Pirate 1996 Scouting Report - Short Stop
Last Updated 4 April 1996
In December 1995,
Mark Jareb (mij6t@avery.med.virginia.edu) posted the
following to the Pirate e-mail
list. I have edited it and included it here with his
permission:
"Notes: when you see ###/###/###, that stands for
BA/OBP/SLG (or just OBP/SLG sometimes). I'll probably harp a lot
on OBP because I see that as the Pirates major offensive problem
(compared to the league, their OBP is relatively worse than their
SLG). I list players currently in the organization
based on the highest level they played in '95. Whenever you
see a player's age listed, that refers to what his age will be
during the '96 baseball season."
Index: | Pirates
| Calgary
| Carolina
| Lynchburg
| Augusta
| Erie
| GCL
| Projections |
Pirates
Jay Bell: He's 30 years old; he was drafted in
the 1st round by the Minnesota Twins in 1984. He'll be a free
agent after '97. His salary for this season is in the $4 million
range. He had his career year in 1993 hitting
310/392/437. This past year, he hit 262/336/404. He has a
strong platoon split:
vs RHP vs LHP
'93 295/364/415 342/449/484
'94 242/327/360 377/432/660
'95 246/316/355 306/387/535
His DA numbers suggest he's declined defensively as well (numbers
given are Bell's DA/league avg DA that year) -- here are his DAs
from '90-'95:
629/642, 636/656, 653/648, 673/633, 643/614, 585/617. All in all
at this point, he appears to be an average SS who's declining.
On the other hand he'll only be 30 in '96. I'd be inclined to
trade him for whatever we can get -- however, it's possible that
he has a couple of above average seasons left. He's not worth $4
million, but probably ~$2 million for the kind of production I
expect from him, considering he's a SS. I wouldn't be surprised
if he put up 280/350/450, but I also wouldn't be surprised by
260/320/390. If we were to trade Bell, Garcia would probably move
from 2B to SS -- it's definitely a question if Garcia has the
range to handle SS as his 2B DAs are consistently below average.
Calgary AAA
Kevin Polcovich: He's 26 years old; he was
drafted in '92 out of college (I don't know what round). He had
his best season in '95 -- he started out in Carolina hitting
317/369/394 and then hit 282/336/371 at Calgary. In truth, for
his age and especially considering the league and park at AAA,
that production is not that promising. He is considered solid
defensively. He played in the Arizona League initially, but was
replaced by Lou Collier (see Lynchburg
below). In his short stint in Arizona (24 AB), he hit .125.
He'll start the year at AAA. Essentially, he is insurance if
someone gets injured.
Tony Womack: He's 26 years old; he was drafted in
the 7th round out of Guilford College in '91. Inexplicably, he
was kept on the Bucs' 40-man roster this past year. He is an
extremely fast runner, good defensively, good bunter -- but more
importantly, he's a bad hitter, with no power, and doesn't walk
much, so he's below average at getting on base. Actually, he
spent most of 1995 at AA. He hit 256/300/316 at Carolina,
280/353/327 at Calgary. I like Polcovich better, simply
because people talk about Womack as if he was a prospect, but
essentially Polcovich and Womack are the same production-wise
(probably Womack looks a little better just because he can run
faster).
Carolina AA
No one played here in 1995 besides Polcovich and Womack
Lynchburg A (full season, high)
Lou Collier: He's 22 years old; he was a draft and
follow from the 31st round in '92. He has the potential to be a
good lead-off hitter. The Bucs had hoped he would be promoted to
Carolina last year, but an ankle injury slowed him down. He
started off the season extremely well (after ~25 games
288/388/424), then the injury occurred and a big slump followed
(after ~ 40 games 242/375/308), finishing the season with a
276/365/368. He seemed to take a lot of walks when he was hurt,
so he really only appears to be average in terms of getting on
base. He stole 31 bases and was caught 11 times. In Arizona, he
appeared to play well, batting .305, slugging .407. Defensively,
he has a strong arm, pretty good range, and OK hands
according to Baseball America. His hands looked fine to me, but
range-wise he seemed only OK. He will start the year at
Carolina,
but I'd expect him to move up to AAA. I doubt we'll see him with
the Bucs at all in '96 since they'd have to add to him to the
40-man roster. I'd expect to see him in Pittsburgh in '97
though.
Roman Rodriguez: He's 27 years old; he was signed
out of Venezuela in '88 by the Bucs. He was released by the Bucs
in early '93 and was signed in 1995 as a replacement player. He
hit 254/300/285. I don't expect him back in '96.
Augusta A (full season, low)
Tony Robinson: He's 20 years old; he was drafted
in the 14th round in '94. He hit 229/337/279 in '95. Baseball
America considers him the best defensive infielder in the Bucs'
organization. He's not good offensively, but he's young and can
take a walk. It is definitely worth watching to see how he
develops. He'll probably start season in Lynchburg, although his
bat probably isn't ready.
Mark Farris: He's 21 years old; he was drafted in
the 1st round in '94. He did not play in '95 because he blew out
his knee and had surgery. He was projected to have played SS at
Augusta in '95. Most likely, he will be in Augusta in '96 but
probably at 3B. In '94, he hit well in Welland (Erie replaced
Welland) while posting 287/371/360. It'll be interesting to see
how he comes back from his injury. Since his main tool is his
hitting, I think he'll come back fine.
Erie A (short season)
Chad Hermansen: He's 18 years old; he was drafted
in the 1st round in '95. He received a $1.15 million signing
bonus. He was voted the top prospect in both the GCL Rookie
League and the New York-Penn League. Of high school
players drafted in '95, Baseball America expects him to make the
majors 2nd fastest (some pitcher for the Cubs was 1st). He hit
304/363/533 in GCL, then he hit 273/354/467 in Erie. He only
started playing SS his senior year in high school -- he is better
defensively than Pirates expected, though he still may be moved
to 3B or OF eventually. He has a strong arm, but only average
range. I'd try to keep him at SS if at all possible.
Regardless, he is truly an excellent prospect. He can
walk and has good power already at age 18. The Pirates need more
guys like this. Expect him to be in Augusta in '96.
Here is another scouting
report on Chad.
Gulf Coast (Rookie League)
Edgar Feliz: He's 18 years old; I'm guessing he
was signed out of the Dominican. He hit 236/259/309 in 1995.
I'm guessing he'll be in Erie next year, simply because
we don't have many SS.
Dan Delgado: Note: Dan Delgado, who was
listed in the 2B report, actually played more at SS and is
included here again. He's 19 years old; he was drafted in the
10th round in '95. He hit 179/287/198. He's still pretty raw,
but with potential. Probably, he will start out in the Rookie
League again next year.
Projections:
Bucs: Jay Bell
Calgary: Kevin Polcovich, Tony Womack
Carolina: Lou Collier
Lynchburg: Tony Robinson
Augusta: Chad Hermansen
Erie: Edgar Feliz
Gulf Coast League: Dan Delgado
Is there something here you like, that needs to be changed,
or would you like to see something that is not included?
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