Talking about some prospects
-
-
- May
- 11
-
When Francisco Cervelli and Brett Tomko showed up, I asked them to break down a few prospects. Here is what they had to say:
Tomko on Austin Jackson: “He’s going to be a good one. He hits with power the other way, which as a pitcher is tough thing because that takes away from what you’re trying to do. He’s a good center fielder but he really hasn’t to make many great plays down there yet. I think part of it is because he gets to everything on the run. He doesn’t have to dive. From what they were saying, he came a long way last year and he seems to have picked up right where he left off. I like him. I think he can play center up here and be good.”
Cervelli on Zach McAllister: “He’s going to be in the majors. He throws harder than he used to and he can use four pitches. He knows how to pitch. He changes speeds and sets guys up. I liked working with him. He’s 91-92-93 with his fastball and it moves pretty well. I think he can get to Scranton this year.”
Cervelli on Amaury Sanit: “Oh, our Cuban? He’s not a big guy but he pitches to contact and he gets people out. He has good control and he puts it where you want. He’s interesting. I’d keep an eye on him.”
When I asked Cervelli who else is liked, he was quick to bring up Ivan Nova. He’s the 6-4 RHP who was taken in the Rule 5 draft then returned to the Yankees. Nova is 2-1, 3.86 for Trenton in four starts. “His stats aren’t great but he is pitching better,” Cervelli said. “I think he’ll improve.”
Both Tomko and Cervelli mentioned how good their respective mangers were. Tomko said Dave Miley has created a great culture with Scranton. No matter how many transactions they endure, the team is ready to play every night. Cervelli said that Trenton manager Tony Franklin “is perfect” for the players at that level because he demands professionalism from them.
Cervelli won the game for the Yankees yesterday by legging out that infield single. CC Sabathia was raving about him, too. The Yankees certainly seem to have good depth at that position in the minors. It’ll be interesting to see where Cervelli, Jesus Montero, Austin Romine and the rest of those backstops will be in three years.
This entry was posted
on Monday, May 11th, 2009 at 4:22 pm by Peter Abraham.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
Print This Post
| 
Email This Post
Chad Jennings
Sam Borden
The Yankee future looks bright!
But you didn’t ask about Venditte?
By the way, I like Cervelli a lot. Us Italians have to stick together!
he’s from venezuela, with one italian parent…
Tom B-The name and accent are clearly Italian and he looks Italian.
You’re right though, I heard he was from Venezuela, but that accent sounded Italian to me.
Well he was on the Italy team in the WBC so..
Good to hear Tomko thinks Ajax is the real deal. He is our golden boy after all.
“But you didn’t ask about Venditte?”
He’s in single A. Tomko and Cervelli wouldn’t have played with him.
wikipedia says he was born in Venezuela
I dont quite understand when tomko has seen ajax hit for power. I could only assume he means during DP or team workouts or something along those lines. As for the games that matter so far, the only thing jackson has yet to do is show some power. He is batting 360 (36 for 100) with a 430 on base percentage. That is pretty solid so i would understand if tomko was talking about his ability to contact the ball which he certainly has shown. I havent been to a scranton game and I am absolutely positive tomko knows more than I do but where is all this power ajax has during the games?
He only has 4 doubles. 2 triples and has yet to hit a homerun. Im not saying he wont develop the power and I am sure he hits some bombs during BP but I am actually a bit concerned about ajax apparent lack of power this year so far. I am glad that tomko still sees that he has the ability to hit for power because that does alleviate the concerns a bit but still, it would certainly be nice to see a few homers tacked on to that 360 average.
He only has 4 doubles. 2 triples and has yet to hit a homerun. Im not saying he wont develop the power and I am sure he hits some bombs during BP but I am actually a bit concerned about ajax apparent lack of power this year so far. I am glad that tomko still sees that he has the ability to hit for power because that does alleviate the concerns a bit but still, it would certainly be nice to see a few homers tacked on to that 360 average.
========
when HAS he shown power other than ST?
Cervelli is a poor Italian sharecropper’s son who never dreamed he was adopted.
Mi piace il giocatore Cervelli !
He’s got himself some set of coglioni.
Really, now it’s 14 months later and I’m pissed over the Rays steamrolling this guy and breaking his wrist.
Jackson isin’t a power hitter
He is basically the same type of hitter as Melky
last year in the playoffs he hit a bomb of a home run of Clay Buccholz in Trenton, a very large AA stadium.
“when HAS he shown power other than ST?”
He hit 10 HR in a half-season at A+ Tampa… maybe it was a fluke. But hey, he’s only 22.
Hitting for power is hit and miss in AA and AAA. The ballparks are inconsistent. I am pretty sure that Ajax has a line-drive stroke conducive to a lot of doubles and liners. Anyone doubting his power didn’t see the ST game where he nuked a ball to left. He has it in him its just not showing up in the stats.
Corey –
In high A tampa in 2007, he showed tremendous power for his age, belting 10 homers in only 260 at bats. That was when he was 21 and that is why people think he will or should develop power at some point. Last year, in double A, he only hit 9 homers in well over 500 at bats but he had 33 doubles and again, he was only 22 at the time. So again, scouts and bloggers and yankee fans alike said that those 33 doubles would turn into homers as his power developed. At age 23, in triple A scranton this year, his zero homeruns are the only disappointing part of his stat line. It is a bit troubling but its still only 100 at bats. And he could go on a run of power at some point as tomko seems to think.
As for his other numbers, 360 avg 430 obp and 7 for 7 in steals is a very quality start minus the lack of power. Still, if the kid can hit 360 in his first 100 at bats in triple A, he is definitely on the right track so far. And his clear power potential that was shown in tampa and trenton, is not just a fluke. Im not saying he will hit 30 or 40 homers per season. But i can see him putting him a bating avg of 300, an obp of 360 and 40 doubles, 25-30 steals and 15 homers in the majors within the next two years. Sounds like a good center fielder to me. That is the hope at least.
So, Austin Jackson has as many HRs so far this season in AAA as Big Papi has in the bigs.
Gotta think Papi has been seeing pitches to hit with Bay so hot. Ortiz looks ALOT now like the kind of player he was with the Twins.
Right now Jackson is working on handling breaking pitches and SO’s. The Yankees shortened his swing this spring and he is imprinting that. Power is all about strong wrist snap and extension, orkmn hitting through the ball.
seth –
Are you kidding me? When was melky ranked number one overall in the yanks farm system? Umm NEVER! Ajax has far more potential than melky ever will. He has WAY more speed – like the ability to hit leadoff in a major league lineup at some point and has shown the ability to hit for power at a young age. He is much more highly regarded than melky ever was or ever will be by anything ive ever read and anyone ive ever talked with.
So Tomko is wrong?
For all any of you know, Jackson has drilled 5 balls the other way that were caught at the wall. Or whatever else.
The guy is a 12-year MLB veteran. I would think his assessment of a player has more credibility than looking at a small sample of statistics.
Half of these people who think they know what kind of player AJ is wouldn’t know who he was if he came in and sat on their couch.
Cervelli was born in Venezuela, but his ancestry is Italian. There are huge Italian migrant communities all over S. America. Most notably Venezuela, Colombia, and Argentina.
I believe Marco Scutaro hails from the same Italo-Venezuelan background.
maybe it’s because ortiz was on something before, and now he’s not.
what of this report that the red sox players were given instructions on how to take steroids?
“Ortiz looks ALOT now like the kind of player he was with the Twins.”
Hmmm… so Ortiz went from marginal talent on the twins to mvp hitter to marginal talent on the sux. I wonder why that is …
Thanks for the clarification Peter.
By the way, whoever said Venditte was in single A, thanks. I wasn’t sure.
Big Papi was almost certainly juicing. He was not an extreme power hitter until he came to the Sox.
I just don’t think Tomko is a good pitcher. Discuss?
Well said Pete.
Most players don’t develop their power stroke until their Mid-20’s or later.
Austin has very good gap power for a kid. As he gets older, more experienced, and recognizes pitches better, he will drive the ball better.
All you have to do is look back on guys with similar talents. A guy like Bernie Williams for example.
IMO, Austin will be a 20-25 HR hitter in the majors by his Mid-Late 20’s. That’s solid power and that’s what a guy like Tomko is talking about.
Garza threw a pair of fastballs to Papi last night and he fouled them off. Morgan and Miller commented on how that’s not like him to be late on those pitches.
He’s older, he could be aching, who knows.
But the simple fact is that he’s dropped off significantly – even last season’s numbers.
And it pains me that A-Rod and others bear the brunt of this mess. Others clearly cheated as well. Imagine Red Sox Nation reaction should someone break the seal on those other 103 names.
I’m not accusing him, but it’s getting harder and harder to ignore.
How’s this kid’s fielding?
“Half of these people who think they know what kind of player AJ is wouldn’t know who he was if he came in and sat on their couch.”
They would if he took 5 minutes to register here:
http://www.couchsurfing.com
Anyone remember the homerun Bellhorn hit off Moose in Game 6, 2004 ALCS?
Cleared the left-center field wall (maybe left of left-center). He hit it left-handed. Pushed it all the way out there.
Now maybe if Moose was throwing a 96 mph heater, I could see a guy like Bellhorn slap it that far. But Moose doesn’t throw that hard.
Just sayin…
Papi didn’t get his power until he was nearly 30 then he suddenly loses it 5 years later? strange.
As a Yankee fan you all well within your rights to believe the worst about Red Sox Players.
Austin Jackson is NOT Italian!
http://www.couchsurfing.com
Nick, AJ’s feet would definitely dangle off the edge of my couch.
He might have to settle for the air-mattress which isn’t too bad…
But hey, he’s getting a free place to stay…in addition to companioship…oh, and beer.
“Anyone remember the homerun Bellhorn hit off Moose in Game 6, 2004 ALCS?”
It was Jon Lieber not Moose.
It’s just not talked about enough.
A-rod is greeted with foam syringes in Camden Yards.
Giambi gets verbally abused in Fenway.
I hope Yankee Stadium retains some of that type of atmosphere.
The blond masks behind the plate at Fenway for A-rod were priceless. Think the first 10 rows at Yankee Stadium would hold up foam syringes for Papi? Not likely. How about cardboard laptops for Buchholtz? Don’t think so.
Yankee Stadium needs an edge back to it. It’s too welcoming for other teams.
I’m not even going back ot old series like that because that’s unfair. Remember in 03′ during game 7 Giambi hadd 2 HR’s. My point is not that the Red Sox didn’t earn their championships because they did, only that the Red Sox cheat just like the Yankees do.
pETE, i def dont think tomko is wrong. I think his words are reassuring to those that look at the stats so far and see a dip in the power when we were probably all expecting it to rise. I was just wondering how or where tomko saw this power – It would have been nice if he was a little more specific and said something like you just did above about where he saw the power potential so far this season. I think we should all be a little more optimistic that the homeruns will come for ajax this season based on what tomko said.
Im sure he has a reason to say the power is there and ajax has shown the last two season that he does have power in his bat and that was when he was in his very early 20s still. There are a lot of power hitters around baseball who barely hit any homers in the minors. Look at hanley ramirez’s numbers in double A for example – 6 homers in 460 at bats and he went on to hit 17, 29 and 33 homers in the majors the next three seasons. Im not saying ajax is hanley obviously but both of them were 22 at the time and that is the same league.
Uncle Ellsworth-We were talking about Cervelli.
Yankee Stadium is fine, this idea of a special magic that the stadium had is ridiculous. Yankees won often there because they were often good. Good teams win at home. There was nothing special at the Old Stadium like magic or mystique or aura and if the Yankees start winning the New Stadium will feel like home quite soon.
My bad, Joe I. Should know that.
“Cervelli won the game for the Yankees yesterday by legging out that infield single.”
That was a huge play yesterday…followed by Jeter’s huge play hustling on the infield dribbler that he beat out for a hit…those two plays gave Damon his at bat that inning. I’d love to see them play with that intensity every day.
if a jax is our golden boy, we’re in trouble.
don’t get me wrong, i think he’ll be a nice player – a randy winn, someone like that… but i don’t see another bernie williams.
The problem with those little infield dribblers is that a great defensive team like the Rays and Sox would have thrown them out.
There isn’t enough room on this blog to discuss all the reasons why tomko has proven he is not good but it can be said in one sentence – he was born in the early 70s and he started his season in the minor leagues. Adam eaton who got the win against us the other night probably is worse than tomko is though.
michael-What’s the problem? He’s doing great and they all say he’s the real deal?
Uncle Ellsworth-We were talking about Cervelli.
I know – just bustin’
Yankee fans were never too big on prop comedy like the syringes to begin with. And about 5% of fans know Clay Stole LapTops.
SJ44
May 11th, 2009 at 5:11 pm
Well said Pete.
Most players don’t develop their power stroke until their Mid-20’s or later.
Austin has very good gap power for a kid. As he gets older, more experienced, and recognizes pitches better, he will drive the ball better.
All you have to do is look back on guys with similar talents. A guy like Bernie Williams for example.
IMO, Austin will be a 20-25 HR hitter in the majors by his Mid-Late 20’s. That’s solid power and that’s what a guy like Tomko is talking about.
————————————————————
Jackson has a right handed version of Bernie Williams kind of power. You’ve seen him. His homers will come on mistakes, eventually. Can’t beat the gap power/speed combination. For someone with so little baseball experience, he’s an exceptionally smart baserunner. Much like Jeter/Rodriguez and Damon, he steals when he needs to. For those that expecy upper deck power, forget it. He should be an annual 20 homer, 25-30 steal kind of player. On defense, for those that saw him, he’ll be the best defensive Yankee center fielder since Elliott Maddox.
Ajax will be a very nice leadoff hitter with some pop in his bat. I can see him putting up damon-like average stats in a few years and playing a quality center field.
BUT AJAX IS NOT OUR GOLDEN BOY. He is just the closest prospect we have to a major league ready player. Montero is the golden boy of the yankee franchise in terms of star of the lineup potential. He is further away so he is less discussed but he is going to be a VERY GOOD hitter in the not too distant future for us. I think he could be middle of the lineup solid.
I’m sketchy on that one…so Elliot Maddox was good? And how’s his arm? And why is he not up here with us? (Please something more concerete than “he’s not ready”).
I guess “Power” is hard to define now.
I remember when 20 HRs was a lot.doubles and triples historically counted as power – didn’t they?
20 HR
40 2b
5 3b sounds good
I heard Montero can’t field.
http://myespn.go.com/blogs/swe.....t-of-.html
http://www.hardballtimes.com/m.....ud-expect/
By “his” earlier I was referring to AJax, not Maddox.
People who say the Yanks have no farm have no clue what they’re talking about.
dave
May 11th, 2009 at 5:30 pm
Ajax will be a very nice leadoff hitter with some pop in his bat. I can see him putting up damon-like average stats in a few years and playing a quality center field.
BUT AJAX IS NOT OUR GOLDEN BOY. He is just the closest prospect we have to a major league ready player. Montero is the golden boy of the yankee franchise in terms of star of the lineup potential. He is further away so he is less discussed but he is going to be a VERY GOOD hitter in the not too distant future for us. I think he could be middle of the lineup solid.
————————————————————
Jackson will not be a leadoff hitter. He strikes out way too much and he doesn’t have the walk totals. Evenually, he could settle in around the three spot, but hell do just fine in the 8-9 spot for the first couple of years.
Montero in high tampa now – 106 at bats, 302 avg, 368 obp, 5 homers, 10 doubles, 906 ops. And yea, he is still only 19 years old. Last year, he was at 326, 376, 491. If we are looking for a GOLDEN BOY and someone who can be one of the best hitters on the team in a couple of years, look no further than montero if ajax doesnt do it for you with his speed and budding power.
Question: What if Melky (or possibly Gardner) ends up having a great season? And what if they keep it up and become good CFer’s? What happens to Jackson?
“if a jax is our golden boy, we’re in trouble.
don’t get me wrong, i think he’ll be a nice player – a randy winn, someone like that… but i don’t see another bernie williams.”
Our farm system isn’t exactly overrun with young position guys so outside of low A guys(Romine, Montero) we are not very stocked with full time players. I see Austin Jackson being a Gary Matthews type player good athlete, fielder and decent hitter his upside is Torii Hunter
“He might have to settle for the air-mattress which isn’t too bad…”
As long as he doesn’t have to sleep on the sofa bed… with that damn BAR!!!!!
Uncle Ellsworth
May 11th, 2009 at 5:33 pm
I guess “Power” is hard to define now.
I remember when 20 HRs was a lot.doubles and triples historically counted as power – didn’t they?
20 HR
40 2b
5 3b sounds good
————————————————————
40 homers are a maybe but definately a 5-10 triple type. He runs like Bernie williams with the long strides, but his first two-three steps are so much quicker. When he goes from 1st to 3rd or home to 3rd, he chews up ground in a hurry. He’s not willie Wilson fast, but an exceptional base runner.
“Question: What if Melky (or possibly Gardner) ends up having a great season? And what if they keep it up and become good CFer’s? What happens to Jackson?”
That’s called having a “good problem.”
Pete, thanks for the info! Great scouting reports – I loved hearing the player evaluations from players themselves instead of scouts. I’m trying hard not to get too high on AJ because it just seems like nothing every really works out for the Yankees with their prospects. I also think NY is an extremely difficult place to develop youngsters. The fans are have absolutely no patience, none at all, for growing pains of any kind. They want immediate results for their $$$. The only reason Yankee fans had patience for Bernie, Jeter, etc… is because the team had been so bad for so long…..
I dunno GB, I thought he would be more like a damon type player who is a leadoff hitter than be a number 3 or 4 hitter in a lineup as stacked as the yankees usually are. You say you see 20 homers out of him and 25 to 30 steals? Is that not the makeup of a leadoff hitter. Damon also did not have a high obp immediately out of the minors but it developed. I could definitely see ajax developing a lot more patience in a short period of time.
Al – montero is in high A tampa. Not low A.
If Jackson comes up next year and starts out hitting .210, they will want him gone and to trade for Aaron Rowand
“if a jax is our golden boy, we’re in trouble.”
———–
considering the % of prospects that turn into stars, it’s best not to have any one “golden boy”. there aren’t many Jay Bruce’s in the minors.
The Yankees need to continue to build depth in the minors and let the %’s hold up.
AJax may very well turn into a quality MLB regular but people need to temper expectations until then. Many people here already have him penciled in as an everyday starter in 2009. It’s possible… but you can’t consider it a letdown if it takes a little longer than that, IMO.
Jackson better be the Golden Boy because there isn’t anything behind him in position players for three or four years.
iF melky continues hitting like he is now the entire year, I will be shocked but we only had swisher and ajax around so far to fill the outfield next year unless damon comes back. That opens the possibility for an outfield composed of melky, ajax and swisher.
I seriously doubt that happens because one, melky is not as good as his numbers so far and two, there are a decent amount of quality outfielders on the free agent market and losing matsui and damon’s bat is a big blow to the lineup without replacing them with someone who is a proven mlb player.
“The problem with those little infield dribblers is that a great defensive team like the Rays and Sox would have thrown them out.”
Roberts definitely didn’t approach Cervelli’s groundball correctly – maybe because of the limited scouting report? And Jeter’s groundball became a hit despite Mora being a very good 3B – most likely because he was playing back with 2 outs? Everytime I watch Melvin Mora, I’m always impressed with his play – very good fielder and hitter. Real nice ballplayer.
Kackson’s not going to hit .210, but, neither will he be likely to hit .310 the first couple of years, either.
The way to survive being a young prospect in NY is to luck into some early success like Cano, Wang, Joba, and Coke did.
Those guys also had the luxury of being somewhat anonymous to the average fan so the expectations were not there. They didn’t have years of hype in the minors like Hughes, Melancon, Jackson etc. did
***Jackson’s not going to hit .210***
Ajax hitting 360 430 and going 7 for 7 in steals in triple A in his first 100 at bats really should be taken as a positive more than the lack of power.
Rumor Central:
(from the rotoworld.com message boards)
“Okay, here’s the deal. I work at CBS Sports and across the street is the MLB Network. I overheard one of our execs talking to a PR guy here. He said, “rumor is another big star is going to be suspended 50 games.” Now, like I said, you can’t get more rumory (yeah, I’m making this word up) than this. I heard no name or anything, but you know how the world works, the high ups have the info and they talk to each other. This is all I have on the matter.”
obviously just a hearsay rumor but who knows…
Maybe the redsox have had more success with their younger players from the farm but we have seen cano come out of the farm system to almost win a batting title and wang came out of the farm and turned into a 2 time 19 game winner. Coke has come out of the farm to be our ONLY reliable reliever so far this season. Joba has come out of the farm to be the best setup man in baseball followed by a potential ace of the staff at some point. Hughes who has yet to really show his talent was the prospect we had that was ranked second best pitcher in all of the minor leagues. Melky has been a capable center fielder for an entire year for us in the past and is now on the verge of doing it again. AJax is hitting 360 in triple A in his early 20s. Montero is 19 and soon to be one of the best prospects in baseball. Melancon has shown nothing but dominance at all levels and will soon be our bridge to Mo this season.
Im sorry but i still fail to see how our farm is completely failing us over the last 2 years. We dont yet have an mvp/ cy young player but many of the above could be one at some point. There was every reason to complain about the farm system in between 96 and 2004 but i think the ascent of wang and cano followed by Joba and Hughes marked an end to an era of the abysmal farm system that the yanks had for so many years. It was cano, then, wang, then, joba, next is hughes and melancon and soon after that will be ajax. A year or so later, montero. That doesnt sound like too bad of a procession.
It appears that Javier Lopez has been DFA’d by Boston and Daniel bard is being added.
“So Tomko is wrong?”
Don’t think so, but a few posts ago, the opinion of “journeyman DH” Aubrey Huff was rendered meaningless by you, Pete. As a ballplayer, Tomko isn’t fit to clean Huff’s socks. Given this, can his opinion possibly hold water?
You people are ridiculous. Cervelli is Venezuelan, get over it. I’m Irish but I am American. There is absolutely nothing wrong with being from Venezuela.
Steve:
I will try and explain this in easy-to-understand language. Huff has been with three teams since 2006 and has spent more games as a DH than at any other position. Three teams in four years would make him a journeyman DH by most definitions.
Nor did I try to compare Huff and Tomko. It was two distinct posts.
His opinion holds water because he played with Jackson on his baseball team. Huff likely doesn’t know Austin Jackson, so why would I ask him?
“Huff likely doesn’t know Austin Jackson, so why would I ask him?”
LOL, you can’t argue with him there
Pete, you are cool!! I love that answer. Do you feel like you are monitoring a kindergarten class? LOL!
Can you all imagine how Phil Rizzuto would be with Cervelli on the team? LOL. Phil loved the fellow Italians!!
I’m more concerned that Austin Jackson has struck out 27 times in 26 games than I am that he’s sitting at 0 home runs.
He may be hitting .360 in Scranton, but he’d be lucky to hit .260 in the majors if he’s getting K’d that often by AAA pitchers.
thank you 4 that
Pete, CC Sabathia has been on three different teams in the last TWO years. Does that make him a “journeyman”?
Journeyman pitcher gets called up to the big club and says the team’s best prospect “can be good.” Excuse me if I don’t wet my pants with anticipation.
What else is tomko going to say? “Austin Jackson? He’s completely overrated. He’ll never make it in the bigs. He smells really bad, too.”
please excuse a first time poster, long time lurker, if I may be so bold. As the father of a minor league player, and lifelong baseball fan, I can say with some authority that young players can change quickly. Last years marginal player can become dominant this year. These young men are maturing mentally and physically all the while trying to compete for a job and to follow their dream. Projected stars flame out, sleepers sometimes surprise. For all the best observation/tracking/software/stats, sometimes things just workout the way they were meant to.IMHO
John