By Tony Lastoria
April 2, 2014
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Today we move on to the left fielders in our annual IBI positional rankings. So far we have ranked the following positions:
First base
Second base
Shortstop
Third base
Catcher
Most teams spend a bulk of their time developing their higher end outfield prospects in center field with the idea that if they can’t cut it there that they could always go to left field. Some players just end up in left field because of a limitation with their arm strength or their defense in center field. In any case, the Indians have a few very interesting possible left field options coming up the system, even if it is a position that looks adequately filled for the time being with Michael Brantley.
Here are the left fielders…
Born: 07/26/1991 – Height: 5’11” – Weight: 170 – Bats: Left – Throws: Right
2013 Stats: .348/.444/.552/.997, 42 R, 20 2B, 6 3B, 5 HR, 32 RBI, 37 BB, 54 K, 16 SB
Washington was selected in the 2nd round of the 2010 Draft out of Chipola Junior College (FL), and was signed for $1.2 million. He is one of the most interesting prospects in the Indians system because he has top shelf talent and the ability to be an impact player at the top of a lineup, but is getting older and had his career significantly stalled because of injuries. He has a strong, compact build with ton of athleticism and some impressive tools. He has a good feel for hitting and shows some good discipline at the plate with an advanced approach and a good understanding of the strike zone. He generates some good raw gap power for his size because of some good natural bat speed thanks to his good hands and quick wrists. His best skill in the outfield and on the bases is his plus speed which grades out as a solid 70 on the 20-80 scouting scale. He currently grades out as a below average outfielder because of his lack of experience at the position, but has the athleticism, instincts, quickness and speed that give him upside and project him to be an average to above average outfielder if he can develop those abilities and become more consistent with his defense. He has struggled through a lot of injuries over his four-year career which have really stunted his growth as a prospect. Without consistent time on the field he has had little chance to develop and refine his overall game and the constant leg injuries have affected his game that is built around his speed and athleticism. He is still young and can make good on his promise as a dynamic leadoff hitter that can impact a game in many ways, but he needs to stay on the field this season to improve his all-around game so that he can show his true potential.
Born: 09/18/1989 - Height: 5’11” - Weight: 230 - Bats: Right - Throws: Right
2013 Stats: .285/.357/.427/.785, 55 R, 20 2B, 2 3B, 8 HR, 52 RBI, 32 BB, 84 K, 15 SB
Myles was selected in the 6th round of the 2011 Draft out of Stephen F. Austin University (TX), and was signed for $112,000. He is an athlete who combines both power and speed to impact the game in many different ways. His physical attributes as a hitter are impressive as he has a very strong lower half and powerful frame that give him the base from which to use his quick wrists and good bat speed to drive balls and hit for average. As he learns to use his speed better and drives balls more consistently he is expected to see a spike in his extra base hit totals. He is a plus runner with well above average times down the line to first base and is still developing as a base-runner on the basepaths. He is improving defensively and has the potential to be an average defender in center field or left field. He is limited to left field and center field as an everyday player because of his fringe average arm, but his athleticism and speed give him the versatility to play all three positions and fill in at right field when needed. The main focus with him right now is refining his approach and staying healthy. The entire package is there for him physically, so it is just the mental part of hitting with developing his approach and swinging at strikes in the zone, and also staying on the field so he can accomplish those development opportunities. He is someone who has a lot of upside and potential and the Indians are excited to continue working with him and get him to reach his potential.
Born: 11/13/1992 - Height: 5’11” - Weight: 160 – Bats: Switch - Throws: Right
2013 Stats: .275/.368/.370/.739, 30 R, 13 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 20 RBI, 28 BB, 61 K, 8 SB
Rodriguez was signed by the Indians as an undrafted free agent in September 2009 out of the Dominican Republic. He is a dynamic leadoff hitting prospect who can impact a game in many ways at the top of a lineup. He shows the makings for an advanced approach at the plate and has a good feel for the bat head showing a natural ability to square up balls and make consistent hard contact. He has a quick, line drive swing with good hand-eye coordination from both sides of the plate and good bat-to-ball ability. He has below average power, but has good bat speed which allows him to showcase good gap power and spray line drives all over the field. He shows a lot of athleticism and good instincts in the outfield, and shows good range and a solid average, accurate arm that projects him to be an above average defender in center field. His greatest skill is his speed which is a legitimate plus tool and at times plus-plus. His plate discipline needs refined; more specifically his pitch recognition skills as he is very susceptible to breaking balls in the dirt so he needs to get better at staying in the zone with his swing. His defense is unreliable because he lacks consistency with his route running, decision making and pre-pitch setup. Injuries have gotten in his way a little bit and stalled his development plan, so hopefully he will be healthy later this season and finally put it all together and have a consistent season in all phases of the game.
Born: 02/04/1987 – Height: 5’10” – Weight: 200 – Bats: Left – Throws: Right
2013 Stats: .242/.334/.306/.640, 65 R, 13 2B, 1 3B, 6 HR, 48 RBI, 72 BB, 118 K, 22 SB
Fedroff was selected in the 7th round of the 2008 Draft out of the University of North Carolina, and was signed for $725,000. He is a tablesetter at the top of the lineup who has good on-base skills and a knack for making solid contact. He has a short, compact build with a good line drive swing where he displays good bat-to-ball ability and puts up consistent, quality at bats. He only has below average power, but has a patient approach where he limits strikeouts and is not afraid to work counts. He is a solid, unspectacular defender who can play all three outfield positions. He has slightly above average speed, solid range and instincts, and an average throwing arm. His big league potential is limited because of his limitations defensively because he does not quite have the range a team would like in a center fielder and he lacks the bat that profiles well as an everyday corner outfielder. To stay in the mix he has to perform at a near elite level offensively, something he did not do last year.
Born: 03/29/1993 – Height: 6’1” – Weight: 183 – Bats: Switch – Throws: Right
2013 Stats: .191/.244/.324/.568, 37 R, 20 2B, 3 3B, 8 HR, 45 RBI, 25 BB, 120 K, 3 SB
Martinez was signed as an undrafted free agent in July of 2009 out of the Dominican Republic. He is an unrefined hitter who is still very inconsistent with his swing, but he has some hitting skills and shows a knack for handling the bat and barreling up balls when he makes contact. While he has struggled with making consistent contact, when he has made contact over the last two seasons he has shown the ability to drive the ball into the gaps and pile up extra bases hits. He has some good, raw power that does not show frequently because of his inconsistent approach at the plate. He came into the organization as a shortstop and has since moved to the outfield. He is an average runner and is athletic so he has some quickness and solid range, but his biggest asset to the outfield is his plus arm strength. His problems lie specifically with his poor approach at the plate and his inability to make consistent, hard contact. He needs to really hone in on that approach to be a little less aggressive and instead be a little more selective at the plate. This could be a make or break season for him as he has struggled in three of his first four seasons as a pro.
Born: 12/14/1987 – Height: 6’2” – Weight: 210 – Bats: Right – Throws: Right
2013 Stats: .212/.268/.269/.537, 6 R, 3 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 2 RBI, 3 BB, 9 K, 0 SB
Gallas was signed by the Indians as an undrafted free agent out of Kent State University in June 2010. He has a solid approach, shows an ability to drive the ball, uses the whole field and has good strength with solid average power to all fields. In the field he displays some good athleticism, an average run tool, ranges well to balls, and has a good arm. He is a confident player that is very intense, and has an unbelievable work ethic and is very coachable. Unfortunately, at his age, he has little if any upside and is what he is as a player at this point. His swing lacks consistency because he is high effort and tries to muscle balls, and his approach at the plate needs more refining. He also had an unfortunate shoulder injury last season that forced him to miss most of the season. He is really going to have to play well and stay healthy this season to remain in the mix.
Born: 11/19/1989 – Height: 6’1” – Weight: 200 – Bats: Switch – Throws: Right
2013 Stats: .235/.336/.265/.602, 8 R, 0 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 8 RBI, 12 BB, 30 K, 0 SB
Hamilton was selected in the 35th round of the 2012 Draft out of Kent State University. His father is Tom Hamilton, who is the Indians radio broadcaster and “Voice of the Indians”. He has a solid approach from both sides of the plate, puts up good at bats, and shows some hit ability. He doesn’t have much power, but he is able to turn on balls well thanks to some quick wrists to the ball. He lacks a true position because his range is limited and his arm is only average. Even though the Indians moved him to the outfield last season he is versatile where he has the ability to play third base and second base as well. He is a plus makeup player with tremendous work ethic, and is an inspirational player who has overcome some life obstacles as he has been legally deaf since the age of three and plays the game with hearing aids. He is a player who knows his role as a fill-in player in the organization and that he will need to take advantage of every opportunity he is given.
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