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RHP Bill Davis (283rd Overall)
Acquired: Via Trade with Miners (1950)
Drafted: 13th Round, 193rd Overall (1948)
Alma Mater: Benton Harbor Indians

Most pitchers had ugly ERAs in La Crosse. I guess Bill Davis isn't most pitchers.

In 8 starts, Davis was nothing short of dominant, going 6-2 with a 3.27 ERA (186 ERA+), 1.61 WHIP, and 102 strikeouts in 66 innings. A Chicago native who joined the organization last Winter in a deal with the Miners, he was actually terrible out of the pen last season, with an elevated 7.76 ERA (72 ERA+) and 1.91 WHIP, and if I remember right he wasn't even going to start until someone (maybe Allie Eddy) got injured in their first start. Obviously he took advantage of that, and the 21-year-old got a few starts in San Jose after. It wasn't nearly as good, though that has to be expected, as despite going 3-2 his 4.54 ERA (86 ERA+) and 1.73 WHIP were much higher then his time in La Crosse, despite the depressed run environment. Even worse, he had 26 walks to 13 strikeouts, and even in the Miners organization, the most walks - strikeouts he had was 1. I'm sure some of it was regular regression, so this isn't going to stop Davis from opening next year with the baby Cougars. A three pitch pitcher, his fastball and sinker were up a tick this year and topping out at 90, but he doesn't always wield them well. His change does get some whiffs, but I'm a little worried about his pitch mix unless he can keep the ball in the park. Even in La Crosse, he allowed 13 homers in 66 innings, and with a sinker you don't expect that. It's going to prevent him from starting in the majors, though he does have a lot of talented young pitchers in his way.

1B Dudley Sapp (286th Overall)
Acquired: Via Draft: 3rd Round, 45th Overall (1947)
Alma Mater: Union City Bulldogs

Like John Kerr, Dudley Sapp is a towering 6'4'' first basemen who should be a legit slugger. And while he wasn't nearly as awful as Kerr this year, Sapp still hasn't put it together. He started in San Jose, moving up after 37 games to make room for Kerr, and he hit alright. It wasn't perfect, but a .291/.421/.313 (97 OPS+) line and a 106 WRC+ are decent. Yes, no power, which makes zero sense, as his only extra base hit in 164 PAs was a homer. I'm not sure what it is with our guys and having slugging way lower then their OBPs, but Sapp had an impressive 17.1 BB% and was able to still be useful despite being a slap hitting singles hitter.

Thankfully, that changed when he went up to Lincoln, as Sapp slugged 6 homers with 5 doubles and a triple in his last 376 trips to the plate. The .257/.332/.331 (87 OPS+) line wasn't great, and his BB% dropped nearly 8 points, but the homers were back! As a first basemen, especially a big and strong one, you have to hit homers, or otherwise you're just going to get passed up. That's expected for Sapp, who at 23 is eligible for the Rule-5 draft, as he was selected way back in 1947. It seems to be a poor pick there, but thankfully the only useful players taken after him were former top pitching prospect Paul Anderson (4th), who looks to be a steal and future anchor for the Stars, and talented young outfielder Kirby Copeland (5th) who is really the only guy who did much at the plate for the Wolves. There's a few decent guys in our system taken after him, but luckily the two guys taken before him are more then making up for it: Jerry Smith and Garland Phelps. I'll still hold out hope that the above average power will surface, but his best trait is his glove and that's just not going to cut it.

RHP Ollie Norris (287th Overall)
Acquired: Via Trade with Stars (1951)
Drafted: 11th Round, 171st Overall (1948)
Alma Mater: Mill Valley Hawks

Taken a few rounds before Bill Davis in the 1948 draft, we picked up the now 21-year-old from the Stars almost exactly a year after. Acquired for young catcher Ernie Frost, who was actually dealt to the Kings a few months later, Norris returned to Class C where he spent the previous three seasons. It went rather well, as in 8 starts and 3 relief outings he had an exactly adjusted league average 6.12 (I know, crazy right!?!?!) with an elite 4.37 FIP (71 FIP-). He got one more out this year compared to last, and had a nice 1.66 WHIP with 48 walks and 109 strikeouts. Potentially ready for San Jose, I have him tentatively placed there for 1952, but San Jose's roster is full of pitchers and we have a lot of pitchers deserving starts above him. A soft-tossing three pitch pitcher, I wish he had a slider or change to round out the mix, as his fastball, cutter, and curve are all good pitches. But with the velocity, he can't really dominate, so he uses the cutter as more of an offspeed pitch. It's a good pitch, even if not his best, but the slow fastball can get hard. He needs to either up the velo or improve the movement he gets on it, otherwise it'll be tough for him to start. That being said, the curve is wicked, so he could easily be a cutter/curve multi-inning pen guy. The focus for him is being more consistent, as his mistake pitches can get punished, but when he has a feel for the curve hitters won't want to get into a two-strike count.

RHP Ben Helm (320th Overall)
Acquired: Via Draft: 9th Round, 135th Overall (1951
Alma Mater: Sumter College Wildcats

The last member of our 1951 draft class to crack our top 40, Ben Helm was a nice pickup in the 9th Round, giving us three ranked pitchers from our first ten selections. There's plenty to like about Helm, who like many college pitchers skipped La Crosse, as he has a deep and polished five pitch mix where nothing is straight. His fastball is a high 80s cutter, and then he mixes in a slider, curve, change, and splitter. Dixie calls his mix plain, I call it reliable, as while he doesn't have a dominant go to pitch, he doesn't have a useless sub 5% use pitch. All five pitches are effective, all five pitches can get whiffs, and the 21-year-old has confidence in using all five offerings when applicable. He's also a guy who can eat a lot of innings, and if it wasn't for a disastrous final start, his overall numbers would have looked amazing. Through 10 starts he had a 2.43 ERA, but #11 saw everything fall apart. In just an inning and two thirds, he was tagged for 9 hits, 8 runs, and a walk, raising his ERA almost a full point to 3.29 (118 ERA+). His WHIP jumped to 1.34, and he finished with 36 walks and 39 strikeouts in 79.1 innings pitched. A potential reliable back-end guy, he could be ready for Lincoln, but like Norris behind him, there's a lot of good young guys in his way. In an organization that needs pitching, he's the perfect guy to fast track, and he could be a useful trade piece for us if I'm able to upgrade the lineup.

RF Clyde Parker (335th Overall)
Acquired: Via Draft: 7th Round, 103rd Overall (1945)
Alma Mater: Liberty Bluejays

It was a huge drop in the prospect rankings for Clyde Parker, who despite spending three weeks in the majors, did not get to make his debut. I was a little disappointed in Max Wilder for that, and with just one option left I'll find a way to get him involved next season. All 493 of his plate appearances came in Milwaukee, and the recently turned 25-year-old hit a nice .286/.359/.408 (120 OPS+) with an excellent 130 WRC+. Parker added 15 doubles, 7 triples, 8 homers, 49 RBIs, 52 walks, and 56 runs in 121 appearances. A natural left fielder, he spent most of his time out in right, but he's not much of a defender at either spot. That's going to make the bat so important, as it's the only way hell be able to maintain a spot on the bench. He does have a nice contact tool and above average pop, and he can draw his share of walks. Still, he looks more average then good, likely best in a platoon, and unless something happens with Frank Reece or Henry Norman, it will be tough for him to find his way into a platoon. One thing I could see is a Parker/Jimmy Hairston platoon if Norman and Reece struggle, but I'm sure he envisioned more when he was at one point a top 100 prospect.