Going Back to Cali

Time for a little Thursday afternoon blogging. I've been so wrapped up with other things this week that I haven't had much time. But I was able to talk to one of my "sets of eyes" in the West today and he gave me a bit of a rundown on what's happening in the California League.

Stockton's Trevor Cahill, whom the A's chose in the second round in 2006, has looked very good. He's 3-0 with a 1.80 ERA in five starts and has had only one bad outing. He's got 39 strikeouts and allowed only five walks. "He's throwing 90-94 with a heavy sinker and a good slider," according to my tipster. His Stockton teammate Brett Anderson also received high marks as did Modesto's Esmil Rogers, who was 3-2 with a 3.31 ERA through six starts.

Then there's Stockton's Chris Carter, whom the A's acquired from the Diamondbacks this winter. He's got a big, booming bat as he demonstrated last year in Kannapolis (25 homers, 93 RBIs). He's off to a decent start this year with eight homers and 21 RBIs in April. If he keeps hitting at that clip and the front office decides to keep him in Stockton, he could challenge Bud Heslet's league record of 51 homers.

"He's on a tear," said my friend. "His swing is smooth. He's going to be good. It amazes me that he's been traded a couple of times. He's so good. He's a good-looking kid with easy actions. He and [teammate] Sean Doolittle have looked very good. Doolittle is a very good defensive first baseman. A Gold Glove type. He has good hands and good feet and he fields the ball with way more confidence than anyone I've seen in the Minor Leagues."

Good stuff from this baseball insider. One other quick note before I bid you adieu. I took a quick glance at some Texas League numbers and I was amazed to see that San Antonio's Kyle Blanks already has 18 walks. He's averaged only 35 walks per in three Minor League seasons, not nearly enough for a guy of his power. But he's showing a much better eye this season and apparently is getting more respect. He's only fanned seven times, too, which on average is a ton less than the 98 Ks he threw up on the board last year in Lake Elsinore. After hitting 24 homers last year in the Cal League - doesn't everyone do that - he had only one with the Missions through 80 at-bats. It will be interesting to see if that will change.