Oakland
High A Stockton: 3 Starts 14.2 IP 1-1 Record 1.23 ERA 25 SO 5 BB 0.75 WHIP
AA Midland: 16 Starts 78.2 IP 7-3 Record 2.29 ERA 86 SO 18 BB 0.97 WHIP
AAA Nashville: 4 Starts 16 IP 1-1 Record 7.31 ERA 18 SO 7 BB 2.00 WHIP

Luzardo turned out to be the standout of my draft, dominating two stops, before a late-season cameo at AAA.
In his 108 innings, Luzardo struck out 129 and walked only 30, showing an ability to miss bats and command of the strike zone.
Luzardo turned 21 after the season, so he was not only moved quickly but has room to improve.
Luzardo will likely start 2019 at the Athletics new AAA affiliate in Las Vegas.

Round Four: Adrian Morejon P San Diego
High A Lake Elsinore 13 Starts 62.2 IP 4-4 Record 3.30 ERA 74 SO 24 BB 1.24 WHIP

Morejon was pitching very well in June before hitting the disabled list with a triceps injury,
Morejon would make just one start in each of July and August, pitching a total of five innings before being shut down for the season after August 5.
The injuries are not reported to be serious and Morejon turns twenty over the winter, so my guess is that he returns to Lake Elsinore to start the season and with a solid April, should receive a speedy promotion to San Diego's new AA location in Amarillo, Texas.

Round Five: Jhailyn Ortiz OF Philadelphia
Low A Lakewood: 110 Games .225 Avg 13 HR 47 RBI

Ortiz had a very disappointing season at Low A, striking out 148 times (12 more times than Heliot Ramos in 14 fewer games) and when I saw him play, didn't exactly wow me with his hustle.
Ortiz played the season at 19 (turns 20 in November) so there could be just immaturity issues and he hit a homer at Hagerstown that was the longest that I saw all year, so with 13 homers the power potential is there.
Ortiz is likely to return to Low A Lakewood to work on his contact issues.

Round Five A: William Contreras C Atlanta
Low A Rome: 82 Games .293 11 HR 39 RBI
High A Florida 23 Games .253 0 HR 11 RBI

Contreras continued his development with a strong year in the South Atlantic League before spending August in the Florida State League.
Contreras turns 21 before next season and has time to develop his plate discipline.
Contreras is rumored to be a possible piece in any off-season Braves trades, but if he stays in the Atlanta organization, he'll start back in Florida with the High A Fire Frogs.

I'm more than likely going to keep all of these players, but if I release one, it would be Jhailyn Ortiz.
I may do another piece on the other players in my system on another slow day.

Road Trip: Asheville

With only four games left in my baseball season (all in Frederick and Hagerstown) and the football season on the horizon, it's time to kick it in and show that I am alive and breathing!
That means over the next few days, I have to write an Ohio State preview up and the return of the PPM with this year's selection as "host" as part of that process before the weekend.

However, before that, I still need to get some road trips stories finished and I'll start with day one in Asheville, North Carolina accompanied by the Landucci's and McCormick Field, which is one of the few stadiums in use for minor league baseball that is older than Hagerstown's Municipal Stadium.
The original plan was for us to do batting practice, hit both teams and then drive to Greenville S.C for the Hickory Crawdads and the Greenville Drive.
That plan went awry when road construction on I-81 slowed us down enough to make that plan less than feasible, so since Greenville was the backup plan anyway, it was the game that was easiest to jettison.

I hadn't been back to Asheville since my first trip there with Ryan and Battlin' Bob years ago other than Fred and I's rain-drenched stop earlier this season.
I had the Tourist team set to do since they did not make an appearance in Hagerstown this season (Asheville will appear in Hagerstown in 2019) and a few cards for the Greenjackets, who I had been able to work on earlier this year in Charleston.
The bigger issue at McCormick Field for graphers is that you have to pick which team that you want to work on so I couldn't do both.
Fortunately for me, I had Michael, who happily picked Asheville to help with after losing a bet on the travels.
I think he would have helped anyway though!
While Michael worked on the Tourists, I filled in a few Greenjackets from the team set and worked on Mike Oravec's set for him.
I also was able to see Heliot Ramos again with a few nice refractors and limited cards that I had been able to acquire over the course of the year.
I told Heliot that I had seen him in Charleston and that he had shown me how to switch my Ipad camera for a picture of us.
Heliot laughed and said "I remember that!'
Whether he did or didn't, Ramos ranks with Triston McKenzie of the Indians as the nicest prospects that I've met this year ( I first met McKenzie last year though).

McCormick Field has the problems that so many old stadiums have to deal with- concession stands without a view of the field, some obstructed views, less than comfortable seating and limited parking.
Add that last one with the stadium being built into a hill and you have some issues to deal with.
Still, McCormick did have a decent amount of food offerings, even though I didn't eat any (I did have two Minute Maid frozen lemonades) and our seats were decent enough behind home plate, but one pet peeve of mine did occur in Asheville.

One thing that I HATE about minor league baseball is this- Most parks that I visit don't sell out.
Even more often, they don't even come close, yet a surprising amount of the time, a person or a few people will have seats next to you and because that ticket says Section B Row g Seat 5, by golly they are going to sit right next to me in seat 4, no matter their comfort or mine, even if there if the rest of the row is empty.
When I'm in that situation, I try to find seats in the area and if someone has those seats, I'll move, but I'll never understand in a two-thirds empty stadium, someone has to put their shoulder next to mine.
I can't imagine why someone wants to be crowded next to my bulk or listen to my conversation, but it happens more than you think and it happened in Asheville.
So, I crawled into the row behind our seats and sat in those seats so the guy with the hat that reminded me of Don Ameche in Cocoon could have his space, more importantly, I could have mine.

The game itself was pretty dull and for a game that ended 2-1 (Augusta getting the duke as Vince McMahon used to say) with neither team making any errors, it was insanely long- Three hours and thirty-five minutes for a game without errors, delays or extenuating circumstances is just nuts.

The only thing that stood out about this game was that when I moved to the back row, I sat near a young couple (No, I moved a few seats down from them!) and we struck up a baseball conversation.
The young man said his grandfather was a former big leaguer and when I asked his name, he quickly responded Gil Coan, who played in the '40s and '50s with several teams, but mostly for the Washington Senators.
It seemed legit to me, a young man of that age would be unlikely to make someone up that quickly, let alone select someone that retired in 1956!
I asked about Coan and his career (Coan is an NC native and is one of just five players to ever hit two triples in the same inning), which I found very interesting.

Asheville allows fans/graphers to remain in the stadium by the front gate concourse to nab players from both teams after the game and we took advantage to knock some extra players off the sets.
After a while, we were all tired after a long day and went back to the hotel for a rest before a two-stop Tuesday.

I like McCormick Field and I am never against visits there.
It's a good, not great graphing site and a solid, well-kept older stadium to watch a game in.
I would definitely return for future visits and being that in SAL there are always teams that don't visit Hagerstown, I'm sure that should occur.

Not sure what I'll be writing about next, but I'll try to write about day two before Friday's Ohio State preview and the PPM.

Minor League Fantasy Draft-Round Two-Heliot Ramos.

In the second round, I was pretty pleased to be able to select a player that I was considering in round one when I picked outfielder Heliot Ramos, the 2017 San Francisco Giants first-round pick from Puerto Rico.

Ramos has huge upside but is a far riskier pick than my first round outfielder Luis Robert.
I didn't expect to have to choose between Robert and Ramos so I decided to go with the more refined prospect in Robert and hope for the best that Ramos would slide to the second round.

Ramos was a somewhat criticized first rounder of the Giants last season as some teams loved him and others wondered about his bat.
Ramos answered some questions in the Arizona Rookie League last season as he hit .351 with three homers in 37 at-bats for the Giants rookie league entry.
Ramos does have plenty of questions to answer still as he struck out 15 times, but the scouts that like him project him as a potential five-tool player.
Those that don't wonder about a lot of strikeouts, don't like his arm as much as others and remember his older brother Henry Ramos, who was a highly touted player in the Red Sox system, but never seemed to put it together with Boston and now is a AA/AAA level player for the Dodgers at soon to be 26.
Still, when the Giants were making trades for Evan Longoria and Andrew McCutchen (and tried for Giancarlo Stanton), the first name that opposing general managers asked for was reported to be Ramos.
Some of that may have been the less than deep San Francisco system, but it is always a good sign when other teams ask about a prospect frequently, which makes me think that Ramos may have won over some doubters already around the game at this early stage.

Heliot Ramos from the video below does seem to have plus tools and can turn on the ball pretty well at the plate.
For the Giants, who haven't seemed to produce a top power hitter since the Clinton administration, Ramos gives them some hope that in a few years, he could be just that.
Ramos doesn't turn 19 until September, which means he'll be very young for a full season player.
The Giants are likely to challenge him at Low A Augusta in their new ballpark and see what happens, but there is a slim chance that the Giants could take it a little slower, keep him in Arizona for a few months and start him with their Northwest League short-season team-the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes.

Heliot Ramos is far from a sure thing and as I mentioned earlier, there is some risk involved, but late in round two, I was ready to gamble on Ramos and take my chances...
Back later with either my third round pick (Unlikely to get to me that soon) or more likely a cleaning of the inbox...

Random Thoughts

Time for a few random thoughts.

The Giants have signed their first rounder in Heliot Ramos with a slot value bonus of 3.1 million, and the Pirates signed Shane Baz fairly quickly to a slightly over slot bonus of 4.1 million,but the Indians have yet to sign Quentin Holmes,their first pick (2nd round) as of now.

Ramos was expected to be a relatively easy sign,but Baz was reported to be a tougher sell on the Pirates with a strong commitment to TCU and I'm a little surprised that it took just 800,000 over slot to land Baz and to do so well before the signing deadline.
Good for the Pirates for landing Baz,who was regarded as the hardest thrower among high school pitchers in the draft.
I haven't heard any rumors on Holmes and the Indians coming to an agreement or not.
Holmes has a college commitment to Mississippi State.

I'm not against the Houston Rockets move to challenge the Golden State Warriors by obtaining Chris Paul from the Clippers for a collection of odd parts and a first round draft pick,but as someone that has liked Chris Paul since his Wake Forest days,I have to question Paul for wanting to leave just two years after his meeting that ended with Paul,Blake Griffin (soon to be leaving as well) and others begging DeAndre Jordan to stay in Los Angeles rather than stick with an agreed to,but not signed contract with Dallas.
For the Rockets-I still think they are one player away from seriously pushing the Warriors even with Paul,while the Clippers may be at the end of their modest fringe contender status.
Unless the hated Sam Dekker can do as well on the court as well as he did in his love life...

Was asked recently about two recurring features on the blog and if they will be returning.
On the signing front will be around on an occasional basis,but especially as part of the road trip features and the PPM will be back again in late August with the start of the college season.
Who will be this years "host"? I have a few candidates in mind.
Previous hosts have been Heather Cox (ESPN now NBC),Jessica Korda (LPGA),Christi Paul (CNN) and last year Molly McGrath (ESPN) for two months before being replaced by Legate Damar of Star Trek fame.

Also was asked my opinion on the Tim Tebow promotion.
I think it's a joke.
Nothing wrong with minor league baseball being entertaining and I get that fans want to come out and meet Tebow,but for a 29 year old batting .220 in the SAL to get a promotion,couldn't teams draw a big house for a Tebow appearance rather than this exhibition on the field?
Tebow has handled this situation with grace,but he has to know what this truly is...

Wrapping up with thoughts on the release of Cubs catcher Miguel Montero one night after throwing pitcher Jake Arrietta under the bus for the Washington Nationals stealing seven bases against the battery Tuesday night.
Do I feel that Montero was totally wrong?
No,but you have to know your place in the pecking order and platooning catcher ranks far below top of the rotation pitcher.
Sometimes,people need to realize that they might not be wrong,but the prudent thing is try to grit your way through without making it easy for the team/employer to move you alone...

Baseball Draft Updates

Now that the basketball season is over and I get revved up for the beginning of my concern for hockey (even though it just ended,my interest ended when the Devils skated off the ice for the last time in April) with baseball in full throttle-it's time for the baseball draft.

Some seasons I pay more attention to the baseball draft than others.
This was one of those that I didn't pay as much attention as far as research with the Cavaliers advancing,trips etc.
I pay huge attention to the NFL draft.a decent amount of attention to the NBA,as I said varying attention to the MLB Draft (that picks up once the players sign) and really just the first round of the NHL draft as I just don't know as much about those players.

The Pirates selected first of the three teams at the 12 slot and gambled on a talented player that is widely loved by scouts,but one regarded as one that that ranks as one of the more difficult players to sign in Tomball Texas righthander Shane Baz.
Baz throws in the middle 90's and is regarded to have a plus slider.
Baz has a commitment to TCU,which is said to be a strong one,so the Pirates will have to open their checkbook to land Baz.


The Giants were next at 19 and took what is regarded as a very intriguing selection in Puerto Rican outfielder Heliot Ramos.
Ramos is the exact type of player that the Giants traditionally NEVER draft-very toolsy and one that needs lots of refinement.
Ramos is projected as having plus power and speed and a slightly above average arm,yet many observers looked at Ramos being a slight overdraft.
Some don't like his swing and think he needs be more consistent and others wonder if he plays a corner outfielder or center.
San Francisco has often a different draft board than most,so their liking a player more than many others doesn't come as a surprise to me-the surprise is the type of player.
Ramos has a college commitment to Florida International,but is expected to sign...


The Indians sent their first rounder to the Blue Jays as compensation for signing free agent Edwin Encarnacion over the winter,so their first selection came in round two with New York outfielder Quentin Holmes at number 64.
Holmes is the highest drafted player from New York City in 21 years and was rated as the fastest player in the draft.
At 6'1 Holmes is projected to fill out and add more power,but the Indians will have a battle to buy Holmes out from his commitment to Mississippi State.


Now that we have some things taken care of,I hope to take care of the trips to Carolina and Kinston in the next day or two before I have the Devils draft on Friday.
I may have a short preview,but I'll definitely have a Friday post on the player that the Devils tab with the first pick.