Baseball America's list of best to worst farm systems

Well as you may have guessed, the Cubs are not close to the top. But also not that close to the bottom. 18th out of 30 teams is better than what I expected.

The good news is that two NL Central rivals (Houston, St. Louis) are ranked at the bottom.

about 2 years ago cubswynn 9 comments 0 recs |

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It should be noted that this isn't BA's list

but rather, it is John Manuel’s list. There’s been very little indication from several of the other BA writers that the Pirates and Brewers would rank higher than the Cubs. Callis, Badler, and Cooper all gave the nod to the Cubs ahead of the Pirates and Brewers.

It’s an interesting list, but as Manuel notes at the top, it’s based on his perception of star power at the top of a system. Thus, you get some really weird things – the Giants talent level drops off steeply after the top 4 guys. To rank them 3rd is a bit surprising.

by toonsterwu on Dec 3, 2009 4:39 PM CST reply actions 5 recs

Rec'd

by chilango2 on Dec 3, 2009 4:45 PM CST up reply actions

I read that it is BA's list...

…but I could be wrong. Thanks for the correction.

Always fun to look at regardless.

"Pounding sand since 1982...."

by cubswynn on Dec 3, 2009 5:04 PM CST up reply actions

he notes at the top

(3rd or 4th paragraph of article) that it is his own personal ranking and explains how he ranks it.

by toonsterwu on Dec 3, 2009 6:53 PM CST up reply actions

That's what I get for doing this while on a conference call.

I would change the title of the post, but then this mini thread will not make sense to late comers. Anyway, I hope people enjoy the article.

"Pounding sand since 1982...."

by cubswynn on Dec 3, 2009 8:40 PM CST up reply actions

St;. Louis is interesting

They traditionally produce from within, but I thought they had traded away a lot of talent last year getting Holliday and DeRosa.

by Nibbles on Dec 3, 2009 9:54 PM CST reply actions

they did

Most folks consider that a bottom 5 system right now. I mean, their one hope is a HS arm that’s years from the bigs, if he makes it up. There’s a decent mid-end of the rotation lefty in Jamie Garcia, and perhaps some other decent spare parts (Daryl Jones, Descalso and others) but the system is relatively weak right now, relative to how folks judge systems.

by toonsterwu on Dec 4, 2009 12:43 AM CST up reply actions

I'm not up on all the minor league systems, but I am impressed with what the Braves just pulled off

I see, at least according to this article, that the Braves checked in at #6. I would guess they’re only going to get better in the coming years after signing Wagner.

Yes, they’ll have to give up a draft pick to Boston, but because Wagner will be the closer (and Saito is now on board as backup), that almost guarantees Soriano and Gonzalez will refuse arbitration and sign elsewhere. And since they’re both Type A’s, that means the Braves will get 4 picks back. Subtle yet very effective move – most impressive strategy. Michael Corleone would be proud…

Lou Brown: "My kinda team, Charlie, my kinda team..."

by ballhawk on Dec 3, 2009 10:29 PM CST reply actions

My guess is that

in the overall list, the Braves won’t rank as high. He heavily weighted “star power” and the Braves have star power in Jason Heyward and perhaps Julio Teheran, with Freddie Freeman looking like a potential above average major leaguer. That said, after that top tier, the system drops a bit. Some decent arms, but an overall mixed bag. Now, I think they are solidly in the top 15, perhaps borderline top 10, but I’ve got a tough time seeing them rank top 6. That said, this year, there really are few elite systems out there, so who knows.

They are sitting pretty with their reliever swaps. Boston also made out well, jumping up to the middle of the first.

by toonsterwu on Dec 4, 2009 12:42 AM CST up reply actions