The better Venezuelan prospects are in the National League, so we will start with an American League breakout. 1. Elvus Andrus SS (Rangers) - The Rangers would like to give him the shortstop job. This year they have told Mike Young to move to third. Andrus is ready. If the spring shows that this move was a bit premature and Andrus does not start at short he will be up by the middle of the year with Omar Vizquel warming the postion for him. The Rangers learned a bit from the Rays handling of Longoria. Elvis still makes too many errors so a year in AAA to get more seasoning seems prudent, but the Rangers feel he is ready and will tolerate the errors, feeling the errors will be reduced as he gets more exposure in the major leagues. He will not hit for a lot of power, but should hit for a high enough average that his bat will not hurt the Rangers offense. 2. Jesus Montero C (Yankees) - The Yankees need someone to replace Jorge Posada behind the plate. Many don't believe that Montero has the defensive skills to be that player. He does have a good stick but his height (6′4〃) leads to a lot of inflexibility behind the plate. He also has a below average arm that was only successful for nabbing 25% of the runners who tried to steal against him. He'll start 2009 at high A so he is still a loud yell from reaching the Yankees. Jesus will need at least two years of seasoning before he can even think of replacing Posada. 3. Wilson Ramos C (Twins) - Ramos may not have the stick of Montero, but he has better defensive skills. Wilson has a strong arm and threw out 43% of those runners who tried to steal aganst him. He doesn't have a lot of patience to take pitches, so is susceptible to swinging at a pitcher's pitch. He is also prone to slow starts. With Joe Mauer behind the plate, it will take a Herculian effort to unseat the popular Twin. His goal should be to be prepared to catch for another organzation. 4. Max Ramirez C (Rangers) - A nice run on catchers for Venezuela, though the odds of Ramirez settling at catching is slim. His defense is non-existent, but he has the bat to stick at another position if he should choose to do so. He hit .354 in 243 AA at bats with 17 homeruns, which is the kind of production most teams look at first base. At 25 in October, Max is ready to contribut now. 5. Martin Perez LHP (Rangers) - He's not a big guy, but he can still bring it across the plate at 90-94. He needs to develop a third pitch to survive as a starter, with the curveball his only other passable second pitch. Because of his small size many will always question his durability to last long innings. In his debut he had 15 starts at Rookie ball and finished with an ERA of 3.65. Opponents hit him at a .274 clip, so his pitches were no mystery. 6. Jose Mijares LHP (Twins) - The biggest impediment to the success of Mijares is Mijares himself. He needs to show a better committment to getting himself in shape and earning himself a spot in the Twins bullpen. At 25 in October his time is now. His fastball pushes the high 90's but rests more comfortably in the low 90s. He complements the fastball with a mixture of slider and curveball. Joe Nathan will be a free agent in 2011 and that should get Mijares groomed to be the closer for the Twins. He did make 10 appearances for the Twins in 09 and finished with a 0.87 ERA. 7. Henry Rodriguez RHP (Athletics) - Henry has been pitching for four years, so you would think he would be older than his 22 years. He throws in the triple digits, but the harder he throws the less command he has. When in the bullpen his fastball will settle consistently in the high 90s, but as a starter it will sit in the mid-90s. He lacks an off speed pitch, something he will need to show if he wants to survive in the starting rotation. His hard stuff can survive in the pen. Last year was an off year, with the big struggle at Midland (7.46 ERA). 8. Mario Martinez 3B (Mariners) - Initially signed as a shortstop he has moved to third base. He should develop decent power and with his defensive skills at third, any kind of offense will be a huge contribution. He needs to develop some power if he wishes to profile best as a corner infielder, 9. Luis Valbuena 2B (Indians) - He was part of the haul that allowed the Indians to trade Franklyn Gutierrez. The Indians have had a couple bright prospects man the position over the last couple years, with Josh Barfield and Asdrubal Cabrera both struggling with the bat to be annointed the second basemen of the future. Valbuena is a line drive hitter that will pepper the gap with doubles. Not a lot of balls will leave the park. He's not a standout defensive player, but he has shown steady improvement over the years that a couple more years at this position will not hurt. 10. Anthony Ortega RHP (Angels) - Ortega had 14 victories in 2008, which almost matched the 18 wins he accumulated his first four years. He throws in the low 90s, but the pitch is made that much more effective because of a solid changeup. He throws a curveball as his third pitch. He needs to rely on his command to be effective because he has no one overpowering pitch that will get the best hitters out. Ortega could compete for the final spot in the Angels rotation. http://myworldofbaseball.com/wordpress/?p=1080 --

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