BD Spring Training Report: Play Ball | Baseball Digest

BD Spring Training Report: Play Ball | Baseball Digest

Sunshine, palm trees or cacti, the smell of freshly cut grass, beer and hot dog vendors peddling their wares. Yes, baseball is back. Catchers and pitchers, as well as some positional players getting an early start, have reported to Florida and Arizona to begin spring training. Arguably, THIS, is the most wonderful time of the year. Especially if you’re like me, living in a colder, northern climate, it means there is some light at the end of the tunnel.

So many questions during this spring training…Will Albert Pujols sign a new deal before his self imposed deadline/scheduled day to report? Will Jesus Montero make the Yankees 25 man squad? Is Josh Beckett healthy? Can Don Mattingly manage a Major League club? Can anyone stop the Phillies starting rotation?

And of course spring training means that while teams may look much better than others on paper, everyone has a clean slate. Everyone can dream of the post-season, of hitting .300, and throwing a perfect game. Of popping champagne corks and hoisting the World Series trophy. There are some that will place too much emphasis on the games themselves- George Steinbrenner was infamous for that- but the most important thing in spring training is to come out of it healthy. The miles per hour on the fastball will come as will the bat speed. But keeping the hamstrings and shoulders and elbows healthy is much better than having the best record in the Grapefruit or Cactus League. That’s why the focus of today’s spring training report is those players we shall dub…

The Comeback Kids

Soon we’ll be getting a chance to see if players that were injured last year or in prior years have what it takes to get back to playing Major League Baseball. Here are some of the stories to follow this spring.

Brandon Webb is being counted on to help replace Cliff Lee in the Texas Rangers starting rotation. Webb averaged 17.5 wins per season from 2005-2008 and 231.2 innings. Apparently the latter took it’s toll. Webb went on the DL in April, 2009 with what was originally diagnosed as bursitis. After rehabbing it for several months, Webb had to undergo surgery and missed all of the 2010 season.

According to the Dallas Morning News, Webb recently told the Ben and Skin radio show in Dallas that he’s excited about the upcoming season. “I’ve made some dramatic strides. If anybody had been around me for the past month or so since I’ve been throwing, it’s been awesome. I don’t think they have to be too patient. I think I should be totally ready to go in spring training, jumping right in with the guys and just carrying on like a normal spring training for myself.”

In case Webb doesn’t recapture his 2007 NL CY Young form, he does have something to fall back on; he’s begun selling used cars with his brother in-law.

Carlos Santana can play a mean guitar, but baseball’s Carlos Santana can swing a mean bat and call a pretty good game. The Cleveland Indians catcher is hoping to be at full strength for the start of the season as he continues his way back from a torn LCL and surgery. Santana was knocked out for the remainder of the 2010 season when his knee lost a collision with the Red Sox’ Ryan Kalish in early August.

Santana, who hit .300 over his first 20 big league games, recently got word from his doctor that he can resume full baseball activities. That’s good news for the Indians who are in a rebuilding stage and need all the help they can get.

Indians fans are also hoping for a big comeback from Santana’s teammate Grady Sizemore. The one time five tool prospect has suddenly become injury prone and is trying to make his way back from the microfracture knee surgery he had last June. Sizemore was a budding superstar, who from 2005-2008 averaged 27 HR, 29 SB, and 116 runs while playing Gold Glove defense. He once played in 382 consecutive games. But Sizemore played in groin and elbow pain for all of the 2009 season and it showed in his lackluster offensive production. Finally the Indians shut him down in September and he underwent surgery on both areas.

Last season Sizemore injured his left knee during spring training and then aggravated it in a game against Baltimore in mid-May. When doctors went in they found extensive cartilage damage and opted for the more complex microfracture surgery based on Sizemore’s desires to “…play another 10 years” and “…only have one knee surgery”. Indians GM Chris Antonetti told MLB.com Jordan Bastian that he’s hoping that Sizemore will be ready at the start of the season or “shortly thereafter”.

Chien-Ming Wang was a two time 19-game winner and unlikely ace for the New York Yankees in 2006-2007. But a Lisfranc injury prematurely ended his 2008 season and then shoulder trouble limited him to just 12 games in 2009. Surgery followed, causing Wang to miss all of the 2010 season after signing as a free agent with the Washington Nationals. GM Mike Rizzo told MLB.com’s Bill Ladson back in January that he was confident that the Taiwanese native would be ready to go when camp broke.

With the retirement of Andy Pettitte and the inability to land Cliff Lee via free agency, the Yankees have brought in a number of pitchers to compete for the fourth and fifth spots in the rotation. One of them is former AL CY Young winner Bartolo Colon, who did not pitch in the Major Leagues in 2010. Colon found some success and some life on his fastball (91 mph) in winter ball recently, so he decided to give “The Show” another shot. Colon has reportedly lost a substantial amount of weight and hopes that his arm and shoulder issues are behind him. He has not been able to reach 100 innings since his 21-win, CY Young season in 2005.

Colon won’t have to look far to see another reclamation case. Suiting up near him will be former top Cubs prospect Mark Prior. The right-hander hasn’t pitched in the Majors since 2006 due to an assortment of arm issues. After selecting Prior with the 2nd overall pick in the 2001 draft, the Cubs were salivating at the thought of a 1-2 punch of Kerry Wood and Prior for many years to come. Sometimes life just doesn’t work out the way you planned, in particular for Mark Prior and his pitching career.

It didn’t start out that way though. Prior finished third in the 2003 NL CY Young voting after finishing with an 18-6, 2.43 mark in 30 starts. Then things started to turn- a line drive off his pitching elbow created a fracture in 2005. An MRI during spring training the following season showed a moderate shoulder strain. Something was clearly still wrong when he returned- teams rocked him to the tune of better than seven earned runs a game. When shoulder tendinitis put him on the DL in August, little did Prior know it would be the last time he would pitch on a major league mound.

After initially ruling it out, Prior had to go under the knife in April, 2007 to have the shoulder cleaned up. Renowned surgeon Dr. James Andrew was confident Prior would pitch in ’08 following the procedure. But a year later a tear in Prior’s shoulder led to another surgery and another missed season. Prior tried to come back with the Padres in ’09. but was released in August. Part of 2010 was spent in an independent league and for a short time in the Rangers organization. Which leads us to where Prior is today, having signed a minor league deal with the Yankees in December. One more shot, one more time hoping to recapture something, to come back as a reliever.

Yes, spring training is a time for new hopes, redemption, and a lot of daydreaming.

FullCountPitch - These Guys are Catching on

This week's column for FullCountPitch.com is about the new breed of catchers making their way in the Major Leagues and trying to be the next Joe Mauer.

It’s not often that a rookie catcher makes a huge impression in the Major Leagues, but that is exactly what Buster Posey did last season for the San Francisco Giants. The National League rookie of the year hit .305 with 18 home runs and 67 RBI in just 108 games. His defense was stellar as well- he threw out 37% of would-be base stealers and caught a starting rotation that was the key to the Giants’ first World Series victory in 56 years. The rookie also stepped up in the playoffs, hitting a combined .288 in three series with a home run and five ribbies.

The 23-yr old is part of a new breed of catcher that is beginning to have a big impact on Major League Baseball. The position is no longer referred to as the “tools of ignorance” and the prototypical catcher is no longer built like a fireplug. The new guys are athletic, quick, solidly built, and can hit the heck out of the baseball.

Click Here to read the rest of the free column and to read more about Jesus Montero, Carlos Santana, J.P. Arencibia, and Matt Wieters.

BD Hot Stove: NL East Prospects | Baseball Digest

Mets prospect Wilmer Flores hopes his bat can live up to the Miguel Cabrera comparisons.

BD Hot Stove: NL East Prospects | Baseball Digest

It’s time for the Hot Stove to wrap up the top prospect look in the National League by concentrating on the NL East.

Phillies: Ever since the Phillies drafted outfielder Domonic Brown in the 2006 amateur draft (20th round) they’ve waited excitedly and patiently for his presence on the big league roster. Phillies fans got a taste last year when injuries caused a call up for Brown in late July. Brown doubled, drove in two runs and scored twice in his major league debut, but things weren’t so easy after that. Brown’s splits (.210/.257/.335) showed he wasn’t ready for prime time yet after just 28 games at the Triple-A level. But his time in the minors in 2010 did show he’s getting very close.

Brown is a tremendous athlete (He turned down a football scholarship to the U of Miami) and it showed in his game last year. The 23-yr old hit 15 HR and drove in 47 runs in just 65 games at Double-A Reading before a promotion to Lehigh Valley of the Int’l League. There he added another five home runs and 21 RBI in 28 games. He also stole 17 bases between the two levels and played all three outfield positions. With Jayson Werth gone, he’ll get a chance to battle Ben Francisco for playing time in the Phillies outfield.

Mets: Pitcher Jenrry Mejia was the most talked about player in the Mets organization last year and is still ranked as their top prospect in some circles. But we’re going with shortstop Wilmer Flores as the top youngster in the Mets organization. The now 19-yr old was signed as a 16-yr old out of his native Venezuela in 2007. He made an immediate impression in rookie ball when he slugged eight home runs and drove in 42 runs and has already drawn comparisons to his fellow countrymen Miguel Cabrera.

Flores struggled mightily in ‘A’ ball in 2009, but bounce back last year, splitting his season of 133 games nearly in half between Savannah (‘A’) and Port St. Lucie (‘A+’). Flores hit 11 home runs, drove in 84 runs, and recorded a decent .758 OPS. Flores is a contact hitter who needs to learn to show more patience at the plate (He drew just 32 walks last season.). Listed as 6’3″, 175 lbs, Flores won’t last at shortstop much longer as he gets bigger and stronger. The only question is where will he go, to the outfield or to a corner position?

Marlins: Florida has had some pretty good hitting 3rd baseman in their 18 year history. Mike Lowell, Miguel Cabrera, Bobby Bonilla, Gary Sheffield (the latter two saw limited time there.)…Lowell provided Gold Glove defense to boot (or in this case should it be “not to boot”?). Could Matt Dominguez be next in line? He’s shown the glove so far, but he’ll hit have to improve offensively to stick in the major leagues. Dominguez was the Marlins 1st round pick (12th overall) in the 2007 amateur draft out of Chatsworth (CA) High School. Power came quickly to Dominguez in the minors- he hit 18 home runs as an 18-yr old at Single-A Greensboro in 2008. He added 16 doubles, a .296 average, and an impressive .853 OPS. But Dominguez took a step back the last two years to the type of player the scouts feel is the truer picture. A .250 hitter with 15 home run power and a decent run producer (81 RBI, 61 runs at Double-A Jacksonville last season).

Marlins hitting instructor John Mallee had this assessment of Dominguez early last year. “(Dominguez is) a hitter whose swing had gotten long, who was chasing balls out of the zone with two strikes and who was not staying behind the ball. But he was encouraged that Dominguez still had good pitch recognition. He’s getting better and better at staying behind the ball and when he does that he’s really going to hit. He’s coming. I think he’s going to be legitimate.”

With Wes Helms manning the hot corner this season for Florida, Dominguez will have an excellent shot at taking over the job in 2012.

Braves: It would be hard to top the splash Jason Heyward made on Major League Baseball last season, but right-handed pitcher Julio Teheran may not be too far away from creating a commotion of his own. Teheran was signed as a 16-yr old by the Braves out of his native Colombia after impressing scouts with a low 90′s fastball. After playing rookie ball for two years, Teheran spent 2010 at three different levels last season, making an impression at each stop. All told, Teheran struck out 159 hitters in 142 2/3 IP (10.0 per 9 innings) and had a 4:1 strikeout to walk ratio.

Braves GM Frank Wren had this to say about Teheran: “The first time I saw him, I thought of Pedro — a little taller Pedro. I still see that. He’s live-bodied. When you watched Pedro, you could see by the way he carried himself that he knew he was good and knew he was going to get you out. He exuded that, and Julio is kind of that way.”

Teheran has a consistent mid-90′s fastball, a good curve that breaks low in the zone, and an even better changeup. He’s received an invite to the big league camp, but will start the season in Triple-A. He definitely has a great shot to get a pre-September call up in 2011 and an even better shot at being in the rotation in 2012.

Nationals: I’ll give you one guess who the Nationals top prospect is. If you didn’t say Bryce Harper, go directly to jail and don’t collect $200 (Haven’t seen any new Monopoly boards lately, is it still just $200?). Harper is of course the teen phenom that (along with his parents) ticked off people by skipping out of high school two years (he did get his GED) early to play ball at the JUCO level. The 18-yr old was the #1 selection in last year’s amateur draft. Right at the signing deadline, he inked a five year, $9.9M deal that included a $6.25M signing bonus

Harper’s first professional exposure came in the Arizona Fall League, where he torn things up in a nine game stint for the Scottsdale Scorpions. A .410 (12-35) average included three doubles, two triples, and a home run. Harper drove in seven runs and posted a 1.039 OPS. There’s no question Harper can hit, but the organization has not decided yet whether to have him play outfield or to catch, the latter of which would slow his progression to the major leagues.

Rumors, News, and Transactions

Michael Young is mad as hell and isn’t going to take it any more. He may not throw a television out the window, but Young wants out of Texas..NOW! Feeling disrespected and misled by the Rangers front office, Young has demanded a trade. And Texas is happy to oblige, though it may not happen too quickly because of the $48M still owed the 3rd baseman.

Indians outfielder Grady Sizemore hopes to begin playing spring training games by mid-March as he continues his recovery from microfracture surgery on his knee. His teammate, catcher Carlos Santana, is making an even quicker recovery from his knee injury and has been cleared to hit and catch bullpen sessions.

Needing room on the 40-man roster for Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez, the Rays designated outfielder Justin Ruggiano for assignment.

White Sox pitcher Jake Peavy continues his way back from shoulder surgery and threw off of a mound earlier today.

Free agent catcher Bengie Molina has still not decided whether to play or not in 2011.

It’s not risky or even risque, but the Orioles have signed pitcher David Riske to a minor league deal. The Dodgers have done the same with infielder Aaron Miles.

Yankees May end Santana Talks

ESPN's Jayson Stark is reporting that the Yankees are close to ending negotiations with the Twins for Johan Santana. The Twins are still insisting on Ian Kennedy being part of the deal. And the Yankees are holding their ground to not adding him. Source

In the meantime, here's some "Evil Ways" from Carlos Santana (with a bonus political shot in the intro).

Yankees May end Santana Talks

ESPN's Jayson Stark is reporting that the Yankees are close to ending negotiations with the Twins for Johan Santana. The Twins are still insisting on Ian Kennedy being part of the deal. And the Yankees are holding their ground to not adding him. Source

In the meantime, here's some "Evil Ways" from Carlos Santana (with a bonus political shot in the intro).