Previously…

#91-100
#81-90
#71-80

#61-70
#51-60
#41-50
#31-40

J.D. Drew and Ila Borders were playing in the Northern League. Kevin Mench led the NCAA in home runs, while Brian Roberts led in stolen bases. You guessed it, we’re back in 1998 for our latest look at baseball’s best prospects from that year. Sit back, relax, and enjoy…

Previously…

#91-100
#81-90
#71-80

#61-70
#51-60
#41-50

I think 1998 is right around when I first started to realize how difficult it is to develop a big-league catcher. Five backstops made Baseball America’s Top 100 prospects that year, and none of ‘em did much. Still, this latest batch includes a former home-run champion and a Cy Young Award winner…

Previously…

#91-100
#81-90
#71-80
#61-70
#51-60

California bans smoking in bars and restaurants, 19 countries in Europe forbid human cloning, the Unabomber enters a guilty plea — and that’s just in January! You guessed it, we’re looking back at 1998 again. In this installment, we enter the top half of Baseball America’s Top 100 prospects. Sit back, relax, and try not to think about George Michael getting arrested in a park restroom…

Previously…

#91-100
#81-90
#71-80
#61-70

America was listening to Fuel, Everclear, Creed (noooooo!!!!), Barenaked Ladies, and the dulcet tones of Rammstein. Lethal Weapon 4 was playing in theaters, because if ever a movie franchise screamed out for a fourth movie, it was Lethal Weapon. Or maybe Police Academy.
Meanwhile, baseball’s best and brightest young prospects were working their way up the ranks. Our latest installment includes a couple of All-Star outfielders as well as the usual assortment of characters who saw their dreams dashed somewhere along the way…

For the Padres fans in the house, I’ve posted a Q&A with the folks at MadFriars.com over at Ducksnorts (Part 1, Part 2). Actually, even if you’re not a Padres fan, there’s some good stuff here in terms of strategies for evaluating prospects and what-not.
Por ejemplo:
There are a lot of factors that go into comparing, analyzing and ranking players. It is a combination of projection and stats — but one thing John and I have learned through the years is nothing beats watching a player live. By going to the field four hours prior to the game, we can see …read more

What’s in a name? According to the Baseball Crank, a lot:
Having a great baseball name is important. For example, lots of people remember Drungo La Rue Hazewood (who was 0-for-5 in the major leagues) and Van Lingle Mungo, but almost nobody has heard of Bobby Wallace even though he played 25 seasons in the majors and is in the Hall of Fame. Maybe he shoulda gone by his given name of “Rhoderick.”
I always want to pronounce that name “Wodewick,” by the way. Monty Python has corrupted me.
You should have seen me trying to watch Camelot with a straight face in …read more

Previously…

#91-100
#81-90
#71-80

Where were we? Ah yes, Terry Kennedy was being named Minor League Manager of the Year; Jay Gibbons was busy winning the Pioneer League MVP; and 41-year-old Dave Stieb, after a 5-year layoff, was making a comeback and earning “best control” honors in Baseball America’s “best tools” survey.
It must be 1998, the year that neither of the two first baseman playing for the Savannah Sand Gnats ranked among baseball’s top 100 prospects. Perhaps you have heard of Travis Hafner and Carlos Pena?
Meanwhile, back at the list…

Enrique Wilson, 2B, Cleveland Indians. Originally signed by the Minnesota Twins in 1992, Wilson came …read more

I don’t know why I’ve become so fascinated with prospects from years gone by, but I have. My latest article at Hardball Times looks back at the Pacific Coast League circa 1988: names like Craig Biggio, Terry Francona, Edgar Martinez. Good times…

Previously…

#91-100
#81-90

Welcome back to 1998. Dante Bichette led MLB with 219 hits, Jose Offerman led with 13 triples, and Mike Piazza signed a record-setting 7-year/$91 million deal with the Mets. Our latest re-examination of Baseball America’s top 100 prospects from that year shows yet again how few of the best minor leaguers convert their potential into great big-league careers.
There’s a reason for that, of course: baseball is a lot harder than it looks. So is predicting which guys will make it and which ones won’t. To the list:

Mike Lowell, 3B, New York Yankees. Selected in the 20th round of the 1995 …read more

First off, I apologize for the recent downtime we had around here. There aren’t many things worse in life than suffering through a New York/New England Super Bowl, but a withdrawal of baseball blogginess might be one of them.
Anyway, thanks to our crack staff, we should be good to go, which means… more stuff!
Okay, that was lame. It’s Friday and I’m on my first cup coffee. So, what’s going on? Glad you asked:

In case you missed it, I’ve kicked off a look back at the top prospects of 1998; the first installment covers #91-100 (and yes, Eric, that teaser at …read more