Prospect Pipeline

Cuban players Dariel Alvarez and Aledmis Diaz officially have been declared free agents, according to Jorge Ebro of El Nuevo Herald. First reported by Mark Sanchez of MLB.com on Nov.

After missing out on essentially every big-name free-agent signing and failing to execute a trade for Justin Upton before the Arizona Diamondbacks addressed their shortstop situation, Texas Rangers’ general manager Jon Daniels’ failure to sign Josh Hamilton may have caused irreparable damage.

The Cincinnati Reds’ top 10 prospects headed into the 2013 season actually looks similar to how it did one year ago. However, that's also a testament to the progress made by numerous players this past season.

After stealing 103 bases in 2011, the organization’s top prospect, Billy Hamilton, exploded for a record-setting 155 steals in 132 games while making substantial strides in his plate discipline and on-base skills.

The overall quality of the Baltimore Orioles’ farm system took a major hit last season with the graduation of Manny Machado, a consensus top-10 preseason prospect, to the major leagues. Luckily, the O’s boast the game’s top pitching prospect, right-hander Dylan Bundy, who reached the major leagues in mid-Sept. after opening the year with Low-A Delmarva.

With nearly two weeks left in the 2012 MLB regular season, every organization continues to evaluate their call-ups as a means of offering experience and determining a player’s role for next year.

Furthermore, there are are a number of prospects with the potential to be key contributors over the home stretch and possibly guide their respective organization into the postseason.

Here’s a look at five very talented rookies with the most to gain over the remainder of the 2012 season.

I’ll be the first to admit it: Sometimes it’s hard not to get wrapped up in a specific prospect’s performance. So when I see a player like C.J. Cron hit 27 home runs with 122 RBI but walk only 17 times in the California League, I’m forced to temper all excitement.

Fans are always quick to deem a prospect a “bust” simply because he under-produced relative to expectations. Although the compulsion to scrutinize under such circumstances is understandable, stating that a specific player has bottomed-out based on a one-year sample isn’t exactly sound reasoning.