Huntsville, like 2007, again with a southpaw-heavy rotation -- heck, all lefty.

Brae Wright is the surprise here, the 2006 6th rounder was strong in seven games (six starts) late last season at Brevard County, but that's still a quick jump to AA. Hammond, Miller, and Narron are all AAA-worthy, as is likely reliever Dave Johnson, but they'll still be followed closely by management with the Stars.

This squad is much different accolade-wise from last April's in terms of high-level position player talent. Of course, that didn't stop last year's team from winning division titles in both halves.

We should have the complete roster for you tonight.

April has Money seeing young Stars

Same room, same two chairs, same two people. One-hundred ninety-seven days ago, Stars manager Don Money and I sat here, with the Huntsville clubhouse empty and the deadlines long past. On Monday night, there we were again.

The last time was a Sunday night when the baseball gods proved to have the same sadistic behavior as a 10-year-old who'd stick a kitten in a dryer and push "start."

The Stars had been two outs from the Southern League championship. A Montgomery Biscuit named Sergio Pedroza hit an opposite-field, one-out, three-run homer in the top of the ninth inning of the final game of the league playoffs off Huntsville's ace closer, Luis Pena.

Totally devastated, the Stars had no more chance to rally than you have of putting toothpaste back in the tube. They put a couple of men on base only to have a symbolic moment - a broken-bat double play - end the game.

More than a few times in the offseason, Money thought back to that night, that inning, and said something in his brain that can't be said in a family newspaper.

It was the Stars' second consecutive championship series loss to the Biscuits.

There would be dignity, at least, of losing to Mudcats and Barons and Braves. But to a morning drive-thru staple, with a logo that has a pat of butter for a tongue? Shudder at the thought.

This year, to muster up another division title, the Stars must do so with a lineup only slightly older than the front row of a Hannah Montana concert.

"Young," Money said. "Real young. Age and experience."

The Milwaukee Brewers' poohbahs have said that its prospects tend to come in waves. J.J. Hardy-Corey Hart-Dave Krynzel in one. Prince Fielder-Rickie Weeks-Tony Gwynn Jr. in another. They've had such an impact that eight of the nine Milwaukee starters came up through the organization and played in Huntsville.

Now comes a new wave that opens the season Thursday night. Some of Milwaukee's best young - again that word - is coming to Huntsville. Matt LaPorta. Cole Gillespie. Angel Salome. Alcides Escobar. Mat with-one-T Gamel.

If you are infatuated with player ratings, that means something. If you're Don Money, it doesn't.

"My rating is what they do out there," Money said, nodding toward the field.

The first wave of prospects brought a trip to the championship. The other was a group of talented individuals that never jelled. What of this group?

The Stars were productive offensively in spring training, the defense improves at most every position, but pitching will be the question.

"This is the biggest jump, from A-ball to Double-A," Money was quick to caution. "Now they have to make adjustments."

Money then opened an envelope sent to the team by a loyal fan. Inside was a greeting card, one of those with the tiny gizmo that blares out a rock song when you open it.

A note inside reminded it is a year of "new possibilities and opportunities."

Implored the message, "Let's win the thing, and celebrate."

The baseball gods owe them a celebration. But not sure this group is old enough to throw a party.

Contact Mark McCarter at markcolumn@aol.com or visit his al.com blog at http://blog.al.com/mccarter

Prime prospects

They've thrived on college baseball's biggest stage, parlayed amateur fame into major league prospect status and burst onto the professional scene.

But when Huntsville newcomers Matt LaPorta and Cole Gillespie open the Stars' season tonight at Joe Davis Stadium against Mississippi, the microscope focuses.

"I think Double-A is the real acid test," said Milwaukee Brewers scouting director Jack Zduriencik, who drafted both collegiate superstars. "Then, the clock really starts ticking on them. Double-A is the true proving ground."

LaPorta, who'll bat cleanup, enters the seasons as the Brewers' top-rated prospect, according to Baseball America. Gillespie is rated No. 6 in the organization. They'll man the corner outfield positions.

So far, the tandem has proven Zduriencik knows what he's doing. Of course, when his draft history includes Prince Fielder, Rickie Weeks and Ryan Braun, few question his decisions. That wasn't the case last year when Zduriencik took power-hitting LaPorta with the seventh overall pick out of the University of Florida.

Second-guessers wondered whether LaPorta was picked too early based on some projections as a second-rounder. And with 23-year-old Fielder in the majors, why did the Brewers need another first baseman? Plus, what about dealing with LaPorta's agent Scott Boras?

Zduriencik had done his homework. The Brewers had LaPorta drive from Gainesville to Single-A Brevard several days before the draft for a private workout in the outfield, and scouts informed the Brewers that the position transition could go smoothly.

"We liked him all along," Zduriencik said. "We thought about that big power bat on such a great kid, so we rolled the dice that he could play outfield.

"We shook a lot of heads when we did it, but we felt comfortable with it."

Milwaukee informed LaPorta he'd be picked at No. 7 if he would agree to sign at slot price - roughly $2 million.

LaPorta had been though the process before, getting drafted twice previously - in the 14th round by the Cubs and again by the Red Sox after an oblique tear led to a miserable junior season. Both times, he decided to stay in Florida.

"If I'd have signed with the Cubs, I tell people I don't think I would have made it," said LaPorta, who holds the distinction as the SEC's only two-time player of the year. "I don't think I was mentally tough enough to make the grind every day.

"In college, I dealt with a lot of failure. You fail so much in this game, and if you learn how to deal with that, you're going to do well."

The "failures" of LaPorta and Gillespie were far outnumbered by their successes.

LaPorta led the Gators to the College World Series championship series in 2005 before losing to Texas. After signing last year, he skyrocketed through Single-A, ripping 10 home runs in 23 games.

"It was good to be able to come into professional baseball after not playing a couple of months and get right back in the swing of things," LaPorta said.

Though not as powerful as LaPorta, Gillespie's resume reads similarly.

The 2006 Pac-10 player of the year was the catalyst for an Oregon State team that won that CWS. The All-American left fielder led the Beavers in most offensive categories.

The Brewers took him in the third round of the '06 draft, and Gillespie tore up Helena by hitting .344 with eight homers in 51 games. In his first full season in Brevard last year, he hit .267 with 12 homers and 62 RBIs.

"Cole, we see as an all-around player and a very mature player in all aspects of the game," said Brewers assistant general manager Gord Ash. "He's a player we think very highly of."

He and LaPorta are just faces in a crowd of potential stars in Huntsville. The Stars boast five of the Brewers' top 10 prospects, and along with LaPorta and 20-year-old Michael Brantley, Gillespie rounds out a formidable outfield.

"We looked at the roster, and everybody can hit throughout the order," Gillespie said. "We're probably not going to be the quickest outfield around, but we're definitely going to make good decisions out there. Hopefully, this club's going to be built on some offense."

Following the Brewers' recent series of stellar draft picks, it's LaPorta's and Gillespie's turn to see if they will be the next in a line.

"To me, with their rankings, that's just somebody rating them, but I look at a guy and say, 'He can play,' or 'He can't play,'" Stars manager Don Money said. "Now, this is when it counts."

Salome rejoins farm system after 50-game penalty

With talk of steroids and syringes saturating baseball, Angel Salome knows what some people think about him.

He knows that no matter what he says or does, many won't believe that his 50-game suspension after testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs last season was an accident.

With the problems baseball has endured, the Huntsville Stars' 21-year-old catching prospect can't blame the skeptics.

"Even though I didn't do it on purpose, people aren't going to take it that way," Salome said. "I don't blame them. I just want to apologize for what I did, and I won't do it again.

"I tell my friends all the time to be careful with all those products, because you don't know what's in them."

Salome was hitting .318 for Single-A Brevard County last July when he was tested. Unnerved, the stocky catcher shrugged it off as no big deal and played that night. A few days later, he got a phone call from the organization telling him he was suspended.

Then came the questions about what supplement he was using.

"It was an energy drink," Salome said. "It probably had Ephedra or some amphetamines in it, and I didn't know that.

"I mean, it wasn't on purpose. How am I going to do this on purpose when I know I can be suspended for 50 games? That doesn't make any sense."

Just like that, Salome - needing defensive seasoning and enjoying a breakout year offensively - was done playing for the season. He missed the regular season, the playoffs and, most importantly, the experience.

Salome had been warned of the danger of supplements many times before, but it obviously didn't resonate. Brewers director of player development Reid Nichols said the organization has seminars every year for players regarding banned stimulants.

"It's hard for us to know everything about what happened," Nichols said. "It could have been accidental, or it could have been on purpose. It's not our intent to investigate that. We deal with the consequences, and it's our job to better educate the players so it doesn't happen again."

Despite the education, some players still elect to try to get an additional edge. Even with the magnifying glass focused on baseball, it doesn't surprise Nichols that players gamble with questionable substances.

"Look at the Olympics," he said. "Everybody knows they've gone to more stringent testing, and they're still getting caught."

With the lax nature that the government polices the supplemental industry, Nichols said, anything can go into those drinks. MLB and NFL have agreements with EAS supplements to inform players of what is legal and what isn't.

"You're responsible for what you take," Salome said. "You're the only one buying your energy drinks."

Stars manager Don Money -- a longtime big league third baseman -- said he doesn't see the need in doing anything but eating right and working out.

"Players today want to get that instant fix," he said. "When I was 21 or 22, we went out there and played 140 or 150 games and did it right. There were no energy drinks in those days."

After serving the final four games of his suspension and going hitless in his first three games back, Salome muscled a single up the middle Monday. He added another pair of singles Tuesday and said he is getting back his timing.

Though he is still having trouble with his throwing mechanics, he also has improved defensively. He's worked extensively with minor league catching instructor Charlie Greene since arriving early in Arizona for spring training.

"He's come a long way since the first time I saw him in the fall of '04," Greene said. "Last year hurt (developmentally), but just like a kid, you can't just keep punishing him. Hopefully, he learned his lesson."

Salome insisted he has, and he has already put the nightmarish 2007 season behind him.

"I just made a mistake," Salome said. "I'm grateful to be here now, and I'm just going to take advantage of it."