David Price, the top pitching prospect in the Rays organization, made his much anticipated minor league debut on Thursday night for the Vero Beach D-Rays. Price pitched 5.0 shuout innings and never allowed a runner to reach 2nd base. The former #1 overall selection out of Vanderbilt struck out the first batter of the eveningthen went on to strike out four over his five innings of work. Price scattered three singles and allowed only one walk. The start of game was delayed for an hour due to inclement weather, and that may have played a factor in the decision to only leave Price in for five innings.. It was exciting to finally see (or listen) Price in a professional game and he did not disappoint. Let the David Price to Montgomery watch officially begin!
Jacob McGee had his best start of the year for the Montgomery Biscuits on Wednesday night. He worked 7.0 shutout innings and had a season-high strike out total of 9. He allowed only three hits and two walks in his dominating performance. In listening to part of the game, McGee seemed to be working in his curve ball and even his change-up at a higher rate than he has shown this season. If he can locate those two pitches to compliment his mid-90s fastball then McGee becomes basically untouchable at the minor league level.
Regardless of how well McGee performs this season, there is almost no reason to move him above AA. He still has plenty to work on and there is no need to even think about rushing him. Hopefully McGee can string together a few more performances like this before the All-star break, and, at the very least, give the organization something to think about. That would mean he has been absolutely outstanding in Montgomery.
Reid Brignac appears to have made an adjustment to pitching at the AAA level. Brignac, who got off to a slow start in Durham, has been sizzling over his past ten games to the tune of a .486 batting average. Brignac has improved his BA to .296 and pushed his OPS over .800 for the first time this season. The only major flaw with Brignac is that you would still like to see him improve his dreadful K:BB walk ratio. Brignac has not drawn an entire walk in the month of May.
At times, it feels like Brignac is the forgotten man in farm system, but he is still considered by some to be the top shortstop prospect in baseball. If Jason Bartlett continues to cement himself as the Rays shortstop, could a move to second base be coming for Brignac? Akinori Iwamura is only under team control through the 2010 season, while Bartlett will be a Ray until 2011 at a much cheaper price. Brignac has struggled at times with his fielding at shortstop so a position change is not out of the question. He would certainly provide plus-power for the position. It is not a decision that needs to be made soon as I am confident the Rays will leave Brignac in Durham through the 2008 season.
Jeff Niemann has made three starts for Durham after suffering a minor injury after his demotion from Tampa. In those three starts, he has pitched 3.0, 3.1, and 4.0 innings. His numbers on the season look great (2.11 ERA, 20:7 K:BB), but his sample size is still very small considering he has only pitched a combined 21.1 innings over five starts. I can’t help but wonder if the Rays would consider calling Niemann up sometime this season to use as a reliever.
BobR speculated about this over at DraysBay and it is an interesting idea. Keith Law is a big proponent of breaking young pitching prospects into the majors “Earl Weaver style”. In the short-term, t would be a good way for Niemann to get more experience at the major league level. It may also be the best move for the Niemann and the Rays in the long-term as well. It will be something to watch as the season develops.
ESPN’s Buster Olney reported on Wednesday that he has heard from rival teams that Rays are leaning toward taking either Florida State catcher Buster Posey or Vanderbilt 3B Pedro Alvarez. If that is indeed the case, then I would tend to believe the Rays are zeroing in on Posey with the selection. One factor that may affect the decision is if the Rays believe they can sign Posey to a near slot deal shortly after the draft. With Alvarez, it is almost a guarantee that negotiations will go down to the last hour. If Posey, who will certainly be a cheaper sign that Alvarez, can be signed quickly and sent to Columbus, then that may tilt the scale in his favor.
In a vacuum as Jim Callis refers to it, I also would prefer Alvarez, however, I am well aware that no decisions are made under those circumstances. It would be hard to be disappointed if the Rays selected Alvarez, Posey, or high school shortstop Tim Beckham. We will have much more on the 2008 draft here at Rays of Light in the coming weeks.
Jim Callis seems to believe that Pedro Alvarez is the best available talent for the Rays at 1/1.
John (St. Paul, MN): Jim – Who in your opinion would be the best pick for the Rays?
Jim Callis: In a vacuum, where money and needs didn’t matter, I’d take Vandy 3B Pedro Alvarez No. 1. For the Rays, I think Florida State C Buster Posey makes a lot of sense.
Rob (Alaska): I understand teams can’t trade draft picks, and have heard the whys, but let me ask this: if the Rays could, they would trade down, correct? Buster Posey cannot be the top player on their board.
Jim Callis: I disagree. I think there’s a chance that Posey is No. 1 on their board, and it’s a defensible position. And he would make a lot of sense for them–how many all-star caliber catchers are on the trade market?
Bill (Chi): But aren’t Posey’s offensive numbers greatly inflated by his home park? He’s more likely a 10-15 HR hitter in the majors, isn’t he? That doesn’t really make him an all star catcher.
Jim Callis: Florida State is a favorable hitting environment. But if Posey hits .280 with 15 HR and plays quality defense, that’s an all-star catcher. And that’s what he projects to do. I’m not saying I’d take Posey No. 1–still seems odd to me that the No. 1 pick might not have a plus-plus tool–but he has tools across the board and is a complete package as a catcher.
Patrick (Chicago): Jim, is the hammate injury to Alvarez going to significantly sap his power or what? I keep hearing conflicting answers.
Jim Callis: It will for the short terms, perhaps up to a year, because a lot of power comes from the wrist. But long term, it’s not a concern at all and it won’t affect his draft status.
Joe (Chico, CA): 2-fer. How does Posey compare to Varitek when he was coming out (.280 with 15 HR sounds close to ‘Tek’s production at his peak). And, Follow if Smoak is there when the Giants pick should he be the choice, especially with Angel Villanoa in their system?
Jim Callis: Varitek was considered much more of a power threat, Posey is more athletic though there weren’t concerns about Varitek’s defense. With Smoak, you take the best guy available. Big V isn’t knocking on the door to the majors yet.
Paul (Orlando): Anything to be said about Evan Longorias platoon splits so far? Horrible against lefties, but hitting righties well.
Jim Callis: Small sample size,
