I never did end up getting any info on Alan Farina

It all started with a kind offer. I decided to take him up on it.

Good day sir,
I am writing you in response to your gracious offer for video and your thoughts on Blue Jays prospect Alan Farina.
I have a Jays blog and we did a massive post a while back on all of the prospects in the system. At that time, we had very little info on Farina.
I would like to update the post now and would appreciate any thoughts you may have on him, or anybody else. We just used second hand info on his out pitch and repertoire.
Thanks for your time.
--
The Man with the Golden Arm

I can be very diplomatic when the time calls for it. He replied, quite quickly in fact, with this.

Farina pitched at one of the AFL games I attended, but I don't believe I got any video of him. Pitching was really down in the league this year, so I spent most of my time watching hitters from down the first and third base lines. 

I think I saw every Blue Jay hitter who was in the league at least once. Any one in particular you'd want info on?

Adam

Yes, yes there is.

Well shit.
Your site is the one with the kick ass prospects write ups and what not. It wouldn't be right to just rip off your insights and say they were my own.
That being said, I would love to share ANY Blue Jays related stuff you can give with our readers. In my experience, video is especially valuable. Guys taking BP, infield warm up, in game situational plays, whatever.
Absolutely anything you wanna include in the way of scouting reports, personal observations, what you overheard other people saying etc is a bonus.
Really appreciate the help.
I will run everything I plan to post by you, once it's completed, if you wish.

Now I'm pretty sure he can see I'm not a square. 

Sounds good. Maybe you can give me a guy or two who you want to know more about and I'll give you some info.

Translation: What do you wanna know?

AFL guys from this year?

Eric Thames for sure.
Conflicting reports by the "experts" on his game.
Mike McDade and Adam Loewen would be a distant second and third.

There always comes a time when you have to get specific. 

What are some of the conflicting reports you've heard about Thames? Maybe I can help clear those up. I've seen him four or five times now. 

At this point I go find some stuff off the top of my head. He may have been testing me a little bit.

Well Sickels likes him. Thinks his power is legit.

The stuff behind the BA paywall says he is strong and projects as an average LF.
And Klaw hates him. "Don't see him as more than a fringe regular. Probably a 4th OF or up-and-down guy."
All have him in the big leagues in some role. Interested on your take.

Wait for it.....

Thames really improved his core strength and agility between the time I saw him last spring and last fall. He went from being a bulky dude who looked ready to pull a muscle at any point to someone with very impressive flexibility and athleticism.

I haven't broken down his swing in detail yet, but it is a bit long. He has enough power to put a charge into the ball regularly. A rhythm hitter, I think he borders on being too selective at the times -- takes a lot of pitches. He'll chase out of the zone and take some ugly swings when he's behind in the count. Thames gets good reads in the left field, has solid speed and can make some impressive plays. His arm is below-average.

I think Thames has a chance to turn into a near-average regular. And he'll almost certainly be a big leaguer. But he may not hit enough to be a starting left fielder for a playoff caliber team.

Loewen is an amazing athlete for a dude his size. As most people would expect, he has a cannon of an arm. He's a very impressive runner for a giant, too. And he has elite raw power. He won't ever be much of a contact hitter, but he went from being hopeless for much of the 2009 AFL season to decent in 2010. I see him as a power bat off the bench, but he might manage to turn into someone that a big league team feels comfortable starting a few days a week, when the matchup looks good.

AKA the good stuff. Not really a whole lot I can add at this point. But I give it a go.

Thames does yoga religiously. Could explain the body type transformation.
Interesting take on Loewen. My buddy who works at the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame said he saw him back before he got drafted while he was still a pitcher and raved about his power with the stick of all things. That was like 5 or 6 years ago.
Thanks for that.
You got any video on either guy you can share?

I guess you could call me greedy but someone told me to always keep your eye on the prize.

Yep. I'll upload some video of both taking BP today.
Oh and McDade is not a big leaguer for me. Poor approach to hitting
and no defensive value.

Bonus!

That's awesome. Thank you.
Do you think Loewen gets selected in the Rule 5 draft?

Just one more thing.....

Eh, Loewen would be a gamble in the Rule 5. Maybe. He'd get embarrassed at the plate.

This is good news people.

Here are those videos.

Money in the bank. Is it just me or does the ball sound different coming off the bat of Thames?

If you got something on the brain and you are not a moron, why don't you try shooting Adam an email adamf@projectprospect.com and see what happens.

If you don't wanna bother with that, then you should at the very least follow him on Twitter. May I also suggest you bookmark this site and subscribe to this channel on YouTube while your at it.

Rock solid stuff.

Quickly:

Speaking of the Rule 5 draft, it's tomorrow and I have a prediction.

J.P. and the Mets will take Brad Emaus and they will keep him all season.

Call it a hunch.