Law released his top 100 prospect list today. Lots of love for Indians prospects. Also, a shocker at the top (Heyward over Strasburg).
Carlos Santana 3rd overall
Lonnie Chisenhall 26th
Hector Rondon 51st
Michael Brantley 71st
Nick Hagadone 100th
Santana could be the Victor Martinez who can actually catch -- a switch-hitter with legitimate plate discipline and power with good receiving skills and an above-average arm... At the plate, Santana does start his hands a little deep, but he uses that to create great leverage in his swing as he explodes from his loaded position to the ball, with both hard contact and good loft when he squares a pitch up -- something he does quite often with an approach one Cleveland executive called "selective-aggressive," meaning Santana works the count but is more than happy to jump on a pitch he can hit early in an at-bat. He's a good athlete and runs well for a backstop. Santana has good hands behind the plate and arm strength, and he has shown progress in the one deficiency in his catching, his ability to handle a staff and work with pitchers.
Chisenhall has one of the best swings in the minors, a classic left-hander's swing with good hip rotation and raw power to right and right-center, which was already on display in the 22 home runs he hit between high-A and Double-A in 2009. He played the entire year at the age of 20 and showed the ability to make contact and control the bat in and around the zone, while his walk rate, through not great, was adequate and also reflected the ease with which he makes contact. A miscast shortstop in college, Chisenhall has settled in at third base and made his body leaner, giving him a good chance to stay at the position and even end up a little above-average there.
Rondon arrived on the scene at the 2008 Futures Game and followed up that strong season with an even better one despite two promotions that brought him to the cusp of the big leagues. He won't turn 22 for another month, but he has already shown an unusual ability (for someone so young) to pitch with his fastball, commanding it in and around the zone; it's 91-94 mph with great life. His best off-speed pitch is his changeup, above-average at times at 83-84 with good action and arm speed. He's still working on his slider, which remains inconsistent and often has an early break. His control is superb -- he's walked 101 in 480 pro innings, and just 29 in a full minor league season in 2009. He's shown that even on nights when he doesn't have the consistent slider or his best changeup, he can pitch with his fastball. Pitchers without great breaking balls often have lower ceilings as starters, but Rondon's ability to throw strikes, soak up innings and command the fastball give him a chance to exceed that limitation.
Brantley has some of the best bat control of anyone on this list, with an improving eye at the plate and above-average speed that all plays up because of his feel for the game. He keeps his hands back incredibly well, letting the ball travel and then ripping the bat through the zone and showing the ability to shoot an outside pitch down the left field line. He can run but, more importantly, is a very high-percentage base stealer who reads pitchers well, stealing on over 81 percent of attempts in his minor league career. He's a good center fielder who could probably play center every day for a number of teams, but won't get that chance in Cleveland unless Grady Sizemore gets hurt again. Brantley's main liability is lack of power, which may limit his ability to play in an outfield corner unless he hits and reaches base at the top end of his abilities -- which he might very well do given his instincts and ability to square up so many pitches.
Hagadone had an eventful year in 2009, coming back from Tommy John surgery only to find himself traded 25 innings into his return in the Victor Martinez deal. He has an electric arm, sitting in the mid-90s and touching the upper 90s with good life, and his slider is above-average to plus. Left-handed hitters are just 12-for-71 off Hagadone in pro ball, with no extra-base hits, and he's been a strong ground-ball pitcher across his three partial seasons in the minors. He drops in the rankings from last year because the probability of him holding up as a starter seems a lot lower now than it did last year, when he was still recovering from the surgery and we could talk about best-case scenarios for the recovery. In relief, however, a lefty with two plus pitches and a usable changeup is a potentially dominant weapon in any inning because of his ability to miss left-handed bats without a major platoon split.
