Cardinals Community Top 30: Voting for No. 11 & Video Clips
TOWER GROVE — While I’ve gone a little poll crazy with the new tools we have on the publishing program here in the “Blog Zone”, the one upgrade I’d like to become more adroit with is the easy-embed video. There’s no better use of these video clips then with Cardinals’ prospects.
We can talk about Daryl Jones tools and Clayton Mortensen’s sinker and Adam Reifer’s live arm, but it’s much better to show the tools, the speed, the break, the late movement, the mechanics, the swing. There are only so many things a 20-80 scale can tell you about a guy’s fastball or what the phrase “pie-thrower” really tells you about a guy’s delivery. Wouldn’t you just rather see the pie-thrower himself, Eddie Degerman?
You’ve read the descriptions. Here is your No. 2 prospect Brett Wallace’s swing:
As we move into the middle third of the St. Louis Cardinals Community Top 30 prospects, the benefit of seeing players will only add to the validity of your votes. The leading Web site on Cardinals’ prospects Future Redbirds has a host of videos on its main page (check the right side column). A search through YouTube will offer up a few more. And there’s this video of Niko Vasquez taking ground balls over at the TAKKLE site.
Vasquez, drafted out of a Las Vegas area high school this past summer, is one of four infielders in the poll below for the No. 11 prospect in the Cards Comm Top 30. Another is 2007 first-round pick Pete Kozma, seen here during an extended at-bat that doesn’t end all that well …
If you’ve got other clips of prospects you’ve seen or ones you’re interested in seeing, send them to me at dgoold@post-dispatch.com and I’ll use them as best I can or hunt them down as best I can.
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Derrick Goold said he was going to Mizzou for capital-J journalism, but after growing up in the Time Zone Baseball Forgot he was really drawn to MU sitting between two major-league cities. Goold joined the Post-Dispatch in 2001 after working for The Times-Picayune and Rocky Mountain News, covering sports from LSU to NHL and every level of baseball in between. 
Great videos, DG…
It appears the main issue with Kozma is whether or not he can produce at the plate or not. It sort of sounds like the opposite of the criticism with Brett Wallace…. Wallace: Can hit but questionable defense… Kozma: Good defensive player, questionable at the plate. Thoughts, DG…can Kozma produce at the dish enough to become a solid everyday SS? Is that the main concern regarding Koz?
My vote went to Vasquez. Of the middle infield prospects currently in the Cards system, Niko may have the best chance at developing into an everyday, solid SS.
EMC,
I think that is a very good way to distill the projections for the Cardinals’ past two first-round draft picks. One can hit. Where will he field? One can field. How will he hit?
Well done.
dg
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If Adam Dunn and Chris Duncan can play LF, then so can Brett Wallace. Wallace is definitely a better athlete than at least Duncan, and a better pure hitter than either one of those guys.
I predict a big year for kozma. DG do think he will start in Springfield this year.
I voted for Jon Jay. I believe he will make an impact at the MLB level sooner than a lot of people think. If Schumaker gets traded, Jay is his natural replacement IMO.
Notice that you have Craig’s position listed as INF. If he plays 2B he moves into the top 5-7 IMO.
Anyway, I saw this as a tough pick between Craig and Jay but apparently Clayton Mortensen has alot of fans. Clayton needs to show more consistent control before he his here. He has really had only one (very small) good control year and that was 2007. He struggled with his control in college and in 2008. I am worried that he may have trouble controlling his action on the fastball.
Personally I see Vasquez as the superior prospect to Kozma. His glove is a little worse but his bat is far more potent than the Koz’.
Niko gets my vote– with Mortensen & Jay close. I just haven’t seen enough pop from Kozma. He projects (at best) to a utility guy/late inning defensive replacement- in my opinion.
I voted for John Jay, who was in my top 10. If the Cards
trade one or more of the back-up ML outfielders I think
it is possible he might play in the bigs before Rasmus.
I think strong consideration should be given to adding
Lance Lynn to the prospect list.
wallace’s body looks like a cross between greg luzinski and ron cey. kouzma may be standing too far back in the box judging by the way he lunged at the pitch. moving closer to the pitcher might take some break off certain pitches.
My vote goes to P.J. Walters. The walks were a little high this year, but he’ll bounce back. Two years in a row he’s led our farm system in innings pitched and strikeouts. 2007 Minor league pitcher of the year, in which he easily dominated the three leagues he passed through, with an era of 2.55. He’s recorded 22 wins over the last two seasons. Give him his due, he’s earned it.