We are proud to announce The San Diego Padres Top 30 Prospects for 2012. Peter Friberg has been studying minor league and amateur baseball players for nearly 10 years and has been writing about Padres minor leaguers for approximately eight. Peter has compiled his top 30 prospects in the Padres system for 2012 and this is our third installment featuring prospects 16-20

View 16-20 here

View 21-25 here

View 26-30 here

2011 San Diego Padres Top 30 Prospects

11.

Good: Cory Spangenberg is an exciting player. His speed rates as a true “70-75” (20-80 scouting scale). But he’s not a “wheels only” prospect. As you can see by his statistics, he hit well in his professional debut. He also has very good plate discipline. Additionally, and this one is easy to overlook, Cory has solid make-up. He is very mature and will make the most of his own talents. He is a gamer.

Bad: In college Cory played SS but not very well. According to his coach, he played it because he was the best athlete on the team and no one else could handle it. Most experts thought he would move to 3B but wondered if he had enough power to profile there… The Padres prefer him at 2B; which is where he played before helping his college team out at SS. Lastly, the Padres have a few guys: Freddy Guzman and Luis Durango to name two, who have hit well (in the minors), played solid defense, controlled the strike zone, and stole a ton of bases but when they got to the Majors, big league pitchers essentially knocked the bats out of their hands. The question for Cory is, does he have enough power to keep MLB pitchers honest?

Outlook: Cory needs to continue his successes at higher levels – starting in 2012 at High-A Lake Elsinore. As a plus-offensive second baseman with wheels to spare, his profile fits with what the Padres want to do to maximize Petco’s advantages. Cory will never be a 20-HR guy but he needs to hit enough doubles (and not just hustle-doubles) to show he can handle more advanced pitching at the bigs.

2011 Statistics:

SS (NWL): .384/.545/.535 in  86 AB with 10 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 31/15 BB/SO ratio, 10/4 SB/CS

A (MWL): .286/.345/.365 in 189 AB with 7 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 14/42 BB/SO ratio, 15/4 SB/CS

12.

Good: Austin Hedges is a hard player to rank… On one hand, his defensive skills are so highly regarded that barring injury he should be able to make the bigs as a backup catcher (which is a lot more valuable than most would acknowledge). If things work out with his bat, he could one of the best catchers in professional baseball since Joe Mauer burst onto the scene roughly a decade ago.

Bad: There were questions about his hit tool; whether or not he’d ever hit for a high enough average to be a starting catcher… Then, while in the midst of getting rave reviews in his professional debut, Hedges held his own in 26 professional at-bats and wow’d Padres front office personnel in the Instructional Leagues. However, even combining those two, Hedges hasn’t shown us more than a glimpse and anyone can impress in small sample sizes… Lastly, projecting catchers drafted out of high school is even harder than high school pitchers. So even with Hedges’ unique skill set there is still a lot of risk involved.

Outlook: Colorado has had several catchers rank among the top 100 prospects as defense-first catchers and St. Louis continues to win with Yadir Molina providing defensive excellence, leadership, and very little with the bat… With good health and even minimal offensive contribution, Hedges should quickly become one of the best prospects in baseball.

2011 Statistics:

(Because Hedges only accumulated 26 at-bats, I will only list his aggregate statistics. Hedges amassed these statistics 16 in Arizona Rookie-ball, and 10 with Eugene in the NWL.)

.231/.412/.385 in 26 AB with 1 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 2/3 BB/SO ratio, 0/0 SB/CS

13. Donavan Tate, CF, 6’3” 200, Born: Sept. 27, 1990

Good: Donovan Tate is one of the premiere athletes in all of minor league baseball. Donovan has above-average speed, well above average power potential, good hitting ability, superior defensive skills and an above-average throwing arm… He is a potential 5-tool CF. Additionally, Tate is not just “potential” he – in limited playing time – has actually produced. In a perfect world, he could climb this chart to number 1 on this list with season-long performances that match his potential.

Bad: I already addressed the “good” but most people when Donovan Tate comes up as a topic, will only think of injuries and a drug suspension. And those things are issues. The number one thing Tate needed to do in 2011 (and failed at) and again needs to accomplish in 2012, is stay on the field and get 500+ at-bats of development. That is the only negative with Donovan; a lack of on-the-field development.

Outlook: Since Tate only managed 19 at-bats in Low-A (before finishing the season in Short-Season Eugene) he should be back in Fort Wayne in 2012. As a 21 year-old in Low-A, Tate still will not be old for his level. So if he performs well (and I think he will) there should be no “yeah, but” qualification to discredit his performance after this season.

2011 Statistics:

A (MWL): .316/.435/.421 in 19 AB with 2 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 4/3 BB/SO ratio, 2/2 SB/CS

SS (NWL): .283/.406/.409 in 127 AB with 8 2B, 4 3B, 0 HR, 25/32 BB/SO ratio, 17/5 SB/CS

14. Blake Tekotte, CF, 5’11” 175, Born: May 24, 1987

Good: Blake has a good profile. He hits for average, he takes a walk, he can steal bases, and he even has some pop. Defensively he’s above-average. He even performs well on winning teams – he’s not merely compiling stats on irrelevant teams. In 2009, in Low-A, he was a top-of-the-lineup hitter on the 100 win, Midwest League championship TinCaps and had a similar role on last year’s Texas League championship Missions.

Bad: The one legitimate knock is that he does not have a strong arm and is probably limited to CF or LF. Beyond the legitimate concern, as someone who physically resembles a “weekend-warrior” athlete rather than a Greek god, Tekotte is frequently overlooked as a prospect.

Outlook: Just as I said last year, Tekotte reminds me of Chris Denorfia (albeit with a little more power). Like Chris, what Blake doesn’t have, is starting job in the big leagues (or a clear path towards one). 2012 will see Blake Tekotte in AAA Tucson. Ask Anthony Rizzo what hitting in Tucson can do for your offensive reputation. Tekotte will go off in Tucson. And it may get him traded… With Cameron Maybin (who is a couple months younger) in front of him and Donovan Tate behind him), Tekotte does not really a chance for a starting job with the Padres.

2011 Statistics:

AA (TL): .285/.393/.498 in 414 AB with 27 2B, 2 3B, 19 HR, 67/108 BB/SO ratio, 36/12 SB/CS

MLB:

15. Joe Ross, RHP  - 6'3" 185, Born: May 21, 1993

Good: Joe Ross’ older brother pitches for the A’s. Most experts say the younger Ross is more advanced as an amateur. He pitches in the 90’s and touches 95. In 2011’s deep draft he was picked #25 by the Padres but many said that he was probably more worthy of a 10-15 pick in a typical draft. He has a very projectable frame and his MLB bloodlines are a huge plus; he knows what it takes to reach the big leagues.

Bad: You never know what injuries may be in a professional athlete’s future (especially a pitcher). Additionally, you don’t know if a young athlete will remain driven after getting a big bonus check. Lastly, and probably most importantly, Ross hasn’t pitched professionally (other than one inning). And at this point he’s an unknown…

Outlook: Typically top-rated (1^st round) pitching prospects begin their first full season of professional baseball in full-season leagues. As such, Ross will likely make his 2012 debut in Fort Wayne.

2011 Statistics:

Rk (AZL): 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 1.0 IP, 2 H, 0/0 BB/SO ratio, 0 HR allowed