The present day is currently terribly vexing with the Detroit Tigers, so maybe it would be somewhat therapeutic to look into the future. As I mentioned a couple of days ago, John Sickels would be publishing his rankings of the Top 20 Tigers prospects this week, and that list has now been posted at Minor League Ball.
For the second consecutive year, as could be expected, Rick Porcello gets the top spot in Detroit's organization. Sickels, however, has some concerns with Porcello's strikeout per nine innings numbers. But that's an argument that can be carried well into the night among Tigers fans and minor league observers.
The number of bullpen arms Detroit has accumulated in its system is seen as a plus. (Sickels says not to pay too much attention to the letter grades he's assigned them.) Especially since a couple of those pitchers are more than likely to make a contribution this coming season.
Perhaps surprisingly, however, Sickels doesn't think very highly of Cale Iorg (mostly in regards to his bat), who Dave Dombrowski has basically tagged with future All-Star expectations. Actually, he doesn't have much regard for any Tigers position player prospects, other than perhaps Casper Wells.
Click on over and join in the discussion. Porcello always creates some interesting arguments among the Minor League Ball community. And please post some of your thoughts in the comments here, as well.
Is there anyone notable that Sickels left off his list? Do you think he was too harsh on the Tigers' position players? What do you think about Porcello being a sinkerballer vs. fireballer? Which player do you see either making the team out of Spring Training or getting a call up later in the season?