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Brendan Gawlowski Prospects Chat: 3/3/26
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Brendan Gawlowski
2:00
Hello everybody
2:01
Tigers list went up last week, if you haven't seen it yet. In theory we should be posting a Mets and a Braves list this week although. I'm most of the way through delving into Atlanta's system and it hasn't been pretty.
2:02
Also, my wife likes to submit a question to these with a random username and she gets very excited if I pick it. Just thought that was amusing to share.
Anyway, let's go.
Big Fan
2:02
It's spring and all, but this is my first look at John Gil and I didn't realize he's Pete Alonso but playing SS.  Did he grow/change over the winter, or is it just a handful of homers early in spring training?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:03
Yes he looks enormous now. I don't know if it's a good change but here's an example of how "that guy used to be a shortstop?!" happens in real time
Phil
2:03
In light of the Profar news, I a. wondering whether you have any thoughts on PED culture between different countries or other categories of players. When you were a scout, was "possibility of future suspension" a criterion for certain players? I am wondering both how much teams, intentionally or inattentively, overlook this stuff, and also whether there are broader approaches that might work. I find it odd how persistent it is, particularly for guys who have gotten caught twice.
Brendan Gawlowski
2:03
Perhaps Jurickson was playing a long game out of a deep philosophical disagreement with corporate ownership and or suburban stadiums
2:05
As for the "possibility of future suspension" angle... Potential legal/disciplinary issues are a factor, not super often, but there were a couple times I was completely out on guys with big-league tools for off field stuff.
2:06
Independently, there will occasionally be not-so-quiet speculation in the scout section about whether someone is/was on the juice. Not very often but it happens.
b1leper
2:06
Tommy Troy, Buy or Sell?  Does he have a path in Arizona this year?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:06
We pushed him onto the top 100 so, buy? I think he's good/useful and should debut this year.
Shandy Koufax
2:07
I saw a story from Jon Bois that the Jays scout who signed Dave Stieb talked a bunch of trash to the other scouts to hide his interest.
What is collaboration/competition  like among scouts in different orgs? Is there an effort to hide some of your evaluation? Friendly discussion about differences in evaluation on a player?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:09
Those kinds of things were a lot easier to pull off a couple generations ago. They may still happen on the amateur side to a small degree, that's outside my wheelhouse. For pro scouts, there's a dance. Anything valuable you keep to yourself. Anything obvious, you're free to share, maybe it curries favor for you down the road. And there were a small number of scouts whom I became good friends with where I was a little more open than I'd otherwise be inclined to be, and vice versa.
Naylor Sailor
2:09
Both Kade Anderson and Ryan Sloan looked pretty fun over the weekend. Do you think we'll see both in the bigs sometime in 2026?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:10
Anderson yes, Sloan would surprise me, less on talent than just on how far he has to go while building durability.
Sir Nerdlington
2:11
What're your thoughts on the Marlins calling pitches from the dugout? As the dad of a catcher it makes me sad that we're potentially trending this way.
Brendan Gawlowski
2:13
Interesting experiment. In theory, this could help take some of the load off of the catcher, and some pitchers won't mind at all because they're happy to outsource that choice anyway. But, and maybe this isn't relevant to big leaguers, when I pitched, I always hated it when I had to throw what someone else wanted me to use.
Dodgers Blue
2:14
Brendan - the few athletic freaks aside, is there a somewhat consensus number of MiLB starts (AA, AAA) organizations like to see their starters put it before feeling comfortable about promoting them to the major league level?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:14
No, depends on the org and the player. The old rules of thumb -- you need x hundred innings or whatever -- are gone.
millvillemeltdown
2:14
who is the least "toolsy" guy succeeding in the majors? obviously there are guys like kwan who are doing well based on good hit/fld without huge power or speed, but i feel like picking hit-over-power guys is a bit cheap
Brendan Gawlowski
2:15
Late-career Martin Maldonado comes to mind.
Sir Nerdlington
2:15
On catchers, with ABS a thing and (potentially) pitch calling moving to the dugout, how do you assess the value catchers bring change going forward? More Piazzas, less Jose Molinas?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:16
The stuff we can't see is so important. Like, remember how things went to hell in St. Louis for a little while right after Yadi retired? Honestly, that alone switched my (non-existent... yet) HOF vote from no to yes.
I don't think ABS or dugout pitch calling is going to change that dynamic.
Insert Witty Name Here
2:16
With the Tigers having promising hitters coming up, should they move the fences in a bit?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:16
God no.
2:17
Moving the fences in doesn't generate offense. It adds homers at the expense of everything else.
And, imo, all the short fences are bad for the game and bad for the sport's biodiversity.
RAH
2:18
It would be a big deal for JD Dix's defensive profile if he was showing better arm strength this spring. Have you heard updates on if another off-season has helped him heal and get stronger?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:18
Sources within the org said it got better over the winter but I haven't verified that this spring. You're right to note that, to an unusual degree, it's a potential game changer for him.
millvillemeltdown
2:18
if profar puts out a statement decrying the battery as a disgusting monument to the corrupt marriage between government and big money i'm with that him. (my phone tried to autocorrect to jurickson profit)
Brendan Gawlowski
2:19
I'm not ruling anything out.
Wallyworld
2:19
Are any teams really going to be swayed that heavily by a prospect's spring training or is it really just more of an easier narrative for the front office.  I.E. Player struggles so he "needs more reps/seasoning" or Player gets hot "forced our hand".  Obviously I love the reports, but if I have to hear that Charlie Condon somehow has proved something in 18 PAs that the Rockies just figured out to put him on the roster....
Brendan Gawlowski
2:20
Generally not but sometimes a guy looks so much better or worse than you were expecting and it changes the calculus.
Ben
2:21
Since you are close to completing the Braves' writeup, what can you tell me about teen outfielders Carey and Hartman?  They seem to be getting ABs this spring which I find odd since they're so young.
Brendan Gawlowski
2:21
You identified a couple of the guys I haven't dug in on yet, so sorry about that. Will say: Atlanta has given a lot of AB's to very green prospects in a way that's generally been helpful for this list. So, thanks Walt and co.
millvillemeltdown
2:21
i'm curious what happened with j holliday. he's been a contributor but not a massive one. considering how much hype there was around him, his career seems to have sputtered a bit..
Brendan Gawlowski
2:23
I only saw him once, back in the futures game in '23. The degree to which he looked ordinary relative to the other shortstops and top prospects around -- Merrill in particular blew me away that day -- stood out. Showcases aren't the be-all end-all and it's not really the best environment for him in particular and at the time I completely flushed the look... In retrospect though, maybe it was instructive.
curious george
2:23
Nate Garkow legit?
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