Ogden Raptors announce 2012 roster, less impressive than last year

With the Pioneer League season set to begin on Monday, it's time to take a look at the players who will be on the Ogden Raptors' initial roster.

Admittedly, this season's roster isn't as impressive as last year's, as players like Joc Pederson, O'Koyea Dickson and James Baldwin played for the team last year. But there are definitely some guys to keep an eye on down there.

The Dodgers send recent draftees and, most of the time, younger prospects to the Pioneer League.

Pitchers
Derek Cone
- Threw a couple innings with the Quakes last week, but will be on his third stint with the Raptors
Carlos De Aza
Gregg Downing
Michael Drowne
Carlos Frias
Sawil Gonzalez
Jake Hermsen
- 2012 29th-round draft pick
Owen Jones
- 2012 19th-round draft pick
Matt Laney
- Pitched with Great Lakes earlier this season (4.34 ERA, 1.51 WHIP)
Kazuki Nishijima
Craig Stem
Jason West
- Pitched with Great Lakes earlier this season (2.22 ERA, 1.31 WHIP)

Catchers
JJ Ethel
Jose Capellan

Infielders
Justin Boudreaux
- Struggled with Great Lakes this season (.144/.250/.212)
Tae-Hyeok Nam
- 21-year-old Korean prospect, had short stint with Ogden in 2009 (3-for-9, five strikeouts)
Alex Santana
- 2011 second-round pick, played in Arizona League last year (.238/.298/.339)
Darnell Sweeney
- 2012 13th-round pick
Kevin Thompson
Jesus Valdez
- 17th-round pick in 2011 (5th-rounder in 2010), played in Arizona League last year (.241/.312/.434)

Outfielders
Devon Ethier
- Andre Ethier's brother
Malcolm Holland
- Played 2B in Arizona League last year
Devin Shines
- Struggled with Great Lakes this season (.219/.287/.343)

Ross Stripling, the Dodgers' fifth-round pick, has said on Twitter he was going to Ogden, but he isn't on the roster. We'll see if that changes.

Keep an eye on...

• Cone - He's probably pitcher with the most promise on the staff, but that isn't saying a whole lot because he's struggled so far in his professional career. He had a 5.03 ERA last year with the Raptors, but he also had a 10.6 K/9, so there's definitely promise. He was my No. 33 prospect heading into the season.
• Santana - He was drafted high and is expected to produce. But he's just 18 years old and can't be expected to light up the league just yet. After Corey Seager, he's the Dodgers' best third base prospect. He was my No. 31 prospect heading into the season.
• Valdez - He has good power potential and at 6'3, 180 pounds, he still has room to fill out. He's 20 years old and it's anyone's guess where he'll play. With Santana around, first base seems most likely. He was my No. 38 prospect heading into the season.
• 2012 Draft Picks - Hermsen, Jones, Sweeney, all of whom were not professional ballplayers before June 4. It'll be interesting to see how they handle their first taste of pro ball.

Lineup
Here's my lineup and rotation if I'm Damon Berryhill (Raptors' manager):

Shines CF
Boudreaux 2B
Santana 3B
Valdez 1B (L)
Nam DH
Ethier RF
Ethel C
Holland LF
Sweeney SS (S)

Valdez is the only true left-handed hitter on the roster right now.

It's unlikely Seager will sign by Monday, but I assume he'll go to Ogden (or Arizona, I suppose) when he's signed. I'm a little surprised not to see Jesmuel Valentin on this roster, but that doesn't mean he won't get there eventually.

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J.P. Hoornstra of the L.A. Daily news wrote an article Friday about Dodgers' third-round pick Onelki Garcia, who signed with the team on Thursday. It's a good read about Garcia's trek to America and eventually professional baseball.

"After what Garcia has been through, with two months to work out a deal, the last place he seemed headed was free agency. Sure enough, he and the Dodgers agreed to terms Thursday. The terms were not immediately available."

Garcia could find himself in Ogden, but I'd like to see the 22-year-old be tested in Rancho Cucamonga.

Photo credit: Dustin Nosler, Feelin' Kinda Blue

Most disappointing 2011 Dodgers' prospects

This is the third in a four-part series, this time looking at the most disappointing Dodgers' prospects.

This list will be populated by guys who were either hyped or high-round picks who just haven't gotten it together this season.

If these guys were to get on track, the Dodgers' system would be a lot better than it is right now. But not every prospect is going to pan out, so you have to account for that.

Most disappointing hitters

1. OF Jonathan Garcia
- Garcia showed a lot of promise in his first two seasons -- albeit in rookie ball. He had an .862 and .892 OPS the last two seasons. He started off on fire this season but has cooled off considerably. With the Loons, he has only a .736 OPS, but 49 of his 103 hits have been for extra bases (28 2B, 2 3B, 19 HR). His BB/K rate is bad right now: 32/125. That has to improve as he moves up the ladder. He is only 19 years old, so he's facing competition on average two years older than him.

2. OF Leon Landry
- Landry had the best debut of any Dodger 2010 draftee, hitting .349/.399/.510 for Ogden last season. He was my ninth-best prospect headed into the season, but he has struggled in the Midwest League. He's been on a tear of late, but his batting average has been in the upper-.230s to low-.250s all season. He's at .260/.317/.377 with four home runs, 21 doubles, 11 triples and 25 stolen bases. He's a candidate to bounce back in 2012 and I wouldn't be surprised to see him repeat Low-A before getting a promotion to Rancho.

3. OF Kyle Russell
- I've never been the biggest fan of Russell, but I penned a piece about him (and Nathan Eovaldi) earlier this season. At the time, he had a .909 OPS. His OPS was down to .847 before getting promoted to Albuquerque two days ago. Russell has power potential and good defense, so he should, at worst, be a bench player. But strikeouts continue to be a problem, as he's whiffing at a 36.3 percent clip. It's actually down from last season (37.6 percent), but it still doesn't bode well for his future success.

Honorable mentions: 3B Pedro Baez, OF/1B Brian Cavazos-Galvez, OF/1B Jerry Sands

Most disappointing pitchers

1. RHP Ethan Martin
- It's the same thing with Martin, who seems to be fairing much better as a reliever in Double-A than a starter in High-A. With the Lookouts, he has a 3.48 ERA, 1.35 WHIP, 7.0 H/9, 9.6 K/BB in 31 innings. With the Quakes, he had a 7.36 ERA, 1.85 WHIP, 10.6 H/9, 10.0 K/9 in 55 innings. No matter what team he's pitched for, though, walks have still been an issue. He has a 5.8 BB/9 rate on the season. It's actually down from last season, but still not where it needs to be. The Dodgers should seriously look at converting him to third base because I doubt he'll ever throw enough strikes to be a decent Major League pitcher.

2. RHP Derek Cone
- It's kind of hard for a 31st-round draft pick to be disappointing, but Cone was considered a steal and a nice signing for the Dodgers. Cone struggled at all three of his stops in the minors this season -- those most with the Loons, where he posted a 5.68 ERA, 1.78 WHIP, 9.2 H/9 and a Martin-like 6.8 BB/9. He has all the talent to be a solid starting prospect. At 21, he still has time to figure things out.

3. RHP Matt Magill
- Magill was a personal favorite and put up solid numbers last season in the Midwest League. The California League hasn't been so kind to him (as expected by most). He had a 12-strikeout game a couple weeks ago, but he's been up and down overall. His 4.24 ERA is mediorce, but his 1.50 WHIP and 10.2 H/9 isn't going to cut it at any level. He's still just 21, so maybe moving to the Southern League in 2012 will help. His fringe fastball isn't going to be as effective unless he locates it well enough as he moves up through the minors.

Honorable mentions: LHP Aaron Miller, LHP Greg Wilborn, RHP Chris Withrow

Next up: Most disappointing Dodger hitters and pitchers (there is no shortage)