One-time Oriole first rounder Keith Reed is hoping to get another crack at the Show. (Photo by Ashmore)

Ever wonder what became of that hotshot prospect who flamed out in the minors? There’s a decent chance he wound up in an Independent League, the baseball equivalent of purgatory.

With the Atlantic League kicking off its schedule Friday, I thought it might be fun to check in on a few of these players who are trying desperately to use Indy ball in an effort to springboard back into organized ball.

Righty Mike Bumstead spent seven seasons in the minors, mostly in the Padre organization, before landing on the Atlantic League defending champion Newark Bears this season. Originally signed as an undrafted free agent out of Cal State Fullerton in 2001, Bumstead reached Triple-A by 2004, pitching quite well there that year as a swingman. However, he never tasted the fruit of the majors. After a 4.39 ERA over 595 1/3 minor league innings, this 30-year-old’s chances of getting back to organized ball look slim.

Righty reliever Josh Fields, a 23rd round pick by the ChiSox in 2001, looked like a decent relief prospect when he recorded a 2.75 ERA in 55 games in his first taste of Triple-A in 2005. However, injuries sidetracked his career and he was never able to make it past Double-A again. Now, the 28-year-old will try his luck in Newark.

Corey Willey is back in an Indy league for the second time. Originally signed by the BoSox as an undrafted free agent in 2004, Willey reached the Sally League that year, but missed the entire 2005 season. The following year, he pitched very well in the Indy Cam-Am League, catching the attention of the Phillies. Last year, the Phils started him out at High-A ball, and he excellent before taking a pounding in Double-A. The 27-year-old hopes another solid performance in Indy ball will get him a third try at organized ball.

Oriole fans surely remember Keith Reed, the team’s first round pick in 1999 who had an All-American college career at Providence. Reed progressed quickly, first making it to Triple-A in 2001. Unfortunately, he was never able to duplicate that original splash, when he hit .311 in 20 games, showing good patience. He spent the next three seasons stuck at Double-A, finally making it back to Triple-A in 2005. That same season, Reed got his one and only cup of coffee in the Show, going 1-for-5 in a six-game stint with the O’s. In 2006, he spent the season at Triple-A, showing decent pop, but his overall numbers slipped and he found himself in Indy ball the following year. Reed had a strong season for Newark last season, but the 29-year-old will need to show even more to get himself another shot at the majors.

Other players who have resurfaced in the Atlantic League include:

• OF Cory Aldridge, 28, the Braves’ fourth rounder in 1997, who went hitless for the Braves in five at bats in 2001.
• 2B/3B Bobby Hill (not to be confused with the pudgy cartoon kid from King of the Hill), 30, the Cubs’ second-round pick in 2000, who played 249 games in four big league seasons before being released by the Padres organization after the 2006 campaign.
• IF Tim Sweeney, 27, Montreal’s 20th round pick in 2002, who never got past the Sally League in his two seasons in the Expos’ system. This is his second year in Indy ball.
• LHP Benito Baez, 30, who was signed by the A’s out of the Dominican Republic in 1993. He reached the majors in 2001 with Florida, getting shelled for a 13.50 ERA in eight relief appearances covering 9 1/3 IP. This will be Baez’s third year in Indy ball.
• RHP Matt Sweeney, 25, who was a Phillies’ 11th round pick in 2001. In seven minor league seasons, Sweeney pitched just 14 games above Class-A, never getting back Double-A. This is his first crack at Indy ball.
• RHP David Pellegrine, 22, the Angels’ 11th rounder in 2006. He spent one season in the Halos’ system, showing awful command at rookie ball.

April 25th, 2008
Categories: BASEBALL, Independent leagues, RotoRob . Author: RotoRob . Comments: 3 Comments

An injury has left Kosuke Fukudome’s ability to come to the majors in 2008 in doubt.

Today we’ve got a mishmash of material to report, including some notes from Japan and Independent Ball.

RotoRob.com MLB Rankings Editor and resident Japanese Baseball expert Tim McLeod passed along an interesting tidbit about Japanese star outfielder Kosuke Fukudome, originally expected to be one of the top NPB free agents potentially heading to North America next season.

Fukudome was deactivated by the Chunichi Dragons a couple of weeks ago because of an elbow injury he suffered last month.

Apparently, Tim reports, there’s a rumor that the two-time batting champion is headed to the U.S. this week for further medical evaluation. It’s unclear why he’d need to travel to the U.S. to have his elbow looked at.

The problem here is that once he’s placed on the inactive list, it puts his future status as a free agent for 2008 in jeopardy. Fukudome needed less than 30 active days to qualify, but that gets pushed back for every day on the inactive list.

Fukudome, a member of the Japanese team that won the first WBC last year, wasn’t in the starting lineup for three straight games because of this problem prior to the all-star break starting July 16.

The team has not offered any more details about Fukudome’s injury other than to say surgery was not a possibility. I suppose that’s good news.

But for those who have drafted him in keeper leagues, this is a potentially disastrous situation if you were banking on him being a major leaguer in 2008. Fukudome, batting .294 in 81 games this season, would have met the free agent requirements on August 21, but now we’ll need to monitor the situation to see if he’ll still qualify this year or not.

Former Met pitching prospect Harold Eckert has resurfaced with the Newark Bears of the Independent Atlantic League. As a New Jersey native, Eckert gets to try to revitalize his flagging professional career at home with the first half North Division Champions. The righty, who turned 30 last month, was a 19th rounder by the Dodgers back in 1999, but control problems that have plagued him in recent years were ultimately his undoing after a seven-year career in organized ball.

Eckert never pitched for the Dodgers organization originally. After signing his first pro contract in June 1999, the deal was voided in September before he ever appeared in game for the system. The Mets signed him after the 2000 season and he finally made his debut the following year.

In 2001, Eckert looked like he had promise, pacing the NYPL in wins (nine) and ranking fifth in strikeouts with 75. He followed that up the next year at Low-A Columbia with a career-best 13 wins (good for third in the Sally League) and career-bests with 22 starts, 139 1/3 innings and 149 strikeouts (the latter figure good for fourth in the league).

In 2003, he advanced to High-A and pitched well, but was limited by injuries.

Prior to the 2004 season - ironically enough - Eckert was dealt back to the Dodgers and he progressed to Triple-A by the end of that season, spending three and a half years at that level before the Dodgers released him last month. He has never appeared in a major league game.

The former Florida International star authored 46 minor league wins in 171 games (101 starts).

After spending most of the season as a reliever for Triple-A Las Vegas, Eckert is back to starting with the Bears and he’s done quite well so far (1-0, 3.00 in three starts), most promisingly showing improvements in his control with just five walks in 18 IP to go along with 23 Ks.

To make room for Eckert, the Nears placed another blast from the past on the DL - RHP Travis Phelps. Originally an 89th round pick by Tampa Bay back in 1996, Phelps has been in professional baseball for 11 years, enjoying his finest season with the Rays in 2001 when he spent a portion of the year as the closer.

Phelps, who also turned 30 last month, has pitched 79 games in the majors, last appearing in the Show in 2004 with Milwaukee, and he’s also pitched in the Braves’, Reds’, Cubs’ and Astros’ systems.

This is his second go-round in the Atlantic League, having pitched a couple of games for Camden last year. This season, Phelps has performed a variety of roles, starting two of the 10 games he’s appeared in while also earning two saves. He’s currently 0-2 with a 5.24 ERA, thanks mostly to major long ball problems (five allowed in just 22 1/3 innings). Don’t be looking for an invitation back to organized ball for Phelps anytime soon.

August 8th, 2007
Categories: BASEBALL, Fantasy Notes, Independent leagues, Japanese baseball . Author: RotoRob . Comments: 1 Comment

This morning, I was scouring some minor league news feeds over my morning coffee (doesn’t everyone do that?), and I came across some long forgotten names who have wound up in the Indy Leagues, specifically, the American Association. In looking at some of the numbers here, it boggles my mind how fine a line there is between making it to the majors and toiling in obscurity for eternity. Leagues like this are littered with players who, for one reason or another, never quite got that break.

Hardcore fans of Canadian baseball will recognize the name of Ben Van Iderstine. After his career at Iowa State University which includes two seasons starting (.306, six homers, 46 RBI as a junior; 311 four homers, 43 RBI as a senior), the Regina native spent two years in the Frontier League, making the all-star team in 2001 with London and finishing in the top five in the league with a .338 BA. In 2003, he was exactly what the fledgling Canadian Baseball League was seeking — a homegrown boy looking for a chance at something bigger. He made the All-Star team as a member of the Saskatoon Legends, and ranked second in the league with a .401 BA when the CBL suffered a quick death.

The now 29-year-old outfielder recovered from that catostrophe quite nicely, landing with the Northern League’s Schaumberg Flyers for the remainder of the 2003 season. He returned the following year, and his .400 BA with five homers and 21 RBI through 40 games finally got him a notice, as the Milwaukee Brewers penned him to a minor league deal in June.

In just 45 games with High-A High Desert, Van Iderstine hit over .370, earning player of the month honours for July, before a promotion the following month to Double-A, where he held his own.

In 2005, he again started out at High-A, but spent the majority of the year at Double-A. However, a lowly .655 OPS sealed Van Iderstine’s fate, and he returned to Schaumberg in 2006, putting up another .300+ BA.

He was a member of the World Cup for Team Canada in Amsterdam, starting all eight games, and batting .400 with one homer and four RBI. Van Iderstine also represented the nation in the Pre-Olympic Qualifier in Phoenix, Arizona, appeared in four of the five games, and going 4-for-11 with an RBI.

This season, Van Iderstine has switched over to the Sioux Falls Canaries of the American Association, and is again putting up numbers worthy of attention with a .326 BA through 129 at-bats. He’s scored 19 runs, and shown some pop with five doubles, a triple and four homers good for 25 RBI.

Shorstop Angelo Fermin spent four seasons in the Twins organization after they signed him out of the Dominican Republic in 2000. He played 189 games in the minor leagues, displaying good top-of-the-order skills with 44 steals and 104 walks against just 136 strikeouts, but Fermin topped out at High-A in 2005. Missing the entire 2004 season, when he was on the restricted list because of a visa problem, definitely set back Fermin’s development.

However, we’re talking about a still-just-23-year-old switch-hitter, so time remains on his side. Of course, that only matters if he does something with it. In his first season of Indy ball last year with Sioux Falls, Fermin hit just .250 with only 25 walks and six steals. This season, he’s shown modest improvements in his speed game, and is getting on base at a .344 clip, but his sub-.250 BA and 15 errors are hardly going to inspire another organized ball team to give Fermin a shot.

James Shanks lasted much longer in organized ball before winding up in the Indies. Originally a 21st round pick by Kansas City in 1998, the now 28-year-old outfielder spent five seasons in the Royals organization, topping out at High-A and missing the entire 2000 season because he was on the suspended list. The speedster was released in April 2004, and signed by the Marlins’ organization the following month. He spent three years in the Florida system, reaching Triple-A in both 2005 and 2006 and batting .299 with five homers and nine steals in 66 Triple-A games in 2006. That’s as close as he got.

Shanks spent the remainder of the 2006 season with Reno of the Golden League, and now he’s with Sioux Falls, trying to find his way back to organized ball. He’s hitting over .280 with 25 runs, 11 doubles, five homers, 25 RBI and 11 steals, certainly good enough to garner some attention. Shanks’ problem this season has been in getting on base (.320 OBP). It’s never been an issue before (career mark of .355 in the minors), but he’ll need to address that if he hopes to get another shot.

How about first baseman Abner Arroyo? He’s been toiling in the Independent leagues since 2003, but when he was 21 in 2001, he hit almost .340 for Low-A Fort Wayne of the Midwest League as a Padre farmhand. Just over a year later, San Diego released him. Now, Arroyo’s in his third season in Sioux Falls, batting .330 last year and .321 the season before. He’s 27 years old and is unlikely to ever get another sniff with a MLB team.

Finally, there is Will Smith, a one-time good looking prospect in the Marlins and then Rangers’ systems. A sixth-round pick by Florida in 2000, Smith immediately put himself on the map with all-star seasons in the GCL in 2000, in the Midwest League in 2001 and in the FSL in 2002. He struggled early in the season in his return to the FSL in 2003 and was promptly dealt to Texas in the Ugueth Urbina deal. He stalled somewhat at Double-A, but looked headed for a career as no worse than a fourth outfielder.

In 2005, at the age of 23, Smith recorded an OPS of almost 1000 in his first, albeit brief, taste of Triple-A (169 at-bats). By mid-season 2006, Smith was playing for the Winnipeg Goldeyes in the Northern League and now he’s with Sioux Falls. Still just 25, based on his play this year, Smith will get another shot. He’s fifth in the American Association in slugging (.569), tied for fifth with five homers and ninth in batting at .341. In 29 games, he has 21 runs, 11 doubles and 14 RBI.

June 13th, 2007
Categories: BASEBALL, Independent leagues, RotoRob . Author: RotoRob . Comments: 3 Comments