Posts belonging to Category Prospects/Rookies

• The start to the final week of 2010 brought the disturbing news that FIU’s Garrett Wittels had been charged with the rape of two 17-year old girls while on vacation in the Bahamas.  Wittels, who currently holds the second-longest hitting streak in NCAA history at 56 games, is headed into his senior season and has a chance to make history- he is two games shy of tying Robin Ventura’s record of 58 games.  It is too early to know, or speculate for that matter, what type of impact the allegations will have on Wittels’ eligibility.

• With Carl Crawford long departed, the Tampa Bay Rays are hoping that rookie Desmond Jennings will fill the void in left field.  Jennings, who has comparable speed but less pop than his predecessor, will have Spring Training to prove to the Rays that he is the man for the job.  If not, Matt Joyce should have no problem manning the position.  Realistically, the Rays want Jennings to be their left fielder, so I’d expect a platoon scenario…at least until one of their two youngsters shows some consistency.

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The Golden Sombrero presents Rookie Card Corner: Troy Tulowitzki 2005 Bowman Chrome

Fun Fact: Tulo was also a ridiculously good basketball player in high school, averaging 22.6 points per game and earning All-State honors as a senior.

On Sunday, the baseball world woke up to the news that the Kansas City Royals had traded their 2009 A.L. Cy Young winner, Zack Greinke, to the Milwaukee Brewers.  It wasn’t a secret that the Royals were asking for the farm (literally) in return for the coveted right-hander.  It was simply a matter of which organization had both the minor league depth and corresponding “all-in” mentality to justify parting with a substantial portion of its future.  Well, that team happened to be the Milwaukee Brewers.

Although the Zack Greinke trade is something that is sure to interest any fan of the game, the deal holds a special significance for the fans and followers of Illinois high school baseball. The Brew Crew parted ways with some of their best, young talent, including shortstop Alcides Escobar, outfielder Lorenzo Cain, flame thrower Jeremy Jeffress and, most notably, the 2008 Prep Baseball Report Player of the Year, Jake Odorizzi.  And as more details have been released regarding the negotiations of this blockbuster deal, we have come to learn that Odorizzi seems to have been the player that made this trade happen.

Continue reading ‘Former PBR Player of the Year Jake Odorizzi deal to Royals (Prep Baseball Report)’ >>

It’s been a while since I have posted anything here on The Sombrero.  The last couple of weeks have been really busy and perpetually stressful.  I just finished up an exam period that consisted of 12 total tests.  It’s break now, though, and I am back home where it is dumping on the mountain.  I just got word that 15 fresh fell today, which gets the hill over 2 feet of new in the last 48, and it is supposed to pick up when the sun goes down.  Griff, our homeboys the Meyers, and I are headed up in the morning, and it has the potential to be the best Day 1 of my life.  A lot has happened since the last time I posted, but the holidays are getting underway nicely already.  My dad is home from Australia and Grandma is coming down either Thursday or Friday.

As everyone rolled out of bed today, we checked our phones like we do every morning to make sure that nothing earth-shattering happened in the world of baseball overnight.  This morning was one of those rare ones when something like that actually did (Arlo gave me a little heads up on it last night to tell you the truth).  At least it was earth-shattering for the rest of the N.L. Central, because they discovered that the Milwaukee Brewers will have the best rotation in the division next season.  If you’re from Milwaukee, Christmas came a little early this year in the form of former Cy Young winner, Donald Zackary Greinke.

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• ESPN’s Buster Olney finally confirmed last night’s rumor that Zack Greinke had been traded to the Milwaukee Brewers, a story that was first reported by Jim Breen of Bernie’s Crew.  The Kansas City Royals will send Greinke and another major league player – suspected to be Yuniesky Betancourt – to the Brewers, and the Royals will receive shortstop Alcides Escobar, outfielder Lorenzo Cain, flame-throwing right hander Jeremy Jeffress, and 2008 first-round draft pick, Jake Odorizzi.

• With the acquisition of Greinke, the Brewers have made it clear that the 2011 season will be do or die, especially with Prince Fielder’s looming free agency prior to 2012.  If they aren’t having the season that they expected by the All-Star break, it wouldn’t surprise me to see both Fielder and Greinke be dealt, respectively.  The 2009 A.L. Cy Young winner is set to join a Brewers’ rotation that includes Yovani Gallardo, Chris Narveson, and the recently acquired Shaun Marcum.

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