Over the fall, I did a set of prospect lists for each position.  This week I update them after all the moves this winter.  Some players went up, some when down.  Mostly, prospects were down-graded when a free agent was signed blocking a job.

Catchers
Grade A
1.) Jarrod Saltalamacchia - The Rangers have decided not to move him to first, but they haven't committed to him as the starter.  He'll have to battle Gerald Laird in Spring and if he loses it could be a trip to Triple-A to get everyday at-bats.
2.) J.R. Towles – Damn, he is losing his secret pick status.
Grade B
3.) Geovany Soto Still the Starter.
4.) Kurt Suzuki - Suzuki moves up one because the A's have committed to a Suzuki/Bowen battery behind the plate and that means more at-bats for Suzuki.
5.) Miguel Montero - Moves down one because of sharing at-bats.
Grade C
6.) Jesus Flores - Drops from a B to a C because of the signing of Johnny Estrada.  With Estrada and Lo Duca on the roster, Flores will play in Triple-A.
7.) Curtis Thigpen - Backup
8.) Guillermo Rodriguez - Backup

First Base
Grade A
1.) Daric Barton - Moves up a notch because the A's have gone to rebuilding mode.  That means no DH signing ensuring Barton a full-time job.
2.) Joey Votto - Has to battle for a job with a resigned Scott Hatteberg.  If he looses the battle, then he'll go to Triple-A.
3.) Billy Butler - Has made some significant improvements defensively in Winter Ball.  Now he's a projected 1b-5e10 instead of a 1b-5e20.
Grade C
4.) Steve Pearse - He's been told that he's most likely going to Triple-A next year.  He's going to need to have one heck of a Spring to change peoples' minds.
5.) Garrett Jones - The Santana deal does not include a DH so Jones is still the only left-handed power in the minors.

Second Base
Grade A
Grade B
Grade C
1.) Danny Richar - The trade for Orlando Cabrera means that Juan Uribe moves to second.  I've also heard that Uribe makes a better utility infielder because he's a better shortstop and the White Sox are not happy with his bat.  We won't know until the end of Spring Training, but I'm going to guess the veteran wins and Richar because a utility player.
2.) Alexi Casilla - The Twins have rebuilt their infield this off-season, so Casilla stays in the doghouse.
3.) Delwyn Young – He can hit, but his defense is so bad that second base isn’t really an option.  It is the one place he’d play everyday.
4.) Mike Fotenot - Still has to fight for the utility job.

Third Base
Grade A
1.) Ryan Braun – With the signing of Mike Cameron, he’s going to move to left field.  Still, his card is a monster and he’s that good.
2.) Alex Gordon – The best true third baseman.
Grade B
3.) Mark Reynolds – The big question is who will lose playing time then Chad Tracy comes back.  I’m going to guess that it is Conor Jackson, not Mark Reynolds.
4.) Josh Fields – With the White Sox / Giants deal, Fields’ competition, Joe Crede, is gone.
5.) Andy LaRoche – He’ll fight Nomar Garciaparra for the job, but I think that competition is just to motivate LaRoche.
6.) Ian Stewart – The Rockies are working with him to see if he can win the second base job.
7.) Akinori Iwamura – You get a decent card this year, then he moves to second.
Grade C
8.) Jack Hannahan – With Eric Chavez still healing, he might get regular playing time early.
9.) Travis Metcalf – Might make the team as a utility player.
10.) Joel Guzman – I have no idea how the Rays will use Guzman.  Probably best to stay away until you know.

Shortstop
Grade A
1.) Asdrubal Cabrera – Right now he plays second.  Eventually, he plays short.
2.) Yunel Escobar – The advantage of Escobar has over Cabrera is that Escobar will be a shortstop now.
Grade B
3.) Luis Hernandez – Missed him when I did shortstops.  With the trade of Miguel Tejada, Hernandez is the leading candidate to start at third.  He doesn’t walk, lacks power, and won’t hit for average.  He does have the best chance of a full-time job and that makes him a Grade B player.

Center Field
Grade A
1.) Cameron Maybin – Trade to the Marlins means that he is likely to start.
2.) Jacob Ellsbury – Although the Red Sox nation loves him, he still has to fight for playing time from CoCo Crisp.
Grade B
3.) Josh Hamilton – Drops to a Grade-B because I failed to recognize that he really struggles against left-handed pitching.  Trade to Texas helps his power, however.
4.) Michael Bourn – Will start in Houston.  Only his lack of power drops him to a B.
5.) Carlos Gomez – Moves from left to center and starts for the Twins if the Mets and Johan Santana can agree to a contract extension.
5.) Felix Pie – Surprisingly, still projected to start for the Cubs.  We’ll see how long that lasts.
6.) Morgan Nyjer – The starter for the Pirates.
Grade C
7.) Elijah Dukes – Has to fight Lastings Milledge for the job in center.  He’s had a whole off-season of model citizenship.
8.) Josh Anderson – Traded to the Braves to be the center fielder of the future.
9.) Alejandro De Aza – Might start for the Marlins if Cameron Maybin needs some addition time to refine his game.  Even then, it won’t be long before he’s a #4 outfielder.
10.) Jerry Owens – The trade for Nick Swisher makes him a #4 outfielder.
11.) David Murphy – Lost his job when the Rangers traded for Josh Hamilton.

 Left / Right Field
Grade A
1.) Justin Upton – He’s the real deal and is an ideal player to pick up as a middle first-round pick.
2.) Hunter Pence – Only is the #2 player because of his unorthodox play.  I’m concerned that his 110% effort / body sacrificing defense means that he’ll be on the DL.
Grade B
3.) Travis Buck – Gets on a base like a good A’s player does but lacks power and durability.
Grade C
4.) Nate Schierholtz - #4 Outfielder.
5.) Ben Francisco - #4 Outfielder.
6.) Brett Carroll - #4 Outfielder
7.) Kory Casto – A hugely disappointing season means he’s no longer a prospect.

Next week, I'll look at the starting pitchers one more time. 

JP Kastner is the winner of the 2007 Strat-O-Matic Baseball Online Expert League World Series.  In five seasons of SOMBOE, JP Kastner has five winning seasons, four playoff appearances, three World Series appearances and now one World Championship.  He is in his second season in the Tout Wars mixed league.