Prospect Hot Sheet: April 18th-24th, 2010

No. 1 WILMER FLORES, SS
SAVANNAH
Team: Savannah Sand Gnats (LoA)
 Age: 18
 Why He's Here: .370/.393/.815 (10-for-27), 2 HR, 5 R, 13 RBI, 1 BB, 5 K
 The Scoop: Flores is in the middle of a huge power surge that we never got to see in 2009.  Last year he hit 3 home runs for the year and he had 2 last week.  He's had great pitch recognition all season and it looks like he is finally seeing the right pitch to hit and driving it hard and far.  More impressive than his home runs is probably the 6 doubles and 13 RBI's.
2010 Stats
No. 2 KIRK NIEUWENHUIS, CF
 BINGHAMTON
Team: Binghamton Mets (AA) 
 Age: 22 
 Why He's Here: .355/.375/.613 (11-for-31), 1 HR, 6 R, 5 RBI, 1 BB, 6 K
 The Scoop: Captain Kirk has been hot all season and it didn't stop this week.  He's getting hits, hitting for power, scoring runs, and driving in runs.  The only thing he isn't doing is demonstrating his above-average speed.  He only has 1 SB on the season and no triples. On the plus side he has cut his K's down by nearly 7%.
2010 Stats
No. 3 PEDRO ZAPATA, CF
 SAVANNAH
Team: Savannah Sand Gnats (LoA)
 Age: 22
 Why He's Here: .414/.485/.483 (12-for-29), 2 2B, 9 R, 4 RBI, 3 SB, 4 BB, 5 K
 The Scoop: Zapata is a tall guy, but doesn't have much power and has to rely on his plus speed.  The difference he made this week was better plate discipline.  He only struck out 1 more time than he walked.  Looked like a great table setter with the 3 steals and 9 runs.
2010 Stats
No. 4 JAMES FULLER, LHP SAVANNAH
Team: Savannah Sand Gnats (LoA)
 Age: 22
 Why He's Here: 2-0, 1.90 ERA, 14.2 IP, 14 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 12 SO
 The Scoop: The undersized lefty is having great success in LoA Savannah.  He gave up a little too many hits this week, but he counter acted that with superb command.  He only walked 2 batters this week and has 4 walks in 28 IP on the season to go along with striking out nearly a batter per inning.
2010 Stats
No. 5 ALONZO HARRIS, 2B
 SAVANNAH
Team: Savannah Sand Gnats (LoA)
 Age: 20
 Why He's Here: .360/.360/.600 (9-for-25), 1 2B, 1 3b, 1 HR. 4 R, 7 RBI, 5 K
 The Scoop: Yet another member from the Savannah team on the hot list.  Harris demonstrated his great power with a homer and double and great speed with a triple and stolen base.  Also on display, however, was his terrible discipline.  He doesn't know how to take a walk and swings at anything near the plate. Still raw, but very talented.
2010 Stats
No. 1 RICHARD LUCAS, 3B
ST. LUCIE
Team: St. Lucie Mets (HiA)
 Age: 21
 Why He's Here: .053/.182/.053 (1-for-19), 1 R, 3 BB, 6 K
 The Scoop: Can you do much worse?  About the only positive thing he did was have a decent walk rate.  This is a really big bummer as Lucas was off to a hot start before getting into this ice age.
2010 Stats
No. 2 EDDIE KUNZ, RHP
BINGHAMTON
Team: Binghamton Mets (AA)
 Age: 24
 Why He's Here: 0-1, 11.25 ERA, 4 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 4 BB, 3 SO
 The Scoop: Just as expected Kunz's shift into the rotation hasn't gone smoothly at all.  If anyone expects to give up a hit and walk per inning and be successful then you are just crazy.  He should be moved back to the pen ASAP where maybe he can give you a very very little something.
2010 Stats
No. 3 JEFF FLAGG, 1B
 SAVANNAH
Team: Savannah Sand Gnats (LoA) 
 Age: 24
 Why He's Here: .136/.240/.182 (3-for-22), 1 R, 2 RBI, 3 BB, 8 K
 The Scoop: A 6'6 250 lbs 24-year-old slugging what in LoA? Yeah, he has definitely made himself into a non prospect at this point.  He can't hit for average or power, get on base, and swings at pitchers further out of the zone than Vlad Guerrero.
2010 Stats
No. 4 ERIC NIESEN, SP
 BINGHAMTON
Team: Binghamton Mets (AA)
 Age: 24
 Why He's Here: 0-1, 5.29 ERA, 2 GS, 5.1 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 5 BB, 6 SO
 The Scoop: The man has great stuff as is seen with his great K numbers, but his control seems to get worse with time.  I don't think anybody has ever questioned his stuff, but he has yet to answer those doubters about his ability to throw strikes. And 5 innings in 2 games. That's worse than John Maine!
2010 Stats
No. 5 BRAHIAM MALDONADO
 BINGHAMTON
Team: Binghamton Mets (AA)
 Age: 24
 Why He's Here: .105/.261/.158 (2-for-19), 2 R, 4 BB, 5 K, 2 SB
 The Scoop: The transition to AA did not go smooth at all for Maldonado.  He was only able to manage two hits, but he did demonstrate good patience and speed.  He is not one of my favorite prospects by any stretch, but he still has some potential and this week looks pretty fluky.
2010 Stats
No. 1 WILMER FLORES, SS	SAVANNAH
Team: Savannah Sand Gnats (LoA) Age: 18 Why He's Here: .370/.393/.815 (10-for-27), 2 HR, 5 R, 13 RBI, 1 BB, 5 K The Scoop: Flores is in the middle of a huge power surge that we never got to see in 2009. Last year he hit 3 home runs for the year and he had 2 last week. He's had great pitch recognition all season and it looks like he is finally seeing the right pitch to hit and driving it hard and far. More impressive than his home runs is probably the 6 doubles and 13 RBI's.
2010 Stats
No. 2 KIRK NIEUWENHUIS, CF	BINGHAMTON
Team: Binghamton Mets (AA) Age: 22 Why He's Here: .355/.375/.613 (11-for-31), 1 HR, 6 R, 5 RBI, 1 BB, 6 K The Scoop: Captain Kirk has been hot all season and it didn't stop this week. He's getting hits, hitting for power, scoring runs, and driving in runs. The only thing he isn't doing is demonstrating his above-average speed. He only has 1 SB on the season and no triples. On the plus side he has cut his K's down by nearly 7%.
2010 Stats
No. 3 PEDRO ZAPATA, CF	SAVANNAH
Team: Savannah Sand Gnats (LoA) Age: 22 Why He's Here: .414/.485/.483 (12-for-29), 2 2B, 9 R, 4 RBI, 3 SB, 4 BB, 5 K The Scoop: Zapata is a tall guy, but doesn't have much power and has to rely on his plus speed. The difference he made this week was better plate discipline. He only struck out 1 more time than he walked. Looked like a great table setter with the 3 steals and 9 runs.
2010 Stats
No. 4 JAMES FULLER, LHP	SAVANNAH
Team: Savannah Sand Gnats (LoA) Age: 22 Why He's Here: 2-0, 1.90 ERA, 14.2 IP, 14 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 12 SO The Scoop: The undersized lefty is having great success in LoA Savannah. He gave up a little too many hits this week, but he counter acted that with superb command. He only walked 2 batters this week and has 4 walks in 28 IP on the season to go along with striking out nearly a batter per inning.
2010 Stats
No. 5 ALONZO HARRIS, 2B	SAVANNAH
Team: Savannah Sand Gnats (LoA) Age: 20 Why He's Here: .360/.360/.600 (9-for-25), 1 2B, 1 3b, 1 HR. 4 R, 7 RBI, 5 K The Scoop: Yet another member from the Savannah team on the hot list. Harris demonstrated his great power with a homer and double and great speed with a triple and stolen base. Also on display, however, was his terrible discipline. He doesn't know how to take a walk and swings at anything near the plate. Still raw, but very talented.
2010 Stats
No. 1 RICHARD LUCAS, 3B	ST. LUCIE
Team: St. Lucie Mets (HiA) Age: 21 Why He's Here: .053/.182/.053 (1-for-19), 1 R, 3 BB, 6 K The Scoop: Can you do much worse? About the only positive thing he did was have a decent walk rate. This is a really big bummer as Lucas was off to a hot start before getting into this ice age.
2010 Stats
No. 2 EDDIE KUNZ, RHP	BINGHAMTON
Team: Binghamton Mets (AA) Age: 24 Why He's Here: 0-1, 11.25 ERA, 4 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 4 BB, 3 SO The Scoop: Just as expected Kunz's shift into the rotation hasn't gone smoothly at all. If anyone expects to give up a hit and walk per inning and be successful then you are just crazy. He should be moved back to the pen ASAP where maybe he can give you a very very little something.
2010 Stats
No. 3 JEFF FLAGG, 1B	SAVANNAH
Team: Savannah Sand Gnats (LoA) Age: 24 Why He's Here: .136/.240/.182 (3-for-22), 1 R, 2 RBI, 3 BB, 8 K The Scoop: A 6'6 250 lbs 24-year-old slugging what in LoA? Yeah, he has definitely made himself into a non prospect at this point. He can't hit for average or power, get on base, and swings at pitchers further out of the zone than Vlad Guerrero.
2010 Stats
No. 4 ERIC NIESEN, SP	BINGHAMTON
Team: Binghamton Mets (AA) Age: 24 Why He's Here: 0-1, 5.29 ERA, 2 GS, 5.1 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 5 BB, 6 SO The Scoop: The man has great stuff as is seen with his great K numbers, but his control seems to get worse with time. I don't think anybody has ever questioned his stuff, but he has yet to answer those doubters about his ability to throw strikes. And 5 innings in 2 games. That's worse than John Maine!
2010 Stats
No. 5 BRAHIAM MALDONADO	BINGHAMTON
Team: Binghamton Mets (AA) Age: 24 Why He's Here: .105/.261/.158 (2-for-19), 2 R, 4 BB, 5 K, 2 SB The Scoop: The transition to AA did not go smooth at all for Maldonado. He was only able to manage two hits, but he did demonstrate good patience and speed. He is not one of my favorite prospects by any stretch, but he still has some potential and this week looks pretty fluky.
2010 Stats