MLB Prospect Watch

Making Moves - 7/1

• Travis Wood has been promoted to Cincinnati and will make his first start this afternoon, according to Mark Sheldon of MLB.com.
• TYU believes that Andrew Brackman could be the 2010 version of what the Yankees had in Joba Chamberlain in 2007.  This opinion was fueled by the presence of Yankees' GM Brian Cashman at Brackman's last start.
• The Blue Jays have promoted Cuban short stop Adeiny Hechavarria to Double-A, this despite his offensive struggles in A-ball, says Tim Dakers of Bluebird Banter.com.  Reports of Hechavarria's defense have been glowing however, and the sample size at the plate was small.

Prospect Potent Potables - 6/29

• Mets' GM Omar Minaya says Jenrry Mejia's shoulder injury won't affect his trade value, according to Matthew Cerrone of MetsBlog.com.  Of course, what else would Minaya say?
• Andrew Lambo is back in Double-A after his 50-game suspension, reportedly for marijuana, says Guy Curtright of MLB.com.
• Oscar Tejada is re-establishing himself as a prospect within the Red Sox organization, reports Alex Speier of Baseball America.
• Phillippe Aumont has responded nicely to extended relief duty since the Phillies demoted him to the Florida State League, says Todd Zolecki of MLB.com.  The team would still like Aumont to be a starter down the road, but at the moment would like him to pitch more often in order to make adjustments between appearances more easily.
• The Reds need an extra starter this Thursday, and it will be either Travis Wood or Matt Maloney, says John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer.  Fay thinks it will be Wood.
• Dayan Viciedo hasn't seen much action since his promotion to Chicago, and given the White Sox succes lately, it's understandable, reports Samuel Zuma of MLB.com.  The question remains, however, if he's not going to play, wouldn't he be better served in the minors?

Making Moves - 6/17

• Reese Havens is missing games again for the Mets, reports Matthew Cerrone of MetsBlog.com.  Havens is penciled in as the Mets' 2B of the future, but can't seem to stay on the field.
• In order to help the Reds' ailing bullpen, the team may promote one of their left-handed pitching prospects, either Matt Maloney or Travis Wood, to the majors and convert them to a reliever, reports John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer.
• A number of minor league outfielders have had their chance with the Red Sox this season, and according to John Tomase of the Boston Herald, it's only a matter of time before Ryan Kalish gets his chance.
• The Phillies moved third base prospect Cody Overbeck to Double-A on Monday, reports Phuture Phillies.com.
• MLB Trade Rumors has a complete breakdown of all of the 1st and Supplemental round picks and whether or not they have signed.

Prospect Hot Sheet - 5/21

Baseball America is out with their weekly hot sheet, and we have a new leader in the clubhouse...

• Madison Bumgarner
• Reymond Fuentes
• Nick Franklin
• Steven Hensley
• Joe Gardner
• Kyle Gibson
• Hak-Ju Lee
• Jordan Lyles
• Fabio Martinez
• Mike Minor
• Mike Moustakas
• Jorge Reyes
• Kyle Russell
• Carlos Santana
• Stephen Strasburg
• Eric Surkamp
• Julio Teheran
• Dayan Viciedo
• Arodys Vizcaino
• Travis Wood

Bring up the rear with poor weeks were Todd Frazier, Martin Perez, Matt Moore, and Ryan Jackson.

Leake Makes Jump to Majors

In a move we see once every decade, the Cincinnati Reds have elected to use Mike Leake as their 5th starter, allowing him to make the jump to the majors without having ever thrown a regular season pitch as professional, reports John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer.  The move also means that fellow prospects Travis Wood and Aroldis Chapman will head to Triple-A.

The Reds elected to go with Leake, the 9th overall pick from last season who went 16-1 with Arizona State last season, but signed too late to pitch in the regular season and threw only 19 2/3 innings in the Arizona Fall League.  Technically, Leake will be sent to the minors temporarily, but will be recalled in time to make his first start, scheduled for April 11th.

The Reds also announced that prospect Juan Francisco has made the major league team as a bench player, according to Mark Sheldon of MLB.com.  The 22-year-old Francisco will serve as a backup at third base, first base, and in left field, as well as providing power off the bench.  Francisco has as much power as any player in the Reds organization, but has had trouble making consistent contact throughout his minor league career.