BA's minor league preview for the Dodgers

"What The System Has Produced Lately: Not much for the major league
club, a result of a succession of poor drafts in the late 1990s.
Righthander Edwin Jackson gave a hint of things to come when he beat
Randy Johnson while making his big league debut on his 20th birthday
in September. David Ross became the backup catcher in 2003 and if he
wins the starting job this year, he'll be the first regular produced
by the Dodgers since they drafted Alex Cora, Ted Lilly and Wayne
Franklin in 1996. Los Angeles used prospects in three trades last
year, acquiring Jeromy Burnitz (second baseman Victor Diaz, righties
Joselo Diaz and Kole Strayhorn), Robin Ventura (righty Scott Proctor,
outfielder Bubba Crosby) and Juan Encarnacion (outfielder Travis Ezi).

Best-Stocked Position: Center fielder Franklin Gutierrez emerged as a
five-tool prospect last year, and has enough power and arm strength to
play in right field. He may move there in the future to accommodate
2003 fourth-rounder Xavier Paul, an advanced high school hitter.
Reggie Abercrombie has more raw ability than either Gutierrez or Paul,
but his utter lack of plate discipline is a huge handicap. The Dodgers
have a second tier of center fielders that includes Jerome Milons,
Jason Romano, Wilkin Ruan and Shane Victorino.

Best Teenage Prospect: Before spring training, lefthander Greg Miller
(19) had a slight edge over first baseman James Loney (19). But Miller
had exploratory arthroscopic surgery as the Dodgers tried to find out
what's causing his shoulder problems, while Loney was the hottest
hitter in big league camp. Both were first-round picks in 2002. The
Dodgers have more exciting teenage prospects than any club, as
righties Chad Billingsley and Johnathan Broxton, lefty Chuck Tiffany,
shortstop Joel Guzman, and outfielder Xavier Paul—all 19—also rank
among their top 15 prospects.

Prepare For Takeoff: After infielder Andy LaRoche dazzled in the Cape
Cod League last summer, Los Angeles signed the 39th-round pick away
from Rice for $1 million, believed to be a record for a player drafted
after the third round who wasn't a draft-and-follow. LaRoche should
hit for average with plus power for his position, which the Dodgers
will change from shortstop to second base this spring. The brother of
Braves first baseman Adam LaRoche, he'll jump to high Class A after
getting 19 at-bats in Rookie ball last August.

Time Is Running Out For: Joey Thurston led the minors in hits (196)
and total bases (297) in 2002, making him a top rookie candidate
entering spring training a year ago. But with second base wide open,
he had a poor camp that earned him a return to Triple-A, where he
fizzled. Even during his big year, some scouts questioned his tools
and projected him as no more than a utilityman. To become that, he's
going to have to improve in all phases of the game."

In the premium section, so I won't post a link.

I do know people who argue that second base, not centerfield, is the
deepest position for the Dodgers. There's Thurston (likely in AAA),
Aybar now in AA, Delwyn Young (if he doesn't get moved to third),
LaRoche in Vero Beach, Etanislao Abreu and Travis Denker in the low
minors, and a shortstop prospect or two who will likely be moved
there. OTOH, BA left out of the cf lists a potential leadoff guy
named Alejandro DeAza, who was caught in the numbers crunch at Ogden,
where cfs Milons and Paul were also playing.