Article:Down on the Farm: A look at what's up with some of baseball's top young Prospects

As opposed to just posting daily reports, which apparently no one is interested in, what I may do is every couple weeks highlight a few selected players and how they are doing to this point. If there is interest, I might add.

Arizona Diamondbacks. 2006 first round pick Max Scherzer has yet to allow an earned run this season, and in his last outing struck out eleven in five innings of work. Scherzer was dominant in the Arizona Fall League last year as a reliever, but the Dbacks so far have him working out of the rotation with the Triple A Tucson Sidewinders. 2007 first rounder, high schooler Jarrod Parker, is in Lo Class A South Bend, where he has been working on his secondary pitches. The Dbacks have removed the slider from his repetoire, and are instead focusing on the curve and, especially, his changeup.

Atlanta Braves: Lefthander Jo-Jo Reyes who started ten games for the Braves last season and was counted on to at least battle for a rotation spot in the spring, had a horrible spring and spent some time working with major league pitching coach Roger McDowell on becoming more consistent with his footwork during his delivery. Reyes is currently pitching for Triple A Richmond where he has allowed just six hits in fourteen innings, with eighteen strikeouts in three starts.

Cincinnati Reds: In explaining the decision to send out top prospect Jay Bruce, Reds manager Dusty Baker said it was just a matter of getting Bruce some at-bats in Triple A. Well, it seems to be working, as Bruce is currently hitting .316 in 57 at bats, with three homers and 13 RBI. Bruce has had four multi-hit games in his last ten, with six extrabase hits out of his 18 total, and is a perfect 3-3 in stolen base attempts.

Detroit Tigers: Righthander Kyle Sleeth, the Tiger's first round pick in 2003, retired after struggling since 2005 to recover from Tommy John surgery. ''Kyle gave it everything he had," said GM Dave Dombrowski. It is believed the Tigers will offer Sleeth an opportunity to coach in the minors after he takes some time away from the game to decide his future.

Florida Marlins: Heading into spring training, one top prospect was virtually assured of a spot on the roster, while another seemed destined for the minor leagues no matter how well he performed, and that's exactly how things turned out. The problem was, the one expected to make the roster, OF Cameron Maybin, was send down, and the other, righthander Chris Volstad hung around until the final cuts. Maybin hit just .190 in his spring trial, while Volstad pitched extremely well all spring and even started an exhibition game against the Yankees at Dolphin Stadium. Volstad is currently 2-0 with a 2.65 ERA in Double A, while Maybin, also at Double A, is at .280, although he has struck out an alarming 24 times in 50 AB's.

Los Angeles Angels: Brandon Wood, moved back to shortstop after a season a third base, is the current Minor League homerun leader with six, playing at Triple A Salt Lake.Catcher Hank Conger will miss the first half of the season after being diagnosed with a slightly torn rotator cuff.

Milwaukee Brewers Righthander Mike Jones, the Brewers first round pick in 2001, and who has pitched just 24 games the past three seasons due to multiple shoulder and elbow surgeries, is on track to return to game action at some point in 2008, albeit after the mid-season break.

Minnesota Twins: Kevin Mulvey, one of the young pitchers Minnesota acquired in the Johan Santana trade, is making a name for himself in Triple A. After his outing this past Wednesday, Mulvey is 2-1 with a 1.02 ERA.

New York Yankees: Catcher Francisco Cervelli, injured in a spring training collision at the plate, required surgery on his broken right wrist and isn't expected back in action til the end of May. Righthander Alan Horne, an option for the Yankees if the need arises for a starter, has been placed on the DL with a strained right biceps.

Pittsburgh Pirates: First rounder (2005) Brad Lincoln made his first appearance since having reconstructive elbow surgery in March, 2007. Lincoln will remain at extended spring training before reporting to Lo Class A Hickory. Converted catcher Neil Walker, now at third base, turned a few heads in the spring with several outstanding defensive plays. OF Steve Pearce was also sent out to Triple A Indianapolis along with Walker, and he too is learning a new position after being moved off first base. Pearce on Wednesday hit his first two homers of the season and drove in five runs in bringing his average to .279.

San Diego Padres: OF Vince Sinisi broke his right wrist in two places diving for a ball in spring training and could miss up to the first two months of the season. Matt Bush the first overall pick in the 2004 draft, has begun throwing after having Tommy John surgery last July, shortly after making the switch from shortstop to the mound.

Tampa Bay Rays: Overall number one pick in the 2007 draft David Price sustained his second arm injury of the spring while throwing in a minor league game and won't be allowed to throw until mid-May. Price sustained a shoulder strain almost immediately upon reporting to camp, and despite a number of impressive appearances in ML spring games was not 100% at all during March.

Texas Rangers: One of the biggest surprises of the spring was the Rangers decision to send catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia to minor league camp. The decision was made more by the apparent resurgence of ML catcher Gerald Laird than anything to do with Salty's game, but since he has never played at the Triple A level, it was decided full time work there was better than part time work in Texas. Another factor was the ending of the first base experiment, Saltalamacchia will catch full time at Oklahoma City, where he is hitting .298/3/12.

Toronto Blue Jays: Righthander Casey Janssen, who spent most of 2007 in Toronto's bullpen, came to camp this year trying to win a spot in the rotation. Instead, he had surgery for a torn rotator cuff and will miss the entire year.

Sources:

Baseball America and www.MiLB.com