by Thomas Belmont on February 5, 2012
Continuing our run through the Top 10 Lists for prospects, we find ourselves at the catchers position. A position that finds some right now players that could make a serious impact as early as the beginning of this season and down through the Top 10 into our 360 for some really young backstops that could be flying up the charts this year with the likes of Realmuto, Maron, Hernandez and Alfaro. So once again, let’s take a step back and take a broad look at the minor leagues as we go position by position and bring to you the Top Position Lists with some additional players and information.
Because as we said, we’ll be analyzing the Baseball Instinct 360° not only full circle, but 365 days a year. The deeper we get into the video and our customized Instinctools Stat System the more the view changes from the top.
So let’s get into the catchers position and give you the list and some of the current thoughts.
In the Top 100
5°. Jesus Montero, C/DH, Mariners, 11/28/1989 - Montero came in at #1 on our 2011 Top 100 List based on his advanced bat at a young age and making it all the way to Triple-A as a catcher. As we said in his Prospect Instinct, a perfect storm of events have led to him being in line for a shot at the catchers position in the Bronx. His contact ability is elite regardless of where he plays. He’ll have above average power as a 20-something and elite level power in his prime. How long he actually sticks at catcher is dependent of how well Joe Girardi and Tony Pena are able to cultivate him. But those two are the reason for my optimism of a future average regular on defense and glowing reviews on offense. ETA 2012.
Update Instinct – Well, the trade to Seattle finally happened. It looks like Seattle thinks he can handle a full catchers workload. He’s not going to be the best defender in the league, I think we all know that already. But the bat is legit and fantasy players should take note now. Real baseball? His bat will need to carry him and we think it can. [click to continue…]
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by George Utter on January 30, 2012
Joe Panik, SS San Francisco Giants
10/30/1990
Height: 6’1” Weight: 193
Joe Panik may not be the player that San Francisco Giants fans wanted, but he may be exactly the player they need: A baseball rat that’s not afraid of getting his uniform dirty. Panik did not get drafted right out of John Jay High School in upstate New York in 2008. At just under 6’0″ tall and 170ish pounds, he was just another small infielder with potential but too many questions about where he would project at the next level. In three years at St. John’s, Panik worked his tail off to bust those stereotypes. He added 20 pounds of muscle, improved his speed and agility, and became a better overall athlete. He also figured out how to grow a couple of inches, too. You got to love a guy with THAT much determination.
In 169 games for the Red Storm in those 3 years, Panik put up a triple slash of .370/.474/.597. For you stat and fantasy geeks (me), his college career also included 25 HRs, 11 Triples, 48 Doubles, 164 runs, 157 RBI, and 33 SB in 640 at bats. With a fantastic eye at the plate, he had a eye-popping, jaw-dropping 57/111 K/BB rate. For 2011, in 498 at bats between St. John’s and Salem-Kaizer of the Northwest League, Panik Hit .367 with 16 HRs, 111 RBI, 109 runs, and 34 SB. That will grab your attention even if you felt the Giants should have drafted someone else with more “upside” than Joe Panik. He recently came in #111 in our Baseball Instinct 360°. [click to continue…]
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by George Utter on January 24, 2012
Welcome back to the 2011 draft “in-season” review. We started the series last fall, but took a break from it to present to you our top 10 lists and, of course, our Baseball Instinct 360° top prospects list for 2012. In this series we’re taking a look at players from the 2011 draft who signed and got into game play in 2011. We’ve separated the High School players from the College players and compiled which players had the best season statistically. This ranking if you will, isn’t based on tools or skill set, nor is it a projection into the career these players may have. It’s purely a spotlight on those players from the past draft that grabbed our eye statistically.
I love these types of articles. I get to get my stat geek on. I’ll take a look at a guy like Adam Eaton, OF Diamondbacks (2010 draft round 19 pick 571), who had a great 2010 debut, got on our radar like these players, we investigated him closer, and he followed up 2010 with a solid 2011 campaign. Or perhaps a kid like Brandon Drury, 3B Braves (2010 draft round 13 pick 404). He didn’t have a statistically impressive debut in the GCL, but in a short-supply class of high school players, coupled with the fact that he’s from my region in the Pacific Northwest, he made the “keep an eye on” list for me. As with Eaton, a fantastic 2011 campaign and now both players are on our top 360 list.
We jump back into things with a look at the First basemen. As with the other articles, there was no short supply of silky sweet statistical goodness from the college players, however, the high-school players were in short supply.
[click to continue…]
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by Mike Koepp on January 19, 2012
Hector Sanchez, C San Francisco Giants
11/17/1989
Height: 5′ 11″ Weight: 235
Hector Sanchez has moved up San Francisco’s organizational ladder and has surpassed the much more talked about Tommy Joseph due to hard work and impressive minor league numbers. Signed by the Giants as an amateur free agent in 2006. Sanchez started his 2011 season with the Single-A San Jose Giants but showed his hitting skills had advanced beyond the California League when he hit .302 with 11 HR and 68 RBIs in 52 games. When Buster Posey’s season ended with the horrific leg and ankle injury, the big club promoted him to Triple-A Fresno. In 46 games, he hit .261 with 1 HR and 26 RBIs in 46 games. With his offensive numbers and the development of his defensive skills Hector Sanchez ranked #349 in our Baseball Instinct 360°. Here is a look at the reasons why and where we think he’ll be this season. [click to continue…]
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