1985 Rookie of the Year Candidates

1985 Predictions

NL Rookie of the Year

In any season, choosing the rookie of the year can be a difficult task, just see my predictions from last year. Only four out of the ten names listed even garnered a single vote in the end of year voting. 1985 however, may be a different story. The top four prospects in all of baseball are set to make their debut at the start of the season for their respective teams. Surely, one of them can take home the hardware right? Let’s take a look at each one of them from top to bottom, based on OSA prospect ranking.

SP Milt Warburg – Philadelphia Phillies

Warburg has had high expectations ever since being drafted by the Phillies 7th overall in 1982, and so far he has lived up to all of them. Soon after being drafted, he was rated as the number 17 overall prospect in RLB and has only progressed from there. He first reached top overall prospect status in April of 1983 and has flipped back and forth between the number one and two spot ever since. His pure stuff will rival almost any starting pitcher in the league, featuring a fastball that tops out near 100 MPH and a hard biting slider. If he can develop another off-speed pitch, his stuff will be even scarier than it already is for NL hitters. While Spring Training numbers can be misleading, Warburg carried a respectable 3.18 ERA in his first taste against RLB hitters. Warburg also struck out 17 batters in 17 innings; the only point of concern to watch is the 10 BB also allowed over that span. Up to this point, he has not shown any struggles with control in his young career; most likely chalk it up to knocking off some rust after the off-season. Currently slotted into the #4 spot in a strong Phillies rotation, look for Warburg to pitch more like a top of the rotation starter once settled into an RLB role.

SP Kazuto Abe – Cincinnati Reds

The bidding war for Abe was the biggest story of the offseason in RLB. With numerous teams bidding and a couple withdrawing offers late in the game, even the Cincinnati GM seemed surprised to land the young starting pitcher out of Japan. Statistics may be hard to come by from overseas, but there is no doubting Abe’s talent. His stuff may not be overwhelming; he features a mid to low 90s sinker along with a plus circle change to go along with a decent slider. Abe impressed in Spring Training, going 21 IP before giving up a run and ending up with a 1.12 ERA over his 24 innings pitched. Despite some false reports out of camp, Abe has never suffered any sort of injury; his durability will be a big part of finding out whether or not his 10-year contract will be a success or failure. He makes $3.75 million in 1985, more than the combined payroll of the Baltimore Orioles. The signing of Abe made losing Adrian Pugh in a trade to California easier to swallow; even with the change the Reds still have the third best rotation in all of RLB. Abe projects to be the #2 starter in the stellar rotation, only behind perennial Pitcher of the Year contender Jeff Dunn. If he can live up to expectations, Cincinnati could have arguably the best 1-2 starters in RLB again.

SP/RP Danny Cervantes – Atlanta Braves

Word out of the Braves camp suggests that Cervantes will be starting the year out of the bullpen, but the talented right-hander still warrants discussion as one of the top rookies in the NL. Cervantes is the only one of the four top prospects with any RLB experience before 1985, although it is hard to judge much off a total of 1.1 IP that he logged at the end of the ’84 campaign. Originally discovered as an International Free Agent out of Venezuela by the Baltimore organization in 1979, Cervantes showed up in the top 100 prospects in July of 1981. Soon thereafter he was traded to the Braves, where he has continued to progress up the charts. His repertoire is highlighted by an elite curveball and fastball that tops out in the high 90s to go along with a plus splitter and circle change. There are only two concerns that keep Cervantes from having a ranking at the top of this list. He has struggled with back injuries a couple times in the prior season that could become more of an issue if it continues to pop up for him. Cervantes has also struggled with control in his minor league career; he allows 4.3 BB/9 through all levels combined. If he can lock down his control and stay on the field, it would be no surprise to see him in the Braves rotation by the end of the season.

SS Brian Lindsey – Colorado Rockies

Lindsey has made a quick rise through the Rockies’ system after being drafted 1st overall just last year. Scouted as the #3 overall prospect right away, he impressed in short season A ball, putting up a .259/.346/.489 slash line in 73 games. His success continued in the Winter League, slugging 17 Home Runs in only 218 at-bats. While his talent is still raw and not fully developed, the Rockies organization feels that Lindsey is ready for RLB competition. He may face some growing pains to start, but he is a rare 5-tool player that excels in all facets of the game. The thin air of Colorado will help; do not confuse him with some other Colorado players of past seasons that only succeed because of the extra aid however. His power and contact abilities play in any park, and he will draw plenty of walks as well to boost his OBP. Lindsey will provide average defense at SS as well, more than enough to play along with his bat. The Rockies have made massive changes in the off-season, upgrading their rotation through both free agency and trades. Lindsey is possibly the biggest addition to their offense, projected to hit third in a strong lineup that will give him plenty of opportunities to rack up numbers in the counting categories.