Todd Frazier: The stock has dropped on this 2007 supplemental first-round pick, but it isn't entirely his fault. The team keeps trying to find a position or positions for him, hoping he can be a Todd of All Trades and be a useful utility player.
Chris Valaika: The No. 3 draft pick in 2006 made an impression in 19 games with the Reds last season and is making an indelible impression this spring, hitting .421 and trying to pry loose an extra infielder spot on the big club.
Devin Mesoraco: A No. 1 draft pick in 2007, a pick many considered wasted when he struggled in the low minors for three years. But he is only 22 and turned it around last season, advancing from Class A to Triple-A in one season. He'll be back in Louisville to start this season, but is putting on a spring coming-out party, hitting .462.
Zack Cozart: Another talented infielder-in-waiting who is displaying strong wares this spring, hitting .400 and playing strong defense. Although he appears ready, his destination ticket is punched for Louisville.
Yonder Alonso: Another No. 1 draft pick with no place to go. The hard-hitting first baseman who can play no other position is struck behind MVP Joey Votto, probably for at least another three years. And he is another .400 hitter so far this spring.
Top 5 prospects in camp you probably have not heard about:
Dave Sappelt: The diminutive outfielder came to camp and people wondered, "How do you pronounce your name?" They know now. He is hitting .500 in camp — not bad for a ninth-round draft pick in 2008 out of Graham, N.C.
Billy Hamilton: The talk of camp, based on blinding speed and a magic bat. He was a second-round pick in 2009 and promptly hit .318 at Billings last season in the Pioneer Rookie League and was named the Reds' top prospect by Baseball America.
Juan Duran: The 6-7 outfielder can't be missed. And he is only 19, playing his fourth year of pro ball after signing at age 16 in the Dominican Republic. He is hitting only .214 for 140 minor-league games, but has a couple of hits in his five at-bats this spring.
Ronald Torreyes: He weighs 140 pounds and manager Dusty Baker heard, "He can hit." So he let him hit, "And he got a hit." He is 18 years old out of Venezuela, a country that grows shortstops like Colombia grows coffee.
Jerry Gil: He tried making it as an outfielder and once threw a ball from home plate over the center field wall. Ah, ha. A pitcher. Since he wasn't able to hit, he re-invented himself into a pitcher in 2008 after signing as an outfielder in 1999 and has pitched two scoreless innings this spring.
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