While it has not happened yet, Cameron Maybin appears Triple-A bound.

It has been a bad week for prospects.

Jay Bruce is back in Triple-A, but we saw that one coming when they signed Corey Patterson. The Reds simply have no clue at this point what direction they want to go in. This should be a rebuilding team, but instead of rebuilding, they signed a manager that is horrific when it comes to developing talent and signed stopgap players to block the prospects they should be building around instead.

The other prospect taking a hit from the Reds appears to be Homer Bailey, who is right now likely on the outside looking in. Bailey has struggled throughout Spring Training, and he is 0-3 with a 6.75 ERA after five starts, with more walks than strikeouts. Bailey needs more time in the minors, so in the long term, this might be good for him.

One of the pitchers benefiting from Bailey’s struggles is also a prospect, and that is Johnny Cueto. Cueto is likely the No. 3 starter for the Reds at this point, although he has struggled at times this spring, as he has a 5.27 ERA and a 12:9 strikeout-to-walk ratio. The pitcher to watch here though, while not a prospect per se anymore, is the still-young Edinson Volquez. Volquez has been amazing thus far, with a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 21:3 in 15 innings. Volquez is likely the No. 4 starter.

Clay Buchholz continues to struggle, as the Hanshin Tigers in an exhibition game in Japan lit him up. Can the Red Sox afford to not send him down at this point? It is not looking good for Buchholz to remain in the rotation, with Kyle Snyder likely taking Curt Schilling’s spot in the rotation.

While he was not struggling, Luke Hochevar will not get a chance at the rotation as it had looked he would early on. Hochevar has reported to Triple-A after posting a 2.25 ERA in three appearances, one as a starter, for the Royals in the big league camp. Over eight innings, Hochevar only struck out three while walking one, and he is going to need to get that strikeout rate back up. He will not be gone for long, so look for him to return by midseason.

Another player heading down to the minors for more seasoning is Jeff Niemann, who will report to Triple-A to open the year. Niemann was 2-0 with a 1.50 ERA in four appearances, three as a starter, but he also posted a mediocre K/BB ratio of 5:5 in 12 innings – a ratio like that at the major league level when the games count will get him killed. Look for the Rays to be cautious with rushing Niemann, but he will still be up before the roster expansion in September.

Cameron Maybin appears to have lost the Spring Training competition between him and Alejandro de Aza. Maybin has tailed off as Spring Training has gone on, as his batting average sits now at just .216, whereas de Aza is hitting .340 with an OBP over .400 and an OPS close to 1.100. De Aza had been a strong sleeper candidate last year before his injury and the Marlins’ bungling of his injury, only worsening it, and he should be the everyday center fielder until Maybin returns. Maybin has had every little experience at the upper levels of the minors, so a demotion is likely for the best.

While the Athletics want Daric Barton to win the first base job outright, his poor hitting this spring might keep the window open for Dan Johnson. Barton has walked more than he has struck out this spring, so his calling card – his eye at the plate – is still there, but his .188 batting average is not one to write home about. Barton will start the series in Japan at first for the Athletics, but his hold over first base might not be as strong as some would like it to be.

The Pirates’ best power hitter this spring, Steven Pearce, has gone back down to Triple-A, and he will continue to work on the transition to being a right fielder. Pearce hit .263 with four home runs, ten RBI, eight runs scored, and a SLG of .632 in his 38 at-bats with the big league club. The team will be aggressively looking to dump Xavier Nady, and Pearce will assume Nady’s spot in the lineup as soon as the Pirates unload him.

On a completely different note, one of the more interesting stories this Spring Training has been the plate discipline of Alberto Callaspo. Sure, he might be lacking in the walks department with only five, but he has struck out now only once in 53 at-bats. Once a highly regarded prospect with the Angels, the Royals acquired Callaspo from the Diamondbacks in a trade for Billy Buckner this offseason. While it looked at first like the 24-year-old (who turns 25 in mid-April) might be stuck with utility duties, but it now appears as the Royals are looking for ways to work him into the lineup whenever possible and he has even seen time in the outfield this spring. Look for the Royals to squeeze him in to the lineup as the Angels did with Chone Figgins early in his career – any and everywhere.

That wraps up this week at the Farm Report – next week, we will look at what little remains of Spring Training and then start to get in to regular season mode.