First of all, a link to Thomas Harding's latest mailbag, where he points out that:
Gil Meche is rich.
Juan Pierre is rich.
And the Monfort's are rich because they are paying neither.
Yep. Probably the biggest "news" concerned the state of pitchers on the farm:
The hope is they don't push three intriguing starters -- right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez, bound for Triple-A, and projected Double-A starters Frankin Morales, a left-hander, and Greg Reynolds, a right-hander who was the club's 2006 No. 1 pick.
U-ball's recent outings in the Dominican have been spotty, which sort of cements that "bound for AAA" status. With a strong Spring and a quick start in the Springs, hopefully he can push the issue himself. ---------
Miguel Batista to the Mariners means one more pitcher off the block not going to a team that really needs him. Houston would be sweating a little more now if the Cards' rotation wasn't so pathetic at this point.
---------
Know thy Enemy! Chris Costancio at Hardball Times does a profile of Dodgers prospect, James Loney.
Know thy Friends, er.., and Enemy! Project Prospect has a couple of pieces of interest that I missed from late last week while I was busy combing the internet for JJ rumors, first they did profiles of the top 3 rookie catchers for 2007. Chris Iannetta is number one, of course, but the Snakes' Miguel Montero is number two. Dang the NL West has some potent rookies next season.
To further emphasize that point is an interesting article by Adam Loberstein comparing Tulowitzki with Brandon Wood. I'm hoping for a bit more from Tulo than Loberstein seems to be suggesting is in store, even though the tone of the piece is quite positive. Like Iannetta, though not to the same degree, Tulo's contact rates suggest to me he could be a regular .300 hitter and I'm hoping he grows into more power in the next season or two.