Down on the Farm: 2010 Giants Top 50 Prospect Review- #1 Buster Posey

Kicking off our rundown of LAST YEAR'S Top 50 Giants Prospects, we'll start off at the top, the easy ones first. The mission of a farm system is not to win minor league championships or to be #1 on BA's organizational rankings every year. The mission of a farm system is to produce major league ballplayers for the MLB team they are affiliated with. It isn't often that a farm system produces the way the Giants system produce in 2010 as their #1 and #2 prospects both graduated to the majors and impacted a run to a World Series title. Not only that, both players appear poised to deliver star quality performances for years to come. It really doesn't get any better than that for prospect watchers!

#1 Buster Posey: AAA- .349/.442/.552 with 6 HR's, 172 AB's. MLB- .305/.357/.505 with 18 HR's in 406 AB's.

Everybody knows what Buster accomplished after he arrived in the majors. The performance earned him a very deserved NL Rookie of the Year. The season was capped off by leading the Giants to their first World Series championship since coming to SF. Man, it sure feels good to say that! I don't think I'm ever going to get tired of it! There is still some lingering discontent over the Giants handling of Buster's transition to the majors. The argument is he should have played more in his 2009 September callup and he should have been the Giants starting catcher out of the gate in 2010. I believe the Giants handled him just right. Here is a summary of my argument:

1. The 2009 callup was mainly for the mental exercise. Get comfortable with the MLB atmosphere. Observe MLB catchers in action. Look, listen, learn.

2. I don't know enough about the nuances of catching to know whether Buster was ready at the beginning of 2010 or not. John Klima, at baseballbeginnings.com, who I think does know what to look for, has said that as of the Arizona Fall League in 2009, Buster wasn't ready to catch MLB pitching on the level of the Giants pitchers elite stuff. I admit I don't know what that means, but I'm guessing it has to do with blocking balls in the dirt and possibly game calling.

3. The Giants didn't call up Buster until his manager in Fresno, Steve Decker, gave the green light and said he was ready. Decker is a former MLB catcher himself and should know a thing or two about when a catcher is ready, certainly a lot more than me, or the fans who are criticizing the timing.

4. The results speak for themselves. You can't argue with success! We will never know what would have happened had Buster started the season as the Giants starting catcher. We do know what actually did happen and you can't write a script with a better outcome!

5. Thanks to the idiosyncracies of the agreement between MLB and the Players Association, we are assured that Buster will remain a Giant for at least 6 more seasons. Had he started the season in SF, it would be 5 seasons. The Giants gained a full year of Buster Posey at the cost of 6 weeks. I'll take that deal any day!

Things to be slightly concerned about going forward: 1. Sophomore slump. MLB pitchers may detect a weakness that Buster will have to re-adjust to. I have confidence in his ability to make adjustments going forward. 2. Stamina. Buster wore down at the end of 2009 and looked awfully tired at times at the end of 2010. The delay in making him the everyday catcher may have preserved him just long enough to get him through the postseason. I believe the Giants need to upgrade their backup catcher position to ensure that Buster gets the days off he needs to stay strong throughout the season.

Beyond that, barring injury, another thing I worry about due to the position he plays, Buster is a MLB star, a cornerstone player who will be a Giant deep into the decade.

Buster won't be on the 2011 Top Prospects list because he has graduated to the majors. The Giants organizational rankings will suffer because of it, but the MLB team will prosper and that is the whole purpose of having a farm system in the first place!

Down on the Farm: 04-10-2010

Brian Salsbury of the Augusta Greenjackets gained national attention with 6 innings of no-hit ball tonight to highlight a good night down on the farm. Key lines:

AAA Fresno beat Reno 6-2:

Buster Posey- 2 for 4, 3B, BB. BA= .538. Hopefully Buster will soon be drawing the same type of envy from fans of other teams that Jason Heyward is for the Braves right now.

Fred Lewis- 1 for 3, HR(1), BB, SB(1). BA= .429.

Eric Hacker- 5.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K's. 27 year old journeyman. Could get a cup of coffee in the bigs with an injury or two.

AA Bowie Bay Sox edged the Richmond Flying Squirrels 5-4:

Darren Ford- 2 for 6, 2B.

Brandon Crawford- 1 for 2, 3 BB, SB(1). Apparently Brandon is taking plate discipline seriously.

Conor Gillaspie- 2 for 4, HR(1), SF. BA= .333. It's good to see the long ball from Conor.

NIck Noonan- 2 for 5, 2B. BA= .364. So far, so good for Nick at the new level.

High A San Jose Giants polished off the Nuts 3-1:

Ryan Lormand- 2 for 3, 2B, BB.

Juan Perez- 2 for 4, 2B.

James Simmons- 2 for 4, 3B. BA= .429. Simmons is a guy who, if he breaks out, would be a high ceiling prospect with his size and athleticism. He just needs to find the hit tool.

Ari Ronick- 4 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 4 BB, 3 K's, GO/AO= 6/1. Too many walks.

Low A Augusta Greenjackets squashed the Greensboro Grasshoppers 8-2:

Evan Crawford- 1 for 5, HR(1), BB.

Ryan Cavan- 2 for 4, 2B, BB. Cavan continues to rake.

Chris Dominguez- 3 for 5. BA= .385. Good to see Chris get off to a good start. He just might have the highest ceiling of any Giants prospect if he can just make consistent contact.

Dan Cook- 2 for 4, 2B, BB. BA= .364.

Brian Salsbury- 6 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K's. Salsbury is just 20 years old. Drafted out of JC ball in round 14 of last summer's draft. Pitched well for the AZL Giants. I probably should have included him in my Giants Top 50 Prospects.

Chris Gloor- 2.2 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 6 K's. The secondary stats sure look good! He continued the no-no into the 9'th inning before faltering.

Around the Minors:

Jacob Turner, Detroit's first round draft pick made a sparkling debut in the Low A Midwest League: 5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 7 K's.

Steven Strasburg and Aroldis Chapman make their pro debuts tomorrow as does Zack Wheeler for the Giants.

Giants Top 50 Prospects #19: Ehire Adrianza

#19 Ehire Adrianza. SS. B-S, T-R. BD: 08-21-1989. 6'1", 155 lbs.

2009 Stats: Low A- .258/.333/.327, 7 SB, 1 CS.

#19 is quite a bit lower than BA's list which has Adrianza in the top 10. The Giants still think he is going to be a plus fielder despite 30 errors last season. His bat may be projectable as he fills out his frame. Right now, an IsoOBP of .075 is about the only thing he has to recommend him. The Giants seem to see Brandon Crawford as their SS of the future, but Adrianza is a solid #2 on the depth chart. Slated to be the starting SS for San Jose in 2010, Ehire Adrianza will definitely be worth a trip to the ballpark when the Giants come to town.

Giants Top 50 Prospects #18: Conor Gillaspie

#18 Conor Gillaspie. 3B. B-R, T-R. BD: 07-18-1987. 6'1", 200 lbs.

2009 Stats: High A- .286/.364/.386, 4 HR's, 31 doubles.

For a supplemental first round draft pick who hit over .400 in college, Conor Gillaspie had a disappointing season in 2009. While his BA wasn't terrible, he showed very little power and struggled on defense. One explanation, from Giants Director of Player Development Fred Stanley, is that Conor's knowledge of the strike zone was too good for high A ball. The theory is that he had a lot of strikes called on pitches that were actually out of the strike zone, and would have been balls with better umpiring. His IsoOBP of .078 was good, so maybe there is something to it. He'll have to be able to handle umps giving pitchers the benefit of the doubt when he's a rookie in the big leagues, though.

I saw Conor play 3 times last season. The most worrisome part of his game is on defense. He looks quite awkward at 3B and appears to struggle to make routine throws. The 3'rd time I saw him, he made several routine plays without incident and looked a bit more confident. He reportedly voluntarily went to Arizona Instructionals in the fall to work on his defense, so maybe it will come around.

I would project Conor to be a Bill Mueller/Dave Magadan type of hitter with a high BA, marginal power, marginal defender. If he can play a passable 3B, he can have a solid MLB career if he can consistently hit >.300. He'll start 2010 at AA Richmond.

Giants Top 50 Prospects #17: Darren Ford

#16 Darren Ford. B-R, T-R. BD: 10-01-1985. 5'11", 195 lbs.

2009 Stats: High A: .300/.386/.463, 9 HR's, 35 SB's, 12 CS.

Darren Ford was acquired from the Milwaukee Brewers organization in the Ray Durham trade. He hit just .219 over 38 games after being assigned to San Jose after the trade. Blessed with great speed, the Giants thought they might enhance his value as a CF/leadoff man by having him switch-hit. That experiment didn't go well as his Batting Average, again with San Jose, plummeted to .173 in May and .189 in June of 2009. Ford went back to hitting just righthanded and he got red hot going .352, .348 and .455 in July, August and September even showing a bit of power which had not been evident in the past. Darren has always shown an ability to take a walk and that tendency continued last year with a .086 IsoOBP. I saw him play 3 times last season. He is a tremendous athlete with a great ballplayer's physique. I don't think I have ever seen a player run out a triple or go from first to third faster and that includes Fred Lewis who is pretty darn fast himself. The big question is whether he can keep the hitting going. The last 3 months of 2009 represented a huge jump from anything he had done prior. Was it a breakout or a fluke? The Giants were apparently impressed enough to add him to the 40 man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft. We'll seen when he goes to AA Richmond for 2010.

Giants Top 50 Prospects Addendum: Waldis Joaquin, Dan Runzler

The Hardball Times has a listing of Best Average Velocities by players who made their MLB debut in 2009:

3. Waldis Joaquin-97.0 MPH.

5. Dan Runzler-96.7 MPH.

The even break it down to 4 seam FB vs 2 seam. Joaquin's is a 4 seamer. His 2 seamer was in the top 10 at 96.7 MPH while Runzler's two seamer was faster than his 4 seamer which came in at 95.3 MPH.

Giants Top 50 Prospects #15: Jason Stoffel

#15 Jason Stoffel. RHP. BD: 09-15-1988. 6'2", 225 lbs.

2009 Stats: AZL(rookie)- 0-0, 1.86, 9.2 IP, 0 BB, 6 K's. Salem-Keizer(short-season)- 1-0, 0.00, 10.1 IP, 1 BB, 13 K's.

The Giants drafted Jason Stoffel in the 4'th round of the 2009 draft. His stock slipped from almost certain first-rounder during his junior season at Arizona where he was the closer. His K/9 dropped into single digits while his BB/9 rose above 4 as did his ERA. He features a 93-95 MPH fastball and a slider that can be "unhittable." BA's predraft scouting report blamed his Junior season struggles on inconsistency saying he tended to lose focus in more low-leverage situations. He certainly didn't show any such inconsistency in two stops in the Giants system after turning pro. He looks like a classic Giants pitching prospect project. I would expect to see him start the season as San Jose's closer and he could rocket to the top as fast as Dan Runzler last season, although it might be better to take it slow with him and use him in multi-inning situations to build his pitching repertoire and experience.

Giants Top 50 Prospects #14: Waldis Joaquin

#14 Waldis Joaquin. RHP. BD: 12-25-1986. 6'2", 190 lbs.

2009 Stats: AA- 4-5, 2.67, 54 IP, 28 BB, 40 K's. AAA- 1-0, 0.00, 10 IP, 2 BB, 16 K's. MLB- 0-0, 4.22, 10.2 IP, 7 BB, 12 K's. Dominican Winter League- 1-0, 2.35, 15.1 IP, 3 BB, 15 K's.

Waldis Joaquin is the right-handed bookend to Dan Runzler, a fireballer with great K rates and marginal walk rates. Joaquin first came to attention in 2005 when as an 18 year old, he made BA's AZL top 20 list along with Sharon Martis. Their scouting report had him hitting 98 MPH 8 times in one 3-inning stint near the end of the season. He missed the entire 2006 season with TJ surgery, then went 3-0 with a 2.84 ERA in 38 IP for Salem-Keizer in 2007. 2008 was a bit of a struggle in Augusta and San Jose with ERA's >4, good K rates, but poor walk rates. I saw him pitch in Lake Elsinore near the end of the 2008 season and his fastball was sitting at 94 MPH with a pronounced run that seemed to contribute to his control struggles. He also appeared to have a hard slider and a change-up to my eye. The Giants moved him up to AA to start last season where he had a better ERA, but not as impressive secondary stats. The Giants must have really liked his stuff, because he still got a late season promo to Fresno where he was absolutely lights out. He showed flashes of brilliance in 10 MLB appearances. I caught a couple on TV where he was hitting 98-100 MPH with sink and run on his fastball. Again, he was successful in missing bats, but walked too many. The secondary stats were much better in winter ball. Based on the player movement this winter, it would seem that the Giants are planning on him starting 2010 in the MLB bullpen, where if he can harness that talent he should be a dominant setup man in short order. He is a somewhat rare combination of high velocity, high K, groundball pitcher that should play very well in the majors. Felix Hernandez is the comp. for that combo.

Giants Top 50 Prospects #13: Dan Runzler

#13 Dan Runzler. LHP. BD: 03-30-1985. 6'4", 215 lbs.

2009 Stats: Low A: 1-1, 0.68, 26.1 IP, 13 BB, 45 K's. High A: 1-0, 0.84, 21.1 IP, 4 BB, 26 K's. AA: 3-0, 0.96, 9.1 IP, 7 BB, 11 K's.
AAA: 0-1, 0.00, 2 IP, 0 H, 1 K. MLB: 0-0, 1.04, 8.2 IP, 5 BB, 11 K's.

Dan Runzler was what has become a signature Giants late round draft pick out of UC Riverside in 2007. He had relatively few IP, a high ERA, but a big time fastball and prodigious K rates. The problem was he walked way too many batters. The Giants think they can fix pitchers like this, and sometimes they are right. Runzler pitched inconsistently his first two pro seasons still showing great K rates, but also struggling with his control.

It's a challenge to really get a handle on Runzler's 2009 season. He started off in Augusta where our old friend Steve Kline took Dan under his wing. He still walked his share of batters, but something seemed to click and he blew away hitters with a K/9 of 15.4! He then ripped through 3 more levels and ended up with a callup to the majors where he continued to pitch successfully. His sample sizes at each stop were miniscule, and even his composite record was relatively small. What he did record though was spectacular, K/9=12.42 and BB/9=3.78.

The Giants seem enthralled with Runzler and appear to be counting on him for a major role in the bullpen in 2010. He certainly has the tools to be a dominant reliever, but the continued significant walk rates are a bit worrisome that he could regress to his career long struggles. Hopefully Kline will continue to work with him early in spring training to consolidate the lessons from last season.

Giants Top 50 Prospects #12: Edward Concepcion

12. Edward Concepcion. RHP. BD: 10-03-1988. 6'3", 190 lbs.

2009 Stats: AZL Rookie- 4-3, 4.61, 54.2 IP, 26 BB, 70 K's, GO/AO= 2.26.

Concepcion was a bit old for the AZL at age 20, although not excessively so. The Giants brought him along slowly with parts of 3 seasons in the DSL prior to bringing him to Arizona. That's probably not a bad idea for handling the early career of a power pitcher. Concepcion was flying under the radar in the Giants organization until the guy from azgiants.com noticed him hitting 97 MPH on the radar gun in Arizona one night. He posted his feelings of excitement on his blog and it got picked up by other Giants fans on other blog/websites. Then BA ranked him #13 on their AZL Top 20 Prospects list with a scouting report that confirmed the velocity. BA had him topping out at 98 MPH. His pitching coach, Mike Caldwell was quoted as believing he will eventually hit 100 MPH! Caldwell worked with him in simplifying his mechanics and rival scouts and managers felt he made tremendous progress during the summer.

Two things stand out about his record: 1. The K rate. I use a K/9= 9 as my benchmark for judging a pitching prospect's ceiling and Concepcion is well above that. While the BB/9 isn't stellar, but not hopelessly high either. 2. GO/AO. A power pitcher with a high K rate doesn't have to be a groundball pitcher to excell, but if you combine Concepcion's velocity, K rate and GO/AO, you have the potential of a special pitcher. Felix Hernandez would be the comp for that type of combination. I use a GO/AO of 2.00 as my benchmark for excellence for a pitcher in the lower minors. Again, Concepcion is well above that.

I would think he should be assigned as a starter in low A Augusta this spring. A very exciting prospect!

Giants Top 50 Prospects #11: Hector Sanchez

#11 Hector Sanchez. B-S, T-R. BD: 11-17-1989. 6'0", 185 lbs.

2009 Stats: AZL(Rookie): .299/.403/.410.

Hector Sanchez quietly caught the attention of Giants prospect watchers the past two seasons while playing in the Dominican Summer League by hitting for average, putting up great OBP's and showing a bit of pop in his bat. He didn't show much power in Arizona, but the .403 OBP against a .299 BA really stands out. He has been listed as a catcher, but seemed to also play some first base. Big difference there! You have to have a great bat to play first base in the majors(unless, of course, you play for the Giants). Then came this quote in the scouting report for his #15 ranking among AZL prospects by BA: "Sanchez's strength is his defense." Hello Hector Sanchez! He led the AZL in CS% at 45. He "blocks balls well and has made strides in game callling." So there it is, a switch-hitting catcher with great plate discipline who projects to have some power? I'll take two please! I would think that Sanchez will be the starting catcher for low A Augusta this year, and I can hardly wait!

Giants Top 50 Prospects #10: Francisco Peguero

10. Francisco Peguero. OF. B-R, T-R. BD: 06-01-1988. 6'0", 175 lbs.

2009 Stats: Salem-Keizer- .394/.421/.465 with 7 SB, 0 CS. Low A- .340/.359/.437 with 15 SB, 5 CS. High A- Cal League Playoff MVP. DWL- .284/.304/.388 with 3 SB, 0 CS in 67 AB.

Francisco Peguero had something of a breakout season in 2009. Not that he hadn't played well at other levels, it's just that the BA's this time were quite spectacular and at high enough levels for people to take notice. He was apparently old enough when the Giants signed him in 2006 that he was Rule 5 eligible after 4 professional seasons, and the Giants felt the need to protect him by adding him to the 40 man MLB roster. He reportedly plays with tremendous enthusiasm and won the Most Inspirational Player award in the Giants Fall Instructional League. On defense he can cover CF and reportedly has a "plus-plus" arm. The only missing tool is hitting for power.

The one major caution is that like Panda at a similar stage of his career, Peguero never sees a pitch he thinks he can't hit. He only drew 8 walks in 317 PA's! I guess he really believes you can't walk off the island! For a player who profiles almost strictly as a leadoff hitter, the walk rates are a real concern and will have to be improved on at some point.

Francisco Peguero will almost certainly be the starting CF for the San Jose Giants to begin the 2010 season.

Giants Top 50 Prospects #9: Nick Noonan

#9 Nick Noonan. 2B. B-L, T-R. BD: 05-04-1989. 6'0", 180 lbs.

2009 Stats: High A- .259/.330/.397 with 7 HR, 8 Triples, 26 doubles, 9 SB, 5 CS.

Nick Noonan did not have a great season in 2009, but let me point some reasons why it was not the disaster it may appear on the surface:

1. He was 20 years old playing in a league where most of the players are at least 2-3 years older.

2. His IsoOBP increased by .035 from the previous season in Augusta, indicating a significant improvement in plate discipline.

3. He finished the season strong. After posting BA's of .236 in May and .232 in June, he went .256 in July, .292 in August and .310 in 7 games in September.

The nice thing about drafting high school players is that there is more time to work through adjustments to new levels. As a young player for the level, Nick Noonan took a little longer to adjust, but demonstrated improvement in one vital area from the previous season and improvement throughout the season at the new level. Given his draft level, the Giants will give him every opportunity to succeed. He showed enough that he will almost certainly move on to AA for his age 21 season where he will still be young for the level.

One more point. Andy Baggerly originally had him in his Top 10, based on his conversations with Giants coaches development staff. BA's editors insisted that he drop Noonan in favor of Ehire Adrianza. While the Giants may be fairly criticized for lack of judgement about position players, how the organization views a player should not be ignored as it has an important impact on opportunities for advancement in the future.

Top 50 Prospects #5: Rafael Rodriguez

#5 Rafael Rodriguez. OF. B-R, T-R. BD: 07-13-1992. 6'5", 198 lbs.

2009 Stats: AZL: .299/.392/.362.

This is where I diverge from Andy Baggerly's list for Baseball America. Yes, I know Dan Runzler has a high 90's fastball. I'm also impressed that he sped through 4 levels of play to pitch successfully in the majors last September. I know he has a great chance to be a member of the Giants bullpen this season. Still, he's a reliever who will probably peak as a setup man. Yes, he's almost a sure bet to reach that peak, but that's his peak.

Don't worry about RaffyRod's lack of power. He was a 16 year old kid who has a long way to go to grow into his body. The power will almost certainly develop. Look instead at his plate discipline at such a young age. You just don't see that very often. It's going to take a few years, but the sky is the limit for this kid! Not sure if the Giants will think he's ready for full season ball this year, but it would sure be interesting and exciting to see him in Augusta.

Giants Top 50 Prospects #4: Thomas Neal

#4 Thomas Neal. OF. B-R, T-R. BD: 08-17-1987. 6'1", 205 lbs.

2008 Stats: High A: .337/.431/.579 with 22 HR's. Arizona Fall League: .284/.384/.392 with 12 SB's in 74 AB's.

Thomas Neal had a true breakout season in 2008. Drafted out of Poway(CA) HS in 2005, he played a season of JC ball at Riverside City College and then signed with the Giants as a draft and follow just before the 2006 draft. He was still 18 at the time, so he did not need to be added to the 40 man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft this year. Neal has always played well, when he played, in the Giants system, but missed a lot of time to injury. Finally healthy in 2008, he hit .276 with 15 HR's and excellent plate discipline for low A Augusta. He seemed to be on the verge of a breakout season in 2009 and he did not disappoint. On top of he breakout offensive numbers, he showed excellent OF defense leading the Cal League in OF assists from LF with the San Jose Giants. Then, to top it off, he showed a whole other side in the Arizona Fall League by running wild on the bases finishing second in the league with 12 SB's in just 79 AB's.

So what we have here is a 5 tool player, hitting, hitting for power, catching, throwing, running. Add in the excellent plate discipline and you have as close to a can't miss prospect as you can get, provided he stays healthy. The only mystery is why he spent the whole season in San Jose. The most likely reason is the Giants ownership of the San Jose Giants franchise, the interest in the A's moving to San Jose and the Giants wanting to deliver a Cal League Championship. With that out of the way, Neal should start 2010 in AA Richmond. If he continues to rake there, he could easily be in SF by the end of the season. Barring injury, I believe Thomas Neal is the Giants LF of the future. His size and hitting prowess remind me of an underrated Giants player from the 1960's, Jim Ray Hart, except Thomas seems to be a much more well rounded player.

Giants Top 50 Prospects #3: Zack Wheeler

#3: Zack Wheeler. RHP. BD: 05-30-1990. 6'3", 180 lbs.

2009 Stats: DNP(signed too late).

I went back and forth between Wheeler and Thomas Neal for the #3 slot. His first round pedigree and the Giants history of success with pitching prospects finally tipped the scale. The Giants zeroed in on Zack Wheeler for their first round pick in the 2009 amateur draft, #6 overall. They scouted him extensively including reports of Brian Sabean making a personal scouting trip. The Giants have a long track record of knowing how to scout pitchers, so we have every reason to be optimistic about young Mr. Wheeler's future. He is reportedly still growing and now stands at more than 6'4" with whispers that he might eventually top out at 6'6"! Given that, his low-mid 90's fastball may stand to add some velocity. He already has a fairly advanced breaking ball and changeup. Look for him on the low A Augusta roster this year.

Giants Top 50 Prospects #2: Madison Bumgarner

2. Madison Bumgarner. LHP. BD: 08-01-1989, 6'4", 215 lbs.

2009 stats: High A: 3-1, 1.48, 24.1 IP, 4 BB, 23 K's. AA: 9-1, 1.93, 107 IP, 30 BB, 69 K's. MLB: 0-0, 1.80, 10 IP, 3 BB, 10 K's.

After putting up astounding numbers for low A Augusta in 2008, Bumgarner picked up right where he left off in San Jose during a brief early season stint. He continued to get stellar results in a jump to AA, but suffered a noticeable drop in K/9. Giants fans were somewhat disappointed to see radar gun readings consistently in the high 80's upon his arrival in San Francisco for a late season call up. Still, he got excellent results in 4 appearances including one emergency start. The drop in velocity has been attributed to late season fatigue. Recently Bobby Evans hinted that it was due to a purposeful mechanical change that could be changed back with a return of low-mid 90's velocity. I have some concerns about the exaggerated cross-step he uses in terms of injury risk, but at this point "MadBum" seems destined for a successful MLB career. The Giants lack of activity in regards to signing a #5 starter has led to a sense that Bumgarner may be penciled into that role now, contrary to early offseason statements by Brian Sabean. Still, I find it hard to believe that the Giants will go to Spring Training without signing a veteran option for 5'th starter, but it may be someone on a minor league contract.

Top 50 Prospects #1: Buster Posey

Buster Posey. C. B-R, T-R. BD-03-27-1987. 6'1", 205 lbs.

2009 Stats: High A- .326/.328/.540 with 13 HR's in 291 AB's. AAA- .321/.391/.511 with 5 HR's in 131 AB's.
MLB- .118/.118/.118 in 17 AB's.

Buster Posey separated himself from the pack to emerge as the Giants clear cut #1 prospect for 2010. Drafted in 2008 after winning the College Baseball Player of the Year with Florida State, Buster has worked his way up from Rookie League to AAA and a MLB September call up in just 2 years. He also played in the Hawaiian WInter Baseball League and the Arizona Fall League along the way. He has shown the ability to hit for average, power, and plate discipline at all levels. He had some issues with passed balls and was inexperienced with game calling early on, but has improved markedly in both areas. While there is little doubt that Buster will be a star for years to come, there is some question whether he might benefit from a few more months of seasoning in the minors. The Giants might also have learned from their experience with Tim Lincecum the value of delaying a call up for a few weeks or months in order to get an extra year of service prior to arbitration. A relative seller's market at catcher this offseason may decide that for the Giants and give Buster his MLB starting job out of Spring training. If so, he may have an initial adjustment period, but should quickly establish himself as a .800+ OPS hitter and a top 10 fantasy rated catcher.

Dr B's 2010 Giants Top 50 Prospects

It's time for my annual Giants Top 50 Prospect list. For the last several years, I have posted these on the Giants Message Board on sfgiants.com with a lot of positive feedback. Starting this year, I am posting it exclusively on my own blog. I will begin by simply posting the list along with some honorable mention candidates and some names to watch from the Dominican Summer League. Between now and the start of the season, I will post comments on each player on the list. As always, this list is just one fan's opinion. Don't get too hung up on the exact order. The main point is to familiarize readers with the players in the Giants minor league system who I think have a chance to play in the major leagues someday.

The Giants farm system remains strong, despite a couple of trades, some poor performances, and the devastating loss, hopefully temporary, of Angel Villalona to legal problems in his home country, the Dominican Republic. These losses were made up for by another strong draft, more international signings, and some unexpectedly strong performances. Last year, the Giants were ranked by Baseball America as the #5 best farm system in baseball. BA hasn't released their list yet this year, but two of their writers, John Manuel and Jim Callis are on record as ranking them #3 and #4 respectively.

On with the list!

1. Buster Posey, C
2. Madison Bumgarner, LHP
3. Zach Wheeler, RHP
4. Thomas Neal. OF/1B
5. Rafael Rodriguez, OF
6. Brandon Crawford, SS
7. Roger Kieshnick, OF
8. Tommy Joseph, C
9. Nick Noonan, 2B
10. Francisco Peguero, OF
11. Hector Sanchez, C
12. Edward Concepcion, RHP
13. Dan Runzler, LHP
14. Waldis Joaquin, RHP
15. Jason Stoffel, RHP
16. Clayton Tanner, LHP
17. Darren Ford, OF
18. Conor Gillaspie, 3B
19. Ehire Adrianza, SS
20. Chris Dominguez, 3B/1B
21. Ydwin Villegas, SS
22. Henry Sosa, RHP
23. Jose Casilla, RHP
24. Matt Graham, RHP
25. Brett Pill, 1B
26. Johnny Monell, C
27. Steve Edlefsen, RHP
28. Kevin Pucetas, RHP
29. Joe Paterson, LHP
30. Brock Bond, 2B
31. Dan Turpen, RHP
32. Mike McBryde, OF
33. Craig Clark, LHP
34. Paul Oseguera, LHP
35. Kyle Nicholson, RHP
36. Eric Surkamp, LHP
37. Ari Ronick, LHP
38. Josh Mazzola, 3B
39. Wendell Fairley, OF
40. Charlie Culberson, 2B
41. Aaron King, LHP
42. Andy Reichard, RHP
43. Chris Wilson, RHP
44. Ryan Verdugo, LHP
45. Evan Crawford, OF
46. Drew Biery, 3B
47. Ryan Cavan, SS
48. Jorge Bucardo, RHP
49. Jose Valdez, RHP
50. Wilbur Bucardo, RHP

Honorable Mention: David Quinowski, Dan Griffin, Chris Gloor, Jeremy Toole, Craig Westcott, Leonardo Ochoa, Sundrendy Windster, Julio Izturis, Cameron Lamb, Jason Jarvis, Kaohi Downing, Audy Santana.

"Dominican Dandies": Carlos Willoughby, Jose De La Cruz, Jesus Galindo, Kendry Flores, Ariel Hernandez.