Archive for Eddie Kunz
Mets and Padres Swap Former First Round Disappointments
Posted by: | Comments[tweeted]http://twitter.com/DSmithShow/status/52787500011360256[/tweeted]
There is a reason why two teams were willing to trade their first round picks from just three and four years ago. Both players have severely underperformed and come no where near reaching expectations people had for them when they were drafted turning themselves into non-prospects.
Back in 2008 the Padres took the 23-year-old Allan Dykstra 23rd overall as he was supposed to be a first baseman with plus to plus-plus raw power who 
had an all around solid hit tool. He fit the bill of his description with a 6’5 215 lbs listing, but has failed to show that talent on the field. In 2009 he led the minor leagues with a 104 walks, however, he also struck out 103 times and only hit .226 with 11 homers. He followed up his disappointing 2009 with another bad season in 2010 where he manged to hit .241 with 16 home runs. He still struck out 122 times in just 113 games. The power numbers did increase slightly and he still maintained a high OBP (.372), but this was in the CAL league which is a notorious for being a hitters league where balls fly out of the park.
As Kevin Goldstein points out Dykstra is a Paul DePodesta guy who was part of the Padres team that drafted him. He is a great example of a “moneyball” player who walks and gets on base a lot, but he will need to start tapping into that power scouts saw from him in college if he ever wants to get near a major league roster.
The 25-year-old Eddie Kunz was drafted by the Mets 42nd overall in 2007 to become the closer of the future, but things have not transpired that way. He now finds himself just trying to keep a job on a minor league team.
Outside of one good year Kunz had in AA back in 2008 he has been downright awful. For some odd reason the Mets attempted to move Kunz into the rotation last year because things weren’t working out in the pen and the results were just as bad. Kunz wound up finishing last season with a 5.34 ERA over 111.1 innings in 42 games (12 starts) while walking more batters (68) than he struck out (63). The only thing Kunz has been unable to do on a consistent basis during his career other than giving up a lot of runs is getting ground balls which I am sure is what intrigues the Padres, who will hope to fix the rest of the holes in his game.
One thing Kunz has over Dykstra is he has already made it to the show making 4 appearances with the Mets in 2008.
On a side note talk about a trade of behemoths. The 6’5 215 lbs Dykstra is the SMALLER of the two with Kunz being a whopping 6’6 260 lbs.
The Mets first two picks from the 2007 draft, Eddie Kunz (42nd overall) and Nathan Vineyard (47th overall), are no longer part of the organization.
5 Up, 5 Down: April 18th-24th, 2010
Posted by: | Comments5 Up
| No. 1 WILMER FLORES, SS |
SAVANNAH |
 Team: Savannah Sand Gnats (LoA)Age: 18 Why He’s Here: .370/.393/.815 (10-for-27), 2 HR, 5 R, 13 RBI, 1 BB, 5 K The Scoop: Flores is in the middle of a huge power surge that we never got to see in 2009. Last year he hit 3 home runs for the year and he had 2 last week. He’s had great pitch recognition all season and it looks like he is finally seeing the right pitch to hit and driving it hard and far. More impressive than his home runs is probably the 6 doubles and 13 RBI’s. |
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| 2010 Stats | |
| No. 2 KIRK NIEUWENHUIS, CF |
BINGHAMTON |
 Team: Binghamton Mets (AA) Age: 22 Why He’s Here: 355/.375/.613 (11-for-31), 1 HR, 6 R, 5 RBI, 1 BB, 6 K The Scoop: Captain Kirk has been hot all season and it didn’t stop this week. He’s getting hits, hitting for power, scoring runs, and driving in runs. The only thing he isn’t doing is demonstrating his above-average speed. He only has 1 SB on the season and no triples. On the plus side he has cut his K’s down by nearly 7%. |
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| 2010 Stats | |
| No. 3 PEDRO ZAPATA, CF |
SAVANNAH |
 Team: Savannah Sand Gnats (LoA)Age: 22 Why He’s Here: .414/.485/.483 (12-for-29), 2 2B, 9 R, 4 RBI, 3 SB, 4 BB, 5 K The Scoop: Zapata is a tall guy, but doesn’t have much power and has to rely on his plus speed. The difference he made this week was better plate discipline. He only struck out 1 more time than he walked. Looked like a great table setter with the 3 steals and 9 runs. |
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| 2010 Stats | |
| No. 4 JAMES FULLER, LHP | SAVANNAH |
 Team: Savannah Sand Gnats (LoA)Age: 22 Why He’s Here: 2-0, 1.90 ERA, 14.2 IP, 14 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 12 SO The Scoop: The undersized lefty is having great success in LoA Savannah. He gave up a little too many hits this week, but he counter acted that with superb command. He only walked 2 batters this week and has 4 walks in 28 IP on the season to go along with striking out nearly a batter per inning. |
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| 2010 Stats | |
| No. 5 ALONZO HARRIS, 2B |
SAVANNAH |
 Team: Savannah Sand Gants (LoA)Age: 20 Why He’s Here: .360/.360/.600 (9-for-25), 1 2B, 1 3b, 1 HR. 4 R, 7 RBI, 5 K The Scoop: Yet another member from the Savannah team on the hot list. Harris demonstrated his great power with a homer and double and great speed with a triple and stolen base. Also on display, however, was his terrible discipline. He doesn’t know how to take a walk and swings at anything near the plate. Still raw, but very talented. |
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| 2010 Stats | |
5 Down
| No. 1 RICHARD LUCAS, 3B |
ST. LUCIE |
 Team: St. Lucie Mets (HiA)Age: 21 Why He’s Here: .053/.182/.053 (1-for-19), 1 R, 3 BB, 6 K The Scoop: Can you do much worse? About the only positive thing he did was have a decent walk rate. This is a really big bummer as Lucas was off to a hot start before getting into this ice age. |
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| 2010 Stats | |
| No. 2 EDDIE KUNZ, RHP |
BINGHAMTON |
 Team: Binghamton Mets (AA)Age: 24 Why He’s Here: 0-1, 11.25 ERA, 4 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 4 BB, 3 SO The Scoop: Just as expected Kunz’s shift into the rotation hasn’t gone smoothly at all. If anyone expects to give up a hit and walk per inning and be successful then you are just crazy. He should be moved back to the pen ASAP where maybe he can give you a very very little something. |
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| 2010 Stats | |
| No. 3 JEFF FLAGG, 1B |
SAVANNAH |
 Team: Savannah Sand Gnats (LoA) Age: 24 Why He’s Here: .136/.240/.182 (3-for-22), 1 R, 2 RBI, 3 BB, 8 K The Scoop: A 6’6 250 lbs 24-year-old slugging what in LoA? Yeah, he has definitely made himself into a non prospect at this point. He can’t hit for average or power, get on base, and swings at pitchers further out of the zone than Vlad Guerrero. |
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| 2010 Stats | |
| No. 4 ERIC NIESEN, SP |
BINGHAMTON |
 Team: Binghamton Mets (AA)Age: 24 Why He’s Here: 0-1, 5.29 ERA, 2 GS, 5.1 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 5 BB, 6 SO The Scoop: The man has great stuff as is seen with his great K numbers, but his control seems to get worse with time. I don’t think anybody has ever questioned his stuff, but he has yet to answer those doubters about his ability to throw strikes. And 5 innings in 2 games. That’s worse than John Maine! |
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| 2010 Stats | |
| No. 5 BRAHIAM MALDONADO |
BINGHAMTON |
 Team: Binghamton Mets (AA)Age: 24 Why He’s Here: .105/.261/.158 (2-for-19), 2 R, 4 BB, 5 K, 2 SB The Scoop: The transition to AA did not go smooth at all for Maldonado. He was only able to manage two hits, but he did demonstrate good patience and speed. He is not one of my favorite prospects by any stretch, but he still has some potential and this week looks pretty fluky. |
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| 2010 Stats | |
Awards
Pitcher of the Week: James Fuller
Player of the Week: Wilmer Flores
Mets Top Prospects: Prospects #31-40
Posted by: | CommentsFor an overview of the process I use to grade players, the factors I use in determining where a player ranks, and other frequently asked questions, please click here. All grades are subject to change.You can find a full listing of the Top 50 Prospects of 2010 Archive Page. I will be releasing the rest of the list soon.
31. Francisco Pena | C | LoA | Age – 20 | Drafted – IFA 2006 (C)
Continues to remind me of Bengie Molina except he is not as good or as talented. So pretty much a very very big body behind the plate. I am not a big fan of Pena, but he is still young so I guess there is still some hope, but not enough for me. Strikes out too much, doesn’t walk enough, and doesn’t make enough contact.
Perfect World Projection – MLB Catcher
More Likely Outcome – Career Minor Leaguer
TEAM AB R 2B HR RBI .AVG .OBP .SLG .BABIP .ISO
Binghamton Mets 392 43 15 8 44 .224 .258 .329 .259 .105
TOTAL 392 43 15 8 44 .224 .258 .329 .259 .105
32. Shawn Bowman | 3B | AA | Age – 25 | Drafted – 12th Round 2002 (C)
Former top prospect who has been destroyed by back injuries. When healthy he has shown good power and defense. His defense alone could net him a spot on a big league roster one day.
Perfect World Projection – Average MLB 3rd Baseman
More Likely Outcome – Bench player used for defense
TEAM AB R 2B HR RBI .AVG .OBP .SLG .BABIP .ISO
Binghamton Mets 347 42 24 9 44 .294 .346 .458 .388 .164
TOTAL 347 42 24 9 44 .294 .346 .458 .388 .164
33. Darrell Ceciliani | CF | Rk | Age – 19 | Drafted – 4th Round 2009 (C)
Was compared to a poor man’s Jacoby Ellsbury on draft day and showed way in his brief stint in the minors with 14 stolen bases. Was unlucky, especially for someone with his speed, so I certainly expect his average to go up. Also showed pretty good defense with 4 outfield assists.
Perfect World Projection – Starting center field leadoff hitter who creates havoc with his speed
More Likely Outcome – 4th outfielder
TEAM AB R 2B HR RBI .AVG .OBP .SLG .BABIP .ISO
Kingsport Mets 158 29 6 2 13 .234 .313 .310 .280 .076
TOTAL 158 29 6 2 13 .234 .313 .310 .280 .076
34. Richard Lucas | 3B | LoA | Age – 21 | Drafted – 4th Round 2007 (C)
Big kid with pretty good power started to put it together a little bit last year. Biggest issue is the strikeout which he count down on a lot last year, but still needs refinement.
Perfect World Projection – Starting 3rd baseman
More Likely Outcome – Organization guy
TEAM AB R 2B HR RBI .AVG .OBP .SLG .BABIP .ISO
GCL Mets 18 1 3 0 3 .333 .400 .500 .462 .167
Kingsport Mets 98 28 12 4 21 .357 .471 .622 .413 .265
Brooklyn Cyclones 60 4 5 0 6 .250 .319 .400 .313 .150
TOTAL 176 34 20 4 30 .318 .414 .534 .385 .216
35. Sean Ratliff | OF | HiA | Age – 23 | Drafted – 4th Round 2008 (C)
He doesn’t have a pretty swing, but I still liked his stroke even with the slight uppercut. He looks good defensively in right or left field and has a really strong arm which is probably his best asset. Strikes out way too much and needs to walk more or else he’ll flame out soon.
Perfect World Projection – Borderline starting outfielder
More Likely Outcome – AAAA Slugger
TEAM AB R 2B HR RBI AVG OBP SLG BABIP ISO
Savannah Sand Gnats 468 64 28 15 68 .265 .312 .451 .332 .186
St. Lucie Mets 28 3 2 0 6 .286 .286 .357 .444 .071
TOTAL 496 67 30 15 74 .266 .314 .466 .338 .179
36. Eddie Kunz | RP | AAA | Age – 24 | Drafted – 1st Round Supp. 2007 (C)
Kunz has fallen out of favor with me and I don’t see too much to like. His fastball has lost sink, his slider has flattened out, and he is still in awful shape. He is here on pedigree alone.
Perfect World Projection – Middle relief pitcher
More Likely Outcome – AAA Closer
TEAM W-L ERA G/GS IP SO BB GB% FIP
Buffalo Bisons 4-5 5.02 40/0 61.0 38 31 64% 5.53
TOTAL 4-5 5.02 40/0 61.0 38 31 64% 5.53
37. Nick Santomauro | RF | Rk | Age – 21 | Drafted – 10th Round 2009 (C)
I feel like I am ranking him too low here. He is a person favorite and sleeper for 2010. He is super athletic and looked better than his stats say. He has great power and does a good job walking if he can cut down on the strikeouts he will be golden.
Perfect World Projection – MLB outfielder
More Likely Outcome – 4th outfielder
TEAM AB R 2B HR RBI .AVG .OBP .SLG .BABIP .ISO
Brooklyn Cyclones 145 18 5 6 21 .241 .368 .441 .287 .200
TOTAL 145 18 5 6 21 .241 .368 .441 .287 .200
38. Nelfi Zapata | C | Rk | Age – 19 | Drafted – 19th Round 2009 (C)
Got off to a hot start and then cooled off a lot. Has great power that can be seen from his videos in his power showcases. Looks like a good catching prospect moving forward.
Perfect World Projection – MLB catcher
More Likely Outcome – Power bat off the bench
TEAM AB R 2B HR RBI .AVG .OBP .SLG .BABIP .ISO
GCL Mets 119 18 6 1 13 .261 .341 .370 .323 .109
TOTAL 119 18 6 1 13 .261 .341 .370 .323 .109
39. Scott Shaw | SP | HiA | Age – 23 | Drafted – 13th Round 2008 (C)
Gets a bit overlooked because of his lack of plus stuff, but is a solid pitching prospect. He is able to command a complete arsenal of pitches that he can throw for strikes. Crucial year for Shaw in 2010.
Perfect World Projection – #5 Starter
More Likely Outcome – Relief pitcher or AAA pitcher
TEAM W-L ERA G/GS IP SO BB GB% FIP
St. Lucie Mets 8-8 3.73 26/26 149.2 118 57 39% 4.06
TOTAL 8-8 3.73 26/26 149.2 118 57 39% 4.06
40. James Fuller | SP | Rk | Age – 22 | Drafted – 21st Round 2008 (C)
Undersized lefty who has a good somewhat power arsenal and racks up the K’s and GB’s. If he is moved back to the pen he can move quickly through the organization and make an impact out of the pen. Real bulldog on the mound.
Perfect World Projection – LOOGY
More Likely Outcome – LOOGY
TEAM W-L ERA G/GS IP SO BB GB% FIP
Brooklyn Cyclones 3-6 2.86 12/11 63 67 15 53% 2.76
TOTAL 3-6 2.86 12/12 63 67 15 53% 2.76
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