June 24, 2015

Notes from the Field

June 24, 2015

by BP Prospect Staff

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• I didn’t love Ronald Guzman’s present approach or the swing he showed in-game last week. He’s a big dude with plus raw strength, but his swing works off extremely high, rigid hands, and his path through the zone cuts off quickly at the point of contact, limiting his ability to drive the ball with authority. He kept his hips closed on the vast majority of pitches he saw, taking several on the inner third and preferring instead to look away for something to punch to the opposite field. The snapshot I saw could very well reflect an intentional developmental step, but I didn’t see any evidence of a hitter presently capable of unlocking pull-side power. –Wilson Karaman
  
• I like JaCoby Jones. It's hard to pinpoint exactly why sometimes, but I think he's going to be a good player. He's a tremendous athlete, though he doesn't always have athletic actions. He reminds me a lot of Hunter Pence in terms of body language. His actions in the infield aren't smooth, but his hands are acceptable and he can stay in the infield somewhere, potentially even handling shortstop in short stints. He can really run, though, and I'd love to see him in center field roaming gap to gap with those long strides. He's also got good raw power. It's a unique profile, but I like what he brings to the field. –Jeff Moore
  
• Ryan Cordell’s top-shelf athleticism continues to be tested by the Rangers organization with ongoing reps at third, short, and in center. He put on a pretty ugly show for me early on—within the first three innings he made a stone-handed error at third, expanded the zone twice in ugly fashion for a whiff, and popped out on a first-pitch slider with a runner on third and one out. But he also demonstrated an impressive disregard for those struggles, maturely grinding through and producing two impressive at-bats and some subsequent nice plays in the field. It was an encouraging display of mental toughness, particularly from a prospect with so much on his developmental plate. –Wilson Karaman
  
• I was very impressed with Baltimore’s Mychal Givens when I saw Bowie at New Britain last week. I had seen Givens play shortstop in A ball and knew he had converted to the mound, but I didn’t expect this kind of stuff or velo. From a compact, sidearm slot, Givens pumped mid-90s, touching 98 for me. His slider gives him a second plus offering and that makes for a potential set-up profile, and perhaps even more. I do worry about how effective he’ll be against opposite-handed hitters with this arm slot and repertoire. The change flashed well in warmups, but I didn’t get a great read in-game. Givens is no mound convert gimmick. He’s a legitimate big-league bullpen arm that can help a team right now. He hasn’t been used by the Orioles since his call up, but I look forward to seeing him face major-league batters. –Al Skorupa
  
• Recently promoted outfielder Johan Mieses is raw with a capital “R,” which isn’t surprising given that the soon-to-be 20-year-old is about three and a half years younger than his average Cal League competition. The Dodgers farmhand showed some intriguing discipline in the box in a viewing last week, however, walking twice after falling behind in the count. The foot speed looks to be at least plus, and he uncorked an absolute laser beam from medium-depth left field that would’ve nailed an above-average runner at home on one hop had it been handled properly. –Wilson Karaman
  
• One of my favorite things in scouting is seeing a player make improvements from one viewing to the next, and that's what happened with Willy Adames. Earlier this season he was very aggressive and struggled to identify breaking balls from right-handers. In the Florida State League All-Star game, however, he singled hard to left on a slider down in the zone, and then later worked a walk in a long at-bat that featured a few fastballs just off the plate. He's got a ways to go, but these were encouraging signs. –Jeff Moore
  
• The more I watch Colin Bray, the more I appreciate his skill set. At 6-foot-3 and an athletic 197 pounds, Bray has the right size, and the high-waisted center fielder has solid-average speed and utilizes it with plus instincts when manning his position. Bray gets a little adventurous out on the basepaths as he trusts his speed to a fault sometimes. He tries to take the extra base every opportunity that he gets, even when it’s ill-advised. Bray’s hit tool is the biggest question mark surrounding his profile. He can hit enough to earn a fourth-outfielder spot and provide contributions with his glove and on the bases. The OFP here isn’t anything to get excited about, but Bray can be a solid player. –Mauricio Rubio
  
• Quick Hits: Cardinals 1B Luke Voit has tremendous raw power and put on a show in the FSL home run derby, but I’ve never seen him be able to translate it to games consistently (JM)...Rays RHP Jacob Faria isn’t getting enough attention for a 21-year-old with a great frame and three potential pitches (JM)...Rangers OF Nomar Mazara continues to refine his approach at the plate, rarely getting cheated out of at-bats. He’s also been playing left field in addition to right the last few games (Kate Morrison)… Ildemaro Vargas is a fun little player to watch operate during infield/outfield drills, but the range isn’t what you’d want from an everyday guy and his bat is extremely limited, so he’ll have to hope to carve out a niche as an energy/glue guy (MR).