4 Phillies in the GCL Top 20

Top Prospect Lists

Its that time, Baseball America lists its top 20 prospects from each US domestic league. The Phillies placed 4 guys in the GCL top 20; Jarred Cosart (4), Jon Singleton (7), Domingo Santana (10) and Jonathon Villar (18). Its notable that Cosart was ranked the top pitching prospect in the league, a very promising sign. Please do not post the full scouting reports/blurbs here. Thanks.

28 thoughts on “4 Phillies in the GCL Top 20”

  1. I think this is great. Recognizing that there were a bunch of late signs (all of Pittsburgh’s top guys and the Yankees top guys, etc.) putting 3 in the top 10 and 4 in the top 20 of a 16 team league is pretty freakin’ impressive.

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  4. And this does not include Colvin who probably would be another top 10 guy if he signed early enough.

    Very excited to see Cosart spoken so highly of. Singleton over Santana does not surprise me. There is only a year difference in age and the difference in polish (notice the BB/K ratio) is noticeable.

    Villar also looks like a solid prospect with no one distinguishing feature. The writeup compares him to Donald as someone who does everything fairly well but nothing outstanding.

    All that being said, these GCL lists are the lwast meaningful here. Look at most of them from 5+ years ago and a majority do not make the majors. It is nice to have credible prospects at the lower levels, but it really means much more to see them excel in a full season league.

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  5. I agree, dcwildcat. Given his age and the power that he showed, I would have thought Santana was easily the best hitting prosect on the GCL Phils, even though Singleton was rather impressive. Singleton did strike out a lot less, though (more BBs than Ks)- I guess that was the deciding factor.

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  6. Is the restriction on posting the full scouting reports/blurbs a legal issue? If so, can someone with an account paraphrase them for the rest of us? Thanks.

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  7. Yes, the GCL lists are the least reliable, with far more emphasis on projection than performance, compared to higher levels. Still, better to have 4 on the list than not. Cosart is confirmation of our reading/interpretation of the scouting blurbs seen along the way, although he’s pitched almost not at all since we drafted him. I am most pleased by the confirmation of having Singleton on the list. To me, that says that in addition to the obviously quick start from a performance standpoint, baseball people also like his tools from a scouting perspective. Same with Santana. Also, nice not to see, ‘but some scouts think he is older than 16’.

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  10. I’ve got Santana above Singleton on my list, but that’s because of what I see as superior upside (a year’s age difference is a pretty big thing) and a product of playing a higher position on the defensive spectrum. I think Singleton’s a much safer bet as a hitter.

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  13. It surprised that Cosart was so highly rated, given the lack of actual in game situations. That’s a good thing. The other guys are promising as well. It is unethical , maybe illegal, to link to any of Baseball America’s premium content, but referring to the basis of such material on a discussion basis, could be acceptable.

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  14. Cosart – fastball 93-94, 12-to-6 curveball, learning a changeup
    Singleton – good contact, eye and sprays the ball around. Good defender and runs well
    Santana – raw power, plus arm, learning the outfield
    Villar – Donald comp

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  15. Andyb – why do you have to be so negative and say that these lists are the least meaningful? If you had taken the time to look you would have seen that they posted this list from five years ago, and Greg Golson was number three. And he obvisously went on to, uhh – oh, well… ok, I see your point 🙂

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  16. I’m beginnning to think if you’re 20 or older next year, you’re too old to play at Lakewood. LOL

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  17. Taking a look at 2007’s handbook (which would be the 2006-07 offseason), BA had Clayton Kershaw as the #1 GCL prospect. The Phillies’ entries included Adrian Cardenas (good selection), Kyle Drabek (bingo), Jesus Sanchez (bust as a catcher), D’Arby Myers (bust) and Carlos Monasterios (stock is low). Of course the IL list had Delmon Young, Hayden Penn, Scott Thorman, Jason Hammel and other busts. Your mileage may vary at any level.

    I think the GCL lists are actually most important. The IL list really isn’t going to reveal anything new to me. Those guys have 3-5 years of pro experience and we have a general idea of their skill and ability. The GCL list is mostly scouting of guys very few of us have seen in person.

    BA also produced a list of the combined minor league records in each organization. The Phillies as a group finished fourth.

    http://www.baseballamerica.com/blog/prospects/?p=6580

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  19. Villar has a decent shot at Lakewood if he has a good instructional league and spring training. He is a relatively polished player that should be able to handle the promotion.

    I also think that getting Villar at bats might be more of a priority than other candidates like Barnes (who is more of a utility guy in the long run most likely).

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  20. Sorry for an off-topic post, but MLB Network is airing the USA/Cuba world cup game. BJ Rosenberg is warming up possibly for the next inning.

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  22. The Phils overshot with Valle this year but it didnt hurt him when he was sent to Williamsport. So let shoot for the moon with Santana etc. Besides we can all drive to Lakewood and watch.

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  23. good to see Cosart getting some kudos cause he does not get much on here. His first outing was shaky but pitched well after that.
    Had a good outing last week as well. Think phillies looking great at all levels on pitchers. I expect some trades next year

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  24. NY-Penn League list comes out tomorrow (9/29). It will be interesting to see what the other managers thought of Hewitt. I guess Valle, Castro, Hewitt, Way or Hyatt might be possibilities.

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  26. I wonder what we will be saying about Santana this time next year. Very interesting probably the most interesting player outside of Taylor. Seemingly the sky is the limit.

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