Ranking AL Central farm systems

Marlin Levison, Dml - Minneapolis Star Tribune S

Deolis Guerra is one of the three pitching prospects the Twins acquired from the Mets for Johan Santana.

By LA VELLE E. NEAL III , Star Tribune

Last update: March 29, 2008 - 3:03 PM

1. Twins They already had well-regarded prospects such as lefthander Tyler Robertson and catcher Wilson Ramos and outfielders Joe Benson and Ben Revere. But the Twins' work during the offseason, when they added rigththanders Deolis Guerra and Kevin Mulvey and outfielders Carlos Gomez and Jason Pridie through trades, has added depth and could lift them into a top-10 farm system by next season.

2. Indians Righthander Adam Miller is highly regarded, and third baseman Beau Mills -- if he can remain a third baseman -- is a legitimate power prospect at a position where it's hard to develop great talent. Lefthander Aaron Laffey has a chance of being a solid middle-of-the-rotation starter. Third baseman Wes Hodges has a better chance of sticking at third than Mills.

3. Royals You are already seeing the promise that third baseman Alex Gordon and DH-first baseman Billy Butler have. They are no longer considered prospects, but shortstop Mike Moustakas and righthanders Luke Hochevar and Daniel Cortes have scouts raving. The problem is that there's a dropoff after this trio of top-end talent. Not good for a team that's the caboose of the AL Central.

4. Tigers Righthander Rick Porcello hasn't thrown a pitch because he was a late signing last year, but Baseball America already compares him to Justin Verlander. Wow. The Tigers farm system falls off after that, partially because they shipped other top prospects to the Marlins in the Miguel Cabrera-Dontrelle Willis trade. Keep an eye on first base prospect Jeff Larish, who hit 28 homers and had 87 walks at Class AA Erie last year.

5. White Sox The White Sox have a few aging, slow players, and overall athleticism should be a concern. Their farm system promises nothing great in the near future. Righthander Lance Broadway could break through this season but has a fastball around 90 miles per hour and needs to cut down on walks. Lefthander Aaron Poreda has a mid- to high-90s fastball but needs to develop other pitches and might end up a closer.

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