Labor Day weekend arrives tomorrow, which means barbeques, adult beverages, college football, and the end of the minor league baseball season. Therefore like a rotund man at a Mexican buffet, I am trying to consume as many local minor league contests as possible before Monday unfortunately arrives.
Wednesday night was a beautiful, picturesque summer evening and I found myself watching a doubleheader between the visiting Salem Red Sox and host Frederick Keys. Due to several midseason promotions and skill improvements during the year, the Frederick roster has some prospects with major league potential. These are a few players that particularly caught my attention during these games.
Steven Brault LHP Frederick
An athletic and wiry left-handed pitcher, Brault was Baltimore’s 14th round pick last summer out of small Division 2 school. This 22-year-old is rather raw for a collegiate pitcher, but he has significant projection remaining in his lean body, and appears taller than his listed 6-1 175lbs. Brault throws across his body during his delivery, which provides some deception to the batters but causes him to struggle to keep his release point. He impressively pounds the strike zone, but this mechanical issue could hinder his velocity potential. Brault reminds me of a young Ross Detwiler, both physically and with his pitching motion.
LHP Steven Brault
Brault features a quality 4-pitch arsenal, consisting of an 87-91mph fastball with some sinking action, a late-breaking 82-84mph slider, an intriguing but inconsistent low-80s changeup with some natural arm-side fading movement, and a rare mid-70s overhand curveball. In this viewing Brault used his fastball well to get ahead of opposing batters, but his current below-average off-speed offerings cause him to struggle to put away hitters. His youth and athleticism give me some hope that he can polish his delivery and improve his arsenal. Brault is an intriguing, talented young arm and is a quality sleeper prospect in the Orioles’ system.
Nerves are being squeezed in between two or more deformed bones and viagra buying twisted muscles. On the other hand, people who use http://davidfraymusic.com/buy-2349 side effects of tadalafil. This action mechanism continue reading to find out more cheap online levitra helps in allowing blood to flow well in penile organ. For effective result, feel free to levitra prices http://davidfraymusic.com/events/piano-recital-hohenems-austria/ follow a healthy diet with a good amount of fresh fruits and vegetables. Jason Esposito 3B Frederick
A long-time personal favorite since watching him a few summers ago for Orleans in the Cape Cod League, Esposito has struggled since being drafted in the 2nd round in 2011. Defensively Esposito projects as an above-average or better third baseman, with a very strong arm, soft hands, and quality footwork for the position. Additionally, Esposito has fringy speed and good athleticism for a big 6-2 200lbs player. His defense has always outpaced his offense, where he struggles with large strikeout totals and a near allergy to drawing walks. These weaknesses have caused him to fail to turn his average or better strength and bat speed into power production at High-A the past two years. Now 24-years-old Esposito will need an impressive showing in the Arizona Fall League and a breakout season in 2015 if he wishes to reach the majors. The talent and physical tools are there for a major league third baseman, if the “light bulb” should turn on for Esposito.
Adrian Marin Shortstop Frederick
Adrian Marin
Ranked as my #12 Orioles prospect earlier this month, Marin has shown obvious improvement over the course of the 2014 season. Marin possesses solid-average speed, especially once he is underway, soft hands, and Wednesday evening he flashed a stronger throwing arm that I can ever recollect, making a strong throw from deep shortstop to throw out a speedy runner. His reasonable athleticism and average arm make him profile better at second base in the future, but I believe he could play shortstop as a utility player in a backup role.
The 20-year-old still struggles offensively with off-speed pitches away, and his non-overly massive physique does not have him project to hit for much power in the future. However, he has made progress this season making harder contact and flashes gap power, portending a possible offensive breakout in 2015. While his profile is not sexy, his excellent baseball IQ should allow Marin to outplay his fringy tools and carve out a major league career.