The MLN Ones2Watch™ Baseball 2006 list is a bit different this year. Players of two or more years further development, usually in the class A or AA levels, debut here, and move up to the expanded FAB50 Baseball rankings. These are some of the most exciting developing players whose seasons have put them on the fast track to the next level, or to the majors.
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Ones2Watch™ (1-10) |
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South Bend SilverHawks |
1. |
Justin Upton |
OF |
| Arizona Diamondbacks |
Justin Upton, in his first professional season of class A ball with the South Bend SilverHawks, hasn’t smoked the Midwest League. Batting .267, with 20 doubles, 8 home runs, and 45 RBIs the 2005 AFLAC National High School Player of the Year is doing well, but hasn’t fully adjusted to the lower classes of pro baseball yet. Justin and older brother BJ, who plays for Durham in the Tampa Bay Devil Rays organization, hold the record for the highest drafted siblings in Major League Baseball History. Rare tools, genetics, and baseball knowledge made him the No. 1 overall pick in the 2005 Amateur Draft last season. Promise, as brother BJ has demonstrated, is not always fast-track success. He will have to kick it up a notch to live up to the Diamondbacks’ lofty expectations. |
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West Michigan Whitecaps |
2. |
Cameron Maybin |
OF |
| Detroit Tigers |
Cameron Maybin is smashing Midwest League pitchers by batting .327,with 17 doubles, five homeruns, and 52 RBIs. Selected to the Midwest League All-Star Team and showcased in the Major League All-Star Futures Game, Maybin hasn’t crumbled under the gazing spotlight and notoriety. “It’s not really any additional pressure,” Maybin said. His career launched slowly, joining the ranks of Tigers prospects with difficulties in contract negotiations. “I try to learn bits and pieces from everyone I can,” Maybin said. “It’s been an adjustment, going from playing two to three games a week in high school to playing every day. Trying to come out with the same energy is tough.” We expect Maybin to transition slowly to the pro game, and be a contending Tigers prospect in 2008 |
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Visalia Oaks |
3. |
Evan Longoria |
3B |
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Third baseman Evan Longoria, burning through the Tampa Bay Devil Rays system, was recently promoted to the Montgomery Biscuits of the Double-A Southern League after terrorizing pitchers in the New York-Penn League and the California League in his first pro year. Longoria batted .424 with four home runs for Single-A Hudson Valley and .328 with eight home runs for Single-A Visalia. The Tampa Bay Devil Rays chose Longoria, the co-Big West Player of the Year in 2006 for the Long Beach State Dirtbags, with the third overall pick in the 2006 MLB June Draft. |
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Salem-Keizer Volcanoes |
4. |
Tim Lincecum |
RHP |
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A strikeout artist at the University of Washington (491 in his three years, there), Lincecum was taken 10th overall by the Giants in this June's draft. In the mode of another former college power pitcher, Boston's Jonathan Papelbon, Lincecum's future could be as either a starter or a closer. That roll of the dice has yet to be sorted out. Look for him to advance at least one level next season. |
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Hickory Crawdads |
5. |
Andrew McCutchen |
OF |
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A former Florida high school star who was the Pittsburgh Pirates' first-round pick in the 2005 draft, Andrew McCutchen has shown an all-around offensive mix of speed and power in addition to being a strong defender in center field. After hitting .310 in his first year of professional baseball last year, McCutchen has 13 home runs and 20 steals in 99 games with the Single-A Hickory Crawdads. |
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Huntsville Stars |
6. |
Yovani Gallardo |
RHP |
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Born in La Pieded, Mexico, Yovani Gallardo, plucked from tiny Trimble Tech in Fort Worth by the Milwaukee Brewers in 2004 (2nd Round ; 46th OA), pitched scorching Rookie ball with a .47 ERA in 19.1 innings of work, allowing 1 earned run. Promoted to Beloit, he snapped with the Snappers, his ERA soaring to 12.27. That aberration in his record is a statistical blip though. With West Virginia in 2005 he kept his ERA to 2.74. This year he began with the Brevard County Manatees with a 6-3 record and a 2.09 ERA on 77.2 innings. Promoted to the AA Huntsville Stars, he actually outperformed, his ERA dropping to 1.44. Brewer fans get excited: He has fast-tracker written all over him, and should accelerate in 2007. |
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Portland Sea Dogs |
7. |
Jacoby Ellsbury |
OF |
| Boston Red Sox |
Ellsbury is one of the rare ones, who will rivet your attention with every at bat, every time on base, and with every ball hit in his general direction to center field. Some room was made in the Boston Red Sox depth chart during last off-season. We expect him to either move up, or be a viable trade candidate in 2008. |
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Jacksonville Suns |
8. |
Scott Elbert |
LHP |
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Selected out of high school by the Dodgers in the first round (17th overall) in 2004, this lefthanded prospect is has already making an impact at the Double-A level. Then again, anyone who can rack up 13 strikeouts in a game, as Elbert has done twice this year, deserves to be noticed. |
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Billings Mustangs |
9. |
Drew Stubbs |
OF |
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Cincinnati Reds prospect Drew Stubbs refused to sign a seven figure deal with the Houston Astros after going high in the June 2003 Draft. He went to UT instead. Good move. A freshman All-American, he was selected to Team USA in 2003 and 2005. Stubbs reentered the draft this year and was taken by the Cincinnati Reds 8th OA in the first round, signing with a $2 million bonus. His first professional season with the Billings Mustangs is not setting the Pioneer League on fire with a .252 average, two homeruns, and 14 RBIs. Chalk it up to pro learning curve. Watch for him to launch in 2007. We expect to see him major league ready in 2008 or early 2009. |
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San Antonio Missions |
10. |
Matt Tuiasosopo |
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From the football Tuiasosopos, Matt T. is going to have to kick it up a big notch to prove he's worth his hefty signing bonus, which seems to be a big motivating factor in his movement up through the ranks. |
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