PERFECT GAME CROSSCHECKER'S TOP TEN LIST
WEEK 9: 3/03/08 - 3/09/08
 
DOMINICANS MISSING FROM QUALIFIER
Friday March 7, 2008
An Olympic qualifying tournament that has eight nations competing for the remaining three berths in the baseball competition at this year’s Beijing Olympics began today in Taiwan. The eight participants failed to qualify in regional competition, so this effectively is a second-chance tournament for each.

Teams from Australia, Canada, Germany, Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, Spain and host Taiwan will participate in a round-robin tournament with the three teams with the best records advancing. The tournament runs through March 14. The three survivors will join Cuba, Japan, the Netherlands, the United States and China (the host country) in the eight-team Olympic field. The Olympics are scheduled from Aug. 8-24.

Noticeable by their absence from the Olympic baseball competition are the three countries—Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Venezuela—which rank right behind the U.S. in number of major leaguers produced in 2007. Of 1,280 players that were in the big leagues last year, 328 (or 25.6 percent) came from outside the U.S. The Dominican Republic produced 128 of the foreign players (down 17 from 2006), followed by Venezuela at 73 and Puerto Rico at 36. Yet none of those countries is represented in the Olympic baseball competition.

Meanwhile, the four other countries besides the U.S. that have already qualified combined to produce just 23 big leaguers in 2007—though Japan has its own major league and Cuba prohibits its top players from playing professionally. The Netherlands had one big leaguer in 2007, China none.

In all, 16 different countries were represented on major league rosters a year ago. Excluding the U.S., which had 952 players, here are the top talent-producing nations in 2007:
 
Ranking Country ’07 Big Leaguers
1. *Dominican Republic 128
2. *Venezuela 73
3. *Puerto Rico 36
4. Canada 20
5. Mexico 16
6. Japan 14
7. Cuba 8
8. Australia 7
  *Panama 7
10. South Korea 6
*Not represented in Olympic baseball competition
-- Allan Simpson Top Ten List Archives
KENTUCKY ON MY MIND
Tuesday March 4, 2008
Kentucky has never been confused as a baseball hotbed. Basketball and horse racing maybe, but not baseball. With 55 players who attended Kentucky high schools drafted in the last four years, the state ranked just 27th nationally.

But 2008 could be a year for the ages in Kentucky’s checkered baseball history. The state is loaded with high-end talent at both the college and high school levels. The college ranks should produce two first-rounders, with several others knocking on the door. On its master list of the top 1,500 high school prospects for this year’s draft, Kentucky has four players in the top 25.

Lexington, in particular, will be a popular destination for scouts this spring. The state’s second-largest city is home to the University of Kentucky, which has several potential early-round selections, notably 6-foot-8 righthander Scott Green. The high school ranks feature Lexington Catholic High lefthander Nick Maronde and Lexington Christian High lefthander Robbie Ross.

To date, no college hitter may be swinging as hot a bat as Kentucky senior outfielder Sawyer Carroll, who was hitting .600-5-23 as the Wildcats raced out to a 9-0 start. He had homered in a school-record four straight games after homering just three times all last year.

Through the years, the Kentucky high school ranks have produced 16 first-round picks, including lefthander Jeremy Sowers twice—out of a Louisville high school as an unsigned first-rounder in 2001, out of Vanderbilt three years later. Morehead State lefthander Drew Hall, the third pick in 1984, is the state’s highest draft pick ever. Shortstop Johnnie LeMaster (1973, sixth overall) and outfielder Austin Kearns (1998, seventh overall) are the highest picks to sign directly out of the Kentucky high school ranks.

As for this year, here’s how we see Kentucky’s 10 best prospects for the 2008 draft:
 
Ranking Player, Pos., School Projected Round
1. Christian Friedrich, lhp, Eastern Kentucky U. Mid-1st
2. Scott Green, rhp, U. of Kentucky 1st
3. Daniel Webb, rhp, Heath HS, Paducah Supplemental 1st
4. Zack Cox, 3b, Pleasure Ridge Park HS, Louisville 2nd
5. Robbie Ross, lhp, Lexington Christian HS 2nd
6. Nick Maronde, lhp, Lexington Catholic HS 2nd
7. Chris Dominguez, 3b, U. of Louisville 3rd-4th
8. Chris Rusin, lhp, U. of Kentucky 3rd-4th
9. Collin Cowgill, of, U. of Kentucky 4th-6th
10. Sawyer Carroll, of, U. of Kentucky 5th-7th
-- Allan Simpson Top Ten List Archives
GRIFFEY ASCENDS TO HEAD OF CLASS
Monday March 3, 2008
With the growing likelihood that Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens have reached the end of the line and won’t play this season, Major League Baseball’s active career leader board is in line for a significant shakeup. Bonds is the career leader in homers (762), RBIs (1,996) and on-base percentage (.444), among other categories; Clemens ranks No. 1 in wins (354) and strikeouts (4,672).

Bonds’ place as the active career home run leader will in all likelihood be taken by Ken Griffey Jr., assuming that free agent Sammy Sosa, who has 609 career homers, also isn’t signed by a club and doesn’t play in 2008. Griffey has 593 homers. He would also assume the active career RBI lead at 1,701. In both categories, he is not close to overtaking Bonds any time soon.

Clemens, however, could be passed in both career wins and strikeouts in his absence. Greg Maddux has 347 career wins—just seven shy of Clemens’ total. Randy Johnson has 4,616 strikeouts, just 56 behind Clemens.

Assuming that Bonds and Sosa (and Mike Piazza, who currently ranks 10th with 427 homers) have played their final big league games, here’s how the active career home run leader board looks heading into the 2008 season:
 
Ranking Player, 2008 Team Career HR
1. Ken Griffey, Reds 593
2. Alex Rodriguez, Yankees 518
3. Frank Thomas, Blue Jays 513
4. Jim Thome, White Sox 507
5. Manny Ramirez, Red Sox 490
6. Gary Sheffield, Tigers 480
7. Carlos Delgado, Mets 431
8. Chipper Jones, Braves 386
9. Andruw Jones, Dodgers 368
10. Vladimir Guerrero, Angels 365
  Jeff Kent, Dodgers 365
-- Allan Simpson Top Ten List Archives