Yoan Moncada sooner then later now!

Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reports that Cuban infielder Yoan Moncada is close to being granted free agency after it's been determined he no longer needs a specific unblocking license.
One source told Passan that Moncada could gain free agency in as little as two weeks. Passan also adds that the Yankees, Red Sox and Dodgers are considered the favorites to sign the Cuban, with the Cubs also a possibility (though they'd have to wait until July 2 to sign him). According to the report, Moncada’s signing bonus "should exceed $30 million and could go much higher." The club that signs him will also have to pay a lot in penalties for going over the international spending limit.

!

Heroes in the Top 100 Prospect Pipeline Addition.

8. Lucas Giolito, RHP, Washington
10. Noah Syndergaard, RHP, New York
11. Archie Bradley, RHP, Arizona
15. Robert Stephenson, RHP, Cincinnati
38. Tim Anderson, SS, Chicago White Sox
40. Jameson Taillon, RHP, Pittsburgh
44. Mark Appel, RHP, Houston
45. Stephen Piscotty, OF, St. Louis
49. Raimel Tapia, OF, Colorado
53. Sean Manaea, LHP, Kansas City
54. Chi Chi Gonzalez, RHP, Texas
62. Dilson Herrera, 2B, New York Mets
71. Christian Bethancourt, C, Atlanta
77. Garin Cecchini, 3B/LF, Boston
85. Kyle Crick, RHP, San Francisco
87. Manuel Margot, OF, Boston
90. Rafael Devers, 3B, Boston
97. Willy Adames, SS, Tampa Bay
HM Luis Torrens, C, New York Yankees
HM Amed Rosario, SS, New York Mets

18 in the Top 100 coming into the draft and two HM's.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2209149-mike-rosenbaums-official-year-end-top-100-mlb-prospect-rankings/page/3

Heroes in the Top 100 Prospects MILB Addition

#8 SP Lucas Giolito
#9 SP Archie Bradley
#10 SP Noah Syndergaard
#17 SP Robert Stephenson
#28 SP Jameson Taillon
#41 SP Mark Appel
#46 SP Kyle Crick
#51 OF Stephen Piscotty
#55 3B Garin Cecchini
#57 SP Mike Foltynewicz
#66 SP Sean Manaea
#76 SP Lance McCullers
#77 C Christian Bethancourt
#82 SS Tim Anderson
#87 SP Miguel Almonte
#89 OF Raimel Tapia
#93 SP Alex Gonzalez

16 with out any of the 2015 Draft picks added in.

Heroes in the Top 100 Prospects Baseball Haven Addition

10. Lucas Giolito, RHP, Washington Nationals
11. Archie Bradley, RHP, Arizona Diamondbacks
17. Noah Syndergaard, RHP, New York Mets
19. Robert Stephenson, RHP, Cincinnati Reds
28. Jameson Taillon, RHP, Pittsburgh Pirates
40. Kyle Crick, RHP, San Francisco Giants
44. Mark Appel, RHP, Houston Astros
46. Garin Cecchini, 3B, Boston Red Sox
50. Michael Foltynewicz, RHP, Houston Astros
63. Sean Manaea, LHP, Kansas City Royals
65. Christian Bethancourt, C, Atlanta Braves
67. Stephen Piscotty, OF, St. Louis Cardinals
73. Raimel Tapia, OF, Colorado Rockies
90. Tim Anderson, SS, Chicago White Sox

thats 14 on this list, with 15 unowned prospects from the upcoming draft this #1 will only grow.

12th Trade of the Offseason

Scared hitless gets
1st rd 1st overall*

* cannot be used to draft yoan moncada. If pick is traded by scared hitless the stipulation sticks to the pick and carries over to the new owner.

Heroes gets
Sp Noah Syndergaard
2b Dilson Herrera

Alright so this trade was a little shocking but here is the thought behind this one. I still get Moncada if he signs in time so while I traded the #1 pick I still get the top player in the draft at #2. At #2 I was going to take Carlos Rodon, Noah Syndergaard though is ranked higher on ever list so getting Syndergaard I felt was a key piece and adding Herrera on top of it I think made it a no brainer from my end. Yesterday Ben Badler reveled the hitters that where on his Top 20 overall prospects and on that list was Dilson Herrera... not bad. Both Dilson Herrera and Noah Syndergaard are close to the majors and should play in 2015.

On the flip side Rick can add Yasmani Tomas and his huge power to his playoff ready team. I liked Tomas but felt he was risky and that the package of Dilson Herrera and Noah Syndergaard was a lot safer. Plus of all the avengers Thor is the coolest one!

11th Trade of the Offseason

GI Zo's Get
1st rd 8th overall

Heroes Get
SP Archie Bradley

I felt there was not going to be a player of Bradley's skill level at pick #8 so as fun as it is to draft for the best intrest in for the team I pulled the trigger

10th Trade of the Offseason

Ccared Hitless trades a conditional pick to Kelly's Heroes for Michael Bourne. If Michael Bourne steals:
0-10 Bases = 10th round pick
11-19 bases= 8th round pick
20-29 bases= 6th round pick
30-39 bases= 4th round pick
40 or more bases= 3rd round pick

Thoughts on this trade are Michael Bourn has had his steal total cut huge each of the last 3 seasons. 63 to 42 to 23 to 10 and with out speed Bourne offers little value.

9th Trade of the Offseason

Kelly's Heroes trades
Mauling Tiger's 2016 3rd round pick,
Tom Cats' 2016 3rd round pick,
Ball Busters' 2016 4th round pick,
Rollin' Goats' 2016 4th round pick,
Scared Hitless' 2016 5th round pick,
BROB's Barnacles 2016 5th round pick,
and Trevor May

to Motley Shue for
a player to be named later.

If no player is named by the end of the 2015 draft, Motley Shue will trade Kelly's Heroes Motley Shue's 2017 1st round pick

Thoughts... Shue got really good value adding a number of those coveted Vegas picks. But the Heroes had 27 picks in that draft and need to get higher end pieces. The Heroes now have 9 1st rd picks between 2016 and 2017 drafts, with rumors of another 1st rounder to be added on a draft day trade.

8th Trade of the Offseason

Rolling Goats Gets
SP Jason Grilli

Heroes Get
7th rd 2016

Thoughts are pretty simple here I gave up a 38 year old RP that isn't a closer to make room for a younger player with more upside.

7th Trade of the Offseason

Heroes Gets
1st rd #1
1st rd #11

Brob Gets
1st rd #4
1st rd #6
1st rd #7

First major trade of the off-season for the Heroes. I really wanted two players in this draft and while there was a chance to get them at #2 and #4 I really like my chances at #1 and #2. I still feel good with where I am at in the 1st rd otherwise as well (that is easy to do with 10 1st rd picks) Heroes still own 1, 2, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 in the 1st rd.

Trade #6 of the Offseason

Heroes Get
2016 5th round
2016 8th round

Brob Gets
Jarrod Dyson
Andre Ethier
Matt Harrison

Heroes get a little lighter on guys who are not part of the future of this team and open the door to take a chance a few other guys that may have jobs this spring.

5th Trade of the Off Season

Your Mom trades
2015 10th round pick #155

to Kelly's Heroes for
Jake Smolinski (OF Tex)

Well not a sexy trade by any means, Ray gets a guy who has a chance to start this year (current starter on roto worlds left field depth chart for texas). Smolinski crushed last year at the MLB level we all saw that, but I don't see him as a long term starter. In a career 720 minor league games (over 2500 AB) he hit .263 and had 50HR and 52SB, not a huge help in the OF, while he does get a bonus of a .354 OBP that helps in our league, I didn't see him helping in the long term.

Kelly's Heroes Chat

Chris (Tampa): How good is Willy Adames? Having hard time sorting out his talent and attention he's getting against lack of depth in the Ray's system

Mark Anderson: It was even harder to sort out just how good Adames was when compared to the complete absence of depth in the Tigers system. I like Adames. I've seen him a fair bit, both right when he arrived in the States and a little bit in West Michigan this year. The defensive profile sits around average if the body matures as you'd expect from an athlete of his caliber, and I think he sticks at the position for a while, at least. I think the bat is going to play but he's going to have to evolve the approach a bit to really see his raw power manifest in games. I like Adames a lot but I'm not convinced he's a budding star quite yet. I've talked to scouts that turned him in as everything from a utility player to a high-6 talent; that's a wide gap and one that should narrow as he faces a little stiffer competition in the FSL in 2015.


Mike (Utica): Margot or Devers, who do you take?

Mark Anderson: This is tough. I really think I flip-flop on this every time I am asked. Right now I tend to be biased toward Margot because I have first-hand experience with the player, and I'm a sucker for an up the middle profile defensively. It is really close, but right now I lean Margot over Devers....and if Devers starts to realize the monstrous offensive potential he has, then I reserve the right to change my mind!


Drew (Washington, DC): Of the young hitters in the low minors, who has the highest ceiling? Are there any "franchise" type players with elite ceilings?

Mark Anderson: I won't suggest there are elite ceilings out there among the hitters in the lowest levels of the minors, as that's a pretty special player, but there are some really incredible players at the lowest levels....a guy like Rafael Devers has game-changing potential. Someone like Alex Jackson could be a beast. Eloy Jimenez carries a ton of risk but is really talented and could be the type of power prospect that is rare in today's game.


Bret tweeted that Rafael Devers may be the best J2 bat since Sano. Does Devers have that type of offensive potential?

Mark Anderson: I've touched on Devers a couple of times tonight....bottom line, yes, he does have that type of potential.


Mike (Utica): Gut feeling, who are the top 5 prospects after the 2015 season?

Mark Anderson: Giolito, Buxton, Correa, Urias, Russell.

Mark Anderson: Alright gang, I hate to run, but it's time for me to bow out and slide back to reality. Thanks again for coming with strong questions and I'll be sure to get on a more regular cycle of doing these chats! In the interim, any time you have questions, hit me up on Twitter (@ProspectMark).


Chris (Boston): How good is Rafael Devers? Does he have the talent/tools to become a top 10 prospect down the road? Would he be a serious candidate for #1 overall pick in the 2015 draft if he were eligible?

Mark Anderson: Devers is really good, particularly for a player of his age. His offensive projection is mammoth and if the body develops in a positive way and he finds a solid defensive home, then he's a potential All-Star caliber bat. The internal discussions on the player were really strong in our Red Sox ranking debate, and he could be a guy that really flies up the prospect lists, peaking in the top 10-15 in baseball over the next couple of years. Devers is a name that is going to be really, really well known in a very short amount of time.


Nick (Colorado): Do you think Tapia will be a top 25 prospect by the end of the 2015 season?

Mark Anderson: I really like Tapia's hitting ability, but the 2015 campaign may be a bit early for him to make that type of leap. I think he'll be close, but it would take a pretty enormous season in 2015, and I expect him to get challenged with some time in Double-A if things go well in the first half, meaning there are likely to be some developmental bumps next year...all before he explodes in 2016; that's my call.


Cal Guy (Cal): Hi Mark, As an expansion team in a dynasty league I get to select one pitcher and one hitter off any current team's roster as long as the player has not reached AA ball, or I can get the first two picks of unrostered players. I am leaning towards taking Giolito and Correa off existing rosters, but international free agents are fair game too, and Maeda and Tomas are available. The best player not rostered yet is Devers. What would you advise?

Mark Anderson: Dynasty league advice isn't really my area of expertise, so I would encourage you to reach out to folks like Bret Sayre, Craig Goldstein, Ben Carsley, etc., but I can try to give you some advice too. From a pure scouting standpoint, it's pretty hard to walk away from the raw potential of guys like Giolito and Correa. That's two of the top 5-10 prospects in the game with potential role 7 futures....Tomas and Maeda could both be really good players, but Giolito and Correa could be complete and utter superstars.


Chris (Baltimore): Stephenson or Appel? Who is more productive at the MLB level in 2015 and 2016?

Mark Anderson: This is an interesting question. Both have question marks right now and neither guy is a slam dunk to approach their ceiling in the next two years. There are still whispers that Stephenson ends up in the bullpen, though in my personal observations he has looked like a potential MLB starter. I also think that while Appel may come up short of the lofty expectations associated with his college hype and lofty draft status, he still ends up a solid MLB starter in pretty short order. I'd take Appel in 2015, but it becomes a lot tougher to discern once we get to 2016...