There have been a number of studies done which prove that minor league performance not only is an indicator of future major league performance, but the best indicator as well.

But you don't need to look at studies to tell you that.

Pick up a "Who's Who in Baseball" and have a look at the minor league stats of today's MLB players.

Of course there are exceptions, but the vast majority of today's MLers had impressive stats in the minors, and for the most part, the better the ML player today, the better his minor league stats were. [/b][/quote]So in the cases of Carl Pavano and Jaret Wright having *decent* performances in AAA Columbus, would you believe that warrants them ready to start in the rotation this season in the major leagues despite getting hammered in Spring Training? :rolleyes:

I think that until they step out on that mound and face Major League hitters, minor league performance doesn't necessarily mean a whole heck of alot. Take Sean Henn for example, who lit it up in AA but was terrible at the major league level. I'm not saying that minor league performance isn't indicative in all cases, but with Pavano and Wright, I'm sure they had no trouble lighting it up against AA-level players.