It’s not typically a tough call for the MVP voters in either league these days. There’s usually a pretty clear choice. Every few years there’s a couple stars at the top, and it could go either way, but there’s almost always a favorite, and sometimes one of overwhelming levels.

But I can’t remember the last time it was as easy as it is in 2007, at least in the American League. The National League is indeed a toss-up, with Prince Fielder, Jimmy Rollins, David Wright and Matt Holliday battling it out on four contending clubs.

Not so in the junior circuit.

Alex Rodriguez is so far and away the league’s most valuable player that the commissioner’s office should strongly consider dis-allowing the AROD-hating media’s vote on anyone else.

Most consider Rodriguez the favorite, with Detroit’s Magglio Ordonez a distant second and the Halos’ Vladimir Guerrero and even more distant third.

I propose a new voting method, however.

Instead of the 1-2-3-4-5 slotting system where the Baseball Writers Association of America vote candidates in places ranked first to 10th, it would be much more fitting if they simply voted for the winner, and left everyone else out of the equation.

If Rodriguez is your choice, why does 2nd and 3rd place matter? And this season, the only way Ordonez or Guerrero end up with a respectable number of first-place votes, if any at all, is if the writers hold something against Rodriguez for previous gaffes in his attempts at PR improvements.

Rodriguez has done it all this season, and the Yankees are riding his legendary season into October as the league’s hottest club and as the favorite to win it all.

Here’s how my ballot would look, if I was lucky enough to have one that counted:

To further cement Rodriguez’s dominant case:

He’s been better after the break than before it - .663 SLG and 30 HR versus .616 and 23 HR pre all-star. He’s posted a line of .297/.395/.588 with 26 homers and nine game-winning hits versus the contending teams he faced in 2007: Seattle, LAA, NYM, AZ, BOS, CLE, DET and COL.

AROD is slugging .714 versus finesse pitchers, but .726 against power arms, and he led the league in slugging percentage (.455) and OPS (.768) when behind in the count.

He’s hitting .338/.455/.722 in Yankees wins and .281/.363/.532 in their losses, and leads all of baseball in RBI per plate appearance at .225. He’s driving in almost a quarter run per plate appearance. Geez.

Sure, RBI are dependent on your teammates getting on base in front you, that’s very true. But how about this?

AROD’s OPS with runners on base is currently 1.142. With the bases empty it’s still a ridiculous .952. With runners in scoring position he’s hitting .326/.447/.667 and with runners in scoring position and two out, the dude is raking at .317/.440/.793 for a 1.233 OPS.

After the 6th inning in games where the lead is less than three runs, AROD is hitting .357/.432/.686. He’s hitting .500 with a 1.286 slugging percentage with the bases loaded, including three salamis and two bases-clearing doubles.

His OPS is over 1.000 leading off an inning, with runners on any base or base combinations, with any number of outs with runners on base in any combination - except second and third. But with runners at second and third with two outs, he’s hitting .339/.455/.739 with nine home runs and 13 doubles.

That is absurd. You can argue that clutch hitting is not a special skill in and of itself, and I’ll agree. But Rodriguez is a great hitter whose been unbelievable when it’s counted the most for the Yankees in ‘07.

Furthermore, AROD’s OPS+ this year is currently 180, adjusted for ballparks, which is the third highest OPS+ since 1967, among players not strongly connected to steroids. Only Jim Thome and Manny Ramirez have posted a better OPS+ in the last 40 years.

He’s had an excellent year defensively at an important defensive position, has cut his strikeout rate down while his walk rate is slightly up, and he’s swiped 24 bases in 28 attempts.

I just don’t think there is anything anyone could expect from a player on a team that has a legitimate chance to win the World Series.

If the vote is not unanimous, it is because there is a memeber of the BBWAA that just doesn’t like Rodriguez for personal reasons. His 2007 season ranks right up there with any offensive season in the past 50 years, and he’s never been connected to steroids or any other banned substance at any time in his career.

Side Note: Considering Bonds’ obvious connection to steroids and other banned supplements and substances, and the suspicions surrounding Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa, it appears that the two greatest players of the last 20 years made their mark as Seattle Mariners superstars.

And not only is AROD the clear choice for the best player in the game today, he’s easily surpassed Junior as the best player, maybe ever, but certainly of this generation - and the last.

The only thing left for Alex to do is dominate in October wearing those pinstripes. He’s done it in an M’s uniform, hitting .409/.480/.773 with two homers against New York in the 2000 LCS. He was also stellar in ‘04 with the Yankees going 16 for 50 with three homers and eight RBI.

If Rodriguez maintains his season-long hot streak throughout October, we’ll have witnessed one of the very few greatest seasons ever achieved in Major League Baseball history.

But for now, he’ll have to settle for his third American League MVP.

Before I start ‘a rantin’, let me preface the ensuing piece with the following thoughts:

1. I subscribe to the theory that a baseball manager has to believe in his own abilities, as well as everyone else’s around him. Players, coaches, scouts - and the GM.
2. I also believe that one of the pre-requisite talents of a manager is the ability to put the best players on the field as much as possible, while simultaneously putting said players in the best positions to succeed, both individually and as a group.
3. If a manager isn’t going to fight for what he believes in, even if that means heated disagreements with players, coaches and even the general manager, he isn’t worth a damn and I don’t want him anywhere near my baseball team.

The first kind is present when a skipper continues to go to the well with a proven veteran through all of the thick and thin of the tough times and sub par performances.

The second is when the manager’s love goes blind and his affinity for the veteran he knows so well gets in the way of the truth right in front of him. That truth is typically put forth in the form of a young, yet unproven talent that is more capable than the incumbent.

This is when that loyalty might be best defined by the words stubborn, mulish or just downright stupid.

Whichever the better term, John McLaren has no business at the helm of a Major League Baseball team. Not if he’s the manager we watched for the final three months of this season, and there’s no reason to believe he’d be any better simply because he began the season as the man in charge. He may very well be different, but probably not better.

McLaren has always had the reputation as a good baseball man; all the wiser, loved by all who have ever worked for and with him and a soul burning with the desire to win - a fire resembling that of ‘Ol Sweet Lou.

But all the evidence - yes Dave, I actually said evidence – shows that McLaren is missing at least one ingredient in what makes a field manager good at what he does.

For lack of a better word, we’ll call it crust. Mike Scoscia has it. Ozzie Guillen has it. Jim Leyland has it. Lou Piniella sure has it, and I don’t think he got his on ebay.

McLaren just doesn’t have it. He lacks the ability to look beyond what he KNOWS MIGHT BE, to consider what else is possible.

He’s seen Raul Ibanez hit the ball well. He’s watched Richie Sexson mash five homers in a week. He’s witnessed, time and time again, but certainly not without failure, the veteran player get the job done.

What he’s never seen, because nobody has ever seen it, is Adam Jones hit the ball consistently in the big leagues. And apparently, why nobody ever seen that matters none.

So instead of handing regular playing time to one of the four best players in the entire organization, McLaren chooses experience.

And while he’s doing so, every other good team in the game is choosing the best players. Contenders all over baseball, in both leagues, are using inexperienced players on a regular basis, and are better for it.

And not just clubs who have no choice.

The Arizona Diamondbacks are playing 19-year-old Justin Upton three days a week, sometimes four. Not because they are short on outfielders, they are anything but that.

The Yankees are relying on three rookie pitchers in Hughes, Chamberlain and Kennedy, and are a better team for it.

The Red Sox are leaning on Pedroia, Ellsbury and to a lesser extent, Buchholz, and are clearly a better team with those three than without.

While Cleveland’s payroll limits force them to take those chances, the Detroit Tigers have the money to go get the veterans to fill voids, yet have gone to the young players again and again since Leyland and Dombrowski signed up. They’ve done pretty well for themselves haven’t they?

Now, comparing Jones’ situation in Seattle to that of most other inexperienced talents out there is not fair. Jones has a veteran in front of him, so let’s look at what some other ballclubs did in similar scenarios.

The Diamondbacks let hometown hero Luis Gonzalez walk so they could use Carlos Quentin, Chris Young, and eventually Justin Upton in the outfield.

Gonzalez went to LA, where the Dodgers have curbed his playing time in order to get Matt Kemp regular play. Kemp entered 2007 with similar long-term expectations as Jones and with little more big-league experience.

The Yankees pulled Mike Mussina out of the rotation in August so they could give starts to Ian Kennedy, a 2006 draft pick.

The Angels canned Shea Hillenbrand because Casey Kotchman and Kendry Morales were better options.

Good organizations are giving their ML-ready talents a chance to play significant roles – in a pennant race. The Mariners have made Jones, one of the top 10 prospects in all of baseball according to just about everyone who has a clue, a fourth outfielder on a team desperate to break losing streaks, score more runs and prevent more runs from scoring as they play behind a mediocre pitching staff.

If Adam Jones was a New York Mets prospect, he’d be playing. Maybe not starting every day, but he’d be getting at least two starts a week, probably three or more.

Want proof? Lastings Milledge is the Mets’ version of Adam Jones, and he’s getting 22 plate appearances a week. Jones is averaging four and a half a week. Case closed.

While McLaren isn’t the only one to blame for his handling of Jones, and other younger more capable talents being wasted away on the bench or in the minors while overpaid veterans mire away in mediocrity, he is the one most responsible. He fills out the lineup card.

If McLaren wanted to start Jeff Clement in center field and Yuniesky Betancourt behind the plate, that’s what would happen, or so you’d hope. He’s the skipper, you want him doing what he wants, when he wants. He’s your leader, right?

Not McLaren. He’s not a leader in that manner. He’s just everybody’s best friend.

I was told that by someone who knows John fairly well and has been in the game, and in the same organization as McLaren, for decades. I didn’t buy it at first, because others were telling me how into the youth of the farm system McLaren has always been.

But it couldn’t be more clear after McLaren’s first half-season as a Major League manager. And apparently, McLaren is only into the kids when his own job is not on the line. Sounds like Lou Piniella in that regard.

But Lou is very different than McLaren in many ways. Piniella would tell his GM off if questioned about why he made a particular decision. He’d handle his team the way he wanted to handle them, or he wouldn’t manage that team at all.

I understand McLaren was thrust into the role at mid-season and didn’t have a chance to establish his own ways of doing things, but that doesn’t excuse his inability to simply put the best players on the field every day.

The decision-makers in the Seattle Mariners organization have a big choice to make about the manager’s position beyond 2007.

And if they plan on building upon a decent showing this season, the right decision is to look elsewhere for a field general.

Because John McLaren is a bench coach.

——————————————————————————————————————————–

GM Bill Bavasi probably doesn’t deserve to remain at the helm of the Seattle Mariners, just as McLaren should be sent packing as the club’s skipper, but it still might be in the Mariners’ best interest to bring him back.

Sure, the ballclub was better this year, maybe as much as 10 wins better, but in four seasons now, Bavasi’s mistakes far outweigh the good moves he’s made and in the end it’s costing the organization more than $110 million to field a team that isn’t good enough to make the postseason in any given year.

If this was year two, fine. But it’s year four, going into year five, and this roster still has almost as many holes as the Texas Rangers.

Bavasi has his positives and negatives, like every GM.

The Good

3. The Farm System
While there are several who disagree with how aggressive the club has been with their top prospects, Bavasi is big on growing your own and in this day and age, teams must produce their own talent or they are destined to become the Baltimore Orioles.

2. Risk Taking
Bavasi is certainly willing to take risks, and in many ways that is a great attribute to have as the GM of a baseball team. With the free agent market so out of whack, teams often are forced to trade away young players in order to get better. His predecessor wasn’t willing to do so, but Bavasi certainly is.

3. Trust
Bavasi does one thing that is critically important for general managers in their attempts to make deals to improve their rosters – listen to and trust their scouts. If A scout swears up and down about a player and Bavasi and the rest of the execs are iffy on him, Bill is likely to give his scout the benefit of the doubt and go get that player based on the scout’s evaluation.

Not all GMs are like that and it does come back to bite them as it’s tough to make decisions when only one opinion counts for anything.

The Bad

1. Surroundings
Bavasi hasn’t exactly surrounded himself with the best consultants and assistants. Lee Pelekoudas serves a valuable purpose, but scouting isn’t one of his strong suits, and while Bob Fontaine is fantastic, Dan Evans and John Boles do not have the track record of two guys that should be leaned upon – and they are, over and over. See: Rafael Soriano for Horacio Ramirez.

2. Too Aggressive?
At times it seems as if Bavasi succumbs to the pressure of trying to keep his job and is overly aggressive in getting a deal done. Bringing in Ramirez in exchange for Soriano sure seemed like a rush job in order to make sure he didn’t come up empty last winter. The club desperately needed a starting pitcher, but making a deal just to make one isn’t the way to go about things in Major League Baseball. Bavasi has done this on more than one occasion – see: Jarrod Washburn, Chris Reitsma and Asdrubal Cabrera/Shin-soo Choo for Ben Broussard/Eduardo Perez.

3. He’s Still Doing It…
Bavasi is still on a one-year prove-your-worth contract in which he’s apt to make moves based on winning in 2008, no matter the cost. This scares me, and should scare fans of not only Wladimir Balentien, but Jeff Clement, Chris Tillman and even Adam Jones.

It’s not the right time to overpay for mediocre pitching, and it’s never a good time to do so with young promising talent.

Bavasi hasn’t necessarily earned the right at another year, but, as we have just established, it’s not good business to make a change simply to make a change. If there is a clear cut upgrade available that the Mariners feel they have a great chance to hire, they should do so.

Otherwise, it’s probably a good idea to bring Bill back for another year.

Or, it might just be a better idea to have a worse GM, but one who won’t be making moves to save his job.

But in my opinion, I don’t think Bavasi is heading into this offseason with the same pressure he had a year ago.

Something to think about.

Mike is a former… a lot of things, really. He’s currently with an NL club after two decades split between an AL East team and an NL East team. He’s pretty much had his hand in on everything, so this should be fun.

First question is from Tod –Do either of you think that the MLB will make changes / tweaks to the draft deadline signing period, since this past year was so “orchestrated”…?

PIMike: That is really the way the league office wanted it. teams did what the comissioner’s office asked them to do. I don’t see any need to make

changes to the signing process. other changes are always being talked about though.

JasonAChurchill: Like what, Mike?

PIMike: Draft order, date, who is eligible, the trading of picks. Things like that.

Next question is from CONOR - What is the best part about your job and what is the worst part about your job?

PIMike: That’s an easy one, since the wife is right behind me. The travel. I enjoy it and walking into a different park or two every week is a lot of fun.

I wouldn’t want to do anything else. But it wears on families and I do tire out at times.

It’s not a glam gig.

Next one is from SETH - Who is the player you were sure was going to be a star who failed greatest? And the opposite - Who is the player you thought had no chance to be a big leaguer who turned out to be a good/great player?

PIMike: Good question, Seth. The lists on both sides go for days, That is the nature of the business. I remember not liking Brian Giles to be an all-star. I thought he was a useful everyday type, but never envisioned him as a star of any kind and he put up some really nice numbers in his prime years. But as far as not being a big leaguer at all? Eckstein? I think a lot of people can claim that one. I didn’t see a future for Jamie Moyer, either.

I scouted Cory Snyder really heavily and thought he was destined for greatness. The tools were there, but in the end he was ultimately limited in what he could do, both offensively and as a daily third baseman.

CONOR asks: - How many scouts do you know of that did not play pro or college baseball?

PIMike: There aren’t a lot of them in comparison. We have a half-dozen or so on staff, and it really depends on what organization is in question and who the front office people are at the time. I’d venture to guess less than 15-20% on a given scouting staff.

The vast majority played, at least in the minors, and those that didn’t are either holding a new-school analytical scouting position, or managed, coached or played in college.

CONOR asks: Can you get a good feel for a player by watching video, or do you have to see him in person?

PIMike: TV doesn’t give you the whole story, usually, but you can get a decent idea by watching video or tv games. Being there allows you to use your live eye to put that fastball up against hitters and see there reactions up close. Or see how a shortstop ranges side to side, how an outfielder cuts a ball off before it reaches the track, his routes, things like that. It’s advantageous to be sitting behind the plate for pitchers, too. That is must.

You get to see what the hitter sees.

JasonAChurchill: Conor also wants to know if changing angles when watching players can help.

PIMike: Not a pitcher, for me, but maybe a third baseman, or a bat, yes. Ever watch a game and the tv camera changes from the center field cam to the shot behind the plate? Terrible.

Tod asks: Has all the “new and big” money the past few years into latin countries changed the conditions on the fields,

equipment, training (like actually having training facilities) and etc… of these countries?

PIMike: That has been going on for awhile as ML and the clubs set up academies and schools and offices in Latin countries. Mexico, Venezuela,

Dominican. I was in Puerto Rico for a lot of that 10-12 years ago and that was the start of it. It’s grown a lot.

Joshua asks: Who would you consider to be the top 5 prospects among position players from this year’s international signing class? Any particular order you would rank them in? Or are there perhaps one or two that stand out? Also, where would Edward Salcedo rank if he were to sign this year?

PIMike: That’s a tough one, as I have not been actively scouting the scene the past few seasons, but it sounds like Salcedo is the best talent. The kid the Red Sox got, Almanzar from DR, the 3B. Big bat.

JasonAChurchill: When was the last time you scouted the Latin area?

PIMike: I did read the reports on Triunfel last year… I’ll just say, I’m excited.

A little in 99-2000, and I go back for special assignments every now and then. I was in Venezuela in Oct-Nov 2003.

Tod asks: What positions will the 2008 draft be deepest in?

PIMike: Off the top of my head, I don’t think there will be a big favorable position, but it looks like it’s not going to be a draft for pitchers like the past few have been. I’d look for power bats to reign in the top half of the first round.

Alvarez is special and Smoak, well, I’d have taken him No. 1 last year

JasonAChurchill: That the kid from Miami?

PIMike: That’s him. I think he’s a better pro than Alvarez, the Vandy 3B.

Conor asks: How important is makeup in relation to the 5 tools?

PIMike: With some kids, the Latin kids and the prep draftees, it’s more important than half the rest of their tool set. It’s the one thing that can render the rest of his tools, no matter their upside, useless to any club.

JasonAChurchill: OK, last pre-generated question for awhile and we’ll let the rest of us here ask questions….

Conor, who has 10 more good questions, by the way…. asks: If you could be a genie and give a pitcher 2 plus pitches, what would they be?

Read the rest of this report �

It was a banner 2007 season for the Seattle Mariners organization where… okay, it wasn’t “banner” by any means, but it was a very interesting season overall and a solid campaign for most of the top prospects in the farm system.

From the bust-out years by both Adam Jones and Wladimir Balentien to the strong rebounds by Matt Tuiasosopo and Jeff Clement. We learned a lot in 2007, too, including how good the club’s International Scouting Director Bob Engle is - okay, again, we knew this, but it’s worth mentioning as many chances as we get.

We learned that Clement can catch, Wlad does have strike zone judgment and that Jones is a good center fielder. We also found out that the attrition rate of pitchers in minor league baseball has not improved in anyone’s favor but the doctors who bill for the surgeries performed on dozens of arms each year.

But the Minor League Baseball season is essentially over now, at least for all six affiliates in the Mariners organization, which brings us to the awards and the M’s All-Prospect Team for 2007.

Prospect of the Year - Adam Jones, CF

Jones began the year as the top prospect in the organization, and did nothing to knock himself down from that mantle, hitting .314/.382/.586 with 25 homers in 101 games with Triple-A Tacoma. Time and time again, PCL pitchers, even the best of them, tried to get their fastbals in on Jones, and if they missed by an inch, Jones hit it a mile.

The 22-year-old showed flashes of plus power, which most believe he’ll max out into the 25-30range as a big leaguers, and improved his strike zone judgment and overall discipline at the plate. With vast progress in the area of consistency and his defensive prowess in center field, Jones became one of the 10 best prospects in the game before getting the call to the show in August - two month too late, for the Mariners sake.

He runs the bases well, though still learning to steal bases, but Jones is a legit five or six-hole hitter with a center field glove and a right fielder’s throwing arm. And his performance proved his skills to be real.

Jones is an easy pick for Mariners Prospect of the Year.

Runners up: Wladimir Balentien, Jeff Clement, Michael Saunders

Pitching Prospect of the Year - Chris Tillman, RHP

We all remember Tillman’s first few weeks in High Desert after just eight starts in CLass A Wisconsin, but the kid pitched his way out of that funk and was dynamite to end the year. In his last12 starts with the Mavericks, Tillman posted a 2.77 ERA and struck out 75 batters in 64 2/3 innings, including an impressive 13-K effort versus Rancho Cucamonga on August 29.

Tillman’s 90-94 mph fastball and plus curve ball were plenty for the 19-year-old to get outs in A ball, and it sure looks as if he’ll begin 2008 with Double-A West Tennessee, though to most that’s a little too aggressive. The right-hander’s change up still needs work, but the Mariners trust in the pitch and install that systematic belief into their pitchers.

Tillman does something already that other teenage pitching prospects do not - pitch inside, and pitch inside aggressively. It was the difference between his first six or eight starts with High Desert and his last 12.

Let’s see, a low-to-mid-90s fastball, an already well above average curve ball, a developing change, an aggressive style, not afraid to pitch inside regularly, a strong work ethic and a prototypical pitcher’s physique (6-5, 200)… Does that remind you of about 75 percent of the frontline starters in baseball?

Runners Up: Robert Rohrbaugh, Juan Ramirez, Edward Paredes

Comeback Prospect of the Year - Jeff Clement, C

After hitting .257/.321/.347 in 67 games with Triple-A Tacoma last season - overly aggressive promoting by the Mariners at work there - Clement rebounded in a big way, and showed why he was worthy of such a high draft spot two years ago.

The 24-year-old batted .275/.370/.497 with 20 homers and 35 doubles, proving his power to be real. But the biggest leap forward by the USC product and Iowa native was behind the plate where Clement made significant strides in all areas.

Clement shed a few pounds, got into the best shape of his life, was ALWAYS the first to the ballpark on gamedays to put in the extra work, and it’s paid huge dividends at this point.

A year ago, there was questions abound as to whether he’d ever catch in the big leagues. Today, it would surprise most if he doesn’t at least get a good shot to prove his doubters wrong. One team official that saw a lot of the Rainiers this season told Prospect Insider that the defensive gap between Clement and Rob Johnson is not near what it was last season, and that Clement showed a lot of toughness and determination in playing through injuries and the daily grind of being a backstop.

Matt Tuiasosopo received a lot of consideration for this award, but his overall status has not returned to what it was after his first half season in the system, whereas Clement’s is even higher than it was on draft day.

Runner Up: Tuiasosopo

Rookie Prospect of the Year - Carlos Triunfel, SS

I was e-mailed last week by some shmuck, [and yes, if you, the shmuck who sent that to me, is reading this, I’m talking to you and about you, you friggin’ goon] asking me how I could see such potential in a kid who is probably 23 years old, not 17, and can’t hit for power?

Well, if Triunfel was 23, the shmuch would have a point. But even the doubters don’t believe he’s any older than 18, which is more than enough for me to trust his age enough to judge his talents on what is listed.

As for hitting for power — do you know of many 17-18 year olds that hit for power in full season ball, not named Griffey, Rodriguez or another hall-of-fame bound name? Yeah, me neither.

Triunfel’s ability to make contact regularly, make mid-game adjustments and show improvement as he’s challenged by much more advanced and experienced competition make him a grade-A prospect by itself.

Couple that with his above-average athletic ability and projected physical prowess, not to mention the fact that he’s already as gifted physically as any prospect in the organization, and what you have is a kid that has enough natural ability to play everyday in the big leagues - TODAY.

His power will come as he develops consistencies in a better, revamped swing, and potentially a reworked stance as well. But he’s already capable of going the other way and shows the ability to prolong at-bats with a good eye and quick bat.

With Jones a big leaguer, Triunfel takes over the top spot in the organization, though he may have done so anyway, and is the clear choice for best rookie prospect.

Best Performance by a Relief Prospect (AA/AAA) - Kameron Mickolio, RHP

If Mickolio was healthy, he’d probably be contributing to the big-league bullpen this month after adding a pitch and improving his overall command. Standing 6-9 at 260 pounds, Mickolio rushes his fastball to the plate in the 93-96 mph range with good movement, and tosses in a two-seam cutter that dives in on righties and away from left-handers.

He’ll battle for a role in the M’s pen next spring, provided he’s healthy, after flashing dominance at two stops in the minors this season. The right-hander fanned 55 in 53 2/3 innings split between AA and AAA, allowing a .219 opponents average.

(SS/A) - Nick Hill, LHP

Even though Hill should have been pitching in High Desert at age , allowing just two earned runs in 35 innings and striking out 45 in 35 innings… and walking just nine… and allowing just 27 hits - no homers… and… well, you get the point.

Being a southpaw, Hill has a shot to move pretty quickly through the system, though it’s probable the club will return him to the rotation in Wisconsin to start 2008.

Breakthrough Prospect of the Year (AA/AAA) - Wladimir Balentien, OF

Balentien could have easily been the most improved prospect as well, but his skills aren’t any different as he really only improved in one area: discipline.

His game is much more disciplined now than anytime in his career and while he still needs a lot of refining in his approach to the game as well as his philosophies at the plate, Balentien turned himself into one of the most talked about offensive players in minor league baseball in 2007.

He still has holes in swing - the breaking ball is still a problem, but he chases it far less than he ever has in the past and is even further a long in that department than is Jones.

(SS/A) - Michael Saunders, OF

Saunders was finally able to turn all of his natural ability into performance this season, albeit with the advantage of hitting in the Cal League. He did have a strong showing in his very short stay in the Southern League and scouts believe his approach and intelligence at the plate will get him to the big leagues.

He still needs to shorten his swing quite a bit and cut down on the swings-and-misses, but he draws walks, runs the bases very well and has an more than adequate throwing arm to go with good range and instincts in the outfield. He’s a corner guy from here on out, however, not the center fielder he portrayed in 2007.

Saunders will probably return to Double-A West Tennessee in ‘08, joining the likes of Tillman and Triunfel on the most interesting roster in the system to start next season. Repeated performances will quickly send Saunders to Tacoma.

Defensive Prospect of the Year - Jones

Jones simply polished off a lot of the natural skills he already had, and proved the M’s correct in moving him off shortstop and into the outfield.

Dozens of times you could see Jones cut off a screamer in the gap, and whether he caught the ball on the fly or not, he’d spin and throw a seed into second base to either prevent an existing runner from advancing, or stop the hitter from getting the extra base.

Jones runs average to above-average routes, gets great jumps and the only errors he makes are from his anxiety to snap off a laser throw or with over-aggressiveness.

In time, he’ll shore up those issues as well, and ultimately become a plus defender in center field. Watch for him to push Ichiro back to right field within the next three years, depending on the 25-man roster and the overall production of the club’s third outfielder.

Runners Up: Johnson, Kuo-hui Lo, Saunders

Most Improved Offensive Prospect of the Year - Tuiasosopo

While Clement had the better year, most of his problems in ‘06 stemmed from injury and ridiculous expectations/promotion rates, rather than skills. Tuiasosopo improved his actual offensive skills moreso than did Clement, showing great patience and significant progress in strike zone judgment.

When you hit .185 with a .218 slugging percentage and a .254 on-base mark, it’s not hard to improve upon such numbers. But Tuiasosopo was drastically better in 2007, showing glimpses of the total package - patience, contact and power - though the power numbers still leave quite a bit to be desired.

In the last 13 games he did hit three long balls to bring his extra-base hits total to 41 for the year, but in order to play regularly at the next level, the 21-year-old will need to a repeated effort - and then some - in Triple-A Tacoma in 2008.

But for ‘07, no Mariners prospect showed as much improvement with the bat as their 2004 third-round choice.

Runners Up: Clement, Saunders

Most Improved Defensive Prospect of the Year - Clement

Clement has gone from “surefire 1B/DH or part-time player” to a prospect that has a better than average chance to not only play regularly in the show, but to catch, at least the majority of the time.

He’s still a year away, but if he’s able to replicate his improvements from the past 12-16 months, he’ll be big-league ready by August.

1B - Carlos Peguero
By default only… LaHair, Limonta and Hubbard aren’t big leaguers, and while Peguero probably isn’t one either, there’s a miniscule chance he makes enough contact to become useful. LaHair is probably a better bet here, but he’s been terrible in AAA, save for a 3-week stint in 2006, and I refuse to recognize him as a prospect anymore.

The way I see it, at least Peguero hasn’t PROVEN he can’t hit past AA ball. He probably will prove that soon, but…

2B - Anthony Phillips
Another default choice, as Valbuena and Dominguez are better hitters, but Phillips has more time to develop more strength and become something neither Valbuena nor Dominguez have the skills to. Phillips is patient, understands how to hit and when he matures physically he could show gap power in the mold of Dustin Pedroia.

The South African native is just 17, so there is time for him to grow, both vertically a bit, from his current 5-9, and filling out a stronger more durable frame. He’s 155-160 now. In two years or so, he’ll need to be 180.

Jesus Guzman had a huge year, but he’s 23, has never hit for power out of the Cal League and is an average defensive second baseman - at best.

3B - Matt Tuiasosopo
While Tui belongs in the outfield, he had a solid year, especially considering his 2006 campaign, and the runner-up, Alex Liddi, really struggled in the Midwest League. Liddi may still prove to the better prospect, but this season was Tui’s.

SS - Carlos Triunfel
Duh.

C - Jeff Clement
The combo if his defensive improvements and offensive season make this one easy, though Adam Moore and Travis Scott surprised in High Desert.

DH - Wladimir Balentien
An easy decision here, though the only reason he’s the DH is because the three outfielders are better defenders than Wlad, not because Wlad can’t play a corner spot adequately. He can, and will.

LF - Greg Halman
Was terrible in the Midwest League, really good in Everett, slugging nearly .600 with 16 homers before leaving the team to join Team Netherlands. Halman can defend in center, but his ability to make consistent contact will determine his future.

CF - Adam Jones
Enough has been said about Jones.

RF - Michael Saunders
Next year is a make-or-break year for his prospect status.

SP - Chris Tillman
On fast track.

SP - Juan Ramirez
Showed 92-95 mph fastball as teenager in NWL. Might skip A ball.

RP - Kameron Mickolio
A healthy Mark Lowe, Mickolio and Austin Bibens-Dirkx will give the M’s plenty of options in the pen over the next two years. Say goodbye to Reitsma, Parrish, Rhodes, and all the other expensive goons.

Photo Credits:

Carlos Triunfel, Chris Tillman by Mike Andruski

Waldimir Balentien by Paul Marsh at paulmphotography.com