On the wake of a sweep at Texas (more on that tomorrow morning), let’s take a gander at some of the surging minor league prospects in the Red Sox organization.

Jacoby Ellsbury (23, AAA, CF): After obliterating AA, Jacoby struggled a bit when first promoted to AAA. However, he seems to have adapted, raising his numbers to .299/.378/.379, swiping 8 bases in 10 attempts, and playing is usual stellar CF defense.

Clay Buchholz (22, AA, SP): Shined on the national spotlight in an ESPN start against Roger Clemens in Trenton.  Is toying with Eastern League bats (61/7 K/BB in 46 innings, 1.97 ERA), and drawing rave reviews with his multiple plus-pitch arsenal.  Probably a Top 5 minor league pitcher, and maybe second to only Yovanni Gallardo in the Brewers organization.

Brandon Moss (23, AAA, RF): The rocket-armed corner-outfielder has reclaimed the prospect status he had after the 2004 season.  Now with an OPS of .956, the lefty hits left-handed pitching just fine (.911 OPS vs LHP).

Michael Bowden (20, AA, SP): In terms of prospect rankings, Bowden has been in the ominous shadow of Buchholz since they were drafted in 2005.  However, Bowden’s raw numbers are just as impressive, especially the way he dominated the severe hitter’s environment at Lancaster (1.37 ERA in 46 innings). Bowden is off to a nice start in AA as well, making the Portland rotation one of the best in AA. 

Jed Lowrie (23, AA, 2B): After scuffling for over a year, Lowrie has been red-hot.  Offensively, he draws comparisons to Dustin Pedroia, showing some gap power and excellent plate discpline (although Jed does not resemble him physically, standing at 6 feet and 180 pounds).  His OBP is now at .422.

Lars Anderson (19, A, 1B): The HS bonus baby has not disappointed.  Hitting at a remarkable clip for his age (.329/.414/.509), and the kid has yet to fill out.  Once he bulks up a bit…watch out.

Aaron Bates (23, A+, 1B): A bit old for the league, Aaron has been doing everything he can to get himself promoted.  Hitting 4 HRs in a game last week (the first time that happened in California League history), Bates is among the league-leaders in just about every category.  He likely would be the league-leader in these categories, were it not for…

Bubba Bell (24, A+, OF): As a 24-year-old in A ball, he’s not really a “prospect”, but I had to write something about him. Bell is leading the league in the following categories: homers, hits, OPS, SLG%, runs, RBI, total bases, K/BB ratio.  His batting average of .378 is one point behind the league-leader.  Basically, he has no business being in the California League anymore.

And now, for one of my personal favorite prospects, a real sleeper:

Chih-Hsien Chiang (19, A, 2B): The Taiwanese import is holding his own in the Sally League, hitting (.295/.304/.423) with improving defense.  Chih-Hsien is very raw, and needs to improve his defense to stick as an infielder as higher levels, but he has tremendous potential as an offensive threat.  Like Anderson, he has yet to fill out and reach his true power potential.  Keep an eye on him.