MLB Prospect Watch

Cardenas Claimed by Cubs

The Chicago Cubs have claimed INF Adrian Cardenas off of waivers from the Oakland A's, reports Carrie Muskat of MLB.com.

Drafted 37th overall by the Phillies in the 2006 draft out of a South Florida high school, Cardenas has always been able to hit.  In fact, he holds a career .303 batting average in over 2800 minor league at-bats.  The problem with Cardenas is that he's always been a "tweener."

Drafted as a shortstop, he never profiled to stay at the position.  Some scouts envisioned a second baseman, while some saw him as a third baseman and some thought he'd have to end up in left field.  The Phillies shifted him to second base in 2007 before trading him to Oakland in the Joe Blanton deal in 2008.  

Cardenas continued to hit for average, but unfortunately never developed any power, making him a less than ideal fit for corner positions like third base and left field.  His defense at second base was average at best, and his plate discipline remained below average, making him a less than desirable top-of-the-order hitter.

With hitting for average becoming his only plus tool, Cardenas has developed into something of a Placido Polanco-type player, but with below average defense, which means a player without a ton of value.  In fact, in a search of players who played either second base, third base of left field and hit above .300 with an OBP below .370 and less than 10 home runs, Baseball-Reference.com came up with Polanco and Bobby Richardson as the players with the most similar seasons (8), but both of them were good defenders.  After that it was Mark Grudzieanek (6), who played more SS than Cardenas ever will, but is the best example of what he could be once he moved to second base - a solid average hitter with good doubles power that doesn't walk enough or have quite enough power to be completely effective.

Cardenas could profile now as a versatile bench player, who could enter a game late as a pinch hitter and play a number of defensive positions, giving a team versatility, as long as none of those positions need to be played well.

It's not a great role, but if he continues to hit for average, teams will continue to give him a chance.

Potent Potables - A's, Moore, Pirates, Cubs, Peacock

• A's prospects Josh Donaldson, Grant Green and Adrian Cardenas each drove in three runs en route to a birth in the PCL Championship Series, reports the Sacramento Bee.
• Matt Moore is heading to the majors, where he will join the Rays roster on Monday, says Daren Smith of MiLB.com.
• Kolten Wong's two hits helped lead his Cardinals teammates to a birth in the Midwest League Championship Series, notes FutureRedbirds.net.
• Tim Williams of PiratesProspects.com compares highly regarded prospect Stetson Allie with lesser-known Nick Kingham, and who should rate higher within the Pirates system.
• The Daytona Cubs clinched the Florida State League title behind the pitching of Dae-Eun Rhee and the bat of Matt Szczur, reports David Heck of MiLB.com.
• The Nationals are going to give Brad Peacock a start, likely to come on Wednesday, says Bill Ladson of MLB.com.

 

 

Prospect Action - Robles, Surkamp, May

• Mauricio Robles battled extreme control issues on Sunday, as the Mariners prospect walked seven of the 11 batters he faced, reports Mike Curto of The [Tacoma] News Tribune.
• Adrian Cardenas had an RBI single in extra innings to help lead his A's teammates to victory, notes The Sacramento Bee.
• Pirates pitching prospect Rudy Owens threw seven scoreless innings, says Nancy Zinni of PiratesProspects.com.
• Eric Surkamp struck out 10 batters as the Giants LHP prospect tossed a seven-inning complete game, reports Andrew Pentis of MiLB.com.
• Jiwan James went 3-for-4 with two doubles and a triple in support of Phillies teammate Trevor May, who struck out 11 batters in six innings of work, notes Adrian Martinez of MiLB.com.

 

Making Moves - 5/5

Baseball America has released their weekly transaction list from the previous week, which mentions a few minor DL transactions that snuck though the cracks, including:

• Matt Antonelli of the San Diego Padres to the 60-day DL because of surgery on his hamate bone, one day after being recalled.
• The Blue Jays put Travis D'Arnaud on the DL with a "tweaked back."
• Notable names returning from the DL include Reese Havens (NYM), Andrew Brackman (NYY), and Adrian Cardenas (OAK).

Not mentioned because it just happened today was a transaction by the Atlanta Braves that saw them promote reliever Craig Kimbrel to take the spot in their bullpen vacated by Kris Medlen, who will be replacing injured starter Jair Jurrjens in the rotation, reports Carroll Rogers of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.  Kimbrel had been in a spring training battle for the last spot in the Braves' bullpen, but lost out to Jesse Chavez.  Kimbrel had 6 saves in Triple-A this season, and had struck out 21 batters in 15 innings, while walking only 5.  He had a 1.20 ERA.

Link: A's Prospects Cardenas, Taylor

Oakland A's INF prospect Adrian Cardenas, a former Phillie farmhand just like the recently acquired Michael Taylor, is now playing 3B, and is slated to stay there for the immediate future, reports Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.  Cardenas is high on Taylor, reflecting on his days playing with the 6'6" OF in the Phillies organization, calling him "a stud."