Today, we'll talk a little bit about three "older" prospects that we've been waiting on or that are just older than the other kids we're excited about.
*Eric Duncan 22, Eric will just be 23 next season though it feels like we've been waiting forever for him to realize his vast offensive potential. At this point, it's probably wise to consider how vast that potential really is, since between his back and his numbers, we're not seeing a ton of "trace evidence" to suggest he's the player we thought we got in 2003. On the other hand, his homers go farther than anyone else's we have at the upper levels, and though that could indicate a complicated all or nothing swing, that's not what we see in the games. When you watch his ab's, he really has a professional approach most of the time, and even his singles tend to be hit harder than those of the other prospects at AAA or AA. His back has slowed his progress, but this year he was healthy and still did't break out. I think the real problem here, is that he was rushed, and never saw enough breaking balls at the lower level to become proficient at repelling them. So he has to try to pick that up at higher levels. I still think there is some threshold of pitches that he will cross and show us he can be a big league power hitter. But the clock is ticking.
*Juan Miranda 25?, a 1b/DH Juan smote high A after missing 2.5 seasons for political reasons, and was promoted to AA where he maintained a strong OPS till he ran out of gas after his return from a minor injury. All told it was a successful comeback for the not so young man from Cuba and he has a very advanced plate approach that features both patience and pop. He should get a long look in ST, though he'll probably start in AAA. He's a lefty who might make serious hay at the stadium as early as some time next season. He could be a sleeper who emerges to help us down the stretch.
*Marcos Vechionacci 20, a very talented defensive 3B, Marcos is still really young. He finished this season as the starting 3B at AA at age 20. He'll be 21 at the start of next season, and I believe he will really break out. This is a kid who was over here at 17 and really impressed, only to have his body keep growing and filling out. I think his talent is just catching up with his new dimensions and he looks and sometimes hits like he's got good pop. The Yanks think he will eventually be a 25 hr guy, and I see no reason to dispute that, even though I find the idea of a 20, 25, or 30 hr potential guy to be somewhat meaningless these days. What era are those #'s drawn from. Do they mean 25 1977 homers or 25 2007 homers? Hard to say, but these have often turned out to be underprojections. I'd rather think of these kids has either good pop, medium pop or low pop. Nacci's body looks like he's gonna have good pop. We'll see. If we give ARod a long extension, like it seems we will, Nacci will probably become a trade chip next season. More later.
Boris Karloff (1887-1969) the KING of Horror Stars, Boris created an international sensation when he first donned the monster make-up in 1931. He'd play the character three times, giving us a portrait of depravity touched with identifiable humanity, that has been impossible to forget. Boris didn't stop there, though, one year after playing Frankenstein's Monster, he created the character of Imhotep - The Mummy! So, two of the major icons of the genre were straight Karloff. In fact, he was billed as just "Karloff" in Bride of Frankenstein after having been listed as "?" in the original. He was huge! When allowed to speak, it turned out his voice was even creepy! He later went on to make a series of horror thrillers with Lugosi, notably, The Black Cat and the Body Snatchers, and played a series of mad scientists in some of the later Universal and independant horror flicks. In the `60's he was a national treasure and appeared in some AIP flicks, was the voice of the Grinch and the Monster (in Mad, Mad Monster Party) and finally appeared in a cool Peter Bogdonavich thriller called "Targets" which you should try to see. Anyway, he was the best, and he will always be missed. Especially today. Happy Haunting!
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