Hey all. I took over a team in Feller that hasn't been good in a long time. I seem to have some decent minor league talent. This guy, Jerrod McNally
seems to be a stud. When do I bring him up?? What age is "too early."

Don't bring him up now. Hes not ready. There is no age that is "too early". Just bring him up when his development starts slowing down a bit and when he is going to get alot of playing time. Sitting a guy on the bench won't get him any better compared to playing everyday in the minors.

so a jump from rookie to AAA is feasible though?

Is it within your ability to promote him whenever you want? Yes. Should you? No.

Personally I would not have him in AAA right now because he is so young. I would have him in High A but, thats just me.

well i know i can promote him whenever i want. i got that much lol. what i was asking is for some veteran assistance as to how to properly develop this talent without stunting his progression.

Ok well if you have not started spring training yet, I would demote him to High A or so because he will not suffer a demotion penalty. From there, just make sure he gets alot of ABs in spring training, plays everyday in the minors and just wait a couple seasons till you think hes ready.

we started spring training. so now he's stuck in AAA or he'll get a demotion penalty right?

Well his patience looks pretty good at 74. Look, whatever he loses he is going to gain back very soon. That might be one point against ies or righties or something to that small extent. I think long term its better to demote him and just wait till hes a little more developed. Most 19 year olds in RL are not in AAA anyways.

Is he shaved?

Quote: Originally posted by aaron006 on 12/10/2009
we started spring training. so now he's stuck in AAA or he'll get a demotion penalty right?

That is correct. What you could do is keep him there until one of his teammates is ready to come off the disabled list. If you demote him to clear a spot for the guy coming of the DL, he won't suffer a demotion penalty. (This works for any level.)

But -- and this is crucially important -- you must perform both moves in the same "submit pending moves" button click, so make sure a roster spot will be available at your guy's new level (you can do this by adding someone there to the inactive list).

I tend to rush my best prospects, but I prefer they get some work in at the lower levels.

My best prospects often skip rookie league, depending on their ratings when they start out, and I often have guys split a year in LoA/HiA. I usually like top prospects to get a full year in at AA, and I will let players skip AAA entirely if they're ready to contribute. But more often, those guys will log 20-25 games at AAA to squeeze an extra year of ML service out of them before they're eligible for arbitration/free agency.

But a lot of this depends on how good the player currently is, how badly my ML team needs him and who might be ahead of him. There's no real "right" way to do it, but you can screw it up a bunch of ways. The worst thing, IMO, is to waste a quality player by keeping him in the minors for too long.

My biggest concern with younger players is their low durability ratings, as is the case with this guy. Not sure what he projects out to but I wouldn't want him at the ML level until he reaches a 70 rating. If he doesn't project to get to that level he would be someone I would try to move. Just my preference.

As to your orignal question I would play him at Hi-A for a season, then if he developes enough he could split a season between AA and AAA before bringing him up. By then his durability should be over 70 so you don't run into fatigue issues. While in the minors keep an eye on him and give him some rest throughout the season.

General rule of thumb, in my opinion: Promote to ML when a player is in his 5th pro season, or turns 24, whichever comes first.

There are many exceptions, such as you need the player as an injury replacement or down the stretch run to secure a playoff spot. You could wait past age 24 or 5th season as well, if you have a young prospect waiting to replace an expiring contract.

I have a good young C in AAA but I also have an All Star C on ML. It's best to keep the C in AAA and let him fully develop even if he doesn't crack the ML lineup until age 27. Player's develop when they get playing time, and my C in AAA wouldn't get much playing time in ML right now.

I generally try to promote a guy at least 1 level a year if he's a good prospect. For example, with your guy I would have started him at HiA as soon as he was drafted. If he does well, it's up to AA at mid-season. Same the following year. Start at AA and promote to AAA at mid-season if his output warrants. Then I would give him the following full year at AAA. Then on to the ML the next year.