2010 Arizona Diamondbacks Top 10 Prospects

I am not a Diamondbacks fan.

I have nothing against the team but I'm a Phillies fan.

Every season I made up a list of who I thought should be the Phillies Top 10 prospects. To better learn the league I decided to do one for every team.

What I learned from doing Arizona's list was that most of their best talent came from the 2009 MLB draft.

I also hope you like 1B because there are three possible 1B on the list.

If I missed someone or am just completely wrong please tell me.

I now present to you the 2010 Arizona Diamondbacks Top 10 Prospects.

 

I) Brandon Allen—1B (Age 24 when season starts)

A midseason pickup by the D-Backs for Tony Pena, Allen flourished in AAA Reno. In Reno he put up a state line that read as such: .324/12/32. The 1B finished the season with a .298 average. 20 RBI, and 75 RBI, and an OPS of .876.

He got a brief call up and in 104 AB he hit a measly .202 average but did hit 4 HR and 14 RBI. So while he didn’t hit for average in his short time he hit for power.

In 2009 he played for 2 different organizations, at 3 different levels, and on 4 different teams.

Final 2009 combined stat line: .250 BA, 91 R, 154 H, 31 2b, 24 HR, 89 RBI, 551 AB.

Not too shabby.

 

II) Ryan Wheeler—1B (Will turn 22 in July)

Was a 5th round pick by the D-Backs in the 2009 draft and hit the hell out of the ball.

In Low A Yakima he hit .363/5/36. He got promoted to Class A South Bend and didn’t miss a beat finishing the season in South Bend with a line that looked much like his Yakima line: .345/1/8.

I’ve read he has really good strike zone discipline (32 SO in 263 AB) which will be tested next season when he should get a call up to Visalia.

No matter what your problem with Wheeler may be, the kid had a 1.002 OPS. In his first professional season. That is something that gets you serious prospect recognition.

 

III) Jarrod Paker—RHP (Will be 21 at the start of the season)

No stranger to top prospects lists, Parker is one of the better ones in the D-Backs system.

He’s a 21-year-old who will be looked on to probably be the Ace of the Mobile team. Last season he started out the season in High A Visalia and had an ERA of .95, dominating in four games. Parker proved to be worthy of a promotion and earned one.

Most scouts say the true test of a prospects' worth is to see how he can react to the jump from Single A to AA. Parker didn’t match his Single A numbers in Mobile but put up solid numbers. 4-6 record with a 3.68 ERA. Baseball America stated that he has the best Fastball, Curve, and Slider in the system.

He is definitely someone to keep an eye on going into the 2010 season.

 

IV) Allen "AJ" Pollock—CF (Will be 22 at start of the season)

The 17th overall pick from the 2009 draft Pollock was thrust right into Class A Midlands starting lineup last season. His first professional season ended well considering he skipped Rookie ball and Short season season.

He hit for average (.271) and showed some wheels (10 SB, 4 CS). Pollock hit leadoff for the Silver Hawks last season and scored 36 R and had a .319 OBP. He will need to work on his plate discipline a little bit if he wants to be a leadoff hitter. Pollock is getting about 1 walk forever 2 K's.

He should start next season for Visalia.

 

V) Bryan Augenstein—RHP (Will turn 24 in July)  

Like Parker, Augenstein has been a top prospect for the D-Backs for some time now and even got the call to the show last season where in 17 IP he struggled with a 7.94 ERA.

Personally, I don’t think he deserved the promotion to the show.

Augenstein started out the season in AA Mobile and made hitters look stupid. In AA he had a .99 ERA.

You read that right.

In 9 games, he went 5-0 and then got a call up to AAA Reno. In Reno he struggled a bit. In 8 games (36 IP) he went 2-5 with a 5.50 ERA.

I personally think he should have never been called up and should be made to prove himself in AAA next season as he will turn 24 and be matured.

 

VI) Bobby Borchering—3B (Will be 19 at the start of the season)

Borchering was the 16th overall pick, one pick ahead of AJ Pollock. While Pollock moved right to South Bend, they kept Borchering in the Rookie Pioneer league.

While he didn’t hit amazingly he didn’t do too bad considering he was a HS facing his first professional season. In 87 AB's he had a stat line that read: .241/2/11. 2 HR in only 87 AB isn’t bad at all. He also added in 8 2B.

A good hitting 3B is worth his weight in gold so if Borchering can keep up his power hitting numbers next season he will really start to open some eyes.

 

VII) Chris Owings—SS (Will turn 19 in August)   

The 41st overall selection from the 2009 draft, Owings certainly proved he belonged last year. Most of the time when you draft a HS kid high you don’t know exactly what you’re getting.

A lot can struggle, even in Rookie ball where Owings spent the 2009 season. While some may struggle Owings did not.

In Missoula he hit .306/2/10 with 3 SB and 0 CS. Granted he only had a little over 100 AB's last season but in his very short stint he at least, to me, proved he deserved to start next season as the starting SS of the Yakima Bears.

But shockingly GM Josh Byrnes isn’t calling me asking my opinion so Owings could see some more work in the Rookie level next season as well.

 

VIII) Paul Goldschmidt—1B (Will turn 23 in Sept.)

Another product of the 2009 draft, Goldschmidt was taken in the 8th round.

He was by far one of the best players, if not the best player, in Rookie ball.

Just look at this kid’s stat line: .334 BA, 27 2B, 18 HR's, 65 RBI, and a 1.045 OPS.

In my personal opinion I think he should have gotten a shot at Low A Yakima. With his age (22) it might have been good to test him at the next level since he was crushing the ball at the Rookie Level. My only thought could be that Wheeler playing 1B in Yakima was blocking him from a possible promotion.

He really needs to skip some levels this year and prove he’s worth being on this list. It would be nice to see him hit High A Visalia next season. What hurts Goldschmidt is the fact that this team has Wheeler who is already a level up on him and with the NL having the no DH it takes a possible spot away from him.

If he keeps up the production I could see him getting traded.

Oh I almost forgot.

His .344 BA, 18 HR, and .638 SLG were best for D-Backs minor leaguers.

 

IX) Berling Cruz—RHP (will turn 20 in June)  

Led Arizona’s Dominican Summer League in ERA: 2.23 ERA and 7 Wins. He pitched in 68.2 IP which was good for 3rd on the team in the categories. and had about a 2-1 SO/BB ratio. He should make the jump to Rookie ball next year

 

X) Reynaldo Navarro—SS (Will be 18 when season starts)

One of the youngest members on my list, Navarro will probably look to make an impact next season in the Pioneer league (Rookie Ball). For the Dominican Summer League he posted a .280 BA with 1 HR, 11 RBI, and 12 SB with 8 CS.

I know nothing that’s jumping off the page (this is kind of what I meant when I said the D-Backs' system was lacking something). Reason he makes it to No. 10 is because he’s a great fielder and he plays SS. A SS can make a career on his glove alone in the majors (looking at you John McDonald).

He’s raw as hell but he’s also 18. Give him time.

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