While the Winter Meetings are in full swing, we've got some important business to take care of here at TBLA because here is the next part of my Dodger prospect countdown. Again another seemingly boring group, but you never know what can happen in the future. In addition, there are a few players with interesting backgrounds. Remember that the player’s ages are as of opening day 2011. 180. Leandro De Dios, RHP (40.2 IP in DSL in 2010) Signed by Dodgers in 2010 5’11”, 184 lbs, 21.75 years old 2-3, 2.66 ERA, 1.45 WHIP, 3.64 FIP, 7.97 K/9 Pre 2010 Rank: N/A; Pre 2009 Rank: N/A Leandro De Dios was born in the Dominican Republic, and signed with the Dodgers prior to the 2010 season. I’m not sure why he waited to sign until he turned 20 years old, but it definitely hurt him in prospect status. His 5’11” height also isn’t helping him in terms of his ranking. When you look past his age and height, however, De Dios actually had a very solid season for the Dominican Dodgers. He was especially effective in the first half of the season, when his 1.71 ERA earned him a spot on the DSL Mid-Season All Star Team. While he struggled a bit in the final month, opposing batters ended up hitting just .212 against him for the year. While the Dodgers will probably keep him around for another year, his great stats do not offset his age and stature enough for me to believe that he’ll ever make it to a US based league. 179. Webster Rivas, 1B/C (59 games in DSL in 2010) Signed by Dodgers in 2010 6’0”, 195 lbs, 20.5 years old, bats right handed .246 average, .662 OPS, 1 HR, 34 RBI’s, 3 SB’s Pre 2010 Rank: N/A; Pre 2009 Rank: N/A Webster Rivas, a Dominican native, was signed in 2010 and played his 1st professional season as a 19 year old. While he’s listed as a catcher and did make a few starts behind the plate, Webster was actually the Dominican Dodgers’ primary 1st baseman in 2010. Despite a .246 average for the season, I would say that he had a relatively strong offensive year given that the DSL is a pitcher friendly league. Rivas lead the Dodgers in both doubles and RBI’s, and was extremely tough to strikeout (just 12 K’s in 239 plate appearances). Nevertheless, he isn’t much of a prospect and will most likely repeat in the DSL in 2011.
178. Florencio Bustillos, RHP (Did not play in 2010)
Signed by Dodgers in 2009
6’0”, 209 lbs, 21.75 years old
No stats in 2010
Pre 2010 Rank: 121; Pre 2009 Rank: N/A
Florencio Bustillos didn’t play at all for the Dodgers in 2010, however per the Dodgers he is still in the organization as of the end of this past season. The Mexican born pitcher spent several seasons in the Mexican League before signing with the Dodgers, and played in the Dominican Summer League in 2009. As mentioned, he didn’t play in 2010 for an unknown reason, but is currently playing in the Mexican Winter League so he is healthy. Unfortunately, his current stats in Mexico are pretty ugly, as he has a 12.00 ERA in 5 appearances. I gave Bustillos a relatively favorable ranking after the 2009 season because he had an outstanding strikeout to walk ratio, however since the 21 years old has yet to play in a leaguer higher than the DSL, I think it’s safe to say that Bustillos won’t even made an impact with the Dodgers.
177. Adam Dedeaux, LHP (10.2 IP in Arizona League in 2010)
Signed 7/1/10 as Non Drafted Free Agent
6’0”, 200 lbs, 24.75 years old
0-0, 4.22 ERA, 1.69 WHIP, 1.98 FIP, 14.3 K/9
Pre 2010 Rank: N/A; Pre 2009 Rank: N/A
The Dodgers signed Adam Dedeaux as a non drafted free agent out of the University of Southern California. Given that Dedeaux was used sparingly at USC and had a college career ERA above 6, it is possible that Dodgers signed Adam as a favor to his grandfather. You see, Dedeaux's grandfather and long-time USC baseball coach Rod Dedeaux was great friends with Tommy Lasorda before Rod passed away in 2006, so you can see the connection. Whether or not he was signed as a favor doesn’t change the fact that Adam is extremely old to be starting his professional career. In addition, the 24 year old pitched just 10.2 innings in the Arizona Rookie League. The only good news is that Dedeaux had solid peripherals in his limited appearances, and would have posted a much better ERA for the season had he not allowed 4 earned runs in his final appearance of 2010. Since he didn’t get much of a chance to pitch in 2010, I’m sure the Dodgers will give the lefty another look in 2011. His most likely destination next season would be with the Great Lakes Loons.
176. Delvis Morales, SS (65 games in DSL in 2010)
Signed by Dodgers in 2010
6’1”, 146 lbs, 20.5 years old, switch hitter
.220 average, .583 OPS, 0 HR’s, 15 RBI’s, 18 SB’s
Pre 2010 Rank: 196; Pre 2009 Rank: 175
Delvis Morales got a little bit of a late start on his baseball career as he didn’t play his first professional game until he was 19 and a half years old. After seeing his stats in 2010, he is slightly intriguing because he is a switch hitting shortstop with good speed and a great eye (37 walks against 33 strikeouts), but the positives end there. He only hit .220 for the year and made 17 errors in the field. He also weighs less than Dee Gordon, which I thought was impossible. I think Morales will return to the DSL for 2011, but due to his age he doesn’t have any real value at this point.
175. Faustino Oguisten, SS/2B/3B (31 games in DSL in 2010)
Signed by Dodgers in 2009
6’2”, 165 lbs, 20 years old, bats right handed
.253 average, .693 OPS, 0 HR’s, 7 RBI’s, 5 SB’s
Pre 2010 Rank: 163; Pre 2009 Rank: N/A
After a terrible offensive season in 2009, in which he did not have an extra base hit in 79 at bats, Faustino Oguisten showed a little bit of improvement this past season. Every one of his offensive stats progressed in 2010, and he even managed to record 6 doubles. Even still, I was definitely hoping for a lot more out of Oguisten as I thought that he’d be able to add some muscle to his wiry frame. Really the only thing he has going for him now is the fact that he can play all over the infield, although his defense at shortstop has been pretty shaky over the past 2 seasons. Because he is still relatively young (he turns 20 this coming January) and has a solid frame, the Dodgers will probably keep the Dominican native around for at least one more season to see if he shows any more development as he matures.
174. Keyter Collado, C (1 game in AAA, 9 games in AA in 2010)
Signed by Dodgers 5/27/04
5’9”, 182 lbs, 24.75 years old, bats right handed
.314 average, .676 OPS, 0 HR’s, 2 RBI’s, 2 SB’s
Pre 2010 Rank: 190; Pre 2009 Rank: 154
I really don’t know what to make of Keyter Collado’s minor league career thus far. From 2004 through 2009, Collado was stuck playing in various rookie ball leagues, putting up average stats and showing absolutely no power. Then, all of sudden in 2010, the Dodgers started Collado off in AAA for one game, then dropped him back to AA for the rest of the season. Granted he only played in 10 total games for 2010, but still, that is a little strange. In addition, speaking of limited playing time, Collado has only played in 42 games combined over the past 3 seasons. I know that during 2010 he went on and came off the DL a few times, but it was a little suspicious because he always came off the DL right when the team was short a catcher, and he had to fill in. It’s almost like he is being used as a player/coach and maybe even as a translator, although he’s a little young to be a mentor in the upper minor leagues. Whatever Collado is doing, the Dodgers must be pleased because he was re-signed after the season as a minor league free agent.
173. Joseph Becker, 2B/SS (16 games LoA, 6 games Arizona League in 2010)
Signed by Dodgers 1/11/07
5’11, 175 lbs, 25.25 years old, bats right handed
.314 average, .772 OPS, 0 HR’s, 7 RBI’s, 1 SB
Pre 2010 Rank: 169; Pre 2009 Rank: 190
Becker was originally signed by the Dodgers as a non drafted free agent in 2007 out of Antelope Valley College, where he hit .350 for his career. Since signing, Becker has played at every Dodger minor league level except for the Dominican Summer League. That includes AAA, which is where he spent 2 games in his very first professional season. In 2010, however, Becker only played 20 total games due to an arm injury. After a short rehab assignment in Arizona in August, he spent the final month of the season with the Great Lakes Loons where he hit .255 in 16 games. Given his well-travel past, it is anyone’s guess as to where he will spend the 2011 season. Where ever he ends up, however, it’s going to be tough for this 25 year old light hitting middle infielder to make any impact with the Dodgers in the future.
172. Ivan Eugenia, RHP (1 IP in DSL in 2010)
Signed by Dodgers in 2009
6’1”, 185 lbs, 19.5 years old
0-0, 9.00 ERA, 3.00 WHIP, 9.20 FIP, 0.00 K/9
Pre 2010 Rank: 153; Pre 2009 Rank: N/A
I have no idea what happened to Ivan Eugenia in 2010. After pitching 14 innings as an 18 year old in 2009, Eugenia only threw 1 inning this past season. That one inning occurred right in the middle of the season, so I’m guessing he was injured to start the season, and then re-aggravated the injury in his one appearance. Since you can’t really look at his limited stats this year, we can go back to his 2009 season where he had a 5.79 ERA to go along with a 9.64 K/9. Still one of the younger pitchers in the organization, I’m hoping that Ivan will reemerge in 2011 and get in a full season of work.
171. Stetson Banks, CF (20 games in LoA in 2010)
Drafted by Dodgers 2009, 22nd round
6’0”, 185 lbs, 23 years old, bats right handed
.283 average, .646 OPS, 0 HR’s, 3 RBI’s, 0 SB’s
Pre 2010 Rank: 143; Pre 2009 Rank: N/A
Stetson Banks was drafted out of BYU in the 22nd round of the 2009 draft. He only played two years in college, however, because he served his Mormon mission in 2007 and 2008. During his 2009 college season, Banks hit .348 and stole 23 bases in 29 attempts. He is a great athlete, which he demonstrated in high school by being named second team all-state in football as a wide receiver. Furthermore, his uncle Brian Banks made it to the major leagues earlier in the decade, so he does have some decent bloodlines. Since turning pro, however, Banks hasn’t done much at all. After hitting .231 in the Arizona Rookie League in 2009, Banks was limited to just 20 games in 2010. He spent his abbreviated season with the Loons, and recorded just two extra base hits. In addition, with zero stolen bases in 2010, Banks seemed to have lost his speed, which had previously been his biggest asset. He is still relatively young at 23 and plays a solid center field, but unfortunately I don’t think Stetson will ever be a legitimate prospect.