by Thomas Belmont on February 22, 2012
Christian Villanueva, 3B Texas Rangers
6/19/1991
Height: 5’11″ Weight: 180
Christian Villanueva was signed out of Guadalajara, Mexico as a SS in 2008 by the Texas Rangers. He spent his first games at SS before moving over to 3B due to a knee injury and has stuck at the position ever since. His 2009 season was a negligible showing and not worth speaking about while his 2010 season showed the first signs of his potential.
In 2010, Villanueva, showed little power, but hit .314 with 14 doubles in 188 AB. His .365 OBP was a nice sign but his 6.1% walk rate left something to be desired. The 6.1% walk rate wasn’t a primary reason for the high OBP whereas a .403 BABIP tells much of the tale to his 2010 success. But with a such a young player making hard consistent contact, it was something to note. And we did take note.
Villanueva came in at 321° on our Baseball Instinct 360° and here’s what we had to say:
321°. Christian Villanueva, 3B Rangers 6/19/1991 - Already a regarded prospect in the Rangers system, Villanueva flashes above avg power and a good glove at 3B. His .186 IsoP is powered by 30 doubles and 17 HR in 2011 while cutting his K rate and boosting his walk rate. Defensively he’s an above average defender and getting better with a clear 3B arm. ETA 2014.
There is still a 2011 season to take into consideration so let’s take a look at The Bat and The Glove and see what makes Christian Villanueva one of the Rangers top prospects. [click to continue…]
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by Bart Klett on February 18, 2012
Roman Mendez, RHP Texas Rangers
7-25-90
Height:6’2” Weight:180
It is not often that the Boston Red Sox make a trade that doesn’t work out well. In 2010 the Boston made a play for a catcher that they had coveted for a long time. Theo Epstein traded two relatively unknown prospects for Texas Ranger catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia. While “Salty” has had decent results, he certainly is leaving the door open for Ryan Lavarnway to take over the catcher position at Fenway Park. On the other hand, the Rangers may have gotten a steal of a prospect in Roman Mendez. This prospect may be one of those players that Red Sox fans regret their team ever trading away.
In 2007 the Red Sox signed Roman Mendez out of the Dominican Republic as a 17 year-old for a paltry $125,000 signing bonus. Known as a flame throwing power pitcher, Mendez was extremely raw and lacked control of his stuff. While Mendez was (and still is a project), there was no denying that he had high-caliber talent. And it was this high-end ceiling that caught the eye of the Rangers. It was a great trade for the Rangers to make since they were getting very little production out of Saltalamacchia anyways. [click to continue…]
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by Thomas Belmont on February 6, 2012
Continuing our run through the Top 10 Lists for prospects and we find ourselves here with the 2B. It leads off with a rumored position switch with Rosario and includes some high probability 2B in Wong and Spangenberg. After that the position really thins on surefire major league talent. But there are some players here who change the public opinion in 2012. 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
23°. Eddie Rosario, OF/2B, Twins, 9/28/1991 - Rosario had an impressive debut in 2010 as an 18-year-old in the Gulf Coast League. He hit .294 with 5 HRs and 22 SB in 194 at bats in 2010. He followed up that impressive season by displaying an awesome power/speed combination in the Appalachian League by posting a triple slash of .337/.397/.670. It was one of, if not the, best minor league performances in 2011. He still has to prove he do it against advanced pitchers and the FSL will be his first true test. He may start 2011 in Fort Myers. ETA 2014.
Update Instinct – Rumor still has it that, Rosario, an OF in 2011 will be making a transition to 2B. I guess the Twins think that Levi Michael will stick at SS or that they already have their SS in Brian Dozier. Either way, Rosario, seems to be in line for a shot at being a 2B. If this pans out, you have one the top bats as far as potential goes, taking on a premium position. It’s not an easy transition, and Levi Michael will be in line to slip right into the 2B of the future role if Rosario falters defensively. [click to continue…]
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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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