Top 8 Prospects
7 of them are in AAA
#1 - SP Norman Cornell - 21 years old - Last Season - 14-7, 3.35 in 30 starts for AA Greensboro - This Season - Rated 7/6/4 over 9/7/7 in AAA.
Got lucky on Cornell, a scouting discovery from Australia. Had 5/4/3 potentials when he was discovered. Boosted to 8/5/5 after winning the AA Championship with Greensboro in 2034 and again to 9/7/7 after finishing 2nd in MVPitcher voting for AA last year.
#2 - CF Jorge "Chewie" Baca - 21 years old - Last Season - .297-19-69 in 85 games for AAA Raleigh. - This Season - Rated 5/8/5/4/4 over 6/8/7/4/6 in AAA.
Chewie has blazing speed, successfully stealing 24 bases on 28 tries a year ago. Like Cornell, he was a scouting discovery. Chewie was named the #27 prospect in the league prior to this year. Was seen as a 7/7/4 prospect for most of his time in the organization, but was downgraded to 6/7/4 after missing 12 weeks to injuries (elbow, abdominal muscle) last season.
#3 - CL Lou Moore - 23 years old - Last season - 20-3, 2.08 ERA in 27 starts for AA Greensboro. - This Season - Rated 7/5/7 over 8/6/9 in AAA.
Lou makes the move to the pen this year. It really stinks to lose him as a starter, but he just doesn't have the endurance to cut it in the rotation above AA. A third round pick in 2030, Lou was originally scouted at 4/5/5 coming out of High School. He bumped up to 7/5/5 as he entered rookie ball, and then crept up gradually over the years to his current 8/6/9 prediction. Lou had an ugly 8.31 ERA in High School and had ERA's of 7.70 and 9.46 his first two years as a pro. It looked for a moment like he would flounder, but the scouts were right and he developed into a star, winning the AA MVPitcher last year.
#4 - LF Jim O'Brien - 22 years old - Last Season - .352-21-68 in 63 A games and .302-18-39 in 61 AA games - This season - Rated 6/5/7/3/5 over 6/5/9/3/5 in AAA.
O'Brien is a guy we've been high on ever since drafting him 8th overall in 2031. He hit 17 HR his first pro year, followed by 39 in '33, 37 in '34, and 39 again in '35. A true slugger with a .300+ career average to boot. He should get a shot at making the team next season with a good September with the big league club later this year.
#5 - SS Eddie Wheeler - 23 years old - Last Season - .273-9-69 in 135 games at AA Greensboro - This Season - Rated 5/6/3/4/6 over 6/7/5/4/7 in AAA.
Wheeler was drafted 19th overall in 2033. His first pro season was a success, as he hit .306-10-65 in 111 games for Delray Beach of the rookie league before capping off the year with 5 games (.350-0-1) with A OBX. In addition to a decent bat, Wheeler is a sensational defensive SS and has excellent speed. He stole 21/30 bases last year and was named MVP of the first round of the playoffs. Among his many accolades are 2 defensive awards and 3 All-Star selections. He also won an MVP award during college.
#6 - CL Terrance Jackson - 22 years old - Last Season - 5-5, 4.79 ERA in 14 starts for AA Greensboro and 6-1, 2.87 in 14 starts for A OBX. - This Season - Rated 5/8/5 over 6/5/5 in AA.
Jackson returns to Greensboro but moves from the rotation to the bullpen, where he is a perfect 4-0 in Save opportunities this young season. A former 2nd round pick (#28 overall) in 2031, Jackson has progressed methodically through the system and has gone from being unranked to the #79 prospect to the #58 prospect in the entire league. Terrence is our only top prospect below the AAA level, and he's close.... very close.
#7 - 1B Luis Aragon - 24 years old - Last Season - .308-22-83 in 126 games for AAA Raleigh. - This Season - Rated 5/5/6/5/5 over 6/5/7/5/6 in AAA.
Aragon, a 2030 2nd round pick (32nd overall), is stuck behind Shane Schute and Eric Shultz, and is getting up there in age. It's one of the reasons the Aviators would like to trade Shultz. While he probably won't be an all-star caliber 1B, he should have a solid bat and a decent glove.
#8 - 2B Juan Baez - 23 years old - Last Season - .302-12-55 in 114 games for AAA Raleigh. - This season - Rated 5/5/3/5/6 iver 5/5/4/5/6 in AAA.
While possessing just an average bat, Baez is a nice little middle infielder prospect. Good speed, good glove; he's hit well at every level so far. A scouting discovery from Mexico, Baez is close to ready and could be a call up in the event of an injury this season.