Keith Law's Top 100

Talk about the Cardinals minor league baseball
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Tim
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Keith Law's Top 100

Post by Tim »

I'll be posting Cards as they are announced.

http://www.espn.com/blog/keith-law/insider/post?id=6172
89. Jack Flaherty, RHP, St. Louis Cardinals
Age: 21 (10/15/95) | B/T: R/R
Height: 6-4 | Weight: 205
Top level: High-A | 2016: 83


Flaherty came from the same Los Angeles-area prep school as Lucas Giolito, Max Fried, and now fellow Cardinal farmhand Austin Wilson (selected in the minor league Rule 5 draft) and signed an over-slot deal with the Cards as a supplemental pick in the 2014 draft.

He’s always been a command and control guy but saw his stuff tick up a little in 2016, while his command wavered just a little bit. Flaherty mostly pitches at 90-94 mph with an average curveball and changeup, but late in 2016 saw his fastball creep up to 93-96. In general he was better at getting the ball down in the zone, bumping his ground-ball rate up from 38 to 49 percent year-over-year.

He’s still learning the craft of pitching, having both played third base and pitched in high school, with limited innings behind him. But he has all the elements you’d want to see in a 200-inning, mid-rotation starter. He just needs experience and some physical maturity to be ready for a major-league role by 2019.
Last edited by Tim on January 24 17, 8:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Keith Law's Top 100

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61. Delvin Perez, SS, St. Louis Cardinals
Age: 18 (11/24/98) | B/T: R/R
Height: 6-3 | Weight: 175
Top level: Rookie | 2016: NE

Perez had a chance to be a top-five pick in the draft before he tested positive for a PED in MLB’s mandated pre-draft screening, which caused him to tumble to the 23rd pick of the first round, where the Cardinals grabbed him. Perez was the youngest premium prospect in the draft, turning only 18 in November, so he’ll play all of 2017 at that age and could conceivably spend part of it in full-season ball, given his strong pro debut (.294/.352/.393 in the GCL with a 16 percent strikeout rate).

Perez’s power surge last spring might have been a mirage, but his other tools aren’t -- he’s a 70 runner with a 70 arm and at least 60 defense at shortstop, and he does have a quick bat, even if it isn't ultimately going to produce power. Even if he never sees 10 homers in a season -- which I think is pessimistic, given his bat speed -- his glove and speed would at least get him to the majors as a defense-only shortstop … if he’s willing to put in the work, which is the other question that contributed to his slide in the draft. He has a huge opportunity in front of him with a clean slate, and if he wants to be a superstar, he was born with the physical ability to become one.

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lukethedrifter
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Re: Keith Law's Top 100

Post by lukethedrifter »

6'3" and 175 at 18 y/o, does Perez end up too big for SS?
A-Rod is in the 230 neighborhood at the same height.
Peralta is listed at 6'2 225 but looks shorter and fatter.
Ripken was in the A-Rod range.

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Re: Keith Law's Top 100

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lukethedrifter wrote:6'3" and 175 at 18 y/o, does Perez end up too big for SS?
A-Rod is in the 230 neighborhood at the same height.
Peralta is listed at 6'2 225 but looks shorter and fatter.
Ripken was in the A-Rod range.
Looks like Jeter is about the same size (yeah, I know he was a below average fielder, but the point remains ). Everything I've heard about Perez says he's an excellent defender--better than the 60 Law has him at-- so unless I see or hear otherwise I think he'll stick.

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lukethedrifter
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Re: Keith Law's Top 100

Post by lukethedrifter »

MrCrowesGarden wrote:
lukethedrifter wrote:6'3" and 175 at 18 y/o, does Perez end up too big for SS?
A-Rod is in the 230 neighborhood at the same height.
Peralta is listed at 6'2 225 but looks shorter and fatter.
Ripken was in the A-Rod range.
Looks like Jeter is about the same size (yeah, I know he was a below average fielder, but the point remains ). Everything I've heard about Perez says he's an excellent defender--better than the 60 Law has him at-- so unless I see or hear otherwise I think he'll stick.
If he ends up at 6'3 230 there's a very short list of elite level defensive shortstops and his bat will have to carry him.

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Re: Keith Law's Top 100

Post by MrCrowesGarden »

I don't think he's gonna be 230. Certainly possible, but I think 200-210 is more likely.

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lukethedrifter
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Re: Keith Law's Top 100

Post by lukethedrifter »

MrCrowesGarden wrote:I don't think he's gonna be 230. Certainly possible, but I think 200-210 is more likely.
I don't either. Just pointing out that it's not at all unusual for a tall lanky teen to fill out and some fill out a lot more than others.

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Re: Keith Law's Top 100

Post by Swirls »

Or just get ridiculously fat like Miguel Cabrera did, and gain 100 lbs instead of 45-50. He was 6'-2" 185 when he debuted, and is now pushing 260-270. He was over 285 a few years ago.

Granted, he came up as a 3B instead of a SS, so you don't need quite as much athleticism, but still...

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Re: Keith Law's Top 100

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51. Carson Kelly, C, St. Louis Cardinals
Age: 22 (7/14/94) | B/T: R/R
Height: 6-2 | Weight: 220
Top level: MLB | 2016: NR

Kelly has been catching for only three years, but in that span, he has become a good enough receiver and thrower that he projects as an everyday backstop, with the chance to become more depending on how his bat develops. His offense took a backseat for years while the Cardinals worked with him on his defense, but he’s an intelligent, diligent kid who threw himself into the task, and the results are very promising, as he’s at least an average receiver now and has nailed about a third of opposing base stealers in the minors.

At the plate, Kelly is a tough out. He has never struck out more than 64 times in a pro season but is still learning ‘his’ strike zone, such as making better choices of when to swing and when to take. Kelly hasn’t hit for much power in pro ball, but there’s some raw juice in there, as he showed with a big home run at Petco Park in the Futures Game. His swing isn’t geared for huge home run totals, with a short load and path into the zone, but he could end up in the 10-12 homer range with high averages as he learns to make hard contact.

Everyday catchers are hard to find and the offensive standard is low, so Kelly looks like a very likely regular, with a chance to be more if his bat develops further, as the old saw about catching prospects says it might.

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Re: Keith Law's Top 100

Post by GeddyWrox »

Great info. Thanks Tim. Refreshing to have actual baseball stuff to read.

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