Earlier this spring the Royals gave up their first round pick in a trade
between the Tucson Border Patrol, so they had to settle for a unimpressive
lefthanded pitcher by the name of Bill Garibaldi. The 5'9 20-year old
prospect from Watertown, New York, compiled impressive stats playing for
his high school, but he had trouble playing for the team at the University
of Mass. in Amherst.
Still, he has the redeeming qualities that all scouts look for: work ethic,
a strong arm, good intellect and intuition, and a quality that is becoming
more and more rare, he excels at the fundamentals. "He has the best move to
first base I've ever seen in my career," said Royals' scout Fred Parntel.
"And he's a leftie, too."
The big concern, though, is that he's a finesse pitcher and doesn't really
have any pitches that could fool batters in the big leagues. Right now, the
only thing that Garibaldi has going for him is the hope that he can develop
a 2 or 3 pitch selection, especially a sinker and a curveball.
Bill Garibaldi has been assigned to the Royals' AAA-minor league affiliate
in Ottawa.
Cloud Wants Out of Binghampton
After being picked a dissapointing 18-overall in the amateur draft,
centerfielder Oort Cloud has refused to report to the Binghampton Mets'
minor league system after reportedly saying to his agent that he didn't
want to be stuck with a small-market franchise.
There were concerns that Cloud's injuries to his knees could hamper his
development, the reason why he was selected low in the draft, but he
believes that he still has the potential to be one the rising stars.
Reportedly, Cloud's agent received offers from Phoenix and Vero Beach (but
we cannot confirm them), but no news has been received whether Cloud will
stay with the Mets or not.
