Rankings

Daisuke Matsuzaka -- Instant No. 2, he's the least risky pitching "prospect" in the game

When we're not petitioning Major League Baseball as to why professional Japanese baseball players should not be considered rookies, we keep busy trying to pin down fresh MLB faces who will be impact players.

Delmon Young, 21, grew up idolizing Vladimir Guerrero, a player who he could someday match talent-wise – he already has the arm.

As Denny Foster suggested in his Project Prospect feature on Alex Gordon comparisons, the Royals have a third base prospect who could end up hitting like Mark Teixeira in the big leagues.

MLB's next five-tool stud is in line for a big league job.

It took Troy Tulowitzki a mere 126 games to show the Colorado Rockies’ brass that he was ready to become the teams’ starting shortstop.

A combination of David Eckstein and Mark Loretta, the former Arizona State star brings elite discipline (48 BB/27 K; 93.62% contact ratio) to the plate that figures to improve with each major league at-bat, and there should be plenty of those to come as Pedroia, 23, will likely start at second in Boston over Alex Cora.

Somewhat quietly, Loney, 22, turned in one of more the stellar seasons of any advanced prospect in 2006, earning a promotion to the big leagues at the end of July.

With his lofty 2005 strikeout totals (76 in 321 at-bats), lingering wrist issues, and overall disappointing season, critics found many reasons to temper their expectations for Iannetta, 23, heading into 2006.

A Red Sox fan growing up, Hughes already has an arsenal of pitches that could make him a solid major league starter.

Young, 21, grew up idolizing Vladimir Guerrero, a player who he could someday match talent-wise – he already has the arm.

As Denny Foster suggested in his Project Prospect feature on Alex Gordon comparisons, the Royals have a third base prospect who could end up hitting like Mark Teixeira in the big leagues.

The Rockies’ 2005 first round draft pick (7^th overall) was so impressive in his first full professional season that Colorado made him its everyday shortstop for the final month of the season.

The king of contact, Pedroia, 23, has an unorthodox batting stance (he’ll get on his heels sometimes) but he vaulted through the minors with it, hitting .308 in 1,040 minor league at-bats.

Born in Toronto, Votto, 23, was one of only five 20/20 men in the minor leagues in 2006.

One of the top collegiate catching prospects in recent history, Clement, 23, headlines this list – despite his injury-filled (elbow and knee) professional debut – because he has potential to be a perennial All-Star.

Best Prospects by Division

This article is the final instalment of a six part series on the top three prospects in every Major League Baseball organization.

This article is Part five of a six part series on the top three prospects in every Major League Baseball organization.

This article is Part four of a six part series on the top three prospects in every Major League Baseball organization.

This article is Part three of a six part series on the top three prospects in every Major League Baseball organization.

This article is Part two of a six part series on the top three prospects in every Major League Baseball organization.

One thing we’ve discovered in our prospect ranking ventures is that there just aren’t enough rankings to appease our large appetites during the season.