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July 9, 2008

Future Shock

NL Central Notebook

by Kevin Goldstein

Chicago Cubs

Asian Influences: Always one of the biggest players in the Korean talent market, the Cubs already made a big splash this summer by paying a bonus of nearly seven-figures for toolsy shortstop Hak-Ju Lee. While Lee has yet to make his pro debut, last year’s big sign out of Korea has made an impression on scouts with his brief showing at Low-A Peoria, before being sidetracked by some minor shoulder issues. Signed for more than half a million last summer, 19-year-old lefty Dae-Eun Rhee has a 1.80 ERA in 10 starts for Peoria, while allowing just 28 hits in 40 innings and striking out 33. In addition, he has a groundball ratio of nearly two to one, and has yet to allow a home run. "His stuff is very real," said one pro scout who recently saw Rhee in action. "His fastball was 89-91 mph with good life, good sink, and he works down in the zone. His slider is OK, but his changeup is another well above-average pitch that gets a lot of groundballs." The scout went on to further explain that Rhee has plenty of projection as well. "He has that body you look for when you are looking for guys to develop more velocity. It’s a big frame and a narrow top."

Cincinnati Reds

Reverse Groundhog Day: 2007 first-round pick Devin Meseraco is hardly lighting up the stat sheet in his first full season, batting just .258/.313/.362 at Low-A Dayton. Of greater concern is that the scouts who have seen him this year see a far different player than last year’s amateur star in Pennsylvania. "It’s just remarkable how different he looks since last year as an amateur," said one scout. "He’s got a soft middle and this puffy, stiff lower half and that’s pretty worrisome for me—he’s listed at 200 pounds, and I would say he’s a little more than that." The extra weight has also led to some problems at the plate. "He had some of the best bat speed in the country last year and it’s just gone now—it’s slider bat speed," continued the scout. "I did see some skills—a good pop time to second, some decent opposite fields power and quiet hands—but I just don’t see an everyday major league catcher in that body. It’s just not at all what I expected to see."

Houston Astros