2017 Phillies Top Prospect Lists

[Austinfan]

Young is the suprise, there's potential in the long-run, but he's such a projection that I probably wont' have him in my top 50 for another year.
He not only has to add velocity, he has to show he can command that velocity when it shows up.
Very few 6'10 pitchers in baseball history.

[schillingfan]

Interesting idea, but I wonder if it would really work. Your brain must also be able to perceive and use this "input". Since a person's brain is trained to act at a certain resolution I wonder if providing it with higher resolution data would work, my guess is that your brain would simply ignore or extrapolate what it was seeing into its normal flow of information. Maybe your brain can be trained to use this better vision over time by increasing the amount of synaptic tissue being used to interpret visual data.

I could be completely wrong, but I suspect that there is more to improving people in this way, the Borg probably figured this out

I believe that this is why some baseball players use Adderal, etc. It improves the brains ability to focus on the input received and thus pitch recognition could be achieved earlier. It's my understanding that fighting pilots are given ADHD drugs for precisely that reason. They are stimulants, like the little greenies taken in the 1980's.

[andyb]

He not only has to add velocity, he has to show he can command that velocity when it shows up.Very few 6'10 pitchers in baseball history.

One can debate the extreme risk, but results seem to indicate he has pretty good command for a GCL pitcher. Only 2 walks in 27 IP, a good H/IP ratio, no HRs given up, and generally good scouting reports on his polish. Every pitcher is an individual. He just happens to be a really tall pitcher with pretty good command and control. More Chris Young than Randy Johnson. I'll take Chris Young from a late round draft pick any day.

[phillychuck]

Very few 6'10 pitchers in baseball history.

However, there are also very few 6'10" people in world history. Might be a higher percentage of those that actually tried baseball and succeeded than 6'0" guys as a percentage.

[mdougherty12]

Here is an interesting article on vision and baseball:

https://www.kchitter.com/2014/08/baseball-vision-20-20-eyesight-just-wont-cut/

Part of the article is about exercises for improving visual processing.

[allentown]

Sounds like Boston has a very solid program. What do the Phillies do to improve their hitters' vision.

[mdougherty12]

I haven't found anything specific about the Phils and visual training, but this article from a few years ago on the Nationals mentions that Werth and Ibanez did some of those sorts of exercises back in 2010:

Washington Nationals go beyond the eye chart with vision training

Werth didn't seem to find the exercises particularly useful for himself, at least back then.

[allentown]

Thanks for looking.

[xogfog]

Winkelman 31-35

2017 Top 50 Phillies Prospects: 31-35

[julio]

Our discussion of vision issues and Matt Winkleman's write-up on Jose Pujols look like they should be sent - together - to Joe Jordan! I don't know whether a concerted effort to evaluate/improve Pujols' visual acuity (read: ability to be more selective at the plate) could make any difference - but if the big thing standing between Jose and a career as a major-league slugger is his strikeout rate, what have they got to lose?

[Austinfan]

I suspect with Pujols it's not a vision thing so much as an impatience thing, "me want to pound ball."
He'll always strike out a lot, but wiht that kind of power if he cuts his K% below 25%, and raises his BB % to 10+%, watch out.
Just laying off bad pitches could make a huge difference.

[allentown]

We have no way of knowing whether or not it is a vision issue. It would certainly behoove the Phillies to find out. And to find out about other guys.

[DurhamBull]

xogfog, thanks for posting the links to Winkleman's articles those people (like me) too lazy to look them up. The writeup on Pujols is a hoot.

I like that 3 of the people on this 31-35 range were acquired in trade for Roberto Hernandez (Arano and Valentin) and Marlon Byrd (Lively). It seems likely that all 3 will contribute at the major league level which is an excellent success rate.

[Austinfan]

It's why there's a competitive advantage in being able to spend a lot of money on one year deals, they help you remain respectable this year, buy time for young players to develop, and hopefully one or two can be flipped in July deals.

[xogfog]

Winkelman 25-30

2017 Top 50 Phillies Prospects: 25-30

[Patchmk88]

Our 26 to 30 prospects have to make you realize how much depth we have. In there you have a back end starter without much risk, a below average defensive outfield who in his prime could be a .275 20 homer guy (we don't have much of the on our current roster), a young starter coming off Tommy John a couple of years ago that could be a great middle of the rotation guy, and two young starters that are advanced in their command and project as quality bullpen arms and or backend starters. With those description I would think more in the 12 to 18 range but these guys are 26 to 30. Crazy to think about the depth of our system. We just need to add or develop a few top level stars.

[Austinfan]

I'd say 25-50 in this system is almost interchangeable right now, they go that deep.

Anderson however is someone I have much higher, TJ surgery tends to be "binary," you bounce back or you don't, a certain % never recover, but a significant number of pitchers are as good or better, and Anderson seems to have added velocity, and he's young enough with a frame to add a tick more. Add that to his pitchability and he has a chance to shoot through the system this year.

[bkeich]

What is even nicer about Anderson is one of the reasons he has added velocity is work ethic. He states that when he couldnt throw he decided to work on his lower body instead and that improved leg strength played a (large?) part in his improved velocity. Those are thing kind of things you want to hear from young players, "Well, I couldnt do what I wanted to do (throw) and is fun, so I just went to the gym and did something that is not measurable (leg strength) so that when I could throw I would be better". Makes me want to root for the kid.

[Patchmk88]

Winkleman 21 through 25

2017 Top 50 Phillies Prospects: 21-25

[xogfog]

Winkelman 16-20

2017 Top 50 Phillies Prospects: 16-20