Decent article in the Salem paper today that discusses the role of player development in the minors. Several players are discussed (Flores, Sheldon, Hart)with some observations fromRickey Bennett.
http://www.roanoke.com/sports/baseball/wb/wb/xp-115880"In the Carolina League, Bennett said, "we look for command of all three pitches. If they can locate the fastball to both sides of the plate, consistently get the breaking ball over the plate -- 50 to 55 percent, the goal is 60 percent -- and the third pitch occasionally for strikes.""
On Chris Sampson - "If a guy shows success, even though they don't [fit a] profile, we put the next challenge in front of them. Chris, he did that. There were always critics that said he's not big enough, but he just keeps having success. ... Now he's in the big leagues. He's not very big but he keeps defying the odds."
"Flores profiles as a prototypical center fielder," Bennett said.
"He can run, throw, he's got good speed on the bases. Typically as a center fielder he's a guy that can hit in the top two in the order."
