MLB Prospect Watch

Ramos to Washington for Capps

A trade involving Wilson Ramos was inevitable for the Minnesota Twins, considering the conversion of three major trade factors - the need for a contending team to add a piece, Ramos' status as a major-league ready prospect, and his positioning on the Twins' depth chart behind the reigning AL MVP who just signed a long-term deal.  The only question that remained concerned his ultimate destination.

We know now that our nation's capital is where Ramos has ended up, sent to Washington in exchange for Nationals' closer Matt Capps, reports the Minnesota Star Tribune.  Ramos had been rumored in multiple deals in the past month, including one centering around Cliff Lee.  Considering Ramos was one of the Twins most attractive trading chips, not everyone is happy with a two-month rental as a return.

Astros Flip Gose to Jays for Brett Wallace

In a surprising turn of events, the Houston Astros have sent Anthony Gose, who they just received from Philadelphia for Roy Oswalt, to Toronto in exchange for 1B Brett Wallace, according to Ken Rosenthal.

Wallace is now with his 4th organization since being drafted in 2008, and is not far from the majors.  He is far superior as an offensive player to Gose, but the Jays put a lot of value in Gose's defense, which scouts rate as having the potential to be at a Gold Glove level.

Anthony Gose Involved in Oswalt Deal

According to Jim Salisbury of CSN.com, one of the prospects heading to Houston in the Roy Oswalt trade is outfielder Anthony Gose.

Gose was a part of the Phillies 2008 draft in which they took a number of high-risk/high-reward players whose athleticism and tools were off-the-charts but were unpolished on the diamond.  Gose, a 2nd round pick, has fit that profile precisely, showing flashes of brilliance on the field mixed in with moments of inexperience.

A brilliantly fast player, Gose has stolen 115 bases in 245 minor league games, however this year he's being caught at an alarming rate, notes Tyler Jett in Baseball America.  For a player with Gose's speed, he does not show enough patience at the plate and has already struck out over 100 times in back-to-back seasons.

The third player in the deal may be Jonathan Villar, according to Ken Rosenthal.  Villar is a shortstop prospect who may need to move off of the position soon, thanks in part to his 42 errors in 99 games there this season.  Scouts believe in Villar's bat enough that he could be a big league regular, although if he has to move to a corner position, he may not have the power to be an impact player.  He's much more of a line-drive hitter, and his fly-ball rates are way to high (career 27 %) for a player with such little power.

Prospect Potent Potables - 7/27

• Don't expect the Tigers to part ways with Jacob Turner, Andy Oliver, or Charlie Furbush in order to get a two-month rental, says Jason Beck of MLB.com.
• Wilmer Flores has been receiving rave reviews for his advanced hitting approach for a teenager, and the latest installment comes from rehabbing Mets' star Carlos Beltran, reports Steve Popper for Baseball America.
• Yet another case for J.P. Arencibia's impending arrival in the majors, this one courtesy of Brad Johnson of The Hardball Times.
• Despite the A's struggles, Billy Beane remains non-committal on placing a timetable on the arrival of Chris Carter and Michael Taylor, reports Alex Espinoza of MLB.com.  He also notes that Chris Sale is very much on the White Sox radar as a potential reliever down the stretch.
• Kyle Weiland is doing his best not to get lost in the impressive mix of Red Sox' prospects.  And don't read too much in to the team's demotion of Michael Bowden, as Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald points out that manager Terry Francona still thinks highly of the young righty and is willing to rely on him in the near future.
• Michael Pineda is doing more than that, as he continues to shoot up the prospect lists and impress even the highest levels of Mariners' officials and scouts, says Mike McCall of MLB.com.
• Don't forget about Aroldis Chapman, the Reds' major off-season free agent signing who is now working in a relief role and just worked back-to-back days for the first time as a professional, according to Mark Sheldon of MLB.com.

Marlins Promote Morrison to Replace Injured Coghlan

This isn't the way the Marlins would have liked to announce that their top prospect still in the minors would be making his debut, but nonetheless Logan Morrison will be joining the major league club to take the roster spot vacated by Chris Coghlan, who injured his knee while celebrating on Monday, reports Janie McCauley of the Miami Herald.

Morrison, a natural first baseman, has played some left field this year as the team attempts to get both him and rookie of the year candidate Gaby Sanchez into the lineup at the same time.  Morrison has not displayed the traditional home run power this year that is normally attributed to a first baseman or corner outfielder (although he did hit 24 home runs in 2007 in A-ball), but his .914 OPS in Triple-A is the highest of his career at any level where he has spent significant time.  Morrison's best tools are his defense at first base, which will go to waste for the time being as he will split time in left field with Emilio Bonifacio, says Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald, and his outstanding eye at the plate - Morrison has walked more times than he has struck out in both Double and Triple-A.

Just how much playing time Morrison loses to Bonifacio should depend on how is defensive abilities play out in left field, as that is the only area where Bonifacio has an advantage.  Given Bonifacio's career .302 OBP and complete lack of power, he would have to be significantly better in the field than Morrison in order to make up for what should be a large difference in offensive production.  Ultimately, Morrison should hit his way into the Marlins' lineup on a regular basis, and only a devastatingly slow start could prevent this from happening.