Three Reds in GCL top 20.

by Thundering Turtle on Sep 23, 2009 5:48 PM EDT

Baseball America began its rankings of the top 20 players in the various minor leagues with the GCL. The Reds are well represented, with three players. Philadelphia, with four players, was the only organization with more.

Shortstop Billy Hamilton came in at No. 13. BA was impressed with his speed, arm and defense -- he led all GCL shortstops with a .955 fielding percentage. BA reported that Hamilton's switch-hitting is progressing, but he needs work on plate discipline. He struck out 47 times and walked 11. Hamilton's line was 0-11-.205 .253 .277 with 13 stolen bases in 16 attempts in 166 at bats. He is one of the faster runners in all of baseball.

Outfielder Yorman Rodriguez comes in at No. 16. BA loves Rodrguez's athletic ability, arm and smooth actions, but wonders if he'll hit. Rodriguez went 0-2-.274 .347 .421 and was 5-for-5 in stolen bases in 84 at bats before being promoted to Billings.

Rounding out the top 20 is personal favorite Daniel "Thundering" Tuttle, who drew praise for the armside run on his fastball, which sat in the 89-91 range while jumping to 94 once in a while. BA says Tuttle's off-speed stuff needs refinement, which a more consistent release point could help. Tuttle went 1-2 with a 1.67 ERA. In 9 games, 7 starts, and 32 innings, Tuttle struck out 30, walked 10 and gave up 32 hits. Foes batted .258.

Rookie league rankings often don't amount to much. Just two of the top 10 GCL players from five years ago hasvereached the majors and neither was in the top two. With that in mind, what's your ever-loving opinion on these guys?

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I say.

that what you say. Is what I say.

"And then there was the USAID guy in Kandahar who drove a giant pink Cadillac, which the locals set on fire one day. If you wanted to destroy something symbolic during a riot, you just could not do better than that. Good stuff." - Ghosts of Alexander

by Cy Schourek on Sep 23, 2009 6:47 PM EDT reply actions

TWSS

by Brian B on Sep 23, 2009 11:48 PM EDT up reply actions

Rookie Rankings

Like TT said, they mean very little. More often than not, the rankings in these leagues are not the rankings we will see in the team rankings or even the Top 100 rankings later this winter when they come out.

These lists are best used for the reports that come with them. I pay very little attention to the rankings and a lot more to the information that they come with.

www.redsminorleagues.com
www.FirstInning.com

by dougdirt on Sep 24, 2009 3:21 AM EDT reply actions