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Imperialism32 · 07-28-2020, 11:16 AM

April 20, 1960

Top Prospects Report

After some more consulting with scouts from all four major leagues, I've made a list of the top 10 prospects, combined across the globe. They are presented in no particular order other than hitters first.

LF Shawn Wijkhuize, Caracas Rangers

In virtually any other organization, Wijkhuize would not only be starting in the majors, he'd be in the middle of the order. But the Caracas Rangers, last year's Caribbean League champion, have such a talent roster that they seem set to let Wijkhuize start back in A1 ball. He has little left to prove in the minors, smoking the A2 circuit for a 157 OPS+ before finishing it off with two weeks in A1, where he posted a 153 OPS+. The Bonaire-born left fielder just helped The Netherlands win the World Baseball Championship and scouts are in agreement that the 22 year-old is ready to contribute in the majors right now. He hits for contact, gap, and power and has the potential to be one of the best pure hitters in the league. He doesn't offer much on defense, but he works hard and is at least playable in left field. He doesn't run well at all, but when you can hit like Wijkhuize, does it matter?

LF T.C. Anand, Busan Mocs

Anand topped this list a season ago, and while he didn't light the world in fire in A2 (.284/.313/.381) scouts still rave about his contact/power potential. He adapted well throughout the season and cut down on his strikeouts in the second half. The focus on developing more consistent contact has come at the expense of his power stagnating, but there's still plenty of juice in the bat. He looks like he'll be back in A2 to start the season, so it should be apparent how much progress has been made from last year. He chases too many pitches and doesn't run well, but he's turned himself into at least an average defender with a chance for more.

CF Elias Caron, Paris Pride

All right, even I'm having some trouble coming up with a plausible reason for why he bounced around so much. Four teams released him for basically no reason in July and he ended up with Paris, so, whatever. Caron has plus tools across the board and is a potential .320/.420/.480 hitter from center field, which would be insanely valuable. Scouts praise his intelligence and feel for the game: he has a very good batting eye that could be elite, and he can play all over the place. He'll start the year with Glasgow in the A1 league. The Pride have Lucas Dawson in center so that might not be Caron's eventual landing spot, but with a good year he could force his way up to the majors at another position.

C Paulino de la Torre, Barranquilla Warhawks

Despite spending all of last season in the Warhawks' instructional facility, word has gotten out about the star catching prospect. He'll begin the 1961 season in A2 ball and the world will get their first look. He's got excellent bat-to-ball skills, already shows good gap power, and flashes the ability to turn it into home run power down the road. Making it all the more valuable is that he's solid behind the plate and will stick at the position. There's little to dislike about his game except the lack of foot speed, which is not a huge knock for a catcher.

3B Takao Yoshida, Beijing Maulers

From a pure tools point of view, Yoshida might be the most talented guy on the list. He's got crazy speed, a rifle of an arm, and terrific contact skills with just enough power. There are nits to pick, like that he's already almost 23 years old, but the reports on his development have been encouraging and he doesn't seem to be stagnating. Scouts and coaches also love his work ethic and think it'll help transfer those tools into results. He looks like he'll start back in A2, but should be able to earn a promotion to A1 rather quickly and it wouldn't be a surprise to see him in the majors in 1961.

RHP Reginald Ebel, Munich Hops

Ebel was clearly raw last year as a 19 year-old, but Munich saw enough to promote him from their instructional complex up to B2 ball midway. And for the most part, Ebel held his own. His inverted 25-42 K-BB ratio is discouraging, but he pitched with guile and was throwing harder than ever at 96-98 mph. He throws six pitches and would perhaps be better served by scrapping one or two, but at least a few of his offspeed offerings should develop nicely. He's got a great demeanor on and off the mound. With Munich earning promotion, Ebel will start out in the A2 league this season. He's still a couple of years away, but things are trending nicely.

RHP LaMarcus Brown, Montreal Paragons

The Paragons are taking it nice and slow with their prized pitching prospect. Brown was in the instructional complex for the entirety of last season, and he'll start this year there, too. He's still extremely raw but he has the tools to develop into a true ace. His velocity has bumped up from a year ago and he's shown better control, although it still comes and goes. Brown is a good candidate for a midseason promotion to the minors.

RHP Daniel Rocha, San Juan Salamanders

Rocha made this list last year and seemingly has little else to prove in the minors. In 160 innings in the highest level of the minors, he went 11-5 with a 2.70 ERA (163 OPS+). San Juan would be well-served to bring him up soon, because the only thing left for him to do is refine his arsenal against big-league hitters. The 6'3" 190 pound righty works off his cutter, mixing in a curveball and a forkball for some movement. His changeup needs to be cleaned up, but that's about the only knock on him.

RHP Sung-Min Lee, Guangzhou Tigers

Lee already has the stuff to compete in the majors and he should get that chance sometime this season, albeit in the Silver League with Guangzhou.

RHP Ramsden Peterman, Boston Bombers

Another repeat from last year's list, Peterman needs to iron out his control but the rest of the package is there. The 6'8" righty has top-shelf stuff and generates groundball after groundball. Even with 49 walks in 65 innings in A1 ball he still posted a 2.91 ERA.

07-28-2020, 11:16 AM	#120
Imperialism32 Major Leagues Join Date: Jan 2013 Posts: 341	April 20, 1960 Top Prospects Report After some more consulting with scouts from all four major leagues, I've made a list of the top 10 prospects, combined across the globe. They are presented in no particular order other than hitters first. LF Shawn Wijkhuize, Caracas Rangers In virtually any other organization, Wijkhuize would not only be starting in the majors, he'd be in the middle of the order. But the Caracas Rangers, last year's Caribbean League champion, have such a talent roster that they seem set to let Wijkhuize start back in A1 ball. He has little left to prove in the minors, smoking the A2 circuit for a 157 OPS+ before finishing it off with two weeks in A1, where he posted a 153 OPS+. The Bonaire-born left fielder just helped The Netherlands win the World Baseball Championship and scouts are in agreement that the 22 year-old is ready to contribute in the majors right now. He hits for contact, gap, and power and has the potential to be one of the best pure hitters in the league. He doesn't offer much on defense, but he works hard and is at least playable in left field. He doesn't run well at all, but when you can hit like Wijkhuize, does it matter? LF T.C. Anand, Busan Mocs Anand topped this list a season ago, and while he didn't light the world in fire in A2 (.284/.313/.381) scouts still rave about his contact/power potential. He adapted well throughout the season and cut down on his strikeouts in the second half. The focus on developing more consistent contact has come at the expense of his power stagnating, but there's still plenty of juice in the bat. He looks like he'll be back in A2 to start the season, so it should be apparent how much progress has been made from last year. He chases too many pitches and doesn't run well, but he's turned himself into at least an average defender with a chance for more. CF Elias Caron, Paris Pride All right, even I'm having some trouble coming up with a plausible reason for why he bounced around so much. Four teams released him for basically no reason in July and he ended up with Paris, so, whatever. Caron has plus tools across the board and is a potential .320/.420/.480 hitter from center field, which would be insanely valuable. Scouts praise his intelligence and feel for the game: he has a very good batting eye that could be elite, and he can play all over the place. He'll start the year with Glasgow in the A1 league. The Pride have Lucas Dawson in center so that might not be Caron's eventual landing spot, but with a good year he could force his way up to the majors at another position. C Paulino de la Torre, Barranquilla Warhawks Despite spending all of last season in the Warhawks' instructional facility, word has gotten out about the star catching prospect. He'll begin the 1961 season in A2 ball and the world will get their first look. He's got excellent bat-to-ball skills, already shows good gap power, and flashes the ability to turn it into home run power down the road. Making it all the more valuable is that he's solid behind the plate and will stick at the position. There's little to dislike about his game except the lack of foot speed, which is not a huge knock for a catcher. 3B Takao Yoshida, Beijing Maulers From a pure tools point of view, Yoshida might be the most talented guy on the list. He's got crazy speed, a rifle of an arm, and terrific contact skills with just enough power. There are nits to pick, like that he's already almost 23 years old, but the reports on his development have been encouraging and he doesn't seem to be stagnating. Scouts and coaches also love his work ethic and think it'll help transfer those tools into results. He looks like he'll start back in A2, but should be able to earn a promotion to A1 rather quickly and it wouldn't be a surprise to see him in the majors in 1961. RHP Reginald Ebel, Munich Hops Ebel was clearly raw last year as a 19 year-old, but Munich saw enough to promote him from their instructional complex up to B2 ball midway. And for the most part, Ebel held his own. His inverted 25-42 K-BB ratio is discouraging, but he pitched with guile and was throwing harder than ever at 96-98 mph. He throws six pitches and would perhaps be better served by scrapping one or two, but at least a few of his offspeed offerings should develop nicely. He's got a great demeanor on and off the mound. With Munich earning promotion, Ebel will start out in the A2 league this season. He's still a couple of years away, but things are trending nicely. RHP LaMarcus Brown, Montreal Paragons The Paragons are taking it nice and slow with their prized pitching prospect. Brown was in the instructional complex for the entirety of last season, and he'll start this year there, too. He's still extremely raw but he has the tools to develop into a true ace. His velocity has bumped up from a year ago and he's shown better control, although it still comes and goes. Brown is a good candidate for a midseason promotion to the minors. RHP Daniel Rocha, San Juan Salamanders Rocha made this list last year and seemingly has little else to prove in the minors. In 160 innings in the highest level of the minors, he went 11-5 with a 2.70 ERA (163 OPS+). San Juan would be well-served to bring him up soon, because the only thing left for him to do is refine his arsenal against big-league hitters. The 6'3" 190 pound righty works off his cutter, mixing in a curveball and a forkball for some movement. His changeup needs to be cleaned up, but that's about the only knock on him. RHP Sung-Min Lee, Guangzhou Tigers Lee already has the stuff to compete in the majors and he should get that chance sometime this season, albeit in the Silver League with Guangzhou. RHP Ramsden Peterman, Boston Bombers Another repeat from last year's list, Peterman needs to iron out his control but the rest of the package is there. The 6'8" righty has top-shelf stuff and generates groundball after groundball. Even with 49 walks in 65 innings in A1 ball he still posted a 2.91 ERA.