Farmers Only: State of the Farm Address (Part 2)

16. Ryan LaMarre

2012: .263/.356/.353 30 SB in Pensacola
2013: .226/.315/.321 10 SB, 4 HR in Pensacola

On the surface, LaMarre's 2013 looks disappointing. However, if he was sporting the same BABIP as last year, he'd be hitting .302 with a .390 OBP. He's already just one home run shy of his total from last season, with 1/3 of the steals. His walk percentage is right around where it was last year, and he's actually cut his K-rate from 21.3% last year to 18.7% in 2013. Pair that with his above-average defense in center field, and it becomes apparent that LaMarre is quietly improving his stock

17. Donald Lutz

2012: .269/.336/.517 22 HR, 8 SB in Arizona Fall League/Bakersfield/Pensacola
2013: .211/.294/.513 5 HR, 2 SB in Pensacola
.250/.265/.333 1 HR, 2 SB in Cincinnati

The Knockwurst has been called into action in Cincinnati after the injuries to Ryan Ludwick and Chris Heisey. Luckily, Xavier Paul has shouldered most of the burden, but Lutz has acquitted himself better than I thought he would, considering he was rushed to the majors a bit. There's still some swing-and-miss in him, but we've been able to see his surprising speed and defense (save that one play against Colorado) in action. The power is real, though it didn't flash quite as much in the bigs, and I think Lutz will at least be a major league role player eventually.

18. Jonathan Reynoso

2012: .311/.328/.411 30 SB in Arizona for the AZL Reds
2013: N/A

Nothing to report on the prospect that came outta nowhere last year, as short-season rookie ball hasn't started up yet. I would assume he'll start in Billings to see if he can keep up the hot-hitting from last year. Let's hope he can take a few more walks.

19. Tucker Barnhart

2012: .247/.330/.363 38% CS% in Bakersfield/Pensacola
2013: .270/.339/.374 32% CS% in Pensacola

Barnhart has cooled off of late, but even with the slump, he's still hitting better than last season. He's walking at around a 10% clip, which isn't terribly far off his career norms. Ryan Hanigan-lite is making strides at the plate, and is well-known as a plus defender behind it. Good news here.

20. Ryan Wright

2012: .282/.331/.443 10 HR 17 SB in Dayton/Bakersfield
2013: .259/.308/.382 4 HR 1 SB in Bakersfield

Wright is struggling a bit this year compared to last year. He's not really flashing his speed much, and his power is down. Let's hope he can turn it around a bit, and take some more risks on the basepaths. He's a fast kid, so maybe he's just getting comfortable, but as a 23-year-old who played college ball at Louisville, you hope for him to develop a bit more quickly. We shall see.

21. Chad Rogers

2012: 143 IP, 2.90 ERA, 111 K, 35 BB, 1.224 WHIP in Bakersfield/Pensacola
2013: 60.2 IP, 2.23 ERA, 46 K, 21 BB, 1.055 WHIP in Pensacola

Rogers is probably one of the most undderrated prospects in the system. Maybe it's his generic name, maybe it's his not-flashy numbers, or maybe he's just flown under the radar in the shadow of much more ballyhooed pitching prospects like Cingrani, Corcino, Stephenson, Travieso and the like. Regardless, Sharkbait has continued to thrive pitching to contact and limiting walks, though his BB/9 this year of 3.12 is the highest of his young career since posting the same number his first season in pro-ball. He's a good'un, and I think his skills play well with the Reds emphasis on good defense (Choo notwithstanding).

22. Amir Garrett

2012: 20 IP, 4.05 ERA, 18 K, 13 BB, 1.55 WHIP in Arizona for the AZL Reds/Billings
2013: 20.1 Minutes/game, 5.4 Points/game, 4.3 Rebounds/game, .452 FG% for the St. John's Red Storm

23. Seth Mejias-Brean

2012: .313/.389/.536 8 HR, 6 SB in Billings
2013: .257/.338/.345 1 HR, 1 SB in Dayton

Sethy Two-Names is struggling in his second season. His walk and strikeout rates are almost identical to last year's, but all the power he showed in Billings has disappeared. It's been about the same sample size thus far, so there can't be a ton gleaned from his young career outside of the fact that he's got a solid BB/K ratio of 0.73 which has remained the only constant so far. I'd be patient with him, though he doesn't profile as a superstar.

24. Theo Bowe

2012: .290/.371/.357 70 SB in Dayton/Bakersfield
2013: .204/.281/.324 6 SB in Pensacola

Bowe has been seriously exposed or overmatched or whatever you want to call it so far this year in AA. He was a guy I didn't think deserved to be included on this list, but he is extremely fast, and knows how to take a walk, so I was open-minded. He's still walking at a hair under 10% of the time (the lowest of his career, but not by a sizable amount), but he's really fighting for playing time this year, with just 121 plate appearances this season so far. I think his upside is Derrick Robinson.

25. Neftali Soto

2012: .245/.313/.400 14 HR
2013: .276/.317/.421 6 HR in Louisville
0-2 in Cincinnati

Soto is having a better year than 2012, which was made even more disappointing following his 31 homer campaign the year before. He's walking less in 2013, but he's never been a big OBP guy, but he's flashing more power this season, which is a good sign. He's never going to slug .575 like he did in 2011, but if he can keep it in the mid-.400s he could serve a purpose in the bigs down the line as a bench bat.

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So who do you guys think has boosted their stock the most? And fallen? Which prospects will fall off the list, and who are good candidates to join it? Thanks for reading!