Unlike the Arizona Fall League where only top prospects are invited, baseball’s winter leagues are open to young and old alike. Some play winter ball to make up for lost time (like the Cleveland Indians Jake Westbrook). Others play to work on things to make them better or to continue the progress they made during the regular season. Some players play winter ball to audition for a major league club. Hometown players play to give back to their home country’s fans and to show national pride.

There are four countries that offer winter ball leagues (Mexico, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic), which culminates in the Caribbean Series that will be held in Venezuela in February. The top four teams in each league represent their country in the series. The Cubs vice president of player personnel Oneri Fleita stated “I think it’s great for anybody’s development” to play winter ball.

I wrote about Jake Westbrook’s comeback attempt in winter ball in Puerto Rico. The NY Yankees have catching prospect Jesus Montero playing in his home country Venezuela to make up for the time he missed after his finger injury with Double-A Trenton. However he is not getting a lot of playing time with Navegantes del Magallanes (although it is not due to aggravating his finger). He has played in just 9 games and is hitting just .115. Another catcher, this one from the Texas Rangers, is also making up for lost time in Venezuela. Max Ramirez suffered injuries to both of his wrists during the season and only accumulated 287 at-bats. With Tiburones de La Guaira, Ramirez is hitting .245 in 42 games with 10 homeruns and 31 RBIs. Sandy Madera is leading the Mexican League in hitting, with a .433 average to go with 14 homeruns and 25 RBIs. The first baseman played in just 5 games with Triple-A Pawtucket and is using his time in Mexico to make up for the lost time.

John Mayberry Jr.

In Mexico, the Philadelphia Phillies have two outfield prospects competing for Yaquis de Obregon. John Mayberry Jr., who played in just 128 games between Triple-A Lehigh Valley and Philadelphia, and Michael Taylor, who is coming off a .320 season split between Double-A Reading and Lehigh Valley, are hoping their time in Mexico can help them crack the Phillies roster or audition for another team looking to make a trade. Despite battling an elbow injury, Taylor is hitting .309 in 19 games with 1 homerun and 11 RBIs. Mayberry is hitting .313 (which is 12^th in the Mexican League) in 38 games with 7 homeruns and 23 RBIs.

With the 3^rd best batting average in the Mexican League (.367), Mike Cervenak is hoping to sign with a team. After being named an International League All-Star with Lehigh Valley the last two seasons (and earning a World Series ring in 2008 with the Phillies), Cervenak is hoping to break through to the big leagues in 2010 (after making the majors for the first time in 2008). The third baseman (though I’ve seen him play a multitude of positions) has played in 43 games with 11 doubles, 10 homeruns, and 38 RBIs in Mexico. Cervenak’s former Triple-A teammate Andy Tracy, who re-signed with the Phillies, is playing winter ball in the Dominican Republic. Tracy hit his first homerun this weekend and is hitting .300 with 5 RBIs in 5 games (5 game hitting streak). Tracy could be the power bat off the bench for the Phillies in 2010.

Josh Schmidt pitching for Trenton

Josh Schmidt of the NY Yankees spent the 2009 season in Double-A Trenton, mainly out of the bullpen though he did spot start for the Thunder. In Venezuela, Schmidt just struck out ten in a 7 inning complete game shutout. He could be a long shot for the Yankees in 2010, but if he continues to pitch well as the All-Star did in 2009, you may see him as a call up next season. The Colorado Rockies young starter Jhoulys Chacin is pitching in his home country Venezuela. Chacin just was outdueled on Sunday, though he gave up just one unearned run in 6 innings. In 7 starts, Chacin is 1-1 with a 3.90 ERA with 9 walks to 22 strikeouts. Chacin should be plugged into the rotation for the Rockies in 2010.

Pablo Sandoval

The Kung Fu Panda has arrived in Venezuela. Pablo Sandoval, the fan favorite for the San Francisco Giants, has played in just 3 games though he had 3 hits in his second game (with 3 runs scored and an RBI). Also in Venezuela is the NY Mets young catcher Josh Thole, who continuing to hit in winter ball. Thole leads the league in hitting at .391 with 13 doubles, 3 homeruns, and 24 RBIs. In 39 games, Thole has more walks (24) than strikeouts (13).

Tags:

Andy Tracy, Dominican Winter League, Jesus Montero, Jhoulys Chacin, John Mayberry Jr, Josh Schmidt, Josh Thole, Max Ramirez, Mexican Pacific League, Michael Taylor, Mike Cervenak, Pablo Sandoval, Puerto Rican Winter League, Sandy Madera, Venezuelan Winter League

Remember Jake Westbrook? Cleveland Indians fans are hoping he makes them remember him again in 2010. Westbrook teamed with CC Sabathia and Cliff Lee to form a formidable tandem. From 2004-2007, Westbrook averaged over 200 innings a season and over 100 strikeouts in a season. However in that time span, he also has averaged over 50 walks a season. Before the 2007 season, the Indians signed Westbrook to an extension, keeping him through the 2010 season. He was a far cry from an ace, but the 2007 free agent market was set to be weak with starting pitching and Westbrook would have commanded close to $10 million. He was a consistent and steady middle of the rotation starter and the Indians were impressed with his leadership abilities.

Jake Westbrook

However Westbrook made just five starts in 2008, succumbing to Tommy John surgery, Sabathia was traded in July of 2008, and Lee was traded in July of 2009. Westbrook’s last major league start came on May 28, 2008 against the Chicago White Sox. Then he had Tommy John surgery in June. The Indians had hoped to have him back at midseason in 2009 but two setbacks during his minor league rehab shut him down until now. He has been at the Indians winter development complex in Goodyear, Arizona, working on his mechanics with new pitching coach Tim Belcher and stretching out his arm for a run in the Puerto Rican winter league.

Right now, Westbrook is slotted in as the Opening Day starter in 2010. The Indians would like to add a veteran starter to lead their young pitching staff. Westbrook could be that veteran guy if he is healthy. The Indians need to find the right guy because they do not want to block the progress of their young pitchers, including Justin Masterson, Fausto Carmona, Aaron Laffey, Jeremy Sowers, David Huff, Carlos Carrasco, Hector Rondon, and Jeanmar Gomez. Westbrook is in the final year of his contract and will make $11 million in 2010. If Westbrook is healthy and effective, look for him to be traded at the July trading deadline, just as his former teammates Sabathia and Lee were the last two seasons.

In his first start for Ponce against Gigantes del Cibao of the Dominican Republic in Puerto Rico, Westbrook pitched 1.2 innings, giving up 3 hits and one run, while walking one. He got four ground ball outs and one fly ball out. He did not strike out a batter. Westbrook was on a 35-pitch limit and threw 22 in the first inning. Eddie Perez, the Ponce manager and Westbrook’s former Indians teammate, said “his cutter was good, he had good velocity, good sink and good movement”. The day after his start, he was continuing his throwing program without any pain, which was a good sign. Westbrook is scheduled to pitch again on December 6^th and throw three innings or 45 pitches. If everything goes well, he should stay with Ponce through December 17^th.

Westbrook does not care if he is the ace or the fifth starter, as long as he is back pitching in the big leagues in 2010. Indians fans are hoping he can solidify the young pitching staff to help the Tribe compete for the American League Central title.

Tags:

Cleveland Indians, Jake Westbrook, Puerto Rican Winter League

Michael Taylor

The Topps Double-A All-Star team is a mix of young talent and veterans. Michael Taylor of the Reading Phillies was a hot commodity at the trading deadline in 2009. As a fan of Taylor’s, I was glad to see him still in the Phillies organization. However with John Mayberry Jr. ahead of him, Domonic Brown right behind him, Anthony Gose right behind that, and three All-Star outfielders in the big leagues, it probably would be best for Taylor to get traded to have a better opportunity to make the majors. As the Eastern League Rookie of the Year, Taylor hit .333 with 15 homeruns and 65 RBIs before his promotion to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. The fan favorite was returned to Reading during the playoffs. Taylor is continuing his progress in the Mexican League this winter; in 19 games he is hitting .308 with 11 RBIs.

His teammate in both Reading and in Mexico this season, Neil Sellers was a force batting behind Taylor in the lineup while with Reading and played a great third base. Sellers was also an Eastern League All-Star while hitting .317 with 17 homeruns and 86 RBIs. In Mexico, Sellers was hitting .371 though he hasn’t played in a game since early November. With an opening at third base and the Phillies looking for a high-priced option, I would like to see the Phillies give Sellers a chance to win the third base job.

Another Eastern League All-Star, though from the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, Brian Dopirak was added to the Toronto Blue Jays’ 40-man roster last week. Many fans want to see Lyle Overbay and his $8 million contract traded to open the door for Dopirak. The former top prospect of the Chicago Cubs hit .308 with 19 homeruns and 68 RBIs before being promoted to Triple-A Las Vegas. He is also playing winter ball in Venezuela and in 35 games, he is hitting .270 with 7 homeruns and 35 RBIs. Dopirak, who can play first base, the outfield, and DH, will get a long shot in spring training.

The final Eastern League All-Star to make the Topps Double-A All-Star team was the Trenton Thunder’s Eduardo Nunez. The shortstop was just added to the NY Yankees 40-man roster and is known mostly for his bat; he hit .322 with 9 homeruns and 55 RBIs. His defense leaves a lot to be desired, as he made 30+ errors in Trenton in 2009. The poor defense will not have him moving All-Star and Gold Glove winning Derek Jeter to a new position anytime soon. If Nunez continues to rack up the errors in 2010, look for the Yankees to possibly move him to a new position.

Tyler Flowers

Tyler Flowers was traded from the Atlanta Braves to the Chicago White Sox for Javier Vazquez and Boone Logan before the 2009 season. Blocked by catcher Brian McCann in Atlanta, Flowers has a better opportunity to take over the catching duties in Chicago in 2011 or before. In the Southern League with Birmingham, Flowers hit .302 with 13 homeruns and 43 RBIs before moving up to Triple-A Charlotte and getting a cup of coffee with the White Sox in September.

Travis Wood led all Double-A pitchers with a 1.21 ERA and he was also 9-3. Named the Southern League’s Most Outstanding Pitcher, Wood allowed just 78 hits in 119 innings pitched while striking out 103. Wood was just added to the Cincinnati Reds 40-man roster.

Daniel Descalso, a second baseman with the St. Louis Cardinals, spent the 2009 season in Springfield and then Triple-A Memphis, before joining the USA Baseball team for the World Cup and helped the US to a gold medal. In Springfield, he hit .322 with 8 homeruns and 51 RBIs. The Cardinals always seem to be looking for middle infielders and Descalso could be the guy to move Skip Schumaker back out to left field.

Desmond Jennings finished in the top five in average (316), stolen bases (37), triples (8), on-base percentage (.395), and slugging percentage (.486) in being named the Southern League’s Most Valuable Player. The Montgomery Biscuits outfielder also had a .996 fielding percentage, before being promoted to Triple-A Durham in August, where he continued his offensive production and hit over .300 in 32 games. Jennings also does not strike out a lot (67 BB/ 67 K). The speedy outfielder could push the Tampa Bay Rays outfielders sometime in 2010, especially if BJ Upton continues to struggle.

Chris Carter was named the Texas League Player of the Year while hitting .337 with 24 homeruns and 101 RBIs. Carter could be the answer for Oakland in 2010 for a power hitting first baseman since his trade from the Arizona Diamondbacks. The downside to Carter is the strikeouts that he collects each year (133 total and 27 in winter ball in 17 games).

As a Southern League All-Star, Ezequiel Carrera of the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx led the league in hitting at .337. The Seattle Mariners newly acquired speedy outfielder from the NY Mets at the end of 2008 also does not strike out much (59 BB/ 62 K). Carrera could get a shot in 2010 with the Mariners or at least a September call up.

Tags:

Brian Dopirak, Chris Carter, Daniel Descalso, Desmond Jennings, Double-A, Eduardo Nunez, Ezequiel Carrera, Michael Taylor, Neil Sellers, Travis Wood, Tyler Flowers

Randy Ruiz

It was another entertaining season for Major League Baseball and 2010 expects to be another grand season. Over the past week, Topps teamed with Minor League Baseball to name each level’s All-Star team. Randy Ruiz was named the Pacific Coast League’s MVP, as he hit .320 with 25 homeruns and 106 RBIs with Las Vegas before his promotion to Toronto. With Toronto, Ruiz hit .313 with 10 homeruns and 17 RBIs in 33 games. Ruiz flourished so much that he is in line to take over the designated hitter duties in 2010. The International League’s MVP has gone on the open market. The former NY Yankees outfielder Shelley Duncan declined his designation back to Scranton, thus making him a free agent. Duncan, the son of the St. Louis Cardinals Dave Duncan and brother of former Cardinal Chris Duncan, hit .277 with 30 homeruns and 99 RBIs with Scranton. Duncan has tremendous power and became a fan favorite in his short stints with NY and while playing in Scranton.

Jordan Brown, who was originally upset about not being a September call up to the Cleveland Indians, was added to their 40-man roster this last week. Brown hit .336 with 15 homeruns and 67 RBIs for Columbus and can play both first base and the outfield. The Indians have tons of young talent that will be competing for spots in 2010 and Brown could be one of them. Another intriguing Triple-A All-Star is former Braves top prospect Andy Marte. Marte hit .327 with 18 homeruns and 66 RBIs as a teammate of Brown’s in Columbus. Marte received a call up to Cleveland in September to play first base and had 6 RBIs in his last ten games.

Kevin Russo fielding in Trenton

Kevin Russo made the overall Triple-A All-Star team along with being named the International League’s Rookie of the Year. Russo, who was just added to the Yankees 40-man roster, played all over the field in 2009 for the Scranton Yankees. Primarily a second baseman, Russo hit .326 with 5 homeruns and 31 RBIs out of the leadoff spot (where he flourished). Russo could compete for the utility infielder spot in spring training with the Yankees. The Milwaukee Brewers traded away JJ Hardy to the Minnesota Twins to open the doors for rookie shortstop Alcides Escobar. Escobar, with Nashville, hit .298 with 4 homeruns and 34 RBIs. As a September call up, Escobar showed Brewers fans what to look forward to in 2010 and beyond, he hit .304, though he did make 6 errors in just 37 games. Escobar is flashy but also is athletic and has a strong arm at shortstop.

Lenny DiNardo

Another interesting Triple-A All-Star is Lenny DiNardo. Placed in the same boat as Shelley Duncan, he elected free agency rather than being optioned to Triple-A Omaha, which is where he spent 2009. In 2009 with the Omaha Royals, DiNardo was 10-5 with a 3.32 ERA in 29 games with 127 strikeouts to just 38 walks. DiNardo should find a deal with one of the clubs this offseason with a chance to win a big league job in spring training. Mitch Jones, the veteran minor leaguer and the designated hitter in Albuquerque, hit .297 with 35 homeruns and 103 RBIs. Jones made a brief Major League Baseball appearance this year with the LA Dodgers, nine years after originally signing. John Bowker was an outfield All-Star for Fresno of the SF Giants. Bowker hit .342 with 21 homeruns and 83 RBIs. He also led the minor leagues in on-base percentage (.451). Bowker is expected to contend for an outfield job in spring training.

Tags:

Alcides Escobar, Andy Marte, Jordan Brown, Kevin Russo, Lenny DiNardo, Randy Ruiz, Shelley Duncan, Triple-A

Omar Vizquel

The offseason is in full swing and there has been very little action regarding free agent signings or trades. The Chicago White Sox have made relatively small moves, adding veterans Omar Vizquel and Andruw Jones, and re-signing Mark Kotsay, to help solidify their bench. Vizquel, who spent the 2009 season with the Texas Rangers mentoring rookie Elvis Andrus, is set to mentor the “Cuban Missile” Alexei Ramirez, Gordon Beckham, and newly acquired Mark Teahen. “I guarantee he will help those two kids in the middle of the infield to be better,” manager Ozzie Guillen said. “His presence with the team is very important. He’s a guy who knows how to play the game. Jones, who was once thought to be the man to break Hank Aaron’s HR record, has seen his star dwindle due to injuries and a lack of offensive production since his later years in Atlanta. Jones has been relegated to bench duty and has to learn to contribute from the bench once or twice a week and in the clubhouse. “This is an opportunity to add a power bat to the roster while improving our outfield depth,” said White Sox general manager Ken Williams of the Jones signing. Jones averaged a homerun every 16.5 at-bats and a walk every 7.36 plate appearances.

The left-handed-hitting first baseman/outfielder Kotsay batted .292 with three home runs and 18 RBIs in 113 at-bats with the White Sox, and was mentioned by manager Ozzie Guillen as a key player to have back for ‘10. Kotsay signed a one-year deal and he was well-liked within the White Sox clubhouse. Williams has mentioned previously how he learned early on the benefit of a good fit among bench players, as opposed to loading up the reserves with the absolute best players he could find.

John McDonald

The Toronto Blue Jays have also quietly made a few moves. They re-signed utility infielder John McDonald to a two-year deal. McDonald is widely considered to be one of the best defensive shortstops in baseball, and he can also man second and third base. It’s not his skills in the batter’s box that make him important to the Blue Jays. Beyond providing Toronto with a skilled defender at multiple spots around the diamond, McDonald serves as a mentor to other infielders in the Jays’ system. “He prepares as hard and as well as anybody that I’ve been around,” GM Alex Anthopoulos said. “[I think] that he’s going to have a long career in this role because of how diligently he does prepare, how much he cares, the example he sets for the younger players. That’s why, at his age, he still plays outstanding defense, and we expect him to continue to do so.” McDonald’s work ethic and attitude were keys to his quick re-signing, along with him becoming a fan favorite in last five years he has spent in Toronto.

The Blue Jays were looking to try and re-sign starting shortstop Marco Scutaro, but negotiations had stalled due to interest across the baseball market. Anthopoulos stated that a shortstop would have to be acquired through the free agent market as a short-term solution and after signing McDonald, he wanted to fill that need soon. One day later, the Blue Jays got their starting shortstop in free agent Alex Gonzalez, who looked like he might re-sign with the Boston Red Sox. Gonzalez signed a one year deal (with an option for 2011); giving the Blue Jays two defensive shortstops that could help the young pitching staff. “We felt at this time bringing Alex Gonzalez on board with a one-year deal and a club option made a lot of sense for us,” Anthopoulos said. “We certainly feel that there’s a lot of upside to this player. Look at the way he played for Boston the last six weeks and into the postseason. He played very good defense. We had a lot of our scouts see him. Offensively, he swung the bat very well.”

The Philadelphia Phillies have also found their utility fielder replacement for Eric Bruntlett. Juan Castro agreed to a one-year deal, as he hit .277 with one home run and nine RBIs in 112 at-bats last season with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

With the winter meetings set to begin December 7^th in Indianapolis, be assured that there will be a flurry of moves between now and then and during that week.

Tags:

Alex Gonzalez, Andruw Jones, Chicago White Sox, John McDonald, Mark Kotsay, Omar Vizquel, Toronto Blue Jays