In a league that is starving for more offense, which young players might step up to add more pop to their teams? Here is a partial list:
At 22 years of age, Phil Joyner has already logged 74 games in the outfield, mostly in center field and left field. However, it is his fielding that stands out more than his bat. With a +3.2 Zone Rating, he covers ground in center for the Comets, but his bat challenges the fact that he is the #1 prospect as rated by OSA: .198/.247/.304 are stats that belong to a one Mario Mendoza and not the likes of a second coming of Tony Gwynn. Phil’s AAA stats only reached a .652 OPS which begs the question: does he belong at the top level? Time will tell as his starting duties have been decreased of late.
Juan Ibarra signed a minor league contract out of Mexico with the Sea Gull organization in 2017. The ceiling is sky high on this 18 year old shortstop from Juchitlan, now in his second year of Double-A ball. One of the younger players in Double-A, he has experienced a modest step forward improving his OPS from .552 to .664, and he has strung together four multi-hit games in his last six, indicating that he may be catching up with the rest of the competition. The prototype five-tool player will be fun to watch.
22-year-old shortstop Geoff Boyd has graduated from Triple-A having batted .313/.360/.403. He joined the Hamilton Mounties and actually improved his numbers: .318/.359/.464. The switch-hitting shortstop from Germantown, Wisconsin brings an even-tempered disposition to the team, belying his mantra of winning is not everything, it’s the only thing, a little tidbit he picked up from another Wisconsin legend back in the day. This athletic shortstop can play his position with the best (+2.5 ZR), can swipe bases, bunt for hits, and will flash some occasional power.
Fred ‘Bad Company’ Darrach is another 22 year old that is already on the GLBL scene as teams desperate for offense, any offense, are hoping that the young players can do what many of the journeymen players cannot. Fred had a .720 OPS in Double-A and made the jump straight to the Caribou parent team without a blip. He’s posted an identical .720 OPS having moved up two levels. Pretty impressive. He smacked 10 round trippers last year in the minors and has already hit nine this year while raising his slugging percentage to .409. He’s a spray hitter, and while his BB/K is a weak 21/83, most scouts think that will change as he matures and learns how to hit the dominant pitchers of the league.
Ray ‘Glance’ Blue was the #1 overall pick in last year’s rookie draft. The 22 year old had a .827 OPS in 199 at-bats in Double-A ball and was promoted to Triple-A ball where he posted a decent .744 OPS in 257 at-bats. Collectively, he hit 15 dingers and 31 doubles. This season in Triple-A with the Bay City Rollers, Ray hit 13 homers and 31 doubles (pretty consistent) and is batting .265 with a .770 OPS. Like many young players, his BB/K is tilted 40/127, but he projects to be a bat on the ball guy as he matures. Slow afoot, scouts consider Ray smart, motivated, and not a guy who will accept playing for a .500 team, something the T-Birds desperately need in their locker room. Blue is yet another of the promising shortstops to be waiting in the wings, although his future might be third base down the road. Blue is popular nation-wide, so the T-Birds best look for additional pieces if they want to keep ‘Glance’ in the fold beyond his required years.
Harry Norman, at 22 years of age, is a player who started this season in Triple-A as a ‘house of fire’ with his .329/.407/.600 line. He got the promotion to the Neptunes. In 344 at-bats, he is standing up to the league pitching by virtue of his .247/.328/.416 line. He is one of the many left-handed batters that traditionally fill out the Toledo line up. Norman has collected 39 RBIs while belting 14 homers near the bottom of the line-up, but it won’t be long before he moves up if his progress continues.