Baseball America Top 100 (with Scouting Grades)
baseballamerica.com/minors/top-100-prospects/
baseballamerica.comPosted Feb 13, 2016, 3:30 AM UTC
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baseballamerica.comThey are really high on our guys.
Reed at 11, Martes at 20, Tucker at 61, Daz at 74 and Musgrove and Paulino breaking the top 100 are all the highest ranks of these guys across the 3 major scouting sources (MLB, Baseball Prospectus, and Baseball America). The only one who is lower than average is Bregman.
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Is anyone else surprised to see Kyle Tucker is a legit 5 tool player? I knew his bat was special, but did not expect him to have 50 grades for run/glove/arm.
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The question about him having 5 tools is how his body fills out. It's not that hard to be average running or with the glove when one is still lanky at 18 years old. It's much harder when one is 225 lbs and 25.
The biggest surprise to me is that his "hit" tool is rated at 60. I have heard more knocks on his unconventional swing than anything else. Maybe he's been working on it and those reports haven't filtered back to me yet.
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Do you consider an average tool to be a tool? It seems like "5 tool" is a superlative used for exceptional skill with each tool. While 50's across the board is fairly solid, I wonder if the term "5 tool" applies. But I guess it's a matter of opinion. What's your opinion?
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In a scouting context it means that all 5 tools are at least average, so 50's across the board.
Stat wise, I'm looking for a batting average of .260 (as a proxy for contact ability, it's a poor proxy but the best of the easy-to-calculate stats), 15+ home run ability (or an ISO of .150 or higher), 15+ stolen bases, and a UZR/DRS of around 0 (ideally without the positional adjustment).
5 tool players last year: Paul Goldschmidt, Anthony Rizzo (though his stolen bases were kinda cheap), Jose Altuve (power was his only questionable tool), Carlos Correa, Manny Machado, George Springer, Jason Heyward (kinda close on the power side), AJ Pollock, Mookie Betts, Dexter Fowler, Charlie Blackmon, Lorenzo Cain, Brett Gardener, Starling Marte, and Justin Upton.
I am kinda cheating a little bit with the fielding values, UZR is positionally adjusted, and ideally, you want a non-adjusted stat for it. So you could drop Goldschmidt, Rizzo, Marte, and Upton with no arguments from me. It shouldn't be surprising to see a lot of outfielders (in particular RF and CF) in the list. I was surprised by the relatively few SS and 2B, as that's the other bastion of the "speedy" players. The real killer is finding 15+ HR and 15+ SB type guys.
But I think it gets my point (the one I wasn't trying to make) across pretty well: the Astros are stacked!
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For the lazy:
BA Top 100 with Scouting Grades:
A.J. Reed, 1b, Astros Hit: 60. Power: 65. Speed: 30. Fielding: 40. Arm: 60. ETA: 2016. Age: 22
Francis Martes, rhp, Astros Fastball: 70. Curveball: 70. Changeup: 50. Control: 50. ETA: 2017. Age: 20
Alex Bregman, ss, Astros Hit: 60. Power: 45. Speed: 55. Fielding: 50. Arm: 50. ETA: 2017. Age: 21
Kyle Tucker of, Astros Hit: 60. Power: 60. Speed: 50. Fielding: 50. Arm: 50. ETA: 2019. Age: 18
Daz Cameron of, Astros Hit: 45. Power: 50. Speed: 55. Fielding: 60. Arm: 55. ETA: 2019. Age: 19
Joe Musgrove rhp, Astros Fastball: 60. Slider: 50. Changeup: 50. Control: 70. ETA: 2016. Age: 23
David Paulino rhp, Astros Fastball: 70. Curveball: 60. Changeup: 50. Control: 50. ETA: 2018. Age: 22
so... since I read your comment in full, does that make me lazy?
Yes it does. It was a trick to call everyone lazy since I knew they wouldn't open the link if I posted the relevant info here.
What if after I read your comment, I read the entire article just to make sure you didn't post bogus information? Does that make me lazy, while also being thorough and cynical?
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