BA Top 100 Prospects: 1-50

Baseball America - 2006 Top 100 Prospects: 1-50

Delmon Young is the top prospect followed by Justin Upton.

The remaining Top 10:

3. Brandon Wood
4. Jeremy Hermida
5. Stephen Drew
6. Francisco Liriano
7. Chad Billingsley
8. Justin Verlander
9. Lastings Milledge
10. Matt Cain

Some quibbling with the order can be done, but I think the top 10 are fairly consensus.

What Roto players need to do is focuse on the next 11. It is here that BA rips off 11 straight hitters, all of which could help this year (either on your roster or as prime bail trade bait later in the season) - Fielder, Kendrick, Gordon, Marte, Zimmerman, Stewart, Jackson, Saltamacchia, LaRoche, Quentin and Markakis.

Apparently, contributing to a major league team means less than the scouting report. I have a hard time making that evaluation. It is analogous to saying the money in my pocket is worth less than the money I may have in two years.

Lester, Chris Young, Jenks, Troy Tulowitzski, Joel Guzman, Pie, Barton, Butler, Ramirez, Maybin.

Given Barton is not a defensive sure thing, why, other than Beanism, is he ahead of KC masher, Billy Butler? I'd take Butler over Barton every single day. (No! No! I won't drink the Kool-aid!)

Maybin is my candidate for the Chris Nelson Award - a player with none-to-little professional experience but ranked with, and ahead of, much more accomplished players. This should be Upton but....

Carlos Gonzalez, Clement, Olsen, Zumaya, Papelbon, (36) Pelfrey.

The Mets are lucky to have a top OF and SP high on this list.

Homer Baily, Phillip Hughes, Anibal Sanchez, Anthony Reyes.

A Red?

Russell Martin, Neil Walker, Mark Rogers, Adam Loewen - a couple catchers and righty and lefty power arms with no control whatsoever.

Erick Aybar, Adam Miller, Dustin McGowan - a couple pitchers with arm injuries. They should be much, much lower.

Ryan Braun and Andrew McCutchen take 49th and 50th place. I like both propects, but Braun has to take a walk and has High A, AA and AAA to do so. McCutchen has the OBP so in vogue but has as many levels to traverse as Braun plus low A.