I have a somewhat full schedule for you today. Here's the chart showing probable opening day 2B and 3B, followed by my review of the minor league portion of the Rule Five draft. I'd like to comment on some of this week's activity, but I don't really have much to add to Jess' last several articles.

American League
Team	2B	%	Alternative	3B	%	Alternative
AL East
BAL	Hairston	80	Roberts	Batista/Conine	40/25	Trade/FA
BOS	Offerman/FA	70	Stynes/Santos	Hillenbrand	80	Stynes/Trade
NYY	Soriano	99	E.Wilson	Ventura	95	Henson
TB	Abernathy	95	Smith/Johnson	Huff/Sandberg	65/25	Smith/FA
TOR	Bush/Hudson	60/30	Woodward	E.Hinske	95	Woodward
AL Central
CHW	Durham	95	Valentin	Crede/Valentin	45/45	Liefer
CLE	Gutierrez	85	Jol.Cabrera	Fryman	80	Branyan
DET	Easley	95	Paquette	Paquette	75	D.Young
KC	Febles	85	Alicea	Randa	95	Alicea
MIN	Rivas	99	Hocking	Koskie	99	Hocking
AL West
ANA	Kennedy	95	Gil/Spiezio	Glaus	99	Spiezio
OAK	Menechino	45	German/Ellis	E.Chavez	99	Saenz/Grabowski
SEA	FA/McLemore	60/35	A.Arias	Cirillo	99	McLemore
TEX	M.Young	95	Catalanotto	Lamb/Perry	45/45	Catalanotto
National League
Team	2B	%	Alternative	3B	%	Alternative
NL East
ATL	M.Giles	90	DeRosa/Furcal	V.Castilla	90	C.Jones/Betemit
FLO	L.Castillo	99	A.Fox	M.Lowell	99	K.Millar
MON	J.Vidro	99	Mordecai/Blum	F.Tatis	95	Blum/Mordecai
NYM	Alomar	99	Relaford	Alfonzo	99	Relaford
PHI	M.Anderson	99	Jordan/T.Perez	Rolen	80	Trade/K.Jordan
NL Central
CHC	DeShields/Hill	85/10	Bellhorn	Mueller	95	Bellhorn
CIN	T.Walker	90	Reese/J.Castro	B.Larkin	90	Reese/Guerrero
HOU	Biggio	99	Vizcaino	Truby/Ensberg	45/45	Ginter
MIL	R.Belliard	85	Loretta	Loretta/Houston	55/25	L.Lopez/Trade
PIT	Meares/Morris	45/25	Nunez/Benjamin	A.Ramirez	99	Benjamin
STL	Vina	95	Polanco	Pujols	85	Polanco
AL West
ARI	Counsell/J.Bell	55/40	Spivey	M.Williams	90	Colbrunn
COL	J.Ortiz	95	Butler/Shumpert	FA/Norton	55/25	Shumpert/Butler
LA	Grudzielanek	85	Bocachica/Trade	Beltre	99	Hiatt/Hansen
SD	D.Jimenez	90	Jackson/Crespo	S.Burroughs	95	Nevin/Crespo
SF	Kent	99	R.E.Martinez	Feliz/Trade	55/15	R.E.Martinez/FA

Hopefully this will help will some of your trade bait/targets. As before, if I haven't rated a player as at least a 50% chance of starting at a particular position on Opening Day, you probably want to look elsewhere to fill that particular position.

Rule Five Draft Review: Minor League Phase

Teams can keep their selections at any level. AAA players cost $12,000 each, and AA players cost $4,000 each.

Triple A Round One

Tampa Bay: David Hawk, LHP, PIT.
Brief bio: 22, B:L, T:L. On disqualified list from July 22,1998-January 7, 1999. On suspended list from June 18-October 28, 1999. He has less than 70 IP in two seasons at low-A and Rookie ball. He's walked more than he's struck out without striking out anywhere close to an impressive number of hitters.
Upside/ETA: Too soon to tell.
Quality of pick: Questionable.

Pittsburgh: Eddie Ramos, RHP, TEX
Brief bio: Decent season in relief in the Rookie Appalachian League, with 30:8 KK:B in 31.2 IP. No other biographical information available.
Upside/ETA: Too soon to tell.
Quality of pick: Acceptable.

Baltimore: Willy Serrano, RHP, DET
Brief bio: 20, B:R, T:R. Four years in Tiger system, with the last two at high-A Lakeland. Significantly improved his numbers this season, with a 56:28 BB:K ratio in 82.1 IP.
Upside/ETA: Middle relief. Late 2004.
Quality of pick: Solid.

Kansas City: Tydus Meadows, OF, CHC
Brief bio: 23, B:R, T:R. Improved plate discipline to 40:57 BB:K in 197 AB at AA West Tennessee, along with a .915 OPS in 2001. Showed solid tool in the Midwest League in 1999, and has started to translate those into production at the upper levels. Inconsistent strike zone judgement.
Upside/ETA: Fourth outfielder unless he can maintain growth. Late 2003.
Quality of pick: Very good.

Detroit: Chris Keelin, RHP, PHI
Brief bio: 24, B:R, T:R. A little old for the Florida State League, but still managed a 87:40 K:BB in 72 IP while allowing a miniscule 44 hits. These numbers are very similar to his Sally league stats, a clear indication of significant promise if he can keep his stuff under control.
Upside/ETA: Short relief. Should compete for a bullpen job in 2003.
Quality of pick: Excellent.

Milwaukee: Jaisen Randolph, OF, NYM
Brief bio: 22, B:S, T:R. A speed freak lost from the Cubs on waivers in the middle of the season. He's developed solid plate discipline over the last few years at a severe cost to his batting average, apparently not making enough contact to justify the increased walk levels. He has little power and poor baserunning instincts as indicated by a 23:19 SB:CS ratio in AA this season. Randolph has the tools to be successful, but doesn't appear to have the necessary skills.
Upside/ETA: Fifth outfielder. 2004.
Quality of pick: Acceptable.

Texas: Jeff Pickler, 2B, MIL
Brief bio: 25, B:L, T:R. Pickler had an interesting year while repeating AA Huntsville for the third time, posting a 60:51 BB:K ratio and 34:14 SB:CS while only managing a .687 OPS. I think he'll have some success at AAA, but he doesn't seem to have enough power to succeed in the majors.
Upside/ETA: Utility infielder with a little speed and OBP. Mid-2003.
Quality of pick: Excellent considering that Texas lost 5 second basemen as minor league free agents and needed to replenish system depth. A solid pick for any other team.

Colorado: Cristian Berroa, SS, HOU
Brief bio: 22, B:S, T:R. Received experience at three different levels of the minors as an organizational fill-in. Possesses significant speed without much probable offense at higher levels. Doesn't control the strike zone or drive the ball, and played inconsistent defense this season.
Upside/ETA: Pinch-runner and possibly utility shortstop. 2005.
Quality of pick: Questionable.

Anaheim: Hatuey Mendoza, RHP, ARI
Brief bio: 21, B:R, T:R. Has never showed acceptable command (2 K:BB) or any above average strikeout potential at the lower levels of the minors. He's pitched in the Arizona system for five years without showing much progress. He can hold his own at A-ball, but I have serious doubts as to any possibility for advancement.
Upside/ETA: AAA Innings-eater. 2005.
Quality of pick: Acceptable.

Toronto: Josh Klimek, SS, MIL
Brief bio: 27, B:L, T:R. Solid power numbers with acceptable plate discipline. Klimek is a veteran minor leaguer to help at AA/AAA.
Upside/ETA: AAAA infielder. 2003.
Quality of pick: Solid. Toronto needed a veteran shortstop in the upper minors with all the prospect promotions and trades.

San Diego: Lavalroe Condor Cash, OF, CHC
Brief bio: 21, B:R, T:R. He's shown solid tools in short-season ball, posting a .982 OPS in his second year in the Northwest League. He has power potential and decent plate discipline, but hasn't had the chance to show off any other skills.
Upside/ETA: Too soon to tell.
Quality of pick: An excellent long-term gamble.

New York Mets: Omar Anez, RHP, BAL
Brief bio: 20, B:R, T:R. He's posted an ERA around 8.00 in two of his four seasons, and while he's slowly improved over the last few years, he's still had no success above short season A-ball.
Upside/ETA: Too soon to tell.
Quality of pick: Acceptable.

Chicago White Sox: Alex Fernandez, OF, SEA
Brief bio: 20, B:L, T:R. A solid Seattle prospect, I'm quite surprised they exposed him to this draft. His AA numbers weren't overly special, but he continues to show progress in both power and plate discipline, and I think he has a very good chance of turning into a solid player.
Upside/ETA: Starting outfielder. Late 2004.
Quality of pick: Superb.

Philadelphia: Jimmy Hamilton, LHP, BAL
Brief bio: 25, B:L, T:R. Hamilton's played at AAA for most of the past three years. He posted a combined 71:35 K:BB ratio in 85.1 IP between AAA and AA this year. His stuff doesn't appear overly impressive, but he could probably contribute in the bullpen as soon as next season.
Upside/ETA: Middle relief. 2003.
Quality of pick: Very good.

Minnesota: Jeromy Palki, RHP, CHC
Brief bio: 25, B:R, T:R. At AA New Britain this year, posted a 59:22 K:BB ratio with only 50 hits in 60.1 IP. I'm not sure when Minnesota lost him to the Cubs, but they wisely reclaimed him given the chance.
Upside/ETA: Short relief. Mid-2003.
Quality of pick: Excellent.

Los Angeles: Fernando Rijo, RHP, TEX
Brief bio: 23, B:R, T:R. He put up some very nice numbers in the Sally league, compiling a 128:54 K:BB ratio with only 107 hits allowed in 139 IP. I'm also not sure when LA lost him to Texas, but they also made the smart decision to reclaim him.
Upside/ETA: Bottom-of-the-rotation starter. Late-2005.
Quality of pick: Solid.

Cleveland: Brian Luderer, C, OAK
Brief bio: 22, B:R, T:R. He needs a lot more playing time before we'll know his status as a prospect, and didn't exactly acquit himself admirably in his first full-time exposure, lacking acceptable stats in almost every category. I'm interested to see how he performs in his second full year at AA since his plate disicpline was fairly solid until this season.
Upside/ETA: Backup catcher. Late-2004.
Quality of pick: Good.

Chicago Cubs: Brian Tokarse, RHP, CHW
Brief bio: 26, B:R, T:R. He had an excellent year in relief for AA Birmingham even though he should have been promoted to AAA from the beginning of the year. His 81:39 K:BB in 65.2 IP was even a significant improvement over last year's 52:28 in 42 IP. As long as his stuff remains under control, he could have several nice years in a major league bullpen.
Upside/ETA: Middle relief. Mid-2003.
Quality of pick: Excellent.

Oakland: Graham Koonce, 1B, SD
Brief bio: 26, B:L, T:L. A former 60th round pick, Koonce excelled in his first exposure to AA, posting a 89:83 BB:K ratio in 320 AB. His .873 OPS and only 3 errors in 83 games at 1B and OF put him in perfect position to contribute at the upper level minors for Oakland.
Upside/ETA: Starting 1B for a few years. 2004.
Quality of pick: Excellent.

San Francisco: Eric Herndon, RHP, ATL
Brief bio: 24, B:L, T:R. Compiled a 38:11 K:BB ratio in 44.2 IP at high-A Myrtle Beach. He missed all of 2000 with an injury, but has rebounded to a level even above his previous performance.
Upside/ETA: Middle relief. 2004.
Quality of pick: Very good.

Seattle: Ntema "Papy" Ndungidi, OF, BAL
Brief bio: 22, B:L, T:R. He left the AFL early last year due to some very unusual behavior, and his prospect status diminished enough to allow him to remain available for this portion of the draft. While he has both power and speed tools and showed good plate discipline in A-ball, he needs to rebound after a very bad year at AA Bowie. Ndungidi has a lot of upside but needs time to allow his skills to mature.
Upside/ETA: Starting OF. 2005.
Quality of pick: Very good.

Houston: Justin Lamber, LHP, KC
Brief bio: 25, B:R, T:L. He was demoted back to A-ball after a horrible year at AA Wichita in 2000. He put up very similar 2001 stats to his 1999 numbers but struggled badly upon a promotion to AA. Houston is potentially the worst possible plate for him since they have no high-A team for him to keep his confidence, and AA Round Rock is about the best hitters' park in the minors.
Upside/ETA: AAA middle relief. 2004.
Quality of pick: Poor.

St. Louis: Milko Jaramillo, SS, KC
Brief bio: 21, B:S, T:R. He's shown a little plate discipline and speed in rookie ball, but doesn't appear to have any significant offensive skills for the upper levels. On the other hand, he fits right in with the Cardinals' strategy of assembling as many useless "prospects" as possible.
Upside/ETA: Too soon to tell.
Quality of pick: Very questionable.

Triple A Round Two

Kansas City: Freddy DePaula, LHP, OAK
Brief bio: 20, B:L, T:L. Aside from being born left-handed and striking out about a batter per inning, I don't think DePaula has that much ability. He walks far too many batters, a trend that has not abated over his four years of professional experience. I hope KC sticks him back at low A-ball to allow him the chance to establish himself before any further promotion.
Upside/ETA: LOOGY (John Sickels' term for Lefty-One-Out-GuY). Late-2005.
Quality of pick: Acceptable.

Toronto: Clint Johnston, 1B, PIT
Brief bio: 24, B:L, T:L. Stop me if this sounds familiar: Pittsburgh drafts a top power hitter in the first round, and instead of adding another bat to a weak system, uses him at his less-preferred position of pitcher. Despite occasional dominance, Johnston showed very little overall control. Toronto's making a solid gamble with this pick, and while I may be blindly accepting everything Ricciardi does right now as logical moves, this appears to be another low-risk, high-upside move.
Upside/ETA: Too soon to tell.
Quality of pick: Excellent gamble.

Minnesota: Joe Dillon, 1B, KC
Brief bio: 25, B:R, T:R. His plate discipline fell off this year while he posted his best power season to date while playing all around the infield. He doesn't have significant upside, but could wind up as a decent major leaguer for a couple years. I'm surprised Kansas City let him go, as he could post very interesting numbers in Minnesota's hitter-friendly AAA park.
Upside/ETA: 1B/3B Reserve. Late-2003.
Quality of pick: Very good.

Los Angeles: Cade Sanchez, RHP, OAK
Brief bio: 24, B:L, T:R. He struck out almost a batter an inning but walked well over a man for every two strikeouts in relief at high-A Modesto. While he has the stuff to advance to higher levels, I have significant questions about his command. He's at least a few years away from solidly contributing in the upper minors.
Upside/ETA: Middle relief. 2005.
Quality of pick: Good gamble.

Oakland: Sonny Garcia, RHP, BAL
Brief bio: 24, B:R, T:R. While he was a little old for his competition, Garcia pitched lights-out the entire season. He posted a 139:33 K:BB in 143 IP at high-A Frederick before a 21:9 K:BB mark in 28.1 IP over 5 starts at AA Bowie. While he needs a little more development time, I see no reason why he can't compete for a rotation spot as soon as 2003 if he succeeds in Oakland's minors. How does Baltimore let this guy go when they desperately need to add more prospects?
Upside/ETA: Middle-rotation starter. 2004.
Quality of pick: Excellent.

San Francisco: Aaron Nieckula, C, OAK
Brief bio: 24, B:R, T:R. He doesn't really have enough tools to have significant success in the upper minors, and his plate discipline is weak enough where he didn't really fit in with Oakland's system. He could eventually contribute as a backup, but needs several more years of experience first.
Upside/ETA: Backup catcher. Late-2006.
Quality of pick: Questionable.

Seattle: Dominic Woody, C, FLO
Brief bio: 22, B:R, T:R. Aside from some marginally decent defense, he's done very little in two years at low-A Kane County of the Midwest League. Florida selected him in the 4th round of the 1999 draft from the University of Washington, so maybe returning to his hometown organization will inspire Woody to improve his level of play.
Upside/ETA: AAA defensive catcher without significant improvement. 2005.
Quality of pick: Acceptable.

St. Louis: Juan Mejia, RHP, SD
Brief bio: He didn't really show much in 2001 at the lowest levels of the minors, so I'm not sure why the Cardinals expect future success from him. No other biographical information is available at this time.
Upside/ETA:
Quality of pick: Questionable.

Triple A Round Three

Los Angeles: Justin Dunning, RHP, NYM
Brief bio: 24, B:R, T:R. Dunning was moved to relief in high-A, and while he retained his K/IP ratio, his walks increased to give him a 64/62/65.1 K/BB/IP ratio. I'd let him start again since he appears too wild in relief to show much improvement.
Upside/ETA: Long relief. 2006.
Quality of pick: Acceptable

Seattle: Jason Lakman, RHP, BAL
Brief bio: 24, B:R, T:R. Lakman showed some pitching talent this year, but didn't post overly impressive ratios and was hit hard at every level. He's historically done better as a starter than in relief, so I hope the Mariners make room for him in their AA rotation to see if their gamble pays off.
Upside/ETA: Long relief. Mid-2004.
Quality of pick: Solid.

Triple A Round Four

Los Angeles: Randy Leek, LHP, DET
Brief bio: 24, B:L, T:L. Leek posted some very impressive numbers for AA Erie with a 123:27 K:BB ratio in 179.1 IP. His lack of dominance will keep him from an extremely successful career, but he certainly can contribute at the major league level.
Upside/ETA: Bottom-of-rotation starter/swingman. Late-2003.
Quality of pick: Very good.

Seattle: Jay Pecci, SS, OAK
Brief bio: 24, B:S, T:R. After losing 4 players in the major league phase of the Rule Five draft, including Jason Grabowski to Oakland, Seattle gets revenge by swiping Pecci from the deep Oakland system. He has solid plate discipline with a little power and speed, as well as the ability to play all around the infield. While he won't spend a significant amount of time in the majors, he could replace McLemore as a utility guy in one or two years.
Upside/ETA: Primary utility infielder. Mid-2003.
Quality of pick: Solid.

Double A Round One

Texas: Darin Moore, RHP, OAK
Brief bio: 24, B:R, T:R. He's had absolutely awful command in two stints at high-A ball, posting both a strikeout and walk per inning of work. Texas is gambling that his stuff is good enough to mature at a slower rate, and he might have some success in low-A ball in lieu of Oakland's forced advancement (due to their lack of a low-A team). I'd like to have seen more control at this point, but he's young enough where he could mature into a decent pitcher.
Upside/ETA: Too soon to tell.
Quality of pick: Good.

Anaheim: Rocky Hughes, LHP, CHW
Brief bio: 22, B:L, T:L. He has nice numbers the last two years in Rookie ball, but didn't have a good year at all in 2001 at both levels of A-ball. His K/9 was relatively poor, and he walked almost as many batters as the struck out. He's a long-term project with minimal upside at this point.
Upside/ETA: AAA reliever. Mid-2005
Quality of pick: Acceptable.

Seattle: Jason Pruitt, LHP, BAL
Brief bio: 20, B:L, T:L. He's shown very little in four years at the lowest minor league levels, and I hope Seattle will take their time advancing him. There's definitely a smidgen of skill here, but the odds aren't great of translating Gulf Coast League success all the way up the ladder.
Upside/ETA: Too soon to tell.
Quality of pick: Acceptable.

Boston: Yoiset Valle, LHP, CHW
Brief bio: 23, B:L, T:L. He's pitched very little over the last three years with injuries, and while he's had some success in the Sally league, he needs to get more reps at higher levels before we'll know his upside.
Upside/ETA: Too soon to tell.
Quality of pick: Good.

Chicago White Sox: Denny Wagner, RHP, OAK
Brief bio: 24, B:R, T:R. Wagner had a very good year in a demotion to A-ball. He's had solid success twice in the California League, but needs to keep challenging himself in AA to prove his prospect status. He doesn't rack up that many strikeouts, leaving him very dependent on solid command.
Upside/ETA: AAA starter. 2004.
Quality of pick: Good.

Chicago Cubs: John Powers, 2B, SD
Brief bio: 27, B:L, T:R. He should have played at AAA this year, but now needs to return to AA for a third consecutive year until he proves himself again to warrant a AAA trip. He has good plate discipline and solid doubles' power, along with relatively consistent defensive ability at 2B and 3B.
Upside/ETA: Benchwarmer in the majors or AAA starter. 2004.
Quality of pick: Good.

Arizona: Daniel Martinez, LHP, CHW
Brief bio: 22, B:L, T:L. Martinez has put up perfectly acceptable numbers in only 50 IP over the last three years in short-season ball. If he has good potential, he doesn't have enough stats to show it.
Upside/ETA: Too soon to tell.
Quality of pick: Acceptable.

St. Louis: Jeffrey Brooks, 3B, ARI
Brief bio: 21, B:R, T:R. He's shown no plate discipline in five minor league season, and his only power displays have occurred in great hitters' parks. I see no real skills that would enable him to find success at higher levels, so I'm again not quite sure what the Cardinals were thinking with this pick.
Upside/ETA: AA 3B. 2004.
Quality of pick: Very questionable.

A brief summary of where we're headed: First Basemen Week starts tomorrow, and we'll likely be discussing major league players non-stop for the next two weeks. I'd like to cover National Leaguers without a position and AL DHs next Sunday, and then we'll head right into two weeks of outfield coverage. The rest of January and beginning of February will be spent working our way through all the pitchers, leading right into projection discussions as Pitchers and Catchers report to spring training.

Today's Fantasy Rx: Think about your infield. 1B, whether you're spending $40 or $15, is a lot easier to fill than the other positions, and you now have enough information to plan much of your activity. We're already formulating our probable keeper lists and trade targets, and we'll update our files about every week until February. If you think you see a sleeper, go out and make a trade right now, especially if you think a trade will open up a position for someone.