Down on the Farm: Tuesday July 15th

Star of the Day:
Kyle Skipworth - C - GCL Marlins
Skipworth had his best game of his young career and hit his 1st professional homerun. He went 2 for 5 with 3 runs driven in and scored 2 other runs.

Low A:
Michael Burgess - RF - Hagerstown Suns
Burgess went 3 for 5 with a double, a run scored and 2 RBI's.

Jason Heyward - RF - Rome Braves
In the second game of a double header, Heyward went 2 for 4 with 2 singles. He was able to score once in the game.

Justin Jackson - SS - Lansing Lugnuts
Jackson has been on a great streak and continued that today with a 3 for 5 game. One of his hits went for a double and he was able to also score a run and steal a base.

Jordan Walden - SP - Cedar Rapids Kernals
Walden made is final Low A start. He went 7.2 innings, allowing only 1 run on 6 hits, 1 walk and 9 strikeouts. Walden will now move to High A Rancho Cucamonga and join Posse prospect Hank Conger.

Shortseason:
Tim Beckham - SS - Princeton Devils Rays
Beckham went 2 for 5 with a double. He scored twice and also drove in 2 runners.

Rookie:
Isaac Galloway - CF - GCL Marlins
Galloway makes the list for the first time in a while. He went 2 for 4 with 2 runs scored and an RBI.

Devin Shepherd - LF - GCL Cardinals
Shepherd went 2 for 5 with 2 runs scored, a double and an RBI.

Down on the Farm : Saturday July 5th

Star of the Day:
Blake Beavan - SP - Clinton LumberKings
This may be Beavan's best start of the season. He only allowed 3 runners, all hits, over 7 shutout innings while striking out 5. He now has only allowed 72 runners (64 hits and 8 walks) over 69.2 innings, with a 2.84 ERA.

High A:
Hank Conger - C - Rancho Cucamonga Quakes
Conger returned after missing the last 12 days. He went 1 for 4 with a double and a run scored.

Low A:
Jason Heyward - RF - Rome Braves
After a few days off, Heyward had his third game in a row with 3 hits. This time he went 3 for 5 with a run scored, a double and a stolen base.

Dellin Betances - SP - Charleston RiverDogs
Betances was horrible during his demotion to the GCL, but must have showed something as he was sent back to Low A ball and he had a very good start. He went 5 innings and allowed only 3 hits while allowing 2 runs and striking out 6. His biggest problem has been control and tonight he only walked one batter.

Michael Burgess - RF - Hagerstown Suns
Burgess showed his patience today going 0 for 1 on the game with 3 walks. He was able to score a run. On the season he is hitting .261/.350/.505. He has demonstrated a good eye at the plate and the ability to hit the ball hard when he makes contact.

Rookie:
Aaron Hicks - RF - GCL Twins
Hicks has the best game of his 10 game career, by going 4 for 7. Two of his hits went for extra bases, with the homerun being the first of his career. He scored 3 times and drove in 4 runs.

Tim Beckham - SS - Princeton Devil Rays
Beckham went 1 for 3 with a walk and a run scored. He is not off to the greatest start but one positive is he is showing good patience.

Down on the Farm : Wednesday July 2nd

Star of the Day:
Justin Jackson - SS - Lansing Lugnuts
Here are the type of games we like to see from Justin. He went 2 for 5 with a double and a homerun. He scored 1 run, added 2 doubles and also stole a base.

AA:
Cameron Maybin - CF - Carolina Mudcats
Maybin went 2 for 5 with a run scored, an RBI and a stolen base. On the season he is hitting .265/.357/.461. He has scored 55 runs and drove in 38 runs while hitting 12 dingers, walking 43 times and stealing 17 bases.

Low A:
Jason Heyward - RF - Rome Braves
Heyward had his second game in a row where he went 3 for 4. This time they were all singles, but he scored a run and added a couple RBI's.

Michael Burgess - RF - Hagerstown Suns
Burgess played in double header today and he went 1 for 3 in both games. He scored two runs and added a triple in game 1 and a double in game 2.

Rookie:
Juan Duran - RF - DSL Reds
Duran had one of his best games of his short career. He went 2 for 3 and stole 2 bases. On the season he is hitting .316/.409/.500.

Tim Beckham - SS - Princeton Devil Rays
Beckham got his first multihit game going 2 for 4 with a run scored.

Down on the Farm : Sunday June 29th

Star of the Day:
Tim Beckham - SS - Princeton Devil Rays
It took Tim until his third professional game to make this list...but he did it. He went 1 for 4 on the day with 2 walks and 2 runs scored.

AA:
Cameron Maybin - CF - Carolina Mudcats
Another typical Maybin day. He went 1 for 4, hitting his 12th double of the season. He scored twice and walked once.

Low A:
Jordan Walden - SP - Cedar Rapids Kernals
Walden extended his scoreless inning streak to 16 by tossing 5 innings tonight. He allowed 3 hit, 4 walks and struck out 7 in the process.

Justin Jackson - SS - Lansing Lugnuts
Jackson went 1 for 3 with a walk and an RBI.

Michael Burgess - RF - Hagerstown Suns
Burgess went 1 for 4 with a double and a run scored.

Marlins sign a couple Posse prospects

The Poss management awoke to some great news today. The Florida Marlins announced the signings of outfielder Isaac Galloway and catcher Kyle Skipworth. "We expected the Skipworth signing, but really were not sure about Galloway signing", stated GM Luddington.

Approximately one year ago, Galloway was rated the top prep hitter in the 2008 draft but his stock slowly declined over the last year. He continued to demonstrate the raw skills, but was not a consistent player as many questioned how badly he wanted it. When the draft came around he slid into the eighth round before he was selected by the Marlins. This led many to believe he would be attending San Diego State, but Galloway proved to many that he wanted it by signing quickly. Galloway has the tools to be a player with great speed and defense, with the potential in the future to hit for some power as he fills into his 6'3" body.

Unlike Galloway, Skipworth was a top ten prospect who kept his stock high over the last year. He ended up being the third highest prep player drafted, with the top one being fellow Posse prospect Tim Beckham. Skipworth has a huge power bat and the biggest question is whether he will be able to keep that bat behind the plate. If he is, then he could be a difficult to find allstar catcher for many years. If not, he will most likely move to first base where his value would not be as high.

Now that Galloway and Skipworth have signed, they will most likely head to Jupiter and the Gulf Coast League.

Aside: I love when my prospects are draft by the Marlins as I usually get to see them at spring training and get to know many of them.

Beckham serious about getting his career started

The Rays will announce today that they have signed Posse prospects Tim Beckham to a draft-record $6.15 million bonus.

Beckham, a five-tool shortstop from Griffin (Ga.) High, eclipses the bonus record set by Justin Upton, who received $6.1 million from the Diamondbacks as the No. 1 overall pick in 2005. Upton’s bonus was spread over five years as part under MLB provisions for two-sport athletes. The highest up-front bonus before Beckham’s was the $6 million the Orioles gave Matt Wieters as the fifth overall choice in 2007.

Tampa Bay, the first team ever to own the top pick in consecutive drafts, gave 2007 No. 1 overall choice David Price a $5.6 million bonus as part of a six-year, $8.5 million major league contract. But Price’s deal was heavily backloaded, and MLB calculated its present value at $4.8 million.

Beckham signed for much more than MLB’s recommendation for the No. 1 slot–believed to be $4 million–and such deals usually aren’t announced until late in the summer. But he apparently will become the quickest top choice to sign since Matt Bush and the Padres agreed to terms on draft day in 2004.

Though the team has yet to make an official announcement, Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times (Baseball America’s Rays correspondent) reports that a blue Rays uniform with Beckham’s name on the back is hanging in a locker next to B.J. Upton’s in Tampa Bay’s locker room.

Down on the Farm : Thursday June 5th

Star of the Day:
Tim Beckham - SS - Tampa Bay Rays
Tim did not play, but he was drafted first overall in the MLB draft and therefore gets the star of the day.

AA:
Cameron Maybin - CF - Carolina Mudcats
Still making the list, but no where near the past performances. Maybin goes 1 for 4 with his fifth triple and an RBI.

Low A:
Jason Heyward - RF - Rome Braves
Heyward took a few days off from the list, but is back after going 2 for 4 with a run and RBI.

Justin Jackson - SS - Lansing Lugnuts
Jackson got his 10th double of the year during a 2 for 5 game. He also scored a run.

Naftali Feliz - SP - Clinton LumberJacks
Another solid performance for Neftali as he goes 5.1 innings allowing 5 hits and no walks. He struck out 5 with his only blemmish being 3 runs allowed.

Day 1 of MLB Draft has some Ups and Downs for the Posse

Well the first day of the MLB draft had some highlights and some lowlights for the Oak Ridges Posse. The best news of the day came with four Oak Ridges Posse being taken in the first round, with Tim Beckham leading off the round to Tampa Bay and Casey Kelly closing out the round to Boston.

Beckham going to Tampa Bay is very good news. The Rays have a very good young team and will probably move Beckham quite quick. He is a natural shortstop that should end up batting around #2 in the lineup with protection from the like of BJ Upton, Evan Longoria and Carlos Pena.

Posse management is ecstatic to have Kelly going to Boston. The Red Sox have been a great drafting organization the last few years and will be willing to buy Casey out of his Tennessee scholarship. He will have a ton of shortstop competition in Boston against the likes Jed Lowrie and Oscar Tejeda.

In between those two the Posse had two other players go in the first with Kyle Skipworth going to the Florida Marlins and Aaron Hicks going as an OFer to the Minnesota Twins. Skipworth to the Marlins was a very pleasant surprise as they do a great job developing their youngsters, and there are no obstacles at catcher for Skipworth. The same could be said for Hicks as he will now stay in the OF, probably in RF, where the Twins will try and develop the toolsy star. There are no obstacles out there for Hicks, except with the Twins checkered past for developing prep players. For every Joe Mauer (who no one could screw up) there has been a Eduardo Morlan, Kyle Waldrop, Danny Rams, Chris Parmelee and Michael Restovich.

For all the positives there were some negatives as well. As expected, prep pitcher Alex Meyer proved to be a nearly impossible sign and has gone undrafted. He will most likely attend University of Kentucky and be the #1 rated college freshman. Also joining UofK's pitching staff will be fellow undrafted prep pitcher Daniel Webb. Third baseman Harold Martinez saw his stock tank in the last couple months and it looks like he will be heading to University of Miami. There is still a chance that both Webb and Martinez could be drafted, but a team will most likely have to go about slot to keep them from college.

The biggest surprise in my opinion was Isaac Galloway, who has gone undrafted. There has been no noise of him being a difficult sign and I really thought he would go in the second round. He did not and it will probably take a team willing to go above slot to buy him away from San Diego State. Come on Boston, New York, Anahiem or Chicago!!!

One player that did slide to the second round was Tim Melville. Melville was drafted by the Kansas City Royals...who had a great first day. He is going to want top 15 money and it sounds like the Royals are willing to pay it given they used an early second rounder on him.

The last player on the draft board for the Posse is JUCO outfielder Devin Shepherd. Shepherd was a top 2006 prospect who was considered a tough sign for Minnesota. He went to Oklahoma, left the team half way through the year. Then he committed to North Carolina State only to back out and spend 2007-8 at College of Southern Nevada. After a rough start to the year he came on strong at the end hitting for .343 with good on base. What has not developed is his power (which should be there) and his maturity. In November Devin committed to Oregon State only to be rumored to change his mind and commit to UC Santa Barbara. I really expect Shepherd to slide in this draft now and he will attend college again.

Looking toward tomorrow's MLB Draft

As is the case every year, one of the Posse managements favorite days of the year is the MLB draft. Each year, the Posse have a good group of prospects in the draft and this year is no different.



This year the Posse expect to have at least four players chosen in the first round, including a couple in the top ten selections. The number in the first round could reach as high as six if signability concerns decrease.


Leading the charge this year is shortstop Tim Beckham. Beckham is a probable top five pick in this draft and could go as high as first overall. He brings a complete game to the field with very strong defensive skills and a complete game with the bat. Posse management see Beckham competing with Justin Jackson as the future after Derek Jeter.


Also expected to go in the top ten selections is recently drafted Kyle Skipworth. Skipworth will be drafted as a catcher and brings a very strong bat to the field. He has the ability to hit for both average and power. He also has very good defensive abilities and the only concern with him sticking at catcher is whether he gets too big for the position. Posse management hopes he can stay at catcher and compete with Chris Snyder as the successor to Jorge Posada.


The third of the first round probables is pitching prospect Tim Melville. Melville is probably the top rated high school pitcher in this draft with both a plus curveball and plus fastball which he delivers cleanly from hit 6'5" body. Historically teams do not like to take prep pitching prospects in the first round, but that mold was shattered last year with eight selected last year and many of them are seen as top of the rotation starters.


The next four prospects will be really interesting to see where they end up, and for very different reasons. Aaron Hicks leads that group as probably a first round candidate as a toolsy outfielder or a first round candidate as a power pitcher. The question is not whether he goes in the first round but whether he is drafted as an outfielder or pitcher. Posse management is hoping as an outfielder, and that Hicks will have a future role in either centerfield or right field.

Casey Kelly could go in the first round or could go completely undrafted. Kelly brings great defensive skills at shortstop and also brings a potential power bat to the position. He is a great athlete, which is part of the problem as he is also a highly recruited quarterback and could go to Tennessee as a starting shortstop and quarterback. Posse management is hoping he could become a third shortstop prospect with Jackson and Beckham.


Alex Meyer is probably the one that will fall the most from this group. He is still a first round talent, as the 6'7" righthander has a plus fastball and nasty breaking ball. The challenge is he wants to go to college and many will waste a high draft pick on that risk. Meyer will probably either go undrafted or will be taken with a 5th-10th rounder by a team willing to spend. The only way he will not go to Kentucky is if hr is offered first round money.


Isaac Galloway has long be thought of a first round talent, but some concern over his ability to hit has decreased his stock this spring. Galloway has the tools to be a strong offensive player as he has plus bat speed and typically makes solid contact. Whichever team drafts him will probably have to adjust his swing to bring some power into his game. Defensively, Galloway is a gold glove potential centerfielder. Posse management hopes this Torii Hunter clone can make the necessary adjustments to become their Torii Hunter of the future.


Daniel Webb is a power pitching prospect that currently is a work in progress on his secondary pitches. Webb has the ability of being a top of the rotation starter if he learns to throw some secondary pitches or could end up being a closer. Posse management expect he will be drafted in the second to fifth rounds, will start of as a starter but will eventually make the majors as a reliever.


Oh how one's stock can drop...from the next ARod to the next University of Miami third baseman. That is the story of Harold Martinez. Six months ago Martinez was a first round talent that had the tools to become a top five selection. After a horrible senior season, he will most likely be drafted late and will head to Miami. The only way that path will be changed is if someone believes a few tweaks could take advantage of his raw skillset.