Thanks to our friend Cool Breeze for pointing this one out! Dead on.

One of these guys has more money than the other…

Who’s Mark Teich? You may know him as the balding comedic sidekick in Stephen Lynch’s act. And if that doesn’t help, just watch this video and thank me later:

#2 Mike Trout – Los Angeles Angels

OF

DOB: 8-7-1991

ETA: 2012

Trout is probably the best athlete in the Minors today.  After stealing 56 bases and hitting double-digit bombs across two stops in 2010, he essentially solidified his status as the heir apparent to the Angels’ CF job.  With a slash line across two Class A stops of .341/.428/.490, Trout demonstrated phenomenal bat speed, discipline, plate coverage, and athleticism.  As one of the toughest outs in the Minors, his ability to turn singles into doubles and doubles into triples forces defenses to adapt, and his own defense is absolutely stellar.

Trout is a true top-of-the-order stick with triple-plus speed and, supposing he experiences no hiccups in the high Minors, should be the Opening Day CF for Anaheim in 2012.  As a product of Millville Senior High in New Jersey, Trout was selected 25^th overall in 2009.  He immediately began clobbering baseballs and tearing apart basepaths, and has yet to stop.  Our guess here at the Sombrero is that he never stops and lands on an all-star team in the Majors very quickly.  The Angels have a true phenom in Mike Trout.

Shortly after the turn of the New Year, we began unveiling our Top 50 Prospects for the 2011 season.  The list is the product of hours of deliberation between Dee and myself, and is far from your average, cookie-cutter top prospect list.

Our rankings are based on a number of criteria such as ceiling, refinement, age, level, performance, and health thus far.  Positional scarcity and chances to stay at a premium position in the Major Leagues carries some weight too, but is a lesser component. No pitcher rankings are based off of potential as relievers because no top arm ends up in the bullpen unless the front office decides to lose its mind.

In case you have missed any player on our list, here is a recap of 30-40:

40. Grant Green, SS, Oakland Athletics

39. Casey Kelly, RHP, San Diego Padres

38. Jenrry Mejia, RHP, New York Mets

37. Jonathan Singleton, 1B, Philadelphia Phillies

36. Derek Norris, C, Washington Nationals

35. Jake Odorizzi, RHP, Kansas City Royals

34. Kyle Gibson, RHP, Minnesota Twins

33. Kyle Drabek, RHP, Toronto Blue Jays

32. Yonder Alonso, 1B/LF, Cincinnati Reds

31. Matthew Moore, LHP, Tampa Bay Rays

30. Lonnie Chisenhall, 3B, Cleveland Indians

#39 Casey Kelly – San Diego Padres

RHP

DOB: 10-4-89

ETA: 2012

As the centerpiece of the Adrian Gonzalez trade, Casey Kelly projects as a solid 2 or 3 starter once he comes into his own.  His curveball grades as his only plus pitch, but it is excellent.  His fastball typically works in the low 90′s and his two-seamer has excellent sink with a chance at a 60 grading in the future, but he posted a 5.31 ERA and only 81 K’s in 95 IP in Double-A in 2010.  Granted, Kelly was only 20 and in a very advanced league, and he had only been primarily a pitcher for a short time, but his numbers were awful.

Why were they so bad, and what does it mean going forward?  Scouts seem to agree that Kelly possesses excellent arm action, excellent mechanics, excellent athleticism, and an excellent frame.  He’s a perfect pitching specimen.  Too perfect.  He’s like hitting against BP pitchers.  There is absolutely no deception at all to his delivery, and he gets shelled because of it.  Kelly must do something different to get outs, and when was the last time any coach told a kid, “Stop being so perfect”?  I am very skeptical that Kelly figures it out unless he magically gains three ticks on his fastball.  Considering that he is only 20 and has a projectable body, it might happen.

This is probably the most insulting look-alike since Julian Tavarez and Freddy Kreuger.