One of the best times of the year for fans who follow prospects comes during the winter, when Baseball America rolls out their list of the top 100 prospects in baseball. The lists are not an exact science, and no matter how hard someone tries, the highly volatile nature of prospects means you can never be exactly right.
Now that the minor league season is underway, it's time to check in with some prospects who might thrust themselves into the discussion of the better ones in the minors. This time, we'll look at five under-the-radar hitting prospects who, in the next couple years, could catapult themselves into Baseball America's list of the top 100 prospects in the game. The only qualifications are that they haven't already appeared on a Baseball America top 100 list or among Baseball America's list of the top 10 prospects in their respective organization.
Last time, we looked at five under-the-radar pitching prospects: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/19107-Future-Finds---5-Under-The-Radar-Pitching-Prospects
Onto the hitters:
Danny Carroll, 6'1/175, 1/6/1989, Throws R, Bats R, Organization: Seattle Mariners
The California native was taken in the third round last year by the Mariners and is off to a solid start in his pro career.
Carroll hit .323 in 201 AB in the Arizona League last summer and is currently hitting .339 in the Midwest League. One thing he hasn't done in his young pro career is hit one out of the park. Carroll doesn't project to have much power, but he's expected to hit for a high average, get on base, steal some bases, and score a lot of runs.
Carroll is a very instinctive player for a 19 year old and already has above average pitch recognition, something many players his age don't have.
He's at least a few seasons away, but if all breaks right, he could be something along the lines of a Jacoby Ellsbury type.
Cody Johnson, 6'4/195, 8/18/1988, Throws R, Bats L, Organization: Atlanta Braves
Johnson, a 2006 first rounder for the Braves, has the type of bat that could one day hit 30-40 homers in the big leagues. In 118 minor league games, Johnson has hit 23 homers along with 30 doubles and six triples. He's also shown off speed with 10 steals.
The power is there in a big way, but Johnson simply strikes out too often. In the same 122 games, he's struck out 164 times. He's walked 48 times. Johnson will need to cut down on the strikeouts if he wants to fulfill the lofty promise that he has. Otherwise, he might never get out of the minors. More advanced pitchers will eat him alive if he can't tighten up his plate discipline. Age is on his side – he's still a teenager until the tail end of the minor league season this year.
Andrew Lambo, 6'3/190, 8/11/1988, Throws L, Bats L, Organization: LA Dodgers
Hitting isn't Lambo's problem. It's off-the-field issues that have plagued him and its largely why he lasted until the fourth round in last June's draft.
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8 months ago
Wow. It's crazy looking at prospects that are so much younger than I am. Hopefully we'll see these guys in the show in a couple years. Sandoval is actually my age. Could we be seeing him any time soon?
from 8 months ago
Sandoval likely won't reach the majors until mid-late 2009 or sometime in 2010. He's currently in High A ball, so he still has to get through AA and AAA. He should be promoted to AA soon, however. Some people thought he would begin the year there actually. If he doesn't stick at catcher, he could be a 1B.
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