While we here at Project Prospect have our fingers on the beat of all things Minor Leagues, it doesn't mean that we just forget about our boys once they graduate to actual major league rookies and beyond.
Our recent graduates are: Josh Hamilton, Hunter Pence, Travis Buck, and Tim Lincecum.
Josh Hamilton - Cincinatti Reds - OF - Born 5/21/81 - Age 26
Josh Hamilton is a touch older than most of the other prospects featured on this website, but he's no ordinary ballplayer. Josh Hamilton is the real life version of Roy Hobbs from the Natural.
Who else could miss the majority of the last 8 seasons since he was drafted (No.1 overall in 1998) due to various drug suspensions and off-the-field problems and STILL be an impact player in the major leagues? And after only totaling 50 at-bats above A ball? Josh Hamilton is the answer to that trivia question.
Hamilton burst onto the scene this year with the Reds and has warmed
the hearts of baseball fans across the country with his play and his
amazing story. Through 104 at-bats, he was hitting .273/.366/.536 with
13 HR 28 RBI and a 27/45 BB to K ratio.
Hamilton wasn't really known to have any one weakness because he didn't play long enough for scouts to really discern any. I don't think anyone expected him to step onto a major league diamond this season and perform as well as he has. It's really remarkable and definitely a story to keep an eye on throughout the rest of the 2007 season and beyond.
Hunter Pence - Houston Astros - OF - Born 4/13/83 - Age 24
Hunter Pence has been making noise for a few seasons now and recently brought his boombox with him to Minute Maid Park in Texas. After hitting a ridiculous .571 in Spring Training, the Astros sent Pence back to the minors for more seasoning. Much like a Filet Mignon, he didn't really need it.
Since being recalled on April 28th, Pence has been a nearly unstoppable force. He was tearing up the Senior Circuit to the tune of .330/.358/.562 with 8 HR and 35 RBI through 233 at-bats. The fact that the Astros handed him their starting center field job and he's flourished is an extremely good sign.
Pence hit .283 last year in AA with 28 HR and 31 doubles in 523 at-bats. There is some serious power in his bat and the Astros and their fans have to be extremely excited about trotting young Mr. Pence out there for the next ten years or so. Odds are eventually the pitchers around the league will figure out something that Pence cannot handle and exploit it. So it will be interesting to see if he can handle some adversity and make adjustments once they come his way.
Travis Buck - Oakland Athletics - OF - Born 11/18/83 - Age 23
Travis Buck just LOOKS like he belongs on the Oakland A's. Dating back to the days of Jason Giambi and his brother Jeremy, the Oakland players always seem to have long hair flowing out of the caps and just the whole surfer mentality to them. Maybe Billy Beane started scouting hair as well as all the other qualities that made him so famous in the book Moneyball.
Travis Buck is an exciting prospect because of his plate discipline and his ability to handle pitches and spray them around for base hits. In 2006, Buck split his season between A+ and AA and hit over .300 in both leagues.
Still, it was somewhat of a surprise this year when he made the big club out of Spring Training. So far, Buck has appeared in 54 games and is hitting .283/.385/.489. While he may not hit for a ton of power, he does have 21 extra-base hits so far this year including six home runs. His 29/42 BB/K ratio is pretty solid for a rookie outfielder and his defense has been more than adequate for manager Bob Geren.
Tim Lincecum - San Francisco Giants - P - Born 6/15/84 - Age 23
Tim Lincecum is that latest flavor of the week among prospectors. Every year there seems to be a "best pitcher in the last 10 years" player to come around, and this year it was Tiny Tim. If we were judging on minor league numbers alone, it would be really tough to make an argument against him.
After being drafted just last year out of the University of Washington,
Lincecum started his minor league career by striking out the side in an
inning in short-season ball innings in A ball. Next, he moved up to
High-A where he struck out 48 in 27.2 innings.
Coming into this year, there were whispers that Lincecum would win the Giants closers job out of spring training, but they kept him in the rotation and sent him to the minor leagues were he proceeded to absolutely embarrass batters in AAA. In 5 starts covering 31 innings, Lincecum gave up a whopping 12 hits and ONE run, striking out 46 batters in the process. The league hit a laughable .121 against him.
The Giants had little choice but to call him to replace Russ Ortiz in their rotation and Lincecum debuted on Sunday Night Baseball against the Philadelphia Phillies.
Over the past month and a half, Lincecum has tossed 59 up-and-down innings. He's struck out 62 batters in those innings but has also walked 29. His record stands at 2-2 and his ERA is a robust 5.19.
The love affair with Lincecum may be warranted but it's going to take time before he's a steady ace. He needs to refine his command a little bit and just learn the ropes of being in the big leagues. In time, he could prove to be a very special pitcher but for now he is going to have to take his lumps and adjust, just like every other "best pitcher in the last 10 years" has had to.
<<< Click here for Chris' May 23-May 28 Graduation Report.
Chris Loupos can be reached at loopdog1@aol.com.