TOWER GROVE — It seems that St. Louis Cardinals’ first-round pick and shortstop prospect Pete Kozma is often judged for the player he isn’t and never will be as opposed to the player he is or could be.

Kozma is not Rick Porcello. No news there.

Yet, that fact seems to bludgeon Kozma’s chances in prospects polls like this one, the Bird Land Community Top 21. He’s dismissed because of something he had no role in and shouldn’t be asked to answer for. You know the story. It’s been over-told. Porcello was available. The Cardinals balked at the price for a prep pitcher despite the sense that Porcello was a trend-bucking prep pitcher. That decision has caused the Cardinals to re-think some of their approaches to the draft, and within the front office some of the people who advocated for drafting Porcello now have a louder voice.

That (re)said, they went with Kozma. And Kozma is climbing the ranks.

Just not, for some reason, the polls.

This is more of a question really than a case. Kozma was regarded good enough by opposing managers in the Texas League to be their pick as the best defensive shortstop/infielder in a poll earlier this year. At 21, Kozma was in Class AA, and it’s likely that he’ll return there for the full 2010 season. A Cardinals officially recently told me that the organization wouldn’t not be alarmed if he spent the whole year as the starting shortstop in Double-A Springfield. That echoes what a scout told me last month: He felt that Kozma was pushed ahead too rapidly, that just when he got his swing going at High-A Palm Beach he was shoved into Double-A struggled.

Kozma has the glove to play shortstop and the bat that right now projects him as a utility infielder. Not exactly the return on a first-round pick desired, and maybe that’s where the drop in the polls comes from. Look the poll that I help construct isn’t innocent either. On first-round rep alone, Kozma debuted on the Baseball America poll at No. 7. This past year, he was No. 10. In the coming rankings … well, does the trend hold?

He’s already slipped here. He was No. 13 in last year’s poll. In hindsight, a fine placement.

Maybe there’s a better answer out there, but two factors seem to drag him down in the rankings: Who he isn’t and his hitting. If the latter improves — as his career trend hints will happen — then will the former evaporate as well? Because another (arguably better) all-glove shortstop is coming: Ryan Jackson. Thoughts?

The poll so far, before we get to the poll for today:

1. Jaime Garcia, LHP
2. David Freese, 3B
3. Shelby Miller, RHP
4. Allen Craig, OF
5. Blake Hawksworth, RHP
6. Daryl Jones, OF
7. Eduardo Sanchez, RHP
8. Lance Lynn, RHP
9. Daniel Descalso, 2B
10. Tyler Greene, SS
11. Jon Jay, OF
12. Adam Ottavino, RHP
13. Francisco Samuel, RHP
14. Bryan Anderson, C
15. Robert Stock, C
16. Tyler Henley, OF
17. TODAY

And thus the poll for the 17th prospect in the 2010 Bird Land Community Top 21. Two intriguing relief arms are in the poll, one returning (Adam Reifer) and one new (2009 draft pick Scott Bittle):

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SCOTT BITTLE, RHP: Whether the red flag was literal or merely figurative, it was large and hard to miss when it came to the scouting reports filed on Bittle, the Ole Miss pitcher with one of the best pitches in the SEC. The Yankees drafted Bittle 75th overall in 2008 and did not sign him because of concerns about a nettlesome shoulder. Bittle has had recurring problems with his shoulder throughout the past few college seasons. He was shut down at the end of the past season because of a shoulder strain. That said, I know people who insist if he’s healthy, he’ll move through the system with the pitch he calls “The Thing.” It’s a high-speed cutter, the kind that is en vogue with relievers (and more) in the majors. It worked for 16 strikeouts/nine innings in his senior year. The Cardinals signed him to a deal they felt was reflective of the health concern (read: low bonus). AGE: 23. STATS: Pitching only in a rehab program to strengthen shoulder and get ready for spring 2010.

RICHARD CASTILLO, RHP: He just turned 20 last month, and already Castillo has 35 games and more than 160 innings in High-A Palm Beach on his baseball card. The youngest of the Cardinals starters who is expected to appear at the higher levels this season, Castillo has also become, in some ways, the torchbearer for the Cardinals international scouting campaigns. Castillo (5-foot-11, 165 pounds) has good enough stuff with solid control. He throws in the low 90s mph, and it’s possible he gains some velocity as he improves his strength and if he improves his conditioning. The experience he’s getting at this age is going to be valuable if his approach catches up to the level. He’s also off playing against some pros in the Venezuelan winter league right now. AGE: 20. STATS: 6-13, 3.87 ERA, with 105 strikeouts with 66 walks in 148 2/3 innings with a .270 BA against.

ROBERTO DE LA CRUZ, 3B: By voiding their deal with outfielder Wagner Mateo, the Cardinals kept De La Cruz in place as their highest-bonus bonus into the international market. De La Cruz is a strapping young man who the Cardinals landed for $1.1 million. His frame and size and look impressed in spring training, but there was some concern about how he looked at the plate. The plan to push him to Johnson City was abandoned, and he found a place with the GCL Cardinals. Word from coaches is he improved, and he did hit .298 in August with seven of his nine doubles coming in the final 94 at-bats he had. At his age, just the exposure — even GCL — is what matters here. AGE: About to turn 18. STATS: .224 BA, .267 OBP, .279 SLG, with nine extra-base hits (all doubles) and 37 hits total. Had 59 Ks and 10 walks.

SAM FREEMAN, LHP: Coming out of Kansas as a 32nd-round pick, Freeman has earned a rep around the system as one of the finer athletes. He also is being billed (by some scouts, too) as a sleeper prospect. He projects as a lefty specialist, but he hasn’t been used exclusively as that in the minors. Against lefties he held them to a .155 average with 15 strikeouts and only five walks in 63 batters faced. Not the kind of strikeout rate that a dominate lefty has against lefties, but it compares well with another lefty specialist to watch: Tyler Norrick. Converted from starter to reliever, Norrick held lefties to a .174 average with 30 strikeouts and 20 walks (too many) in 89 batters faced this past season. Freeman had his season slowed by elbow trouble. There are officials in the system who think he could move quickly through the levels. AGE: 22 STATS: 2-2, 2.41 ERA in 56 innings with a .191 batting average against, 47 strikeouts, 27 walks.

MARK HAMILTON, 1B: Often a favorite of the analytical set, Hamilton is one of the pure hitters, arguably a cousin of Daric Barton and Brett Wallace who, like them, is a bat first and a position player second — or third. Coming out of Tulane, a neighbor of one of the best bookshops in the world (Fight The Stupids at Maple Street Book Shop), Hamilton was a highly decorated college player and has the second-round pick to show for it. He has good power, a good feel at the plate for the strike zone and has traits of a three-true-outcome hitters (one who either gets a homer, a walk or a strikeout). A difference: Hamilton hits for average, annually. The catch is he doesn’t really have a position. First base is where he stands, but he’s not going to advance there. So he’s off this winter competing in the Dominican Winter League and playing outfield for the first time. AGE: 25 STATS: .307 BA, .401 OBP, .526 SLG, 14 home runs, 47 RBIs and 48 runs scored with 80 strikeouts and 41 walks in 96 games split between Double-A and Triple-A.

STEVEN HILL, C/1B/OF: He’s listed at catcher. He came into the system as a first baseman. And he’ll do fine in the outfield when given a chance there. Hill hits, and what he has that others in that category don’t is a verified versatility. Word is that he plays catcher well enough to handle the position as a backup or No. 3 catcher. He’s working on his play in the outfield so he could mix in there, and he’s fine at first base, though (say it with me now) the Cardinals don’t have a lot of playing time at first base. There are a handful of hitters in the system like Hill — from the high-end Allen Craig to Hill and Mark Hamilton. If being able to play a position is part of what you look for in a prospect who has done well as a hitter, then Hill has to rate well because he can play a position of specific demands, catcher. AGE: 24 STATS: .282/.333/.470 with 26 doubles, 19 home runs, 64 RBIs and 62 runs in 120 games for Class AA.

PETE KOZMA, SS: One can wonder where Kozma would be in these rankings if he didn’t have the first-round pick label drawing people’s eyes. That is a fair question. Taken with the Cardinals first pick in the 2007 draft, it will be awhile before Kozma shakes the stigma of that pick, through no fault of his own. The truth is he’s a strong defensive player who opposing managers in his league said was the best with the glove in the Texas League despite the load of errors. He has all of the qualities of a reliable shortstop, though he doesn’t have the high-wire athleticism that, say, Brendan Ryan had at the same level. Kozma’s bat remains a riddle. Coaches, and even some scouts, believe there is gap power there — if only there was more contact there. The Cardinals can cling to Kozma’s trend. He usually struggles in his first taste/half season at a level and then gets traction and excels in a second half season there. He’ll return to Class AA Springfield, and he could spend the whole season there. AGE: 21 STATS: .231/.302/.323 overall with 20 doubles and 60 runs scored, 25 errors, but … .315/.381/.384 at High-A Palm Beach, his second half season at the level.

CASEY MULLIGAN, RHP. The people’s choice for the poll, and it has to be for more than his dancing skills. Mulligan is one of the converted catchers around the Cardinals system, though he doesn’t bring the blazing heat of, say, a Jason Motte. Mulligan’s fastball has late bite to it, and he frustrates hitters by dropping his arm every so often to throw off the view of his pitches. Mulligan’s curve improved through the season, and he scaled the system swiftly. Lot to like for his age and for his level of experience in the role, but it’s not clear if he’s going to be a late-inning prospect. AGE: 22. STATS: 6-2, 1.45 ERA, 97 Ks and 29 walks in 68 1/3 innings, 16 saves; finished at Class AA Springfield and had a 2.21 ERA in 20 innings there.

ADAM REIFER, RHP: Sometimes the relievers that burn the hottest, also burn out the fastest. Mark McCormick, for example, has superb velocity, but cannot stay healthy and cannot keep his delivery together long enough to be consistent. Hard to rank him on velocity alone. Reifer will fight that trend, and seems to have the ability to stay on track. His command stats aren’t great in the AFL, but it’s early and he’s had a full season, so you want context and not just raw numbers. There are scouts who like Reifer’s potential, and they see enough in his late-inning/closer appearances with High-A Palm Beach this past season to think he can continue improving while maintaining that role. He’ll have to be in more command to stay at closer as he climbs the organizational ladder. AGE: 23. STATS: 4-7, 21 saves, 4.47 ERA, 54 Ks, 24 BBs, 48 1/3 innings in 54 games.

P.J. WALTERS, RHP: The righthander did have a few sips of coffee at the major-league level, including a start at Wrigley Field. Some hard lessons were offered. He probably has the best changeup in the system and he thrwos harder than his reputation — but not much harder. Control is his game. And in the majors he learned that being able to control pitches that veer out of the strike zone is swell, but not effective at the top level. Pitches he puts on the edge of the strike zone that get swings in the minors result in walks in the majors. He’s got a workmanlike assortment of pitches, pairing that good changeup with a two-seam fastball that does move and a breaking ball that he can throw for a strike. In a poll that has rewarded proximity to the majors, Walters offers a guy on the doorstep, though his role could be starter, it could also be as Brad Thompson’s replacement. AGE: 24. STATS: In Memphis, he went 8-10, 4.54 ERA with 113 strikeouts, 44 walks in 121 innings pitched. He allowed 128 hits there.

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