Taking a look at how our ASU Alumni performed this year in the major leagues and what the future might hold for them.

We will look at any player that played significant time on their parent club and will try to do this in a sort of alphabetical order type thing.

Willie Bloomquist, Seattle Mariners, 3rd Round, 95th Overall of 1999 Draft, Utility:
71 G, 165 AB, 32 R, 46 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 9 RBI, 25BB/29SO, 14SB/3CS, .279avg/.377obp/.285slg(!)/.662 OPS

Bloomquist, super utility man for the Mariners, is  entering his final year with the Mariners and neither he nor the fans seem to want him to return.  Epitomizing the "gritty white guy" sterotype, Bloomquist played decent defense and showed solid baserunning ability.  He also had a really weird season.  He had his career high in OPS, AVG and OBP, and his career low in XBH and SLG. Nothing more than a 25th man, Bloomquist will probably find interest in the NL - some team that loves players like him like STL. As a mariners fan I can safely say I hate Willie. He went hundreds of at bats without an XBH and thinks he is better than he is. Go away.

Travis Buck, Oakland Athletics, 1st Round, 36th Overall of 2005 Draft, RF:
38 G, 155 AB, 16 R, 35 H, 9 2B, 1 3B, 7 HR, 25 RBI, 11BB/38SO, 1SB/0CS, .226avg/.291obp/.423slg/.723 OPS

The 2007 Baseball America #1 organizational prospect in the Athletic's franchise, Buck was called up midway through last year and put together some very solid numbers (.850ops in 82 games). His 2008 season was riddled with injury and inconsistency.  Turning 25 in November, Buck will enter 2009 as the A's starting right fielder, I assume, and should put up solid numbers. He had a monster September (.367 avg, 4 HR, 1.089 OPS) and had gobs of potential. I would be excited as an A's fan.

Brooks Conrad, Oakland Athletics, 8th Round, 236th Overall of 2001 Draft, 3B:
6 G, 19 AB, 0 R, 3 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 2 RBI, 0BB/9SO, .158avg/.158obp/.211slg/.368 ops

Originally drafted by the Houston Astros out of ASU, Conrad made his MLB debut after being picked up by the A's after the 2006 season. Finally cracking the bigs in his age 28 season after a productive minor league career (993 G, .814 OPS, 142 career HR) he will most likely not make a big league roster again.  Congrats to Brooks, however, at finally getting a taste of the big leagues.

Andre Ethier, Los Angeles Dodgers, 2nd Round, 62nd Overall of 2001 Draft, RF:
141 G, 525 AB, 90 R, 160 H, 38 2B, 5 3B, 20 HR, 77 RBI, 59BB/88SO, 6SB/3CS, .305 AVG/ .375 OBP/ .510 AVG/ .885 OPS

Wow, nice year Andre. An extremely underrated player, in my opinion, Ethier cranked out 63 XBH, set career highs in nearly every offense category, and played a solid RF.  Ethier seems to be an exception to Billy Beane's trading policies and was shipped off for Milton Bradley, who was then shipped off for reliever Andrew Brown. I would rather have Ethier, who will turn 27 shortly after the start of his 2009 season and will look to add upon a great 2008.

Jeff Larish, Detroit Tigers, 5th Round, 150th Overall of 2005 Draft, 1B/3B:
41G, 103AB, 12R, 27H, 6 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 16 RBI, 7BB/33SO, .262 AVG / .309 OBP / .379 SLG / .688 OPS

Larish made his MLB debut in 2008 after entering the season as the Tigers' 6th ranked organizational prospect by Baseball America after hitting 21 HRs in AAA last season.  26 this fall, Larish is in an interesting position.  After playing first his entire minor league career, Detroit has been testing Larish at 3B because they would love if he could play there, since his bat would fit well.  He has not shown a whole lot, but hasnt had much time to acclimate himself to the position. It would be ideal if the Tigers' $150 million dollar man could play the position they hired him to play, but he has not been able to.

Paul Lo Duca, Florida Marlins, 25th Round, 690th Overall of 1993 Draft, C:
67 G, 173 AB, 16 R, 42 H, 9 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 15 RBI, 15BB/11SO, .243 AVG / .321 OBP, / .295 SLG / .616 SLG

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the walking corpse of Paul Lo Duca.  Lo Duca was absolute garbage this year, unable to stay healthy, unable to hit for power, and unable to play the bases, Lo Duca should call it quits. Having proved everyone wrong, that he was capable of being a solid MLB player after slipping to the 25th round, Lo Duca will be 37 years old at the start of the 2009 season and really does not have much left to offer MLB clubs.  His career year in 2001 (.320 average, 25 HR, 90 RBI, .917 OPS) will always be remembered, as will his fiery temperment and his incendiary comments.

Dustin Pedroia, Boston Red Sox, 2nd Round, 65th Overall of 2004 Draft, 2B:
157 G, 653 AB, 118 R, 213 H, 54 2B (!), 2 3B, 17 HR, 83 RBI, 50BB/52SO, 20SB/1CS, .326 AVG / .376 OBP / .493 SLG / .869 OPS

Pedroia, the 6th ranked organizational prospect for the Red Sox, and the 77th ranked prospect in MLB heading into his debut season in 2007, had never hit more than 9 HRs at any of his stops in the minors or at ASU, had never hit more than 39 2Bs, had never stolen more than 9 bases.... the list goes on. An absolute career year, Pedroia has put himself among consideration for the MVP award.  A stud at ASU, Pedroia has turned himself into one of the best, if not the best, 2B in all of baseball.  A fantastic BB/SO ratio, 213 hits, 73 XBH (!), 20 stolen bases with only 1 CS... Pedroia is ASU baseball.




Dennis Sarfate, Baltimore Orioles, 9th Round, 268th Overall of 2001 Draft, RP:
57 G / 4 GS, 79.2 IP, 86 SO / 62 BB, 4 W - 3 L, 4.74 ERA, 1.56 WHIP, 3 HLD, 0SV/2BLSV

Sarfate was barely a Sun Devil, and is barely a MLB pitcher.  While not having that bad of an ERA, Sarfate is like many of the Orioles pitchers: tons of stuff, not any command.  Striking out an impressive 86 in 79 innings, he also walked over 60 batters.  His whip was terrible, and he was unable to turn into a starting pitcher without imploding, running up pitch counts into the 90s through 4 innings, and getting injured shortly after.  Sarfate can be a capable MLB reliever if he can find his command, but the SP route is a failed effort.


This are all the major Sun Devils I could think of, if you have some more that played in 2008, let me know and I will do a writeup on them. I did not count Jon Switzer and Chris Duffy because they did not play in the major leagues in 2008.

Obviously, judging from when these players were drafted, our program has evolved a lot in the last 10 years.  Only 2 players from the 1990s, versus 6 from the 2000s. 3 of which were from the 2001 draft. This number of active major leagues will start going up even further as some of the more recent draft picks from ASU develop further. GO SUN DEVILS!

With the minor league baseball season finishing up play at the end of last month, it seemed like as good a time as any to take a look around the league at all the rosters with players from ASU in the minors and see how they fared this year. We will focus this post on players from the 2008 draft (first 15 rounds) and 2007 draft (first 15 rounds).

2008 Draft

Brett Wallace 3B, 1st Round, 13th Overall, St. Louis Cardinals:
2008 - Quad Cities, Midwest League, St. Louis Cardinals Affiliate A Level
41 G, 153 AB, 28 R, 50 H, 8 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 25 RBI, 17/32 BB/K, .327/.418/.490/.908 OPS
2008 - Springfield, Texas League, St. Louis Cardinals Affiliate AA Level
13 G, 49 AB, 13 R, 5 2B, 0 3B, 3 HR, 11 RBI, 2/7 BB/K, .367/.456/.653/1.109 OPS

Splitting time between A and AA ball, Wallace was a beast. Mashing on all levels for power, walking, getting on base, and just being a terror at the plate - Wallace is on a fast track to the big leagues.  It will be interesting to see if they try to keep him at 3B or if they eventually move him to 1B where he is blocked by Albert Pujols.  Could be a lucrative trade piece, or extremely valuable if he can stick at third.

Ike Davis 1B, 1st Round, 18th Overall, New York Mets:
2008 - Brooklyn, NYPL, New York Mets Affiliate A- Level
58 G, 215 AB, 17 R, 15 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 17 RBI, 23/43 BB/K, .256/.326/.326/.652 OPS

His first full year in the minor leagues can be called nothing but a colossal disappointment.  In nearly the exact number of at bats as he had at ASU this season (213 vs 215) Davis managed to hit a whopping .547 lower in OPS (129 points lower in batting average, 131 points lower in OBP, and an amazing 416 points lower in slugging %). Failing to hit for power completely, Davis struggled getting good wood on anything that wasnt a fastball.  He will need to make some offseason adjustments if he hopes to avoid being labeled one of the biggest busts of the 2008 draft.  I know it is early, but nearly every draft analyst called Davis a huge reach at 18 overall, and he certainly hasnt proven them wrong.  He will be 22 when the 2009 season starts and will most likely begin at A ball.  If he doesn't show enough to finish at AA or A+ by the end of the year, Davis will be in trouble as a MLB prospect.

Petey Paramore C, 3rd Round, 90th Overall, Oakland Athletics:
2008 - AZL Athletics, Arizona League, Oakland Athletics Rookie Level
9 G, 22 AB, 7 R, 2 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 4 RBI, 10/2 BB/K, .364/.563/.455/1.017 OPS
2008 - Kane City, Midwest League, Oakland Athletics A Level
31 G, 102 AB, 14 R, 23 H, 8 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 14 RBI, 22/30 BB/K, .225/.368/.333/.701 OPS

Petey came in, crushed the overmatched AZL league, and then cooled off once he started playing against players closer to his age in A ball.  Showing that he can work the count and get on base like any good Billy Beane draft pick should, Petey will need to show that he can hit for consistent power as he ascends the minors.  So far so good behind the plate.

Kiel Roling 1B, 6th Round, 197th Overall, Colorado Rockies:
2008 - Casper, Pioneer League, Colorado Rockies Rookie Level
18 G, 64 AB, 10 R, 22 H, 7 2B, 0 3B, 4 HR, 17 RBi, 8/11 BB/K, .344/.417/.641/1.057 OPS

Roling, naturally, crushed pitching at the rookie level and should immediately start 2009 at A or A+. He does not turn 22 until January, and should face a nice and easy climb through the Rockies minors, making his bid to replace Todd Helton eventually in Coors Field.

Stephen Sauer Relief Pitcher, 10th Round,  300th Overall, Chicago White Sox:
2008 - Great Falls, Pioneer League, Chicago White Sox Rookie Level
19 G, 0 GS, 29.0 IP, 3.41 ERA, 3 W - 2 L, 27/7 K/BB, .178 Avg against

Sauer enters the White Sox minor league system as a middle reliever, averaging 1.1 to 1.2 innings pitched per outing.  He struck out nearly a batter per inning and did not walk many (3.85 k/bb ratio) which is pretty solid for a middle reliever.  He just turned 22 though, and will need to show a lot coming out of spring training in 2009. He finished the year with a strong outing pitching 2 innings, striking out 4 and walking just 1.

Reyes Dorado Relief Pitcher, 14th Round, 439th Overall, Los Angeles Angels:
2008 - Orem, Pioneer League, Los Angeles Angels, Rookie Level
18 G, 1GS, 24.0 IP, 5.63 ERA, 2 W - 0 L, 3 Saves, 32/10 K/BB, .228 Avg Against

Dorado showed some solid stuff (32 Ks in 24 innings) but showed a tendency to let up a bunch of hits with runners on base.  He should stabilize as he becomes used to pitching out of the pen and he should slide into A ball next year.  Not sure what the Angels have with Dorado at this point.

Marcel Champagnie LF, 15th Round, 469th Overall, Los Angeles Angels:
2008 - Orem, Prioneer League, Los Angeles Angels, Rookie Level
6 G, 14 AB, 4 R, 5 H, 0 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 1 RBI, 2BB/1K, .357/.438/.357/.795 2SB

Champagnie signed late and only got in 6 games, but showed what he could eventually become - a replica of Willie Bloomquist - a player with no power who can get on base, play some defense, and use his speed on the bases.

2007 Draftees

Eric Sogard 2B, 2nd Round, 81st Overall, San Diego Padres:
2007 - Eugene, Northwest League, San Diego Padres, A- Level
31 G, 125 AB, 20 R, 32 H, 9 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 18 RBI, 19BB/16K, .256/.354/.376/.730 OPS
2007 - Fort Wayne, Midwest League, San Diego Padres, A Level
22 G, 83 AB, 7 R, 21 H, 2 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 15 RBI, 6BB/13K, .253/.308/.349/.657
2007 - Portland, Pacific Coast League, San Diego Padres, AAA Level
1 G, no hits
2008 - Lake Elsin, California League, San Diego Padres, A+ Level
133 G, 536 AB, 97 R, 165 H, 42 2B, 3 3B, 10 HR, 87 RBI, 16SB/7 CS, 79BB/62K, .308/.394/.453/.847

Sogard, manning 2B for the Padres, came off a midly disappointing 2007 campaign split between A-/A ball to put together an extremely solid effort at A+. While the Cal league is widely known as a hitters' league, walking 79 times is extremely impressive.  Sogard has shown the ability to get on base, shown some solid pop and decent speed, and has played an able second base. Turning 23 to start the 2009 Season, the Padres should see what Sogard can do in AA - maybe see what he can prove for a possible late 2010 callup.

Matt Spencer 1B, 3rd Round, 113th Overall, Philadelphia Phillies (Now with Oakland Athletics via Joe Blanton trade):
2007 - Williamsport, NYPL, Philadelphia Phillies, A- Level
51 G, 179 AB, 21 R, 47 H, 10 2B, 0 3B, 9 HR, 26 RBI, 3SB/3CS, 11BB/46K, .263/.320/.469/.789 OPS
2008 - Clearwater, Florida State League, Philadelphia Phillies, A+ Level
85 G, 307 AB, 40 R, 77 H, 12 2B, 3 3B, 6 HR, 42 RBI, 5SB/1CS, 30BB/66K, .251/.318/.368/.686
2008 - Stockton, California League, Oakland Athletics, A+ Level
41 G, 168 AB, 30 R, 56 H, 12 2B, 1 3B, 8 HR, 27 RBI, 7SB/1CS, 6BB/39K, .333/.376/.560/.935 OPS

Spencer, one of the pieces of the Joe Blanton trade this summer, had an interesting rookie campaign in 2007 flashing some power at low A, with a low on base percentage.  This carried over into 2008 where he began the year in a massive slump before being traded - where his bat came alive.  His power numbers were impressive and he was getting on base, despite a horrible 6/39 walk to strikeout ratio.  He will have to improve that if he hopes to move up in the A's system, but the A's should be encouraged by his power - even if it is in the Cal league.  A 2009 start at AA could be warranted.

Andrew Romine SS, 5th Round, 178th Overall, Los Angeles Angels,:
2007 - Orem, Pioneer League, Los Angeles Angels, Rookie Level
56 G, 231 AB, 38 R, 66 H, 6 2B, 6 3B, 5 HR, 35 RBI, 12SB/4CS, 16BB/38K, .286/.337/.429/.766
2008 - Cedar Rapids, Midwest League, Los Angeles Angels, A Level
126 G, 461 AB, 79 R, 120 H, 21 2B, 4 3B, 2 HR, 34 RBI, 62SB(!)/18CS, 55BB/76K, .260/.347/.336/.683

Romine has played good defense for the Angels, but has shown that his power is not quite there.  Playing at A ball in his age 22 season, Romine showed some speed with 62 stolen bases, a solid eye with 55 walks, but a distinct lack of power.  If he can repeat A or move to high A and show some continued growth, Romine could turn into a decent prospect - at this point hs looks destined to be a minor leaguer if he cant begin to drive the ball with some authority.

Tim Smith, LF, 7th Round, 230th Overall, Texas Rangers:
2007 - Spokane, Northwest League, Texas Rangers, A- Level
23 G, 81 AB, 18 R, 23 H, 5 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 9 RBI, 11BB/16SO, .284/.396/.383/.779
2008 - Clinton, Midwest League, Texas Rangers, A Level
121 G, 480 AB, 67 R, 144 H, 25 2B, 4 3B, 13 HR, 70 RBI, 21SB/9CS, 33BB/81SO, .300/.359/.450/.809

Smith, after being a rather late signee in 2007, has put together a very nice season in 2008. His first full season in the minors, Smith flashed some speed, solid pop (42 XBH) and a propensity for driving in runs with a solid average.  He has to work on his plate discipline (81 SO) but Smith is showing some solid wood at the corner outfield position, and a nice pickup by Texas in the 7th round.

Brian Flores, Starting Pitcher, 13th Round, 395th Overall, Tampa Bay Rays:
2007 - Hudson Valley, NYPL, Tampa Bay Rays, A- Level
15 G/ 3 GS, 5.57 ERA, 2w-3l, 32.1 IP, 31SO/12BB, 1.42 WHIP
2008 - Columbus, SAL, Tampa Bay Rays, A Level
29G/21GS, 4.19 ERA, 9w-7l, 118.0 IP, 77so/45bb, 1.39 WHIP

Flores struggled with his command in his first year in the majors, but flashed decent stuff.  In 2008 he transitioned to the rotation and he, again, struggled with his command.  77k-45 walks is not a very good ratio, but he was able to pitch 118 innings while limiting his earned runs fairly well.  With not much expectations as a 13th round pick, Flores has shown he is a decent minor leaguer, and will be interesting to follow as he makes his debut in 2009 in either A+ or AA ball.

That concludes the 2007 and 2008 draft picks, more from our boys in the bigs later.

Lets check back in a month later with some of the Sun Devils who were drafted this June and see how they are doing.

1. Brett Wallace - 3B/DH Class A Quad Cities River Bandits (STL)
.327 avg / .418 OBP / .490 SLG / .908 OPS
5 HR, 25 RBI 17/32 BB/K

After an extremely hot July (.994 OPS) Wallace has regressed in August (.781 OPS) whether from pitchers adapting or from fatigue, Wallace has seen his K% increase and his BB% decrease. He should finish the year out in A ball, and start the 2009 season either in A+ or AA ball. I doubt he will stick at 3B in the minors either, because of his frame, but we will see how he does as he progresses through the Cardinals system.

2. Ike Davis - 1B Class A- Brooklyn Cyclones (NYM)
.235 AVG / .302 OBP / .307 SLG / .609 SLG
0 HR, 11 RBI, 15/31 BB/K

Davis has struggled mightily in his first summer in pro ball.  After some considered him a reach at 17th overall in the first round, Davis has a lot of weight on his shoulders. His bat will need to heat up considerably if it is to play well at first base, and the 11 XB hits (all doubles) in nearly 200 ABs at low A ball is disconcerting. He has had absolutely no power since June, but should grow more comfortable with an extended look at A ball in 2009.

3. Petey Paramore - C Class A Kane County Cougars (A's)
.185 AVG / .361 OBP / .292 SLG / .654 OPS
1 HR, 12 RBI, 17/21 BB/K

After dominating the rookie league to the tune of a 1.017 OPS, Paramore has struggled to adapt to Midwest League pitching.  A long year behind the plate after the season with the Sun Devils, Paramore can be forgiven his slow start and will just look to build upon what he has learned for the 2009 season.

4. Kiel Roling - 1B/DH Rookie Casper Ghosts (COL)
.344 AVG / .417 OBP / .641 SLG/ 1.057 OPS
4 HR, 17 RBI, 8/11 BB/K

Roling has been absolutely mashing the ball in the past few weeks and should earn a promotion before the end of the season.  If not, expect the slugger to at least jump to A or high A ball to start 2009.  His is a bat that should be pushed.

5. Stephen Sauer - Middle Reliever RHP Rookie Great Falls Voyagers (CWS)
G 19, 3W-2L, 29.0 IP, ERA 3.41, 27/7 K/BB

Sauer has been nearly unhittable in the month of August, but he should be since he is 22 and is playing against kids ranging from 17 to his age.  He should get a look at a higher level, A-, and spend 2009 in A ball. Sauer has been dominating right handers (16k vs 1 BB, 2.55 ERA, .185 avg) and has been decent, but prone to walking lefties. (4.55 ERA, 11k verses 6 BB, .165 average).

6. Reyes Dorado - Middle Reliever (?) RHP Rookie Orem Owlz (ew) (LAA)
14 G, 1GS, 19.1 IP, 1W-0L, 6.98 ERA, 25/9 K/BB, 3 SV

The Angels are not quite sure what to do with Dorado.  Getting simply tagged in Rookie ball, Dorado has been a starter (owned) middle reliever (ok) and closer (eh). Dorado should be a tad worried that he is getting touched so much in Rookie ball, lets see where the 14th round pick goes from here.

7. Marcel Champagnie - LF, Rookie Orem Owlz (LAA)
.250 AVG / .308OBP / .250 SLG / .558 OPS
0 HR, 1RBI, 1BB/1K

A late sign, Champagnie has only played in 5 games for the Owlz (extreme!! z!!) and so we do not have a lot to go on. We will keep an eye on him

That covers the first 15 rounds of the 2008 draft, we will continue with the rest later this week.