I don’t know about you, but I miss the rated rookies subset and I think when and if Donruss ever gets their MLB license back they should definitely start producing them again. So in the meantime, I thought it would be fun to create a rated rookie set for this upcoming season. Unfortunately I’m sure Donruss owns the rights to the name so I have to come up a new name. I have come up my own name, which I’m sure has already been used, but what the hell, I’ll call them RIDICULOUS ROOKIES!
The rules are simple. To qualify the player has to have finished in at least AA or higher at the end of the 2008 season. They can have MLB time but no more than 150 at bats or no more than 50 innings pitched. These are all players that should make an impact in 2009. If you have any graphics skills come up with a logo and I’ll send you some bad wax. I’ve got my list and I’m counting backwards from 20 to 1. Let me know what you think. Note – the new logo was submitted by blog reader David Parnes. Please let me know what you think or if you have another idea submit it.
16 – Ridiculous Rookies – Brett Wallace
Player Name: Brett Wallace
Player’s Team: St. Louis Cardinals
Will he start the year in the majors this year?: Yes, maybe even around May.
Position: 3B maybe SS
Outlook for this season: Brett is on the express train to the majors. He has slapped the ball silly in the minors, starting with low A and moving up to AA. He should get an invite to spring training, but will end up in either AA or AAA. My immediate guess is AAA. He should be up in the bigs by no later than May. He has been fast tracked, although I don’t know what they are going to do with Glaus. I’m sure you might see some platooning, or you might see Wallace work from short stop where he needs to just beat Khalil Green. There are quite a few prospects ahead of him, but he is definitely the guy to beat. Last season he hit 0.337/8/36 in 202 at bats. He did hit for power in college, so expect those numbers to go up. Very exciting player to watch, he is my sleeper for Rookie of the Year. Think Longoria type numbers without the speed.
His future: Should become the everyday third baseman for the Cardinals for years to come. I would say that he might be in the Robin Ventura mold. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a 0.280/20-30/85-100 for an average season from him.
Card Values:I’ve seen autos go for $5 which is a steal, his rookie cards are going for $1, the game used and auto combo cards are around $15-20. This could be the card to get in 2009, but let’s see how he is out of Spring Training.
