Baseball in Fort Wayne

John Conniff at MadFriars.com recently posted a interview with Kevin Goldstein, who previously wrote for Baseball America and was a featured commentator on MLB.com’s first extended coverage of the 2007 amateur draft.

He talks about many former Fort Wayne Wizards:

• On Chase Headley: There are people out there that will tell you they always thought Headley would start to hit for power but I don’t think anyone thought he would put together the season that he did.
• On Matt Antonelli: “I think he can play second. I don’t think he’s going to be a gold glover, but with his offensive profile an average second baseman is all he needs to be. As for centerfield – his speed will play . . . but I think he will be the everyday second baseman in Portland this year. “
• On Cedric Hunter: “I thought he was disappointing . . . I went to a few games with scouts in the Midwest League this year, and I just don’t know how much there is there. I just didn’t see a ton of upside, he’s not really that big, and not a lot of power and his swing are designed for straight contact. He does have some ability but is very much a tweener, not a power hitter but not a slap hitter either. He’s kind of fringy in center field. He does a lot of things pretty well, there is some gap power, decent approach, decent runner – I just don’t know what he does that blows anyone away. He doesn’t have any single tool that “wows” you.”
• On Chad Huffman:“[H]e can hit and has some power, but I think he has some positional problems. If he’s limited to left field he’s going to have to have an elite level bat, and I’m not sure that he has that. He could become a solid player; I’m just not sure he’s going to be a star.”
• On Wade LeBlanc: “He’s a solid back of the rotation starter, left-hander with some size, very good changeup, fastball in the upper-80s with command. His command is much better than someone like Brad Baker, who was a prospect in the Padres organization a few years ago, but he can’t be the real deal when he throws in the upper-80s . . . I think profiles as a #4 starter.”
• On Kyle Blanks: “. . . there are really an incredible amount of varied opinions on him, so it’s difficult to get a great read on him. He’s a big guy with monster power potential and a good hitter. A decent first baseman and athlete for his size. I know guys who think he’s going to become a good first baseman in the big leagues and others who see him as a “4A” player.”

Read the full interview here.

[tags]Chase Headley, Matt Antonelli, Cedric Hunter, Chad Huffman, Wade LeBlanc, Kyle Blanks[/tags]

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