MLB Prospect Watch

Making Moves - 6/1

There was a lot of noteworthy prospect movement over the long Memorial Day Weekend...

• There's no way you could have missed it, but in case you did, the Nationals announced that the Stephen Strasburg Era will officially begin on June 8th, reports Bill Ladson of MLB.com.  He'll make his last minor league start on June 3rd.  We'll miss talking about him here at MLBPW, and something tells me he won't be back to the minors.
• Somehow, we can't say the same thing about Buster Posey with any confidence.  As Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle points out, the Giants have a decision to make once Mark DeRosa comes off the DL, and moving Posey back to the minors is still on the table.  So is having him catch more regularly.  Fellow Chronicle writer Bruce Jenkins explains just how stupid it would be to send Posey back to the minors.
• The Cubs called Andrew Cashner up to the majors and used him in their bullpen right away, reports Gordon Wittenmyer of Inside the Cubs.  Casher needed only one pitch to record his first and only major league out in his debut.
• The Pirates won't be promoting their triumvirate of prospects anytime soon, according to Chuck Finder of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.  Quoting Pirates' GM Neal Huntington, Finder offers an explanation why Brad Lincoln, Pedro Alvarez, and Jose Tabata will remain in the minors for the time being, and frankly, all three explanations make sense.  Recent call-up Neil Walker is proving he belongs, however, and appears to be taking over at second base full-time, says Gazette writer Dejan Kovacevic.
• Scott Elbert is back in the minors after an uninspiring performance out of the Dodgers' bullpen over the weekend.
• Tyler Flowers could get a promotion despite his struggles at the plate, thanks to the White Sox desire to avoid A.J. Pierzynski's approaching 10-and-5 rights, reports Scott Merkin of MLB.com.
• The Indians have promoted hard-throwing lefty Nick Hagadone to Double-A, reports Tony of Indians Prospect Insider.

Posey Promoted to SF

The San Francisco Giants have called up top prospect Buster Posey, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.  Yesterday, Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News reported that Posey could be called up and would see time at first base.

Posey, the Giants' top prospect and only immediate hitting help in their farm system, was batting .349 for Triple-A Fresno at the time of his promotion, while splitting time between his natural catcher position and first base.  Giants' GM Brian Sabean had claimed that Posey would remain in Triple-A until he could handle the Giants' catching duties defensively, but it remains to be seen if Posey's promotion is because of his progression behind the plate or the Giants' pressing offensive needs.

It can be assumed that Posey's call-up means he will receive regular at-bats in the Giants' lineup, likely seeing time at both first base and catcher.  The Giants have one of the most flexible lineups in baseball, with regulars Pablo Sandoval, Freddy Sanchez, Aubrey Huff and Juan Uribe all capable of playing multiple positions.  This should allow manager Bruce Bochy to work Posey in to the lineup on a regular basis while keeping veteran players fresh.

Making Moves - 5/28

• Arizona Diamondbacks' top prospect Jarrod Parker is back on the mound on the road to recovery from Tommy John surgery, reports Steve Gilbert of MLB.com.  Parker had surgery last October and is just beginning to throw.
• Also on the long road back from injury is Jared Mitchell, but the White Sox' prospect is ahead of schedule, says Jeff Buchanan of Future Sox.com.
• Jason Castro should be in Houston at some point this season, reports Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle.
• Mike Stanton is coming, reports Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, whether the Marlins' outfielders are ready or not.  Joe Frisaro of MLB.com goes over the Marlins' options for getting everyone enough at-bats.
• Orioles' prospect Kieron Pope is back in action after recovering from a broken leg, writes Noah Rosenstein of MLB.com.
• Jack Moore of FanGraphs.com makes the latest case for Buster Posey's promotion to San Francisco.
• The Cubs have put Andrew Cashner in their Triple-A bullpen in order to get him ready for a relief role in the majors later in the season, reports Carrie Muskat of MLB.com.  Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times adds his input as well.  The Cubs made a similar move with fellow prospect Jay Jackson earlier this season, and either or both could be at Wrigley this year.
• Basebal America has their weekly transaction report, which includes a few moves that slipped under the radar, including:
• • Lonnie Chisenhall (CLE) to the 7-day DL (shoulder)
  • Zack Wheeler (SF) to the 7-day DL (fingernail...seriously)
  • Zach Braddock (MIL) added to the 40-man roster and could be in line for a call up

Notable Prospect Performances - 5/25

The news flash that Stephen Strasburg gave up his first earned run in Triple-A isn't nearly as interesting as why he was taken out after only 52 pitches.  It could be that the Nationals wanted to limit his pitch count and chose a start where he was merely good but not dominant to do it.  It could be that he'll be in Washington sooner than expected.  Or perhaps they're just babying him.  Only time will tell...

• Speaking of guys who probably shouldn't be in Triple-A, Jeremy Hellickson retired the first 18 batters he faced en route to 8 scoreless innings of one-hit ball, reports Robert Emrich of MLB.com.  Hellickson would probably be in the majors for 29 other teams, but not the Rays.
• Someone needs to get Kyle Russell out of the California League before he hurts someone and into a more hitter-neutral league so we can properly gauge his abilities.  The Dodgers' OF prospect hit two more home runs on Monday to bring his 2010 Cal League totals to .341/12/41.  Dee Gordon, the team's top prospect, collected 4 hits in his Double-A game on Monday night to get his batting average back up to .291.  After a red-hot April in which he hit .345, Gordon is still hitting just .239 in May.
• Buster Posey put together a 4-hit game bring his average to .344 on the season, continuing to prompt speculation like this and rebuttals like this.
• Tyler Skaggs turned in a nice performance, striking out 6 over 5 innings while giving up just one earned run as part of an Angels' system that is becoming increasingly deep in the low minors.
• Tim Alderson (PIT) responded with a solid outing, tossing 7 strong innings while striking out 5 and walking none, lowering his ERA to 5.17 on the season.

Prospect Hot Sheet - 5/14

Baseball America is back with their weekly Hot Sheet, with one huge name leading the way.  This week's list includes:

• Tanner Bushue
• Koby Clemens
• Randall Delgado
• Wilmer Flores
• Jose Iglesias
• Roger Kieschnick
• Marc Krauss
• Lance Lynn
• Devin Mesoraco
• Mike Minor
• Buster Posey
• Garrett Richards
• Mauricio Robles
• Jerry Sands
• Brandon Short
• Kyle Skipworth
• Stephen Strasburg
• Mike Trout
• Neil Walker
• Brett Wallace

Reporting in with less-than-stellar news are Aaron Crow, Josh Reddick, Gustavo Nunez, Rymer Liriano.