MLB Prospect Watch

Alvarez Promoted to Pittsburgh

Pirates' GM Neal Huntington fired his biggest and last prospect bullet yesterday when it was announced that the team would be promoting top prospect Pedro Alvarez, reports Colin Dunlap of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.  The move was a long time coming, as speculation and suggestion had building throughout the week, as had encouragement from Pirates' players.

Alvarez is as excited for the move as most Pirates' fans, but as Gene Collier points out, Alvarez's arrival won't fix the Pirates other issues.  Regardless, the 23-year-old third baseman instantly becomes the team's biggest power threat and interjects more youth into a lineup that now features three rookies playing regularly (along with Neil Walker and Jose Tabata).

Notable Prospect Performances - 5/26

• Neil Walker made his 2010 major league debut on Tuesday at third base of all positions.  The hot corner has been Walker's primary position for the past 3 seasons but he played only one game there this season before his promotion.  But, as Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports, the plan is still to get Walker as many at-bats as possible and the Pirates will likely move him all over the field in order to do so.
• Jake Arrieta threw another gem, allowing one run over 7 IP, reports Dean Jones, Jr. of the Baltimore Sun.  For what it's worth, the Orioles just moved David Hernandez to the bullpen and will need to fill his spot.  Just sayin...
• Kyle Gibson maintained his dominance through another start, racking up another 7 inning complete game.  Gibson hasn't missed a beat since his promotion to Double-A and is now 3-0, continuing to make teams reconsider their stance on drafting pitchers with arm injuries and rewarding the Twins for their faith.
• It's only a matter of time before Carlos Santana is in Cleveland, and he supported his case with another multi-hit game and his 10th homer of the season.  Here's hoping the Indians' announcers somehow work a "Not at the table, Carlos" into their home run calls.
• Kirk Nieuwenhuis continues to quietly put together a nice season, adding to it a 3-hit performance with a home run on Tuesday night.  The only knock on Nieuwenhuis to this point is his lack of plate discipline (46-to-9 K/BB rate), though his walk rate was twice that last year so he's not a lost cause.  He'll still need to improve that rate now that he's at the higher levels of the minors before the Mets can truly consider him in the majors.
• The decision to keep Jonathan Singleton in extended spring training looks like a wise one by the Phillies, as the power-hitting 1B prospect has put on a hitting display since joining Lakewood and continued the show with a 4-hit game and a home run on Tuesday.  Singleton is now hitting .432 with 4 home runs in 13 games.
• Randall Delgado was dominant, putting his K-BB ratio at 5.66-to-1 on the season.
• Michael Bowden was not, taking 91 pitches to get through 4 1/3 IP, but actually managed to lower his ERA to 5.83.
• Jake Odorizzi continues to miss bats, as he struck out 7 in as many innings en route to his 3rd win of the season for the Brewers' Midwest League affiliate, the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers.

Walker Promoted to Pittsburgh

Heading into May 5th, the Pirates needed a position player to add to their roster.  Their decision came down to Steven Pearce and Neil Walker, and the ultimate decision ended up being Pearce with the ultimate deciding factor cited by Pirates' brass being Walker's lack of hustle in a particular game.

That lack of hustle officially cost Walker 20 days in the major leagues, a tally which ended today when Walker was called up to Pittsburgh to replace the DL-bound Pearce, reports Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Walker was having the type of year in Triple-A that had been expected from him when he was the team's first round pick in 2004.  No longer a catcher, Walker has seen significant time at 1B and LF while spending the majority of time at his newest position, second base.  He also can still play 3B, the position he played full-time for 3 full seasons and became quite adept at, but vacated in favor of Pedro Alvarez.

In Pittsburgh, Walker will be a utility corner INF, but given the lack of production from regular 2B Akinori Iwamura (.163/.270/.234 on the season), a hot week or two could see Walker in the lineup on a regular basis.

Pirates' Prospect News

After last night's drubbing, Pirates' fans are in need of some good news.  Luckily, their future is looking bright (at least brighter than their present and past) with a few potential major leaguers right on the horizon.

• The Pirates don't have the deepest farm system in baseball, but what they do have is some major league ready talent, reports Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com.  What Pirates' fans want to know is when Pedro Alvarez, Brad Lincoln, and Jose Tabata will be making their appearances at PNC Park, but there is virtually no chance any of them will be there before June.  Tabata is likely the furthest away of the three, but could still be in the big leagues by the end of the season.
• Tabata, according to J.J. Cooper of Baseball America, is faster than he looks.  Luckily, you don't have to look fast to be fast.  Tabata is stealing bases again for the first time since he was a teenager in the low minors, and that, coupled with a more consistent line drive stroke than in years past, has made Tabata look like the team's leadoff hitter of the future.  Of course he'll have to improve his walk rate and maintain his .340 career minor league BABIP to make that happen.
• Alvarez is the bat that no one doubts, especially after his hot May in Triple-A, reports John Wagner of MiLB.com.  Even his defensive work at 3B has improved to the point where there are no immediate plans to move him.  The only question at this point is what kind of hitter Alvarez becomes.  At the very worst, it appears he will fall somewhere in the Adam Dunn/Russell Branyan mold of Three True Outcomes hitters, but should be manage to cut down on the swings and misses and improve his consistency, he could become a dominant all-around hitter.
• The one name not mentioned here is Neil Walker, the Pirates 1st round draft pick back in 2004 who has gone from catcher of the future, to third baseman of the future, to potential utility player who can help the team in a number of different ways, reports J.J. Cooper.  Walker his hitting the ball well in Triple-A and has played 4 different positions so far this season.

Making Moves - 5/16

• The Florida State League wasn't much competition for Kyle Gibson, and it doesn't look like the Eastern League will be either.  That's the feeling you get after the Twins promoted their top pick from 2009 and watched him dominate in his first Double-A start.  Gibson struck out 10 batters in 7 1/3 IP en route to his first victory at the new level.
• After pulling the desperate move of keeping Jenrry Mejia in the majors to help their bullpen, the Mets are now considering sending him back down to the minors to work his way back in to the mold of a starter, says Michael Baron of MetsBlog.com.
• The Brewers could be getting suspended pitcher Jeremy Jeffress back soon.  The embattled pitcher with the blazing fastball is slated to return from his 100-game suspension for substance abuse sometime in the end of May, report Adam McCalvy and Jordan Schelling for MLB.com.  Jeffress has been suspended twice and has admitted problems with marijuana use in the past, but the Brewers need to make a decision on whether or not to add him to the 40-man roster by the end of the season or risk exposing him to the Rule V Draft.
• Neil Walker has proven everything he can in Triple-A, including learning a handful of new positions, so Tim Williams of BuccoFans.com asks the obvious question of when Walker will come to Pittsburgh.  Thanks to some service time math, it looks like we could see Walker up by the end of May.
• Baseball America has their complete list of transactions from last week, including a few that slipped under the radar:
• • Juan Francisco (CIN) to the 7-day DL
  • Kelvin de la Cruz (CLE) promoted to Double-A
  • Jacob Turner (DET) back from the 7-day DL
  • Randal Girchuk (LAA) to the 7-day DL (could miss 4-6 weeks with a sprained thumb)
  • Delois Guerra (MIN) promoted to Triple-A
  • Loek Van Mil (MIN) demoted from Double-A to High-A
  • Jemile Weeks (OAK) to the 7-day DL (could miss a month with tear in hip)
  • Jarred Cosart (PHI) back from 7-day DL