In the international league, the Norfolk Tide, now the New Orleans Zephyrs had Milledge ranked second behind only Young. Here's what they had to say.....

"Young and Norfolk's Lastings Milledge, another five-tool outfielder and 2003 high school draft, were the most talented hitters in the league and two of six first-round picks on this list."

"Milledge's improved plate discipline with Norfolk earned him his first major league promotion when Xavier Nady went to the disabled list in late May. While he didn't set the world on fire as a rookie, Milledge showed flashes of what he can do. Scouts agree that it will take him time to apply all his talents.

Milledge's bat just rips through the zone and will allow him to produce for both average and power. A plus runner, he should improve as a basestealer (13-for-23) once he learns to pick his spots better. He has slightly above-average range and a solid arm, and while he's capable in center field he'll probably play on the corner with Carlos Beltran on the Mets."

So hopefully this will give some fans some perspective beyond just the 160 at bats they saw and teh stupid media created attitude problem.

Also, of the AA Eastern League...Mike Pelfrey ranked third and Gomez ranked eigth.....

"Like Garza, a fellow college righthander drafted in 2005, Pelfrey made a quick ascent to the big leagues in his first full pro season. The last first-rounder to sign, accepting a $5.25 million big league contract in January, he was starting at Shea Stadium six months later.

Pelfrey's command is not as good as Garza's, in part because he rotates his lower half too much in his delivery, but he too pitches off his fastball. It's a 70 pitch on the 20-80 scouting scale and one of the best fastballs in the minors, more for its late life than its velocity. It has heavy sink when it's down in the zone and comes in at 93-95 mph, touching 97.

Pelfrey needs to improve the consistency of his secondary stuff and have more conviction in it. His changeup is his second-best pitch and has the potential to be an above-average offering. His curveball remains slurvy, though he throws it at 82-86 mph."

"Gomez is the youngest position player on this list as well as the toolsiest. He skipped high Class A at age 20 and got better as the season wore on, coming back strong after missing three weeks with a back injury near midseason.

Gomez has pop in his bat, plus speed, a well above-average arm and good defensive ability. His approach is too aggressive and he needs to improve his situational hitting, but he recognizes pitches well and drives the ball to all parts of the field. He already is an accomplished basestealer, swiping 41 bags in 50 tries.

"He swings out of his ar.se. He really takes a hellacious cut," a scout said. "But he has a natural swing path and maybe the best bat speed in the league, well above and beyond Lind and Casto. This guy excites me.""

Moving on to St Lucie of the single A Florida State league....Mike Carp is ranked 8th.....

"Nobody on this top 10 boosted his stock in 2006 as much as Carp did. Unheralded after batting .256 in his first two pro seasons, he emerged as the most dangerous hitter on the league champion St. Lucie squad.

Carp showed an advanced approach for a young hitter, with excellent pitch recognition and the ability to work counts. Once he got ahead in the count, he showed the ability to drive the ball. Unlike most young power hitters, Carp looked first to use the opposite field rather than try to pull everything.

Carp was average defensively at first base, though he had a flair for making highlight plays. A former third baseman, Carp has more than enough arm for first base but sometimes has problems with accuracy. He's a below-average runner but not a baseclogger."

Of the Hagerstown Suns in the A ball South Atlantic league...Fernando Martinez ranked 3rd and Deolis Guerra ranked 11th.....

"If the next decade shapes up like the 2006 SAL season, Martinez and Tabata will spark debate New York arguments reminiscent of Mays vs. Mantle in the 1950s. As with Tabata, the only thing that slowed Martinez were injuries, as a bone bruise in his hand and a sprained knee limited him to 189 at-bats.

Martinez keeps the bat in the hitting zone for a long time and stays inside the ball while driving it from gap to gap. His approach is advanced for his age, but he doesn't command the strike zone as well as he should and can be a free swinger. Scouts see power potential, though he presently has more of a line-drive swing.

With a plus arm and speed, Martinez should be able to stay in center field. His overall performance was all the more impressive considering that he was making his pro debut after signing last summer for $1.4 million--the biggest bonus on the international market in 2005. Both Tabata and Andrus made their U.S. debuts in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League a year ago."

"The SAL's youngest player, Guerra never allowed more than two earned runs in any of his 17 outings. The Mets did keep him on tight pitch counts, but his 2.20 ERA still would have ranked third in the league if he had enough innings to qualify. He excelled at age 17 mainly on the strength of his changeup, showing an advanced feel for the pitch.

"He has plus arm action on it, which is rare for a guy that young," a NL scout said. "It was fairly straight, but had a little late fade and parachuted at the end."

Guerra already is 6-foot-5 and 200 pounds, and he exhibits precocious command of his 86-90 mph fastball. He should add velocity as he continues to mature, which will make his changeup more effective.

His curveball needs a lot of work, as it has poor rotation and depth. His delivery is repeatable, but it's deliberate and he would be better served by increasing his pace."

Moving on down to Brooklyn of the New York Penn League....We had Joe Smith a RHP form Wright State coming in at number ten.....

"Longoria and Smith advanced further than any NY-P players this summer, finishing the season in Double-A. Smith figures to continue to move quickly due to his low sidearm angle, durable arm and command of above-average stuff. After posting a 1.53 ERA in three years at Wright State, he kept performing against much more significant competition as pro. The only earned run he gave up in the league came in his first outing.

Smith's fastball has average velocity, though it can get harder, but the key to the pitch is its sinking, fading action, which makes it effective against lefthanders and produces groundouts. He also has a late-breaking slider that has real bite, causing righthanders hitters to bail out on it.

"I liked that when the ball was put in his hands with the game on the line," Brooklyn manager George Greer said. "He had that cold look on his face, like nothing was going to keep him from doing his job.""

and Finally in Kingsport of the appalachian rookie league....We had SS/2B Emmanuel Garcia coming in at number 11....

"Born in Montreal, Garcia went undrafted in 2004 because of basebal...[Message truncated]