Winter Ball Update: Pedro Alvarez won't play

Pedro Alvarez is down in the Florida Instructional League right now while the Pirates get their first look at their top draft pick of 2008. All reports are good (of course they are, what are they going to say? "Damn, this guy sucks, why did we pick him?") but apparently he's not going to be able to play winter ball anywhere, which is a little disappointing. Still, they're saying he worked out during his hold out and I honestly don't think this is going to delay his rise through the minors as much as people say it is (see David Price as an example ... unless I'm misremembering and Price pitched in the fall last year).

As for the rest of the fall/winter ballers, you can find their stats here. Many of the hitters, including Jose Tabata and Steve Pearce, have cooled off after fast starts. Kyle Bloom is still putting up awesome numbers in Hawaii on the mound (he should get a roster spot before the Rule 5). The rest of the pitchers? Nothing too exciting unless you're interested in John Van Benschoten.