Wingack said:Five shortstops in the top seven.
southshoresoxfan said:Yankees with one player and he's at #85.
Paradigm said:
It's really going to sink them for the next few years. What happens when someone gets hurt? Who do you call up when a pitcher hits the DL with a lat strain? Who do you trade mid-season to pick up an extra bat when every other team can offer better talent?
If Lackey or Lester hit the DL with some kind of 30-day injury, look at the options: Barnes, Webster, Ranuado. You can reasonably expect those guys to step in and perform.
It'll take a few years to rebuild the farm, and they'll be able to do it through the draft, but that's another reason why I see this as the Sox window: the lack of depth is going to really hurt the Yankees, and to some extent Tampa as well unless they make a few trades to restock. Their talent is quite far off.
DaubachmanTurnerOD said:I've heard that the Yankees are planning on restocking (at least to some degree) their system by spending a bunch international players this year, penalties be damned.
Maybe that would be a good move for them, as it does seem like their drafts have not been very fruitful over the past several years.
My quick google search to find support about the existence of this rumor didn't turn up much, except this guy at Pinstripe Alley has also apparently heard the rumor: http://www.pinstripealley.com/yankees-prospects-minor-leagues/2014/1/23/5332302/yankees-prospects-farm-system-draft-scouting
Generally you're right about the Sox not trading ML players for prospects, but 1) Nick Punto says "Hello. " , and 2) one could view a situation like Ellsbury leaving and the Sox getting a pick as a type of trade.Jed Zeppelin said:
Will they? Every few years they more or less punt an entire draft by signing multiple free agents, and in the years they don't their drafts have routinely been terrible for any number of reasons. Even when it seems like they've hit on a few picks, the players plateau at a certain point and don't make the leap. The only major league contributors the Yankees have consistently been able to pull out of the draft are bullpen arms, and that was before the new draft rules made it tougher for teams to splurge.
The 2011 draft is a nice example. By the time the Yankees finally made their first pick at #51, the Red Sox had already drafted Barnes, Swihart, Owens, and Bradley. Just for fun, that pick was Dante Bichette, who just repeated Low-A and almost impossibly declined from a .653 OPS to .623.
One way the Yankees' farm system is similar to the Red Sox is that it's basically never replenished through trades involving major league players for prospects. They're always trying to compete and improve now now now and the firesale never happens; the bloated contracts would make it tough anyway. This isn't really a problem on its own (it hasn't harmed the RS development machine) but combined with the other significant deficiencies in the way the Yankees approach the farm system, it's just another nail in the coffin.
The next draft will be another nice example. By the time the second round is over, the Red Sox will have added three or four new prospects (pending the Drew situation) and the Yankees will have added one (at #56, unless they go ahead and sign Santana or Jimenez). The org. just isn't built to take advantage of the draft.
In addition to the other comments on your post one thing to consider is in the new financial climate there always seems to be a major league replacement available who is either coming off major injury, or over the hill, or a AAAA they can buy/rent for the time needed. And as it happens those players often play over their heads in the short term - or at least seem to come up with key hits. Guys like Overbay, Wells, Youk for example. They don't have to worry about a thin farm system when they take that approach as well. That's not to say I think it is a solid strategy but they do seem to get more mileage out of it than would seem productive as well.Paradigm said:
It's really going to sink them for the next few years. What happens when someone gets hurt? Who do you call up when a pitcher hits the DL with a lat strain? Who do you trade mid-season to pick up an extra bat when every other team can offer better talent?
If Lackey or Lester hit the DL with some kind of 30-day injury, look at the options: Barnes, Webster, Ranuado. You can reasonably expect those guys to step in and perform.
It'll take a few years to rebuild the farm, and they'll be able to do it through the draft, but that's another reason why I see this as the Sox window: the lack of depth is going to really hurt the Yankees, and to some extent Tampa as well unless they make a few trades to restock. Their talent is quite far off.
Isn't part of the new international signing rules a per year cap on each team, where if they exceed it they can't sign anyone for over a comparatively modest sum the next year?DaubachmanTurnerOD said:I've heard that the Yankees are planning on restocking (at least to some degree) their system by spending a bunch international players this year, penalties be damned.
Maybe that would be a good move for them, as it does seem like their drafts have not been very fruitful over the past several years.
My quick google search to find support about the existence of this rumor didn't turn up much, except this guy at Pinstripe Alley has also apparently heard the rumor: http://www.pinstripealley.com/yankees-prospects-minor-leagues/2014/1/23/5332302/yankees-prospects-farm-system-draft-scouting
Drek717 said:Isn't part of the new international signing rules a per year cap on each team, where if they exceed it they can't sign anyone for over a comparatively modest sum the next year?
Going HAM this year would make sense if they knew that this year was rife with elite talent, that they could buy the lion's share of elite talent, and that they wouldn't regret having to basically sit out the entire next year. I have a hard time thinking any organization believes they can predict the signing of international teenagers with that much accuracy.
overspending on intl free agents in the past has resulted in creating a sense of entitlement in very young players that has not helped their development but I'm quessing has been a detriment to team chemistry on low minors teams. Both gary sanchez and Jesus Montero have been recent examples of this.DaubachmanTurnerOD said:I've heard that the Yankees are planning on restocking (at least to some degree) their system by spending a bunch international players this year, penalties be damned.
Maybe that would be a good move for them, as it does seem like their drafts have not been very fruitful over the past several years.
My quick google search to find support about the existence of this rumor didn't turn up much, except this guy at Pinstripe Alley has also apparently heard the rumor: http://www.pinstripealley.com/yankees-prospects-minor-leagues/2014/1/23/5332302/yankees-prospects-farm-system-draft-scouting
Doctor G said:overspending on intl free agents in the past has resulted in creating a sense of entitlement in very young players that has not helped their development but I'm quessing has been a detriment to team chemistry on low minors teams. Both gary sanchez and Jesus Montero have been recent examples of this.
So... never give any amateur a signing bonus over 1.6 million? What?Doctor G said:overspending on intl free agents in the past has resulted in creating a sense of entitlement in very young players that has not helped their development but I'm quessing has been a detriment to team chemistry on low minors teams. Both gary sanchez and Jesus Montero have been recent examples of this.
nvalvo said:Those writeups contain an assessment of each system's trajectory for 2015, of which six are "down," four are "steady," and the remaining 20 are "up."
Hmm...
Your point would make more sense if it was about mutual funds. Baseball is a zero-sum game. The value of a farm system is always relative to the value of the other farm systems.Hoplite said:
Is that really contradictory? There's no set value for how good a the 25th best farm system is. Farm systems overall could improve next year.
snowmanny said:Your point would make more sense if it was about mutual funds. Baseball is a zero-sum game. The value of a farm system is always relative to the value of the other farm systems.
snowmanny said:Your point would make more sense if it was about mutual funds. Baseball is a zero-sum game. The value of a farm system is always relative to the value of the other farm systems.
It's entirely possible, say, for just one team to move down and 29 to move up -- if a team falls from first to last. It is a zero-sum equation, but "up" and "down" aren't values, just direction.nvalvo said:Those writeups contain an assessment of each system's trajectory for 2015, of which six are "down," four are "steady," and the remaining 20 are "up."
Hmm...
touchstone033 said:It's entirely possible, say, for just one team to move down and 29 to move up -- if a team falls from first to last. It is a zero-sum equation, but "up" and "down" aren't values, just direction.
That said, I noticed the same damn thing! I don't think the perfesser gave it much thought. Sometimes I get the feeling he regards the whole exercise of ranking prospects and orgs as more than a chore, I think he sees it as irrational and vainglorious.