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BP Annual Player Comments

Year		Comment
2014		While regular playing time would expose Corey Brown’s contact woes, the 27-year-old could be a solid power bat off the bench, with ability to play all three outfield positions in a pinch.
2013		In his third go-round at Triple-A, Brown finally got the hang of it, putting together a huge season in Syracuse and displaying the best of his skills. He has always been a power-speed guy whose ceiling was tamped down by his inability to make consistent contact. His 2012 breakthrough was no different: He still struck out 25 percent of the time, but he managed to pack a lot of damage into the other 75 percent of his plate appearances. He looks like a 26th, even 27th type of guy for the Nationals, shuttling between Syracuse and Washington a couple of times a year.
2012		We'd like to say Brown's a higher risk/higher upside guy than Bernadina just to make the story simpler, but he's not higher risk. He's not on the 40-man roster, so he'll probably start the season at Triple-A, but Brown hits and fields at least as well as Bernadina, and has demonstrated the ability to draw a few more walks. A good example of a guy you can take a flyer on who's out there to be had in a cheap deal, rather than spending a few million bucks on a guy who you know is going to be a mediocrity.
2011		Moving from a crowded situation in Oakland to Washington as part of the Josh Willingham deal, Brown has a better opportunity for a big league chance, but he still has to prove he can hit Triple-A pitching, having failed to do so in 2010. See him on the right day and he is a potential big-league center fielder with above-average power and speed to go with solid defensive skills. The problem is that he's not an especially good hitter who has whiffed in over 30 percent of his minor-league at-bats. His ability to make up for a lack of average with his secondary skills will define his future.
2010		After hitting 30 home runs in 2008, Brown was hampered by knee problems in '09, cutting into his development time. He remains an intriguing talent with above-average power and speed and the ability to play center field. The decision to sign Coco Crisp will give him time to demonstrate health and effectiveness at Triple-A. There are still the strikeouts to worry about, as he's now totaled 314 in 259 professional games. It's unlikely that he'll ever hit for a high average, but he does enough things well that he should be able to carve out a career in spite of his flaws.
2009		A supplemental first-round pick in 2007, Brown is a bit of a strange bird. He's got plenty of tools, as evidenced by 30 home runs and 16 stolen bases in his full-season debut, and he plays a nice center while showcasing a solid arm. Then there are the strikeouts; 168 of them in 496 at-bats, 34 percent of his at-bats, 30 percent of his PA—you get the point, a lot of strikeouts. Even still, it's quite common to see him shorten his swing with two strikes and use the opposite field. He's a difficult player to project because of the gap between what he is and what scouts see, but at the very least there's something here to build on.
2008		One of Oakland's two first-round supplemental picks last June, Brown is a typical A's draftee in that he's a college player from a well-established program (Oklahoma State), but an atypical selection in that he's far from polished. A high-upside type with power, speed, and plenty of walks, Brown also has a disturbingly high strikeout rate, which continued in his pro debut and was the thing that kept scouts from loving him, as opposed to merely liking him.

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