Dodgers Minor League Baseball Blog

Remember there was a tie at the bottom and tied for tenth on my list is Ivan DeJesus.  The shortstop mostly cashed in because he finished fifth on the Baseball America list.  He was tenth on John Sickels’ and didn’t even show up on Kevin Goldstein’s.  DeJesus was the Dodgers second round pick in 2005 and he had a mixed season after getting drafted.  He tore up the Gulf Coast League but he struggled at Ogden.  In 2006 he spent his entire season at Low A and was pretty mediocre.

DeJesus is a great fielder but he doesn’t have much in the way of power.  He has a grand total of one homerun in 676 and his slugging percentage is only .325.  He’ll turn 20 in May so the power could develop but he doesn’t even hit many doubles.  He does seem to have a good eye at the plate though and he could make a solid leadoff hitter if he continues to develop in on that end.  He’s also been playing a bit over his head so it’ll be interesting to see how he does in 2007 with some time most likely at Inland Empire in the Caly League.

I’m going to start my list of the top ten eleven Dodgers prospects tomorrow or Sunday.  Although I guess I shouldn’t say it’s my list, it’s a combination of three lists that I like the most.  I’ll be taking the top ten lists from Baseball America, Baseball Prospectus (Kevin Goldstein) and John Sickels and then similar to a fantasy baseball league, I’ll give ten points to each first place finish, nine points to each second place finish and so on.  I’ll then compile the points and work from there.  The reason it’s now the top eleven list is because there’s a tie down at the bottom. 

One thing I learned is that once you get past the top four, it’s kind of crap shoot.  You’ve got guys showing up at fifth place on one list, then not even on the next.  One player shows up in sixth place on one list, then doesn’t appear on either of the others.  So you’ll get their final results as well as some stas and thoughts on each guy.  Hopefully you’ll stop by as I make my way through the list leading up to the season.

Kevin Goldstein recently unveiled his Top 100 prospect list and the Dodgers are pretty well represented with four prospects on the list.  Clayton Kershaw comes in at number 16 and Andy LaRoche is at 20 to give the Dodgers two in the top twenty.   Scott Elbert came in at 32 and James Looney just missed making the top 50 with a finish at number 54. 

Baseball America released their list of the top ten Dodgers prospects today.  No major surprises and despite all of the promotions last year, the Dodgers remained stocked with talent.

Andy LaRoche comes in at number one.  LaRoche had solid numbers at both Double A and Triple A and he could be the teams starting third baseman this year if he has a solid spring.  If there’s one Dodger prospect to keep an eye on, it’s LaRoche because he has a legitimate shot at becoming an everyday starter right now.

Number two is the Dodgers first pick in last years draft, Clayton Kershaw.  The lefthander slipped to the Dodgers when Andrew Miller slipped to the Tigers and he completely lit up rookie ball.  He won’t turn 19 until March and we’ll be keeping an eye on him as he should start at either Low A or High A in 2007.

Number three is another left handed pitcher.  Scott Elbert was the Dodgers first round pick in 2004 and he had outstanding seasons at both High A and Double A.  He’ll probably start at Triple A but if he shows us something this spring, he could make the pen for the Dodgers.  I’d like to see him get time as a regular starter though so I think some time in Triple A would do him some good.

James Looney comes in at number four and he’ll suffer because the Dodgers picked Nomar Garciappara back up.  Regardless though, he’s shown all he can in the minors so he’ll probably make the team as a reserve left handed bat.

Rounding out the top five is second baseman Etanislao Abreu, who is a decent spray hitter.  He put up decent numbers in 2006 at Double A and we’ll probably see him in Las Vegas in 2007.

Welcome.  My name is Rich McMahon and I’ll be covering the Dodgers minor league system here all season.  If you have an interest in the Dodgers, I hope you’ll stop by and see how your prospects are doing.  And if you’re just a minor league fan, I hope you’ll check out what will hopefully be a growing network of minor league sites that should be popping up over the next couple of weeks.

For now, I’ll be keeping an eye on spring training and letting you know how the prospects are doing.  I’ll also be working on a composite list of the Dodgers top ten prospects similar to what Mike Cassidy at the Tigers Minor League Baseball Blog is putting together.