[情報] Top European Prospects in the Major Leagues
Now that all the games have been played and teams prepare for the WBC, it is
time to take a look at the prospects from the various continents and
countries. Our first look is Europe, which is starting to grow as a major
league hot spot. I've included Curacao in Europe since it is a Dutch colony
and I recieved so many comments for not including players from there in a
European prospect list. The major leagues have already seen players such as
Rick Vandenhurk, Wladimir Baleintien and Jair Jurrgens make their mark on the
major leagues. It would not be surprising to see a few more.
1. Greg Halman, Mariners (Netherlands) OF - The one true legitimate prospect
who may become the first European player to play in a major league All star
game. He is the top prospect of the Mariners according to Baseball America.
As a 17 year old in the Dutch Professional League he won the MVP award,
almost winning the Triple Crown. The Mariners swooped in after that and
signed him for $130,000. He advanced to AA this year, hitting .268 with 10
homeruns. As he develops, he has the potential to be a 30-30 player in the
major leagues (29 homeruns and 31 stolen bases in 2008). Greg shows off all
five tools, but is not dominant with any one tool. The two downsides to
watch are his strikeouts as he still has not learned pitch recognition and
his temper. Sometimes Greg thinks he should be doing more with his talent
and he gets frustrated when his talent fails him. He played in the Arizona
Fall League and struggled with a .217 average, hitting only .167 against
right handed pitching, with three homruns and five stolen bases. He will
probably see some additional time in AA.
2. Shairon Martis, Nationals (Curacao) RHP - The talent level for real
prospects drops off after Halman. Martis claim to fame was the no hitter he
threw for the Netherlands against Panama in the 2006 WBC. He played for the
Giants then, but the Nationals acquired him in a trade for left handed
pitcher Mike Stanton. Martis does not have overpowering stuff so he is
better suited for the back end of the rotation. He made his major league
debut with the Nationals in 2008, getting five appearances and four starts
and finishing with an unimpressive 5.66 ERA. Command was a big issue for him
when he reached the majors. While he struck out an impressive 23 hitters in
21 innings he also walked 12. Shairon also gave up five bombs in those 21
innings, which is usually indicative of needing to throw his mediocre
fastball down the middle of the plate after getting behind in the count 3-0.
His fastball tops out at 93 but usually sits in the high 80s. I never saw
too much from him in the low 90s when he pitched for the Nationals. His best
pitch is a changeup, which he mixes with his slider and fastball to strike
out more hitters than you would expect from a pitcher lacking velocity.
3. Juan Carlos Sulbaran, Reds (Curacao) RHP - He got on the road map when he
shut down the powerful Cuban team in the Honkball tournament in 2008, almost
giving the Netherland Antilles an opening day upset. He went to high school
in Florida so the Reds drafted him in the 30th round in 2008. He signed too
late to play in any minor league games, but he will be starting for the
Netherlands team in the WBC. The Reds paid him a $500,000 bonus to sign him
so they must like what they see. His fastball is in the low 90s and he is
working on enhancing his curveball and changeup to make the fastball that
much more effective. He appears to have good command of his pitches, a
promising start for a teenage pitcher.
4. Roger Bernadina, Nationals (Netherlands) OF - He also made his debut with
the Nationals and struggled with the 4-3 groundout, hitting only .211. He
covers a lot of ground in centerfield, so if he can hit .351 like he did in
AAA he will start in centerfield. He covers a lot of ground so any kind of
offense from him would be a bonus. He's got a good arm and excellent speed.
All he needs to do is adjust to major league pitching and not try to pull
everything. Bunting and spraying the ball to all fields would enhance his
chances of major league opportunities. If he can't adjust to major league
pitching he can make it as a fourth outfielder with his defense and speed to
add to the bench.
5. Loek Van Mil, Twins (Netherlands) RHP - Loek was supposed to be the closer
for the Netherlands Olympic team but a partial ligament tear led to thoughts
of Tommy John surgery if rehab was not effective. He will probably miss all
of 2009 if surgery is needed. At 7 feet one inch, he is the tallest pitcher
in baseball. Loek throws a mid-90s fastball and a mid-80s slider, which are
both plus pitches and a changeup which is still in a developmental stage.
Loek needs to improve on holding runners and fielding, but at 7'1" there is
only so much you can do to get a big man to bend down to field grounders.
With two good pitches, he will stay in the bullpen, but if he can work in a
change the Twins could try him as a starter. Most of his work, including
with the Netherlands and the Twins has been out of the pen.
6. Hainley Statia, Angels (Curacao) SS - Another player from Curacao who went
to high school in Florida and was drafted by the Angels in the ninth round of
2004. It has been a slow climb for Statia. He saw AA for his first time
last year and only hit .242 in 59 games. His career minor league average is
.281. With so many middle infielders already in the Angels system, the odds
of him sticking is not good. He was also supposed to play for the
Netherlands national team, but a pulled hamstring forced him to miss the
event, as well as a good portion of the minor league season. He lacks power,
is not a great shortstop and does not have a gun for an arm, though it is
adequate for shortstop. If he is to make it in the major leagues it will be
as a utility player.
7. Alex Maestri, Cubs (Italy) RHP - The first player outside the Netherlands
or Curacao to make this list. At 6'0" with mediocre stuff the odds of him
advancing are slim. Righthanders without good velocity standing at 6 feet or
less do not traditionally have a lot of success in the major leagues. He
does throw strikes, is athletic and has a good slider to complement his
fastball so he does have a shot to fit at the back of the bullpen. In 2007
he had 12 saves with a 2.26 ERA, but he did not repeat that success in 2008,
moved to the starting rotation where the velocity of his fastball drops to
the high 80's. He finished with a 3.69 ERA in 2008 after 14 starts and a
6.55 ERA in AA after two starts.
8. Curt Smith, Cardinals (Curacao) 1B - Curt Smith went to the University of
Maine and was drafted by the Cardinals in the 39th round in 2008. He
appeared in 58 games between between Rookie ball and Low A finishing with a
combined .353 average and eight homeruns. Those are impressive numbers for a
first year player, but at 22 those are numbers are not a surprise for a
college level player. At 5'10" he is not a big man for first base so if he
can move to an outfield position it may increase his chances of success. He
does have decent speed, good pop and makes good contact, but he needs to
improve his patience to swing at his pitches and not the pitchers selection.
No walks in 45 at bats in low A is numbers that scouts don't like to see.
9. Sven Huijer, Red Sox (Netherlands) RHP - At 6'9" he is another tall
pitcher in the mold of Loek Van Mil. He made his debut with the Red Sox Gulf
Coast League team, making eight appearances and finishing with a 2.81 ERA.
In 16 innings he didn't walk a hitter, remarkable for a pitcher of that
height. On the downside, he only struck out four. The Red Sox must like him
since they signed him to a seven year contract.
10. Kai Gronauer, Mets (Germany) C - You have to like the way he ran the
German pitching staff in the pre-Olympic qualifier in Taiwan. And though the
Germans did not qualify for the Olympics, Kai was one of the better players
in the tournament. The Mets were impressed and signed him after the
tournament and after his first minor league season he hit .356. Those are
impressive numbers, but he was a 22 year old competing in the rookie league,
so like Curt Smith, the key will be how his numbers evolve as he advances.
He also threw out six of the 10 runners that attempted to steal off him.
Kai has been playing for the German national team since he was 18 years old.
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