Hawaii Winter Baseball Update

Here's my second article that can be found at Project Prospect: The Hawaiian Winter Baseball league is heating up. Players are getting acclimated to the time and culture shifts while playing an exciting brand of baseball. Let's take a closer look at some of the players making waves in paradise: Matt Wieters C - Honolulu Sharks (Baltimore) Batting line thru 8 games: .308/.424/.423 These articles could be renamed the "Weekly Matt Wieters Reports." All eyes have been on Wieters in his first foray into professional ball, and in the early going he has been impressive. Wieters got off to a somewhat tepid start in the league's first week of action – batted just .222 – but he’s 6 for his past 17 and has seen his batting average raise almost 100 points in a week. His best game of the young season was on Friday October 12. The talented backstop went 2-for-3 with a double, a walk, and 3 RBI. Austin Jackson CF - Honolulu Sharks (NY Yankees) 11 games: .244/.333/.341, 5 SB Jackson has showed what makes him an exciting prospect as well as what makes you scratch your head and wonder sometimes. He's hit safely in 5 of the past 6 Sharks games, collecting multiple hits in three of those, but he continues his disturbing strikeout to walk ratio. After whiffing 109 times and drawing 33 free passes across three levels in the Yankees farm system this year, Jackson has a nearly identical 3:1 mark in the HWB with 15 K's and 5 BB's. If the 20-year-old could start laying off a few of the pitches outside the zone, he would catapult himself into the upper echelon of prospects. Brad Suttle 3B - Honolulu Sharks (NY Yankees) 8 games: .000/.222/.000, 6 BB, 8 K The former University of Texas star has had a rough go in the extremely early part of his pro career. Suttle decided to leave college early with the encouragement of his family and the $1.3 million dollar deal that the sophomore 4th round pick inked just prior to the deadline. Suttle got his feet wet in affiliated ball, playing in three games for the Gulf Coast Yankees and going 1-for-8 at the plate. That one hit has been the only one for Suttle now in 29 professional at bats. The switch-hitter should eventually put up some nice averages, as he possesses very good plate discipline. Daniel Bard P - Honolulu Sharks (Red Sox) 5 games: 1.93 ERA, 4.2 IP A first round pick by the Red Sox in 2006, Bard was selected on the strength of a fantastic collegiate career at North Carolina – where he teamed with current Tigers' flame-thrower Andrew Miller – and a fastball that can truly dominate hitters. As tremendous has Bard's stuff is, he has been somewhat erratic on the hill. Bard walked 78 hitters in 75 minor league innings this year. Boston sent him to Hawaii with the hopes that a view filled with the ocean, palm trees, and hula girls would get him in the right frame of mind. In 4.2 innings of work Bard has struck out 4 and walked 3 but none of those freebies have come in his last 3 outings. As much as any facet of any particular player's game, Bard's control is one to keep an eye on this HWB season. Kris Medlen P - Honolulu Sharks (Braves) 5 games: 0.00 ERA, 5.2 IP, 12 K A converted shortstop, Medlen had one of the better minor league seasons that got no attention. He struck out 63 and posted a 1.53 ERA over 47 innings across three levels in the Braves system. Medlen gets docked points for his size, 5-foor-10, 175-pounds, but he throws 92-93 mph with his fastball and both his curve and over hand change-up are good offerings. What makes Medlen really interesting, besides his stuff, is his control. He only walked 12 batters in affiliated action this summer and is yet to walk a single batter this winter. Medlen will probably start next year in Double-A but he could make his way into the Braves bullpen before next year is out. Brett Sinkbeil P - North Shore Honu (Marlins) 2 games: 1.50 ERA, 6 IP, 6 K Selected in the first round of the 2006 amateur draft out of Missouri State, Sinkbeil has posted decent strike out rates, good control, and a demonstrated ability to induce ground balls. Florida had high hopes for Sinkbeil coming into this year, but an oblique injury limited him to just 14 starts. On Monday, the 8th, he started his second game of the year versus Honolulu. He held the Sharks hitless thru his 4.0 innings of work while retiring 5 on strikes. When healthy he's one of the better pitching prospects around, and a team like Florida who has to develop their staff from within will be keeping a close eye on his medical reports as much as his performance. Jamie Romak OF - North Shore Honu (Pittsburgh) 10 games: .273/.429/.424, 8 BB, 13 K Romak is your classic "to heck with batting average" hitter. The big Canadian outfielder hit just .256 this year but got on base at a .383 clip while slugging .496. The good news is that Romak hit 20 homers and walked 64 times, the bad is that he struck out 114 times in 363 at bats. Romak has continued those paces in the first couple weeks for North Shore as he has either walked struck out or homered in 22 of his 41 plate appearances. Romak has three-true-outcome All-Star written all over him, though he may need to alter his take-and-rake approach with two strikes. Bud Norris P - North Shore Honu (Houston) 2 games: 5.2 IP, 4 BB, 12 K Norris is one of the most exciting pitchers to watch in Hawaii, unless you're one of his fielders. He struck out 117 in 96.0 innings of work in the South Atlantic League this year, issuing 41 walks. In his first HWB outing Norris got all 5 outs on strikes over his 1.2 innings pitched, however he also allowed three runs. His second outing was much better as he worked 4 hitless innings, whiffing 7. The Cal Poly alum has one of the best arms in the league and with a little refinement could be special. Anthony Hatch INF - West Oahu CaneFires (Toronto) 8 games: .438/.474/.563 Hatch has been arguably the best hitter in Hawaii so far. He’s coming off a disappointing year in which he only managed a .249/.305/.418 line in Florida State League play, just a year after tearing the Midwest League up to the tune of .314/.406/.548. A second baseman by trade, Toronto gave the executive order to move Hatch around the infield. While the defensive spectrum has broadened for Hatch, his bat has regained its 2006 form. The mixture of good contract ability, zone recognition and power along with defensive flexibility could make him a very valuable utility player in the bigs.