And their ceilings are alright. Circumstances of the week probably have me a bit more cynical than normal, but in many ways I see adding a 3/4 starter as more accumulating of mediocrity. The Dodgers draft preview page, for instance says:

White forecasts more teams taking his approach and raiding the high school ranks, mainly because of the generally accepted analysis that this Draft lacks college impact hitters. The way the Dodgers look at it, they got a quality player from this Draft in Hudson and they are confident they can grab a high-ceiling player with their sandwich pick.

The D-backs seem to be going a similar direction. Yet Schmidt’s words make it pretty clear that the Rockies won’t be one of those teams looking for a high ceiling high schooler with their pick. So if all of the other teams in the division are going to go after a higher ceilinged player than the Rockies are going to select (the Giants and Padres get to pick before the Rockies so they would almost be assumed to get a bigger impact player by default) than it doesn’t instill a lot of confidence that the Rockies will get the best of this draft a few years from now. That would be four years in a row that the team’s draft comes out inferior to more than one divisional opponent, that’s not the way to build a winner when you rely solely on your team’s ability to manufacture their own talent.

So I’ll be able to do tonight’s game thread without much trouble.

I voted to send him to AAA thinking that maybe if his past is able to be rediscovered maybe he can do it there. Trying to work out his problems in games that count doesn’t seem to be doing anyone any good. The only other option I guess would be to just release him and be done with it. We’d still have to pay him but we’re going to have to do that if he’s in the Springs as well.

This is wild speculation but I recall Atkins having some sort of stomach flu/bug during spring training and he sat out for a good 2 weeks. I got the stomach flu from a nice eating establishment in Tucson a few years back during Spring Training and it took me a good 2-3 months before I was really all better. And I wasn’t trying to run around on a field or smack the ball all day (although it’s a far better alternative to my desk job:) While the other theories that have been thrown about here the last few weeks are far more viable, it is something to consider. And few ballplayers would come out and use lingering illness as an excuse. Maybe it’s one reason why they’ve been giving him so long to improve (oh, and 7 million dollars)…Helton never really recovered from the nasty stomach ailment that put him in the hospital in ‘06 —although his final numbers for the season weren’t nearly as bad as Atkins to date.

Perhaps Atkins is susceptible to catching nasty bugs? He had strep throat in August last year as well – Another energy sucking illness…

I’m sure GA is working hard to get out of this funk but whatever the problem is, it’s not improving on the big club.

I’m not totally against Atkins just staying there and trying to muster something up

But don’t tell me it’s because of injuries that we’re not sending him down. He provides less than nothing to the team at this point, AAA guy guyerson would be better

We’re not a big league caliber team right now. Atkins isn’t a big league caliber player right now.

Why not give the guy a look? What’s the worst that could happen? You fulfill a guy’s dreams and the team loses anyway?

I sincerely doubt he would hinder the lineup or the team in any real quantifiable sense.

I’m not touting him as the solution, just something to make this team a bit more interesting right now.

I give you Jeff Pickler.