Mound Talk

Top 100 Prospect list coming soon…

1. Matt Antonelli, 2B, AA. Antonelli split time between High- and Double-A this year and hit .307/.404/.491 with 21 home runs. Antonelli has speed and patience to boot stealing 28 bags and walking 83 times.
2. Will Inman, RHSP, AA. Inman came to San Diego in the Scott Linebrink trade. A short right-handed pitcher with average stuff, Inman has succeeded on his control and deception. Inman projects as a #3/4 starter.
3. Chase Headley, 3B, AA. Headly had an oustanding year in the Texas League. He hit .330/.437/.580 to lead the TL in all three stats. He found the power stroke that San Diego believed in.
4. Kyle Blanks, 1B, A+. Injured last year, Blanks came out of the gates ready to go. Blanks will be 21 when the 2008 season opens and is already dealing with body size issues. He needs to work on his conditioning to continue on as a professional baseball player.
5. Chad Huffman, LF, AA. Huffman split time between High- and Double-A this year. He flahsed his power this year as the 22 year old hit 22 home runs and slugged .491 in 483 combined at-bats. Huffman is patient at the plate but still strikes out a lot. He’ll need to show the ability to make contact against advanced pitching before the Padres are ready to move on him. He’ll likely start 2008 in AA.
6. Wade Leblanc, LHSP, AA. Leblanc was a second round pick in 2006 and dominated in his full-season debut. While splitting 149.1 innings between High- and Double-A, Leblanc held hitters to a 2.95 ERA. He’s close to his ceiling. He has an average fastball and curve but a plus-plus changeup.
7. Mat Latos, RHSP, A-. Latos is a power-pitcher who hits 96 consistently with his fastball. He has a decent change and slider, both of which could be plus pitches. He struck out 74 batters in 56.1 innings. The bad news is he allowed 58 hits and 22 walks.
8. Yefri Carvajal, COF, A-. At 18 years old and with decent tools, Carvajal has a bright future. At the moment, however, he’ll need to turn those tools into production. He’ll start next year in Low-A and will be expected to produce. He hit .297/.344/.428 between Rooie Ball and Short Season A this year with three home runs and 18 doubles in 222 at-bats.
9. Will Venable, LF, AA. Venable is 24 years old, so he’s old for his league, but he does warrant a spot as a Top 10 Prospect because of his skills. He will be a fourth outfielder, at best but should be adequate. His arm isn’t great, keeping him from being a good solution in right field, but he can hit for average and he draws an average amount of walks. He has good speed, stealing 45 of 53 bases in his three year Minor League career and 21 of 23 this year.
10. Cedric Hunter, OF, A. Didn’t do as well as expected in his full-season debut, but a .282/.344/.373 line in the Midwest League is not horrible.
Flier. Nick Schmidt, LHRP, NCAA. Schmidt was taken with the 23rd overall pick in the 2007 draft. Taken out of Arkansas, Schmidt threw 7 professional innings and then underwent Tommy John surgery. At 6-foot-5, 220 pounds, Schmidt has a great body and great stuff. He throws in the low-90s on his fastball and offers a good slider and changeup. He has the components to be a successful Major League reliever and should move rapidly once he has recovered.

The Padres system was one of the worst in baseball just last season. But with a trade that brought Will Inman over and the breakout seasons of Antonelli and Headley, combined with a few international successes, the Padres have elevated themselves, a bit as a system. They still lack depth and ultimately have a shortage of elite talent. It doesn’t help when their three top picks over the last four years (Matt Bush, Cesar Carrillo and Nick Schmidt) have had major setbacks. The Padres history of taking college players in the first ten rounds or so has been largely unfruitful and that is making the development of a farm system difficult.