Everybody knew the first pick of the 2007 amateur draft was good. But after missing approximately the first two months of the minor league season, no one expected David Price to be quite so sharp.

The 22-year-old southpaw made his pro debut on May 22 and did not allow his first run in professional baseball until June 7 against Sarasota, when he allowed three runs on 11 hits in five innings. Previously, Price had gone three starts – 18 innings – with allowing no runs on eight hits and two walks. He also struck out 19 batters and induced his fair share of ground balls.

In his last three starts, though, Price has allowed at least one run. In the previous 16.2 innings, he has allowed 20 hits and five walks. He has also struck out 18 batters. In 34.2 cumulative innings this season, Price has yet to allow a home run.

Left-handed batters are hitting .111 against Price, while right-handers are at .250. His rates are good at 1.59 BB/9 and 9.53 K/9.

The former Vanderbilt University standout has not been quite as dominant as of late, but Price is still doing very well considering the significant period of time off between his final college pitch in 2007 and May 22, 2008.

No, he’s probably not going to help out this season but it would not be a surprise to see him at the major league level in 2009. And with the likes of Wade Davis, Jacob McGee and Jeff Niemann ahead of him, there is no need to rush Price.

If baseball continues to trend in the direction that it has been – less offence – then pitchers with average or fringe-ish stuff have a much better chance of putting together a solid Major League career. Right-hander Jonah Nickerson is one of those minor league pitchers whose career is looking a little bit brighter.

Currently in High-A Lakeland, an affiliate of the Detroit Tigers, Nickerson is continuing to build a solid pro career after being a very good starter at Oregon State University. The 23-year-old was drafted in the seventh round of the 2006 draft and has “fringe-average stuff” (86-88 mph fastball, curve ball, cutter, change-up) but he has solid command and knows how to pitch.

Nickerson did not pitch for the Tigers organization in his draft year, but he entered full-season ball in 2007. In 150 innings in low A-ball, he allowed 9.32 H/9 and 2.27 BB/9 but struck out just 6.93 batters per nine innings. Moved up to High-A ball in 2008, Nickerson has continued to improve. In 74 innings, he has allowed 8.76 H/9 and 1.95 BB/9. His strikeout rate has remained about the same at 6.81 K/9. He could be even more successful if he induced a few more ground balls, as he currently has a 1-1 ratio with fly balls. It might be a good time to give him the Double-A test.

No, a slow offensive third of a season in the Major Leagues does not suddenly make Nickerson a potential No. 1 or 2 starter. However, he is someone to keep an eye on as a possible future No. 4 or 5 starter, especially given the lack of top prospects in the Detroit system.

When the Detroit Tigers organization selected Cale Iorg with its sixth round pick in 2007 (and gave him more than $1.4 million), it took a flyer on a talented, toolsy player who had not played organized baseball in almost two years. It also added to the accomplishments of one of the larger, yet lesser known, baseball families.

The Iorgs are not as well known as the Boones or the Bells or even the Hairstons. But Cale’s father Garth was an infielder with the Toronto Blue Jays for nine seasons in the ’80s and uncle Dane was a utility player in the late ’70s and ’80s for a number of teams, including the Phillies, Cardinals and Royals.

Brother Isaac, now 29, was drafted by the Blue Jays in the 19th round of the 2001 draft out of Brigham Young University and spent four seasons in the minors before hanging up his cleats. Brother Eli was selected in the supplemental first round by the Houston Astros in 2005 and is currently in Double-A. Eli, 25, spent just one year on a Mormon mission during college and signed with Houston for $900,000, despite being drafted higher than Cale.

Although Cale, a shortstop, played college baseball for just one season, he was considered by many scouts to be the most talented ballplayer in the family. So far this season, the 22-year-old is hitting .260/.326/.415 in 246 High-A ball at-bats. He has eight homers and 12 stolen bases in 17 attempts. The weakness for all three members of the younger generation has been plate discipline and Cale is currently walking 7.8 percent of the time and striking out at a rate of 27.0 percent. Defensively, he has committed 11 errors in 59 games.

Although Eli could make it to the majors quicker than Cale, the younger brother appears to have the brighter future with an intriguing combination of speed and power at a premium position.

The Detroit Tigers minor league system is lacking in blue chip prospects, but the organization is having some luck with re-energized castoffs from other organizations, including Chris Lambert. He is not going to be the savior of the Tigers staff, but he has a chance to contribute at the Major League level, which is something that seemed unlikely even a year ago.

Lambert was originally drafted out of Boston College in the first round (19th overall) by the St. Louis Cardinals in 2004. He had a nice college career and pitched exceptionally well during his first year in the Cardinals system by posting an ERA below three, allowing fewer than nine hits per nine innings and by averaging one strikeout per inning. Things began to unravel, though, midway through the 2005 season when he hit Double-A and Lambert struggled mightily until 2008. He was obtained by the Tigers midway through the 2007 season for washed up Mike Maroth.

Now in Triple-A Toledo, Lambert currently has a 2.97 ERA in 14 starts and has allowed fewer than one hit per inning. He has also struck out 61 batters in 78.2 innings of work. The one downside is that he has been allowing more than one fly ball for every ground ball out, although only four balls have left the yard.

When he was drafted, Lambert possessed a mid-90s fastball and knee-buckling curve ball, along with a developing change-up. His stuff is not what it used to be, but he is learning to be more of a pitcher and less of a thrower. He no longer projects as a potential No. 2 starter, but he could still develop into a workhorse at the back end of the Tigers rotation.

There is no doubt that the Detroit Tigers organization has had a disappointing season up to this point. However, there is good news in the minor league system.

After purging most of its top prospects from the system this past winter to acquire such names as Miguel Cabrera, Edgar Renteria, and Dontrelle Willis, the Tigers organization was rated as having one of the worst systems in the game. But a number of the mid-level prospects in the system have improved their games. As well, top pitching prospect and 2007 first-round pick Rick Porcello made his much-anticipated pro debut.

Porcello, who was drafted out of a New Jersey high school, was considered a Top 10 talent but he fell to the 27th overall pick due to signability concerns. Every team in the league who passed him up now regrets it, as he is holding his own in High-A ball as a 19-year-old. He throws in the mid-90s and has a four-pitch mix that includes a fastball, curve, slider and change-up.

So far this season, Porcello has a 2.94 ERA in 67.1 innings. He has allowed 67 hits and only 19 walks, to go along with 41 strikeouts. Although he is not striking out a ton of batters, Porcello is inducing more than 2.2 ground balls for every fly ball out and only four balls have left the yard. He is actually having better luck against left-handed batters (.222 batting average), than righties (.283).

His worst game of the season came on June 1 when he faced the Dunedin Blue Jays for the fourth time in a month. He allowed four earned runs on nine hits and three walks over 4.2 innings. Porcello was been excellent so far in his pro career despite skipping over both short season ball and low A-ball. He could end up being one of the first pitchers from the 2007 draft to make it to the majors, which is good news for the Detroit Tigers.

One thing the Oakland Athletics organization does not get enough credit for, thank to the media focus on its drafting philosophies, is finding diamonds in the rough. In recent seasons, the Athletics have found players in the bargain bin only to squeeze unexpected value from them. That list includes such players as Jack Cust, Shannon Stewart, Andrew Brown, Jack Hannahan, and Frank Thomas (version 1.0).

The same can be said for minor league players in the system… Now these players may not have a major impact like Cust did when he hit 26 homers in 2007, but minor league depth is vitally important for a franchise to be successful. As such, let’s take a look at some of the more interesting players the Athletics organization has added to its system via minor league free agency and the waiver wire.

At 6-1, 165 pounds, third baseman Jesus Guzman does not look like a slugger, but he currently has 18 doubles and 12 home runs in 276 at-bats for the Double-A Midland RockHounds. The 24-year-old minor league free agent pick-up is also hitting .355/.405./.565. Last year at High-A ball (albeit in the hitting haven of High Desert), Guzman hit .301/.370/.539 with 25 homers, 38 doubles, 102 runs scored and 112 RBI. Why did Seattle give up on this guy? The organization likely cut ties with him because his big 2007 came after two not-so-great seasons at Double-A. But that comes with a caveat because Seattle did what is becoming a disturbing trend. It rushed Guzman. He came to North America, after signing out of Venezuela, and was immediately placed in High-A ball at the age of 20. He then was pushed to Double-A the next season and he averaged about .258/.334/.388 for the next two seasons before moving back down to High-A ball and thriving.

Jon Zeringue, 25, has been a nice find for the A’s organization and has provided solid numbers for Double-A Midland since being picked up out of an independent baseball league last season. The former second round pick of the Arizona Diamondbacks was, like Guzman, rushed through the minors and struggled with Double-A before being unceremoniously released. This season he his hitting .290/.383/.504 with 11 homers and 42 runs scored in 238 at-bats. He has a .340 average against southpaws and 10 of his 16 hits have been doubles.

Wes Bankston is a forgotten member of the Tampa Bay Rays’ ridiculous minor league depth. Drafted out of high school, the slugging first baseman hit .301/.346/.569 with 18 homers in 246 Rookie Ball at-bats in 2002. Two seasons later in A-ball, he slugged 23 homers and drove in 101 runs and sat amongst the Rays’ best prospects. Then injuries slowed his ascent and the organization experimented with an ill-advised conversion to third base. After a disappointing offensive season at Triple-A in 2007, at the age of 23, Bankston was removed from the 40-man roster to make room for a new wave of talent and was claimed on waivers by the A’s. Bankston is still struggling at Triple-A as his plate discipline has diminished along with his power but he is still young enough to recapture his past approach and secure a part-time Major League job.

From all appearances Brooks Conrad is a perfect fit for the Athletics organization. The former eighth round pick of the Houston Astros out of Arizona State University was never given a fair shake in the organization despite above-average offensive numbers as a second baseman, including 40 doubles, 15 triples and 24 homers in Triple-A in 2006. Conrad did not even sniff a Major League plate appearance in seven seasons in the Astros organization. His numbers are not looking so hot this season but Conrad could still have some value on a major league bench, in part due to his grinder mentality, if he can improve his average. He is currently hitting .227/.293/.446 with 13 homers in 242 at-bats.

Casey Rogowski is a former White Sox prospect. The left-handed hitting first baseman has always intrigued teams with his raw power and surprising base running skills for a 6-3, 230 pound man. He has stolen more than 15 bases seven times and surpassed 20 twice. However, he has only exceeded 15 homers once, although he is on pace to do it again this season and is currently hitting .273/.347/.444 with nine homers in 216 at-bats. Rogowski has also taken his fair share of walks in his career. He is yet another player who could eventually find part-time employment at the Major League level.

You don’t win big without taking a little risk and thinking outside the box, which is what these players represent. They won’t be superstars and some of them may never play at the Major League level for the Athletics but, as mentioned, the organization is one of the best when it comes to squeezing value out of other organization’s rejects and failed projects. These five players all possess the potential to join the likes of Cust and Hannahan at exceeding expectations.

Right-hander Danny Haren has been very good to the Oakland Athletics. Not only did he give them three seasons of above-average pitching, but he also brought first baseman Daric Barton and reliever Kiko Calero over with him when he was traded to the West Coast from St. Louis prior to the 2005 season. All three players have been key cogs in the A’s successes over the past three years, and Barton promises to be a mainstay in the lineup for many years (or until his trade value is at its peak).

Haren, along with minor league right-hander Connor Robertson, also brought the Athletics a plethora of talent when he was traded from Oakland to Arizona prior to the 2008 seasons. The booty obtained for the right-hander includes southpaws Dana Eveland, Greg Smith, Brett Anderson, first baseman Chris Carter and outfielders Carlos Gonzalez and Aaron Cunningham.

Haren 6-4 W-L | 83.2 IP | 7.64 K/9 | 1.61 BB/9 | .234 AVG | 3.25 FIP
Eveland 4-5 W-L | 76.2 IP | 6.22 K/9 | 4.58 BB/9 | .234 AVG | 3.83 FIP
Smith 3-5 W-L | 74.2 IP | 6.75 K/9 | 3.25 BB/9 | .236 AVG | 3.86 FIP

Obviously, Haren, 27, has a proven track record whereas the younger Eveland, 24, and Smith, 24, do not. That said, you have to enjoy the fact Oakland turned one key part of its rotation into two key parts, keeping in mind how valuable young, affordable pitching is and how incredibly valuable young, affordable, left-handed pitching is now. Eveland has always had a little bit of a higher profile than Smith, who was always considered to be one of those ‘soft-tossers’ who can fool minor leaguers but would probably get lit up by the bigger, stronger Major Leaguers. So far, though, Smith is proving his doubters wrong in the post-Mitchell Report era. Eveland’s stuff is a little bit better than Smith’s, but the southpaw has always been compared to former Major Leaguer David Wells, and not in a fattering – sorry, flattering way. Basically with these three pitchers you have to decide if a No. 2 starter, or borderline No. 1 starter, is more valuable than both a No. 3 and No. 4 starter.

Robertson, 26, is a former 31st round draft pick who has settled into a bullpen role and is currently pitching in Triple-A Tucson. He has a 4.32 ERA in 41.2 innings. Robertson has allowed 33 hits and 18 walks to go along with 42 strikeouts. His stuff is average at best and he allows a lot of fly balls so his ceiling is limited to that of a 12th or 13th man on a Major League pitching staff.

Anderson, 20, is one of the top southpaw prospects in all of baseball and was considered an advanced high school pitcher when he was drafted. So far this season, in High-A ball, Anderson has a 4.43 ERA in 61 innings. He has allowed 62 hits and has walked 2.21 batters per nine innings (BB/9). He has also posted a rate of 9.59 K/9. Anderson’s ERA is a bit misleading as he pitched hurt for a little while before going on the disabled list in mid-May. If you subtract those three straight poor starts that included 19 earned runs in 11 innings, his ERA lowers to 1.98.

At the time of the trade, Gonzalez, 22, was considered the key player in the deal as the Diamondbacks’ top prospect. He has done nothing to disappoint since becoming an American Leaguer and he is currently hitting .262/.279/.452 in 42 at-bats at the major league level. Interestingly, of his 11 hits, Gonzalez has eight doubles. In fact, his first seven major league hits were doubles. Earlier in the season at Triple-A, Gonzalez batted .293/.351/.439 in 157 at-bats. He is still raw to some degree but loaded with potential.

Cunningham began the season on the disabled list but has been making up for lost time. The fringe major league starter (not enough range for center, not enough power for the corners) is currently hitting .291/.357/.417 in Double-A, with three homers and five stolen bases in 151 at-bats. He needs to cut down on the strikeouts, which are piling up at a rate of 27.3 percent.

Originally acquired by the Diamondbacks from the White Sox, Carter has settled into Oakland’s system nicely, with his combination of walks and home runs. He still has work to do to develop into a major leaguer, though. The power is undeniable but Carter needs to improve his contact rates. He is currently hitting .224/.342/.480 with 14 homers in 223 at-bats. He has walked 15.2 percent of the time but struck out at a rate of 31.8 percent.

The Oakland Athletics organization made some key trades in the 2007-08 off-season. A trade with the Chicago White Sox saw the A’s send one of its key offensive cogs north in somewhat of a surprising move. First baseman-outfielder Nick Swisher was traded to The Windy City for disappointing outfielder Ryan Sweeney and top pitching prospects Gio Gonzalez and Fautino De Los Santos.

Swisher’s trade was a bit of a surprise considering he was a young hitter locked into a reasonable five-year contract that runs through 2011 and includes an option at $10.25 million for 2012. That said, Swisher has struggled this season with the White Sox and is hitting only .228/.343/.386 in 215 at-bats. His slugging percentage is down 70 points from his career average. Maybe the A’s knew something the rest of us did not (wink, wink, nudge, nudge, say no more)? Or maybe he is just having an off year. On the plus side, he’s still walking a lot (14.7 percent) and the club is in first place in its division.

Sweeney, a former second round pick out of high school, was in desperate need of a scenery change – and former Sox teammate Brian Anderson is no doubt envious of his good fortune. Sweeney, 23, is currently hitting .293/.353/.407 in 123 at-bats for his new club. Those obviously are not All-Star numbers but he has been a solid contributor for the organization.

Southpaw Gonzalez, 22, is currently biding his time in Triple-A Sacramento and gives the Athletics excellent starting pitching depth. If the club needed him, he could probably be at least a league average starter right now. Currently, he has a 5.71 ERA in 64.2 innings of work with 74 hits allowed and 35 walks. His numbers are a little skewed after he was roughed up in two of his last four starts for 17 earned runs on 20 hits in 8.2 innings.

De Los Santos, 22, was considered one of the biggest up-and-comers in 2007 after going 10-5 with a 2.65 ERA and 153 strikeouts in 122.1 A-ball innings. But he succumbed to Tommy John surgery after only five High-A ball starts after coming over to the Athletics. Gee… what a surprise. The White Sox organization has never traded (Mike) an injured pitcher (Sirotka) before. Luckily the track record for pitchers returning from the surgery is pretty solid.

Even with the injury, the trade seems to be in Oakland’s favor at this point.

The Oakland Athletics organization has received a lot of ink over its drafting philosophies, but Billy Beane’s trades tend to get overlooked. The general manager brought a number of highly-touted (and not-so-touted) prospects into the struggling minor league system this past off-season. As such, now is the perfect time to spend the week taking a look at how those transactions have worked out for the Athletics and the club’s trading partners.

Along with a couple larger trades, the Athletics made two smaller trades: one with Toronto and one with Atlanta. On Nov. 18, the organization traded super-sub Marco Scutaro to the Jays for right-handed pitchers Kristian Bell and Graham Godfrey. On Jan. 14, the Athletics sent oft-injured outfielder Mark Kotsay to the Braves for pitchers Joey Devine and Jamie Richmond.

In an effort to save some cash with the arbitration-eligible Scutaro, Beane sent arguably the team’s most valuable position player to the Jays. Yes, Scutaro, who was originally acquired by the A’s on waivers from the New York Mets, filled in admirably for the club’s injured infielders:

2004 filled in for injured second baseman Mark Ellis (123 games at 2B)
2005 filled in for injured shortstop Bobby Crosby (81 games at SS)
2006 filled in for injured shortstop Bobby Crosby (69 games at SS)
2007 filled in for injured shortstop Bobby Crosby (43 games at SS)
2007 filled in for injured third baseman Eric Chavez (36 games at 3B)

Scutaro has already proven his worth in Toronto this season. He has filled in for injured shortstop David Eckstein (21 games) and injured third baseman Scott Rolen (20 games). Scutaro has posted his typical offensive numbers with a line of .268/.356/.346 with two homers and five stolen bases in 179 at-bats.

Bell, 24, throws in the low- to mid-90s in the bullpen but has below-average command. After a good spring, he was assigned to Double-A despite posting a 5.33 ERA in the Florida State League for Toronto in 2007. Bell struggled for the A’s in Double-A and posted a 9.45 ERA in 11 games. He was then demoted to High-A ball in mid-May, made one appearance and was placed on the disabled list.

Godfrey, 23, was a starter in the Jays system but he has spent time as a swing man in the A’s system due to his lack of a quality third pitch to accompany his low-90s fastball and slider. So far this season in High-A ball, Godfrey has posted a 4.92 ERA in 56.2 innings. He has allowed 57 hits and 16 walks. Godfrey has struck out 45 batters but allowed six homers.

It was no secret that the A’s wanted to get rid of center fielder Kotsay and the organization found a taker in Atlanta. He rewarded his new club with a solid performance so far this season. Kotsay currently has a line of .294/.344/.435 with four homers and two stolen bases in 170 at-bats.

The Athletics, on the other hand, received a couple of interesting arms in return for Kotsay. Devine, a former first round pick, struggled with his command as a member of the Atlanta Braves and walked 22 batters in 20.1 innings over parts of three seasons. So far with the A’s, though, Devine has walked only seven batters in 22 innings. He has also struck out 28 hitters and allowed 16 hits. He has yet to give up a homer and could eventually move into the closer’s role if (and when) the Athletics trade current fireman Huston Street.

Richmond, 22, started his A’s career by struggling after being send back to A-ball to begin the year despite modest success at that level last season for Atlanta. He currently has a 3.79 ERA in 69 innings and has allowed 64 hits and just eight walks. The right-hander has struck out 48 batters and has induced two ground balls for every fly ball out.

For the next two weeks, in honor of the upcoming MLB Amateur Draft today and tomorrow, I will be devoting my posts to a review of the 2007 draft. Last week I looked at the National League’s first three rounds (plus the supplemental first round). Today, let’s take a look at how some of the key American League third round picks are faring in their first full season in professional baseball.

Nick Barnese (Tampa Bay) had an encouraging pro debut in Rookie Ball but the youngster began 2008 in extended spring training, where he will remain until short season leagues get underway shortly after the draft.

Danny Duffy (Kansas City) began the year in extended spring training before moving up to the Midwest League in late May. He has made three starts and has struggled with an 8.49 ERA in 11.2 innings. He has allowed 16 hits and five walks to go along with 18 strikeouts.

Danny Carroll (Seattle) had a great start to the year before hitting the disabled list in late April. He was hitting .339/.413/.429 in 56 at-bats. Carroll had 10 stolen bases in 13 attempts.

Evan Reed (Texas), a college reliever, was shifted to the starting rotation by the Rangers. He is currently pitching in High-A ball and has a 4.64 ERA in 42.2 innings with 47 hits allowed. He has walked 24 batters and struck out 34. Reed made one emergency start at Double-A and did not allow a run in five innings.

Alan Farina (Toronto) began the year working as a tandem starter but that did not work out so he went back to strictly being a reliever. He was recently added to the disabled list, though. Before the DL trip, Farina had a 3.29 ERA in 27.1 innings. He allowed 17 hits and 13 walks. Farina also racked up 37 strikeouts.

Matt Harvey (Los Angeles) did not sign with the Angels and followed through on his commitment to the University of North Carolina.

John Ely (Chicago) is quietly having a nice season. The right-hander has a 3.96 ERA in High-A ball. In 63.2 innings, he has allowed 61 hits, 18 walks and has struck out 60 batters.

Sam Demel (Oakland) currently has a 3.33 ERA at High-A ball in 24.1 innings. He has allowed 18 hits and 14 walks. The former college reliever has struck out 35 batters.

Luke Putkonen (Detroit) has yet to appear for the Tigers this season and is currently in extended spring training. Angel Morales (Minnesota) and Brock Huntzinger (Boston) also in extended spring training.

Ryan Pope (New York) is currently on the disabled list, but he was putting together a nice season in High-A ball. He had a 2.81 ERA in 51.1 innings and had allowed 54 hits and only eight walks. Pope had struck out 36 batters.

Well that is it for a look back at the 2007 draft, so we now need to look to the future. And today just happens to be Draft Day… so head on over to BaseballAmerica.com, MLB.com or BaseballAnalysts.com for some excellent 2008 Amateur Draft coverage.