Hot Stove Lunch: Keeping lists in perspective; Giants going old school and more

This is a daily BSJ off-season feature that will arrive in time for your lunch, Monday-Friday.

A spin around the leagues with the latest news, notes, and rumors around Major League Baseball

RED SOX

Ranking prospects, for all the advances made in analytics and talent evaluation, is still an inexact science.

Want a perfect example? In yesterday's post, Baseball America ranked Red Sox lefty Jay Groome as the 83rd best prospect in the game. Today, on ESPN.com, Keith Law has him at No. 30. That's a difference of 53 spots, which, obviously, is a pretty big discrepancy.

How can two respected lists be so different? Easy -- this is about projecting, and trying to predict how a 19-year-old is going to fare in the big leagues is complex. Different methods are utilized, and mistakes are made.

As we pointed out Monday, these things run in cycles. The Sox would have done far better in both of these lists, for example, if they hadn't moved Andrew Benintendi and Rafael Devers to the big leagues in the last two seasons. Imagine if Benintendi, still only 22, and Devers, just 20, were still in the minors. Undoubtedly, they would each be Top 10 prospects on both lists. Instead, they've already graduated to the big leagues and are part of the Sox' core.

But for the time being, this should concern the Red Sox. While the Sox placed just two players in Top 100 for both ESPN and Baseball America, the Yankees (five in top 100, including two in top 16), Rays (four in Top 100, two in top 20) and Jays (four in Top 100, two in top 17) all fared much better.

That doesn't mean that every one of these will be playing for their current teams as stars in the future. But it does give the Sox' rivals in the division more ammunition with which to make trades at the deadine.

AL EAST

The Yankees have so many prospects, there might not be room for them all.

A look at some pitchers the Yanks could target at the deadline.

Orioles GM Dan Duquette addresses a number of topics 

Two sons of former major leaguers are among the Jays' top prospects

AL CENTRAL

Jim Thome's chances of being elected to Cooperstown are looking good.

It's time for the Tigers to retire Lou Whitaker's number.

The White Sox placed five players on Baseball America's Top 100 Prospects list.

Two years after his death, there's still a lot unsettled about the Royals' Yordano Ventura.

AL WEST

Will Vladimir Guerrero be the first Angels players ever elected to the Hall of Fame?

Would it make sense for the A's to sign Mike Moustakas to play left field?

The Mariners should think about giving an extension to Nelson Cruz.

Former Red Sox starter Doug Fister talked about some keys for success with the Rangers.

NL 

The Giants acquired another veteran to fill their center field void.

TAKE I MAY REGRET IN A MONTH

The San Francisco Giants have always marched to the beat of their own drum.

While most every other team embraced analytics, the Giants steadfastly relied on scouting to help them win three World Series in the past decade.

Now, the Giants are doing it again. While the trend in the game is all about youth, the Giants have made three acquisitions this winter to rebuild their roster: 32-year old Evan Longoria, 31-year old Austin Jackson and 31-year old Andrew McCutchen.

None of the players is exactly ancient, and McCutchen is signed for only the upcoming season.

Still, there's a risk involved for the Giants, especially considering that the rest of their roster is full of aging players. By the end of April, in fact, every one of the Giants' position players except second baseman Joe Panik will be 30 or older.

That's a risk in today's game. Then again, the Giants have won before while bucking industry-wide trends.