Sarasota Reds

Heisey, Alonso named to AFL All-Star team

Minor League Baseball

aflTwo members of the 2009 Louisville Bats playoff team have been named to the “Rising Stars” All-Star game in the prestigious Arizona Fall League. Outfielder Chris Heisey and 1B Yonder Alonso will both play for the East team in the game that will air on the MLB Network Saturday. Heisey is batting .373 with three home runs and 11 RBI through his first 15 games with the Peoria Saguaros. Teammate Alonso is batting .265 with two home runs and 13 RBI.

Baseball America recently ranked Heisey the 14th best prospect in the AA Southern League and 20th best prospect in the AAA International League. BA ranked Alonso the fourth best prospect in the high A Florida State League. Heisey batted .278 with nine home runs and 37 RBI in 63 games for Louisville, and .314 with 22 home runs and 77 RBI in 134 total games in 2009. Alonso, who played with the Bats during the 2009 playoffs, batted .292 with nine home runs and 52 RBI in 84 games between rookie league and AA.

Revere, Alonso ranked as Carolina League top prospects

High School Baseball, Major League Baseball, Minor League Baseball

Ben Revere; Photo from Wikimedia Commons

Ben Revere; Photo from Wikimedia Commons

Baseball America ranked Lexington native Ben Revere as the eighth best prospect in the Florida State League and Cincinnati Reds top prospect Yonder Alonso, who made a playoff cameo with the Bats, as fourth best. Revere was the Twins’ second-best prospect according to BA following the 2008 season after flirting with .400 for most of the season in low A ball. He didn’t quite reach that lofty number this season but held his own with a .311 batting average, league-leading 145 hits and 45 stolen bases.

Alonso picked up 175 at-bats in the Florida State League for Sarasota before being promoted to AA Carolina and eventually AAA Louisville.  Look for Alonso to make his 2010 debut for the Bats, barring an epic spring training performance for the Reds. (Read more)

Here’s a brief taste of the BA analysis:

#4 Yonder Alonso — Sarasota Reds

  • .303/.383/.497, 7 home runs, 38 RBI
  • “Alonso should hit for power and average, and he’ll have to. He lacks speed and agility, so he’s limited to first base, where he’s an adequate defender.”

#8 Ben Revere — Fort Meyers Miracle

  • .311/.372/.369, 145 hits, 45 stolen bases, 75 runs scored
  • “If you asked FSL managers, Revere’s picture could be slapped onto a roll of Tums. He caused more heartburn than anyone else in the league because of his ability to scratch out base hits, then cause all kind of havoc on the bases.”