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Baltimore Orioles
No. 1 Prospect: Brian Matusz, LHP (18th overall)
What Was Said: “…has as much polish as any pitching prospect in the game.”
Analysis: While Matusz's 4.59 ERA might not impress, he's been outstanding at times, and the potential to be a consistent 15-18 game winner is still there as he learns how to pitch with his full arsenal to overcome an inability to miss bats.
Two Through Eleven: Lefty Zach Britton (fourth) was too low, and while third baseman Josh Bell (second) and Jake Arrieta (third) both reached the big leagues, Britton has the best chance to make a difference for this team long-term. The team's first-round pick in 2009, Matt Hobgood (fifth), was given a bit of a mulligan for his velocity dip, but it never came back this year. Some readers were upset that first baseman Brandon Snyder (seventh) didn't rank higher, but as it turned out, he didn't even deserve that ranking. Catcher Caleb Joseph (ninth) fell dramatically at Double-A, while corner infielder Brandon Waring (10th) hit tons of home runs but still strikes out far too much.
Sleeper: Named as a potential lefty power reliever, Ashur Tolliver had shoulder problems and then scuffled in the New York-Penn League.

Boston Red Sox
No. 1 Prospect: Ryan Westmoreland, OF (14th overall)
What Was Said: “…could be the kind of player people thought Grady Sizemore would become.”
Analysis: It's not fair to call it a miss, but Westmoreland's career remains in limbo following brain surgery to correct a vascular abnormality. He's currently with the team in Florida for instructional league, but limited to stretching and batting practice.
Two Through Eleven: Righty Casey Kelly (second) did not impress statistically, but he was a 20-year-old pitching full-time for the first time in his career, and Double-A was a heady assignment. The scouting reports are unchanged from last year. Outfielders Josh Reddick (third) and Ryan Kalish (fourth) flip-flopped, but Reddick finished the year strong. First baseman Anthony Rizzo (fifth) was well ahead of position-mate Lars Anderson (ninth) and proved why by leading the organization with 25 home runs after hitting just 12 in 2009. Pitchers Junichi Tazawa (seventh) and Michael Bowden (eighth) didn't help their case, while infielder Derrik Gibson (11th) failed to build on a big year in the New York-Penn League.
Sleeper: Outfielder Peter Hissey remains for more tools than actualization after an ugly .234/.308/.318 showing at High-A Salem.

New York Yankees
No. 1 Prospect: Jesus Montero, C (fourth overall)
What Was Said: “…one of the best offensive prospects in the game, and possibly the best.”
Analysis: After a slow start, Montero hit .351/.396/.684 after the All-Star break as a 20-year-old in Triple-A to maintain his reputation. Unfortunately, his defensive reports saw little improvement, so the Carlos Delgado comparisons remain.
Two Through Eleven: Righty Arodys Vizcaino (second) was dealt to the Braves and was outstanding before arm problems. That left southpaw Manny Banuelos (third) as the highest ranked prospect still in the system, and he didn't disappoint with a breakout year. That said, righty Zach McAllister was ranked fourth and saw his stock fall dramatically. Despite being 17 and having yet to play, catcher Gary Sanchez was ranked sixth, and proved to be worthy of the praise in an outstanding pro debut. Outfielders Slade Heathcott (seventh) and Kelvin DeLeon (eighth) both failed to tap into their tools, while righty D.J. Mitchell (11th) remains on track as a future ground ball machine. Notably absent: righties Andrew Brackman and Dellin Betances, but nobody saw Betances coming like he did.
Sleeper: Outfielder Abraham Almonte was one of the talks of spring training, but his season ended in April after shoulder surgery.

Tampa Bay Rays
No. 1 Prospect: Desmond Jennings, OF (seventh overall)
What Was Said: “…imagine Carl Crawford with more plate discipline.”
Analysis: While he hardly collapsed, Jennings struggled through an injury-plagued season at Triple-A Durham, batting .278/.362/.393 in 109 games. His speed, defense and contact ability should still allow him to be an impact-level center fielder, but with just three home runs in 399 at-bats, the power projection is starting to fall well below Crawford levels.
Two Through Eleven: Righty Jeremy Hellickson (second) continued to move up the charts while Wade Davis (third) proved to be a capable big league starter as a rookie. After an explosive showing in the New York-Penn League, Alex Colome (fourth) slipped a bit, in the sense that some think he'll end up a closer down the road. Matt Moore (fifth) led the minor leagues in strikeouts again, and was the best pitcher in the minors during the second half of the year. The first overall pick in 2008, Tim Beckham (sixth), will be lucky to make this year's list after zero progress at High-A and to have him ahead of fellow shortstop Reid Brignac (seventh) is just embarrassing at this point. Lefty Alex Torres (eighth) impressed at Double-A, while catcher Luke Bailey (11th) was slow to return after Tommy John surgery.
Sleeper: The injury curse of the sleepers continued in Tampa Bay, as 2009 ninth-round pick Kevin James tossed just 8 2/3 non-descript innings in the Gulf Coast League.

Toronto Blue Jays
No. 1 Prospect: Kyle Drabek, RHP (16th overall)
What Was Said: “…will be an All-Star level starter.”
Analysis: He's still on track to be just that after leading the Eastern League with 14 wins while finishing third in both ERA and strikeouts. His fastball and curve are both above-average big league offerings right now, and he should open 2011 in the Toronto rotation.
Two Through Eleven: First baseman Brett Wallace (second) is struggling mightily in the big leagues for Houston, and all Toronto got for him is high-risk/high-reward outfielder Anthony Gose after his 2010 scouting reports were filled with synonyms for mediocrity. Catcher Travis D'Arnaud (third) was great at times, but ultimately limited by back issues, one of the worst kind of injuries for a backstop. The good news is that fellow catcher J.P. Arencibia (fifth) had a power explosion that will likely make him an everyday player next year. Chad Jenkins (fourth), their 2009 first-rounder, failed to impress in his full-season debut. It's not that he was bad, as much as he was merely average across the board. Catcher Carlos Perez (seventh) and outfielder Jake Marisnick (eighth) continued to show plenty of tools and upside at the lower levels. Reliever Tim Collins (10th), continues to prove all of his critics wrong and is now on the verge of the big leagues after arriving in Kansas City via Atlanta.
Sleeper: The king of the multiple arm angles, righty Danny Farquhar cut his walk rate at Double-A, but not enough to help his prospect status much.   

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metty5
9/30
KG, you know I <3 your work, but what does, Matusz having "the potential to be a consistent 15-18 game winner" really have to with anything? Is that a comment on him becoming a work horse & working late into games? I just don't grasp what you are implying about him as an individual.
kgoldstein
9/30
I get where you are going here, I really do, with all the Felix Hernandez stuff and what not. Look, I'd vote for Felix, and I understand that wins are a crappy stat. That said, do we have to completely reject the language of the game in order to make our point. If I say "consistent 15-18 game winner" that doesn't convey ANYTHING to you? I know it does, and I bet it conjures something in your mind that meshes quite well with what I'm trying to say. Again, I don't reject your point, but I do wonder about where it's coming from.
leites
9/30
Westmoreland is a very long way from doing batting practice in the ordinary sense of the term. His cognitive abilities related to vision are still impaired to the extent that it seems like it may be sometime before he can swing at an object moving faster than a wiffle ball.
leites
9/30
"He recently spent time with the Single-A Lowell Spinners and Single-A Greenville Drive, taking swings off a tee and softly tossed to him." http://www.projo.com/redsox/content/sp_bb_red_sox_journal_18_09-19-10_CLJV3NR_v3.20ec3e3.html
scottieo2
10/01
FWIW Westmoreland tweeted today "Took real BP today! Hit a few really hard...great day"
leites
9/30
"Westmoreland said he was close to being legally blind after the surgery and in the first couple of months he had trouble watching television and movies. He slowly moved up to playing golf and worked on building muscle memory watching things that stood still.

Now he has 20/20 vision in his right eye and 20/25 in his left. His vision was a perfect 20/20 in both eyes before the surgery. His goal is to build up enough momentum with the soft toss from different angles where he can take regular batting practice, but he had no timetable on when that would happen.

“I saw a quick improvement,” said Westmoreland. “My eyes have learned how to focus on things that are still, it’s just now they are learning how to focus on things coming at me.”

http://fullcount.weei.com/sports/boston/baseball/red-sox/tag/ryan-westmoreland/
Scott44
9/30
KG - When can we expect you to do a BP chat session? Enjoy everyone's contributions but no one outside of you really does prospects. Thanks, keep up the great work.
kgoldstein
9/30
With the minor league season over and the playoffs around the corner, there's plenty of good stuff going on here. I'm trying to take it a bit easy between now and Top 11 time, when I'll be chatting often, and of course, turning each Top 11 list into it's own mini-chat in the comments. That said, our post-season coverage is, as it should be, king in October.
Scott44
9/30
Can't wait. Have been following you and Jason on the Podcasts, so any prospecting on there is HIGHLY valuable and would encourage more, lol. For anyone who hasn't been listening to the podcasts, i'd highly recommend.
ObviouslyRob
9/30
I think it's a little unfair to say Tazawa didn't help his case as he missed the season with Tommy John surgery. His personal influence on his case was neutral.
judyblum
10/01
I just wanted to mention, Lars Anderson's fielding at 1st base since he's been called up has looked much better to me than I ever expected from everything I've seen written about him by anyone.