Where are they now????

[Deleted]

From Feb 2007, Baseball America's top 25 Prospects... maybe 33% very good careers so far, 33% have had ok careers, 33% busted (injury, lack of solid performance, etc)

1 DAISUKE MATSUZAKA, rhp, Red Sox
Who needs a gyroball? He has six pitches that grade out as plus or plus-plus at their best, and he'll be the best Japanese import ever. And no, we're not forgetting about Ichiro
2 ALEX GORDON, 3b, Royals
College Player of the Year in 2005, Minor League Player of the Year in 2006 . . . Rookie of the Year in 2007
3 DELMON YOUNG, of, Devil Rays
Took the Albert Belle comparisons too far when he tossed a bat at an umpire last year, but he can rake
4 PHILIP HUGHES, rhp, Yankees
As good as Chien-Ming Wang has been, this homegrown ace will be even better
5 HOMER BAILEY, rhp, Reds
The next great Texas fireballer in the tradition of Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens
6 CAMERON MAYBIN, of, Tigers
Tremendous athlete had even more polish at the plate than Detroit expected
7 EVAN LONGORIA, 3b, Devil Rays
Backed up his reputation as the 2006 draft's best pure hitter by batting .315 with 18 homers in his pro debut
8 BRANDON WOOD, ss, Angels
More than capable at shortstop, he may shift to third base to get his power bat into the Los Angeles lineup
9 JUSTIN UPTON, of, Diamondbacks
No. 1 overall pick in 2006 didn't have a banner debut, but he still has Ken Griffey Jr. tools
10 ANDREW MILLER, lhp, Tigers
The consensus top prospect in the 2006 draft was a steal at sixth overall and nearly made Detroit's World Series roster
11 TIM LINCECUM, rhp, Giants
Size doesn't matter. His fastball-curveball combo prompts comparisons to Bob Feller and Sandy Koufax
12 CHRIS YOUNG, of, Diamondbacks
White Sox fans still can't believe their club traded his 30-30 potential to get Javier Vazquez
13 ANDREW McCUTCHEN, of, Pirates
Reached Double-A quicker than any other outfielder in a bumper 2005 high school crop
14 JAY BRUCE, of, Reds
Beat out Maybin and Upton for top-prospect honors in the Midwest League last summer
15 TROY TULOWITZKI, ss, Rockies
Reached the majors 14 months after signing, a franchise record for a position player
16 YOVANI GALLARDO, rhp, Brewers
Led the minors in strikeouts (188 in 155 innings) and ranked third in ERA (1.86) during breakout 2006 season
17 REID BRIGNAC, ss, Devil Rays
Tampa Bay doesn't have to fool around with B.J. Upton at shortstop any longer with Brignac on the way
18 CARLOS GONZALEZ, of, Diamondbacks
As if Arizona didn't have enough multitooled outfielders already
19 ANDY LaROCHE, 3b, Dodgers
Takes after brother (slugging Pirates first baseman Adam) more than father (former all-star reliever Dave)
20 MIKE PELFREY, rhp, Mets
Made the majors three months into his pro career, and should be even better now with his new slider
21 MATT GARZA, rhp, Twins
Unheralded 2005 first-rounder already has become a mainstay in Minnesota's rotation
22 FERNANDO MARTINEZ, of, Mets
Followed up an impressive debut as a 17-year-old by holding his own in the Arizona Fall League
23 ADAM MILLER, rhp, Indians
Regained knockout slider and plus fastball and refined his changeup after 2005 elbow injury
24 CLAYTON KERSHAW, lhp, Dodgers
Joins fellow 2006 first-rounder Andrew Miller as the top two lefthander prospects in baseball
25 BILLY BUTLER, of, Royals
His bat will have to carry him, but it can--he's a career .344/.417/.564 hitter in pro ball

[Deleted]

To be fair, prospect Eval has gotten much better in the past few years. However, it is a very fair point to bring this up. Interesting to see the bulk of the stars from this class are ranked 11-25 rather than in the Top 10

[PawSox (GazW)]

I remember the hype Phil Hughes got as the next Yankees stud pitcher. The thought of him not becoming a top 5 pitcher never seemed to be an option.

Oh well.

[Deleted]

I think a higher percentage of pitching specs bust due to injury. While scouting and evaluation has gotten better, I think it manifests more in the next tier - say top 100 - 300 - becoming less of a lottery ticket than in the past.

[Deleted]

Can you do the same but top 100 prospects. Interesting to see how many made it.

[Deleted]

I remember adam miller of the indians he was suppose to be a stud, always would get injured and had a problem always getting blisters on his throwing hand eventually he just gave up and retired never made it to the majors tho I don't think.

[Deleted]

here is the next 25... who the hell is that at # 47??

26 RYAN BRAUN, 3b, Brewers
With Corey Koskie ailing, Braun could be Milwaukee's Opening Day third baseman
27 JOSE TABATA, of, Yankees
Friendly rivalry with Martinez began last season in low Class A and will pick up soon in New York.
28 ADAM JONES, of, Mariners
Good call by Seattle to shelve his mid-90s fastball and make him an everyday player
29 COLBY RASMUS, of, Cardinals
Broke Bo Jackson's Alabama state prep home run record and has continued to drive the ball as a pro
30 FRANKLIN MORALES, lhp, Rockies
Few lefthanders can match his mid-90s fastball or power curveball . . .
31 SCOTT ELBERT, lhp, Dodgers
. . . though this Missouri product, who has similar swing-and-miss stuff, is one who can
32 LUKE HOCHEVAR, rhp, Royals
After a celebrated holdout, he improved his stock in indy ball and went first in the '06 draft
33 JACOBY ELLSBURY, of, Red Sox
Boston downplays Johnny Damon comparisons, but the parallels are hard to ignore
34 NICK ADENHART, rhp, Angels
He's making Los Angeles look very smart for signing him for $710,000 out of the 2004 draft even though he needed Tommy John surgery
35 JEFF NIEMANN, rhp, Devil Rays
Put two years of health problems behind him and started pitching to his potential in the second half of 2006
36 JARROD SALTALAMACCHIA, c, Braves
Wrist injury led to an off year in 2006, but he's still the game's best catching prospect
37 JACOB McGEE, lhp, Devil Rays
Has a chance for three plus pitches, posts dominant numbers and still flies under the prospect radar as part of a loaded Devil Rays farm system
38 HUNTER PENCE, of, Astros
Won't win any style points, but he hits for power and average and has improved his running and defense, and he should move into the Houston outfield this season
39 ADAM LIND, of, Blue Jays
He just hits: .392 in his final season at South Alabama, .319 in the minors and .367 in a September callup
40 CHRIS VOLSTAD, rhp, Marlins
Polished prep product pounds the bottom of strike zone, and he led all pitchers in the Top 100 Prospects list in groundball outs last season
41 CARLOS CARRASCO, rhp, Phillies
Made huge strides last year, cutting his ERA in low Class A from 7.04 in 2005 to 2.26
42 JASON HIRSH, rhp, Rockies
Acquired from the Astros in the Jason Jennings deal, he should be nearly as effective at a fraction of the cost
43 JOEY VOTTO, 1b, Reds
Led the Southern League in AVG (.319), OBP (.408) and SLG (.547) after Cincinnati turned him loose at the plate
44 JAMES LONEY, 1b, Dodgers
Bat finally came back to life in 2006; led minors in hitting (.380) and had a nine-RBI game in majors
45 JOSH FIELDS, 3b, White Sox
This former college quarterback is working out much better for Chicago than Joe Borchard did
46 IAN STEWART, 3b, Rockies
Worst year of his pro career still included .803 OPS as 21-year-old in Double-A
47 BILL ROWELL, 3b, Orioles
Barry Bonds aficionado has premium power potential but may outgrow third base sooner than later
48 DEXTER FOWLER, of, Rockies
Five-tool center fielder has added switch-hitting, strength and polish since signing
49 FELIX PIE, of, Cubs
Chicago loves his tools and his history of winning--four championships in five pro seasons
50 TRAVIS BUCK, of, Athletics
Has hit at least .302 at each of his four pro stops and .328 overall

[Deleted]

It wasn't blisters, it was numbness in his hand. Had some sort of nerve issues, and couldn't feel the ball in his hand.

[Deleted]

there are worse years than that one. as for what ranked guys do well, there's also a bit of proximity/floor in any ranking you choose based on what level a prospect has made it through so far, so its not all just ceiling in the rankings. the exception is billy butler, who had a no doubt bat, but an all-doubt glove, so he got dinged up in the prospect ranks more than he would fantasy ranks.

[Deleted]

Billy Rowell was a super-raw 3B prospect that also was incredibly athletic. Also put on some ridiculous power displays in the summer circuit batting practices and a bit in games. Couldn't figure out how to make contact as a pro. Off the top of my head I think he was a top half of the 1st round pick.

[Deleted]

Sad to see Adenhart so high... Would have been nice to see what he could have been

[Deleted]

Good ol Jose Tabata. Still pulling decent stuff in trade based on this ranking, lol.  Also remember when Reid Brignac was an all-bat SS with a questionable glove.  How does that guy turn into all-glove but zero bat?

[Deleted]

and Fernando Martinez at # 22... will he even be back somewhere this year?

[Sand Gnats (Matthew)]

They're not all going to work out, but I look at this list and I see some of the best players in baseball over the last 7 years. Not all these guys are created equally and for fantasy purposes they probably would have been ranked a little different, but overall this is a testament to the importance of prospects.