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Nomarfan5 said 04/08, 09:29 AM
I'll say the NL ROY will come from the Reds.

Either

1. Johnny Cueto
2. Jay Bruce
3. Joey Votto
4. Homer Bailey


1. Johhny Cueto- Cueto, largely considered the #1 pitching prospect this year, started the year off with a bang, striking out 10, walking 0, and getting the win in 7 Innings. He had a perfect game through 5 innings, and hsi only run allowed was a HR to fellow ROY candidate Justin Upton. He used his 96 MPH fastball and electrifying breaking stuff. This guy is filthy, and pitching on an improving Reds team should help.

2. Jay Bruce- Think Evan Longoria is good? Well, Jay Bruce is the only prospect rated ahead of Longoria by Baseball Prospectus. He's starting the year in the minors like Longoria, but that shouldn't stop him from producing. He's been a minor league all star in 2006 and 2007, and was named Minor League player of the year in 2007.

3. Joey Votto- Votto has the benefit of already having the starting job at 1st. He is rated as having the best power and strike zone discipline out of all Reds minor league prospects.

4. Homer Bailey- Bailey is considered the #2 prospect in the Reds organization, and a top 5 pitching prospect. More to come.......

Nomarfan5 said 04/10, 09:20 AM
Ok, guess I'll just disprove your picks then.

1st Geovany Soto- I'll bring up the history argument here. It has been 15 years since the last cacher won a ROY, with Mike Piazza taking home the prize in 1993. Cathcer is also one of the hardest posions historically to win the ROY, only behind Closers (relatively new position) and 2nd base. This year should be no exception, especially since Soto is A) not as polished offensively as many other rookies, and B) there is another top catching rookie in J.R. Towles, who is considered a better hitter and higher rated prospect overall.

2nd Kosuke Fukudome- Kosuke is certainly more likely to win the NL ROY than Soto, as Japanese imports have great success with this award, winning 3 awards, the last NL one being in 1995 with Hideo Nomo. However, only one hitter (Ichiro) has won, and Ichiro is certainly a better player than Fukudome. Kosuke batted .305 with 192 HR's and 71 Steals in 9 years in Japan. Good stats, but not superb, and you can surely expect his average to drop against superior pitching in the MLB. Even Ichiro's career average went down .22 in the switch, from .355 to .333. And Ichiro had the same HR's as KF, 192 in 1 more year

Nomarfan5 said 04/11, 11:36 PM
well, not much left to argue...