MLB's Jonathan Mayo Releases His 2012 Top-20
Braves Prospects

post from Talking Chop on 06 February 2012 09:01:21 PM. © Talking Chop

People don't realize how good Arodys Vizcaino really is. The big question we'll be asking ourselves this spring is if the Braves will once again push him into a relief role or allow him to go back to starting.

It's going to get fast and furious with prospects this week. Today we got an Atlanta Braves prospect list from MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo, then tomorrow we get the Baseball Prospectus list from Kevin Goldstein. Finally on Friday, ESPN's Keith Law releases his top-10 for each organization.

Here is Mayo's top-20 list:

Julio Teheran, RHP
Arodys Vizcaino, RHP
Randall Delgado, RHP
Andrelton Simmons, SS
Christian Bethancourt, C
Sean Gilmartin, LHP
Tyler Pastornicky, SS
Joe Terdoslavich, 1B/3B
Zeke Spruill, RHP
J.R. Graham, RHP
Edward Salcedo, 3B
Nick Ahmed, SS
J.J. Hoover, RHP
Matt Lipka, CF
Brandon Drury, 3B
Carlos Perez, LHP
Todd Cunningham, OF
Mycal Jones, CF
Navery Moore, RHP
Billy Bullock, RHP

It's a decent list. I like the inclusion of Moore and Bullock at the end, even though relievers usually don't make the cut on top prospect lists. Though I find it strange that neither Kubitza nor LaStella make the list while Ahmed is listed pretty high. Ahmed at 12 is the biggest over-rank on this list, in my opinion.

Read The Full Article:
http://www.talkingchop.com/2012/2/6/2776460/mlbs-jonathan-mayo-releases-his-2012-
top-20-braves-prospects

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Want To Take Home a Bag of Dreadlocks

post from Marlin Maniac on 06 February 2012 07:56:01 PM. © Marlin Maniac

All Star shortstop and new Miami Marlin Jose Reyes recently put an end to his 3 year project. Due to the … [visit site to read more]

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http://marlinmaniac.com/2012/02/06/want-to-take-home-a-bag-of-dreadlocks/

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Rumor: Yankees in serious discussions with Raul
Ibanez

post from Bronx Baseball Daily » Bronx Baseball Daily, a New York Yankees blog on 06 February 2012 07:40:55 PM. © Bronx Baseball Daily » Bronx Baseball Daily, a New York Yankees blog

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http://bronxbaseballdaily.com/2012/02/rumor-yankees-in-serious-discussions-with-r
aul-ibanez/

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Astros Sign Justin Ruggiano

post from The Crawfish Boxes on 06 February 2012 07:01:15 PM. © The Crawfish Boxes

Astros Sign Justin Ruggiano

Ruggiano has good power and good speed, and very nice minor league numbers. He's 29 however, and really has never had a sniff of major league playing time. He doesn't appear to be terrible at defense, so without knowing much more about him, this looks like a guy who could contribute off the bench for the Astros and possibly earn some playing time if any of the regulars falter.

Read The Full Article:
http://www.crawfishboxes.com/2012/2/6/2776194/astros-sign-justin-ruggiano

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Rumor: Yankees could land Ibanez, Damon, or
Matsui this week

post from Bronx Baseball Daily » Bronx Baseball Daily, a New York Yankees blog on 06 February 2012 06:52:02 PM. © Bronx Baseball Daily » Bronx Baseball Daily, a New York Yankees blog

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http://bronxbaseballdaily.com/2012/02/rumor-yankees-could-land-ibanez-damon-or-ma
tsui-this-week/

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New Players Added To The 30-YOC Player Collection
Roster!!!

post from 30-Year Old Cardboard on 06 February 2012 05:59:59 PM. © 30-Year Old Cardboard

New Players Added To The ’30-YOC’ Player Collection Roster!!! It is that time again. As a few of my current player collections come to an end, and with a few more close to becoming complete, it is time to add … Continue reading →

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http://bapple2286.wordpress.com/2012/02/06/new-players-added-to-the-30-yoc-player
-collection-roster/

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Cubs claim Cardenas, designate DeWitt (AP)

post from MLB News Blog on 06 February 2012 05:34:33 PM. © MLB News Blog

The Chicago Cubs have claimed infielder Adrian Cardenas off waivers from the Oakland Athletics and designated infielder Blake DeWitt for assignment. The moves were announced on Monday. Primarily a second baseman, the 24-year-old Cardenas hit .314, drove in 51 runs and scored 70 for Triple-A Sacramento last year.

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http://www.mlbnewsblog.com/2012/02/06/cubs-claim-cardenas-designate-dewitt-ap/

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Stacey Long of Camden Chat on Jeremy Guthrie

post from Purple Row on 06 February 2012 05:01:34 PM. © Purple Row

Perspective is often a ~~difficult~~ impossible trait for a sports fan to fully embrace. When Joe SportsFan's favorite team pulls off a trade, it's a fool's errand to even pursue it. But hey, I'm a fool, so I set out to continue to be one.

In light of the Jeremy Guthrie trade news today, I reached out to Stacy Long, ~~manager~~ Bowser of our Orioles sister blog, Camden Chat. For most of us, Guthrie is a pitcher we have seen 99% through statistics sheets and 1% in passing from ~~SportsCenter~~ MLB Network. So I asked Stacey for a synopsis on the trade from a Baltimore perspective, and what we can expect from Mr. Guthrie going forward.

Without further ado, here's Stacey:

The trade of Jeremy Guthrie is a tough one for many Orioles fans to accept. He's not a world class pitcher but he is a world class human being. He has spent the last five seasons as one of the most popular and successful Orioles (not that that's saying much), and I recommend every Rockies fan begin following him on Twitter, @JGuthrie46. Affectionately referred to as Guts by O's fans, I have no doubt that he'll endear himself similarly to the Rockies faithful. He's an avid bicycler who arranged for a group of Orioles to bike their way through the city on Ride Your Bike to Work Day, he's not shy about his love for the Backstreet Boys, Usher, and Justin Bieber, he posts pictures of himself in his Halloween costume on Twitter, and he is just a smart, funny guy.
But how is he as a pitcher, you are asking? Well, the bad news for the Rockies is that he gives up a lot of home runs. He just does. Sorry. He also doesn't strike out a lot of batters, but he tempers both of those things by not walking many. Glancing at his stats without watching him pitch would probably cause most to think he's been lucky; he consistently out-pitches his peripherals and he has a lower than normal BABIP. But at this point he's been doing that for his entire career, and watching him be effective on a regular basis, I've come to the conclusion that Guthrie is simply an exception to the rule.
Guthrie keeps himself in phenomenal shape and is rarely injured. He's pitched at least 200 innings each of the last three seasons, and four seasons ago he pitched 190. He isn't an ace by any stretch of the imagination, but he does on occasion give an ace-like performance. More generally, though, he puts up a decent outing that keeps his team in the game. As you can see by his win-loss record, the Orioles rarely took advantage of that in his time in Baltimore. His fastball sits at 93-94 with good movement but he can pump it up several mph when he needs to. He has good control and when he's on his game he is capable of beating any lineup.

Read The Full Article:
http://www.purplerow.com/2012/2/6/2775938/stacey-long-of-camden-chat-on-jeremy-gu
thrie

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Offense - 2012

30 HR, 100 RBI (# of players)
2000 - 39
2004 - 26
2006 - 27
2009 - 19
2010 - 15
2011 - 12

The last time it was under 12 (except for the strike shortened 1994 season) was 1992 (when it was only 8). If the trend continues, this could be a memorable year for how few players have big offensive seasons.

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http://www.baseballindepth.com/2012/02/offense-2012.html

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Mariners add relievers Camp, Kuo (AP)

The Mariners have agreed to one-year contracts with pitchers Shawn Camp and Hong-Chih Kuo in an attempt to add bullpen depth. Kuo was an All-Star in 2010 with the Dodgers but struggled last season with a back problem early in the season and missed a month with anxiety disorder. During his standout 2010 season, Kuo [...]

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http://www.mlbnewsblog.com/2012/02/06/mariners-add-relievers-camp-kuo-ap/

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