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| Monday, January 14 Updated: January 15, 11:23 AM ET Dodgers minor-league report By John Sickels Special to ESPN.com |
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System overview The Dodgers farm system was moribund during most of the 1990s, done in by a series of poor drafts, as well as neglect of the club's traditional focus in Latin America. When Kevin Malone became GM in 1998, he vowed to reverse this trend. While Malone's tenure was noted more for a big major-league payroll, various controversies, and a disappointing club, he and his staff did make progress reviving the farm system. Malone is gone now, but new GM Dan Evans will continue working to restore the Dodgers to their former glory. The Dodgers remain quite weak in position players. Malone liked "athletes," and focused on adding speed and athleticism to the system. The Dodgers do have lots of speed at the lower levels, but unfortunately they don't have many good hitters. The revival of Chin-Feng Chen last year helps, but there is little backing him up. The system is in better condition when it comes to pitchers, especially guys from Latin America. There are several hard-throwing youngsters on the way up the ladder, giving hope that Los Angeles' traditional pitching-heavy approach will make a comeback. Overall, the system grades out as average or a bit below average. 2001 Minor League W-L Percentage: .538, (ranked 8th) 2001 amateur draft The Dodgers took a high-risk strategy in 2001. They didn't have a first-round pick, forfeiting it for the signing of free agent Andy Ashby. Second-round choice Brian Pilkington, a high school pitcher from California, has a decent fastball, throws strikes with his curve, and is Bert Blyleven's nephew. He also had shoulder surgery at the end of the season, so don't expect him to move quickly. High school pitching was a big focus. Third-rounder David Taylor (Clermont, Florida), fourth-rounder Kole Stayhorn (Seminole, Oklahoma), and fifth-rounder Steve Nelson (Dartmourth, Nova Scotia) are all young, projectable, and talented. Stayhorn has the best fastball of the group, but all are promising. However, given the injury rate of young pitchers, the Dodgers should anticipate no more than one of them developing in a useful way. Which one is anyone's guess at this point. A major sleeper is 12th-round pick Cedric Benson, a high school outfielder from Texas with tremendous natural ability. He is raw, and playing football at Texas. If he chooses baseball, he could be really good ... but could also be a massive bust. A player who would have been a first-round pick if he'd been a North American is shortstop Joel Guzman, signed as a free agent from the Dominican Republic. He hasn't played yet, but has exceptional tools, enough to draw a bonus in excess of $2 million. We need to see some actual numbers before we know if he'll live up to the hype. Top prospects Players in the "Will Help Soon" section could see major-league action in 2002. Players in the "Will Help Someday" section shouldn't reach the majors until '03 or later, though of course that can change. Players are listed alphabetically. No 2001 draftees are listed. WILL HELP SOON Chin-Feng Chen, OF: Recovered from 2000 shoulder injury to re-establish himself as a hot prospect. Hit .313 with 17 homers in half a season of Double-A, showing good strike zone judgment. Should see L.A. sometime in 2002. Jorge Nunez, SS: Hit .260 with 44 steals for Double-A Jacksonville. Very fast, strong for his size (5-10). Struggles to control the strike zone. Ricardo Rodriguez, RHP: Went 14-6, 3.21 with 154 strikeouts in 154 innings for Class A Vero Beach. Throws 90-94 mph, has a nasty curve and improving control. Could see September action, and will challenge for rotation spot in '03. Joe Thurston, 2B: Hit .267 with 20 steals, 48 walks in Double-A. Very fast, has doubles power, needs to show he can hit for sufficient average and OBP. Defense is decent but not great. WILL HELP SOMEDAY Willy Aybar, 3B: Scouts love him, and he's just 19. But .237, four homers at Class A Wilmington was a big disappointment. Good strike zone judgment gives him a chance to break though. Ben Diggins, RHP: 2000 first-round pick, imposing at 6-7, 230. But erratic mechanics kept him from showing his 95-mph fastball much last year: he was just around 90 in the Arizona Fall League. Also needs better command. Hong-Chih Kuo, LHP: Throws 94-97 mph, and has recovered from Tommy John surgery. Working the rust off his other pitches. Watch for him early in '02. Jose Rojas, RHP: Another hard-thrower, can hit 94 mph despite 5-10 size. Also has a good slider. Posted 2.12 ERA for Class A Wilmington, but will need an offspeed pitch if he wants to start at higher levels. KEY SLEEPER Joel Hanrahan, RHP: Strong, 6-3, 210-pounder, from high school in Iowa. Throws hard, intelligent, and works hard. Went 9-11 with 3.38 ERA for Wilmington. Peripheral stats were mediocre, but he has done well for a pitcher from a cold-weather state. Other names to know Luke Allen, OF; Nick Alvarez, 1B; Jesus Cordero, RHP; Steve Coyler, LHP; Bubba Crosby, OF; Victor Diaz, 2B; Jose Garcia, OF; Koyie Hill, C; Clinton Hosford, RHP; Mike Kierstead, RHP; Brennan King, 3B; Ruddy Lugo, RHP; Lamont Matthews, OF; Will McCrotty, RHP; Jason Repko, SS; Fernando Rijo, RHP; Shane Victorino, OF. John Sickels is working on the 2002 STATS Minor League Scouting Notebook. He lives in Lawrence, Kansas, with his wife, son, and two cats. You can send John questions or comments at JASickels@aol.com, or you can visit his homepage at hometown.aol.com/jasickels/page1.html. |
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