This year we’ll be releasing our top 25 list in conjunction with the people over at Bernie’s Crew, which means the list is going to posted somewhat out of order to match up with what Jim has for his Top 25. An up-to-date list of the Between the Green Pillars Top 25 can be found at the bottom of the page.

Cutter Dykstra / OF / 5’11” 180 LBS / Born 6/29/89

It’s only fitting that, in what turned out to be his final draft at the helm of the Brewers scouting department, Jack Zduriencik drafted yet another son of a notable major leaguer early on. The question is, will Cutter Dykstra, the son of Lenny Dykstra, vault to stardom quickly like Prince Fielder or will he have trouble living up to his selection like Tony Gwynn, Jr.? The early returns were mostly good, but those are only the early returns.

The Brewers selected Dykstra with the 54^th pick in the June draft, one of the compensation picks the team received for the loss of Scott Linebrink. Dykstra signed quickly and was sent to Helena, the more advanced of the Brewers two rookie ball teams, which is a big vote of confidence in the ability of a high schooler breaking into pro ball. He didn’t disappoint, hitting .271/.374/.412 in his first 170 pro AB’s. He showed advanced plate discipline for a kid facing older competition, walking 26 times while striking out 37. He has functional power for a up-the-middle guy (9 2B 5 HR), and scouts believe there is more to be tapped into there. He will need to improve his running game, as he was caught 5 times in 9 attempts on the bases, though the scouting reports on him all indicate he’s better than that.

Dykstra was sidetracked briefly in July with a groin injury, which resulted in a short rehab assignment in Arizona, but he returned quickly to Helena. He played SS in high school, but was moved to CF late in his senior year, which allowed scouts to get a look at the position he’ll play in the pro’s. The most obvious flaw in Dykstra's game is his below average arm, which could limit his ability to play CF. If his arm can be playable in CF, he has a good shot to be an everyday player in the big leagues at some point. If he isn’t able to do that, he will probably become a 4^th OF “tweener” type, because he lacks LF power and obviously couldn’t play everyday in right. He’s got the makeup of a Dykstra, which was obviously something that intrigued the Brewers and is a good enough reason to give him the benefit of the doubt on making the adjustments he’ll need to make to get to the big leagues. Unless something unforeseen happens, you can probably count on him being the lead-off hitter for the Appleton Timber Rattlers next year.

Between the Green Pillars Top 25 Prospects:

# 25: Evan Frederickson

# 24: Cody Adams

#23: Alex Periard

#22: Brent Brewer

#21: Brad Nelson

#20: RJ Seidel

#19: Tim Dillard

# 18: Seth Lintz

# 17: Efrain Nieves

#16: Erik Komatsu

#14: Omar Aguilar