Saturday, November 13, 2010

Prospect Stock Watch: Shortstop

The following is a review of the Royals shortstops that intrigue me enough to make a post about. I'm going to offer whether or not the player performed as well, better, or worse than what I personally expected. I'll also give a brief explanation on my thoughts.

Irving Falu (Steady): Falu did nothing this season to make me think there was anything more to his career than him being a journeyman triple A guy.

Chris McConnell (Loss): It isn't that I had expectations for McConnell to do so, but it would have been nice to see him hit just a little this season. I will give him credit where he deserves and without his sound glove and work ethic at short this season might not have been quite so magical for Naturals fans.

Anthony Seratelli (Steady): Seratelli provided some key plays for the Naturals during their playoff run and he also provided them a good on base pinch hit option and defensive replacement. However, his status as a prospect remains the same: he isn't one.

Christian Colon (Gain): I loved the Christian Colon pick in a draft that lacked a clear number four and I know that there were those who were disappointed by his numbers in Wilmington, but do not include me in that group. As we all know Wilmington is an extremely tough park to hit in and for a guy to hit .278 in his first professional stint fresh after a college season in the Carolina League, well I am impressed. Hopefully improved pop and plate discipline will be on the way.

Rey Navarro (Loss): Navarro came to Kansas City from Arizona in the Carlos Rosa deal and I liked the attempt to take a shot on a decently regarded prospect. Unfortunately, Navarro can't hit at all. He is still just 20, so I'm not going to write him off, but he is going to have to show something in 2011.

Adam Frost (Steady): Not much of a prospect, but he intrigues me giving his independent league background. Plus, you have to appreciate a player willing to do anything the team asks including pitch.

Alex McClure (Gain): Every draft there are guys that are hyped up by team officials as surprises and this year Alex McClure is one of those guys. He's very good defensively but after impressing team officials with the bat during instructs he deserves a gain on his stock.

Justin Trapp (Loss): Trapp only gets a loss here because of the raised expectations for him after Baseball America annointed him as the 31st best prospect in the organization and predicted a breakout season. In the end the Trapp struggled with the bat and committed 33 errors at short. He's only just turned twenty so he does still have time on his side.

Michael Antonio (Steady): Most draft experts felt as though the Michael Antonio pick was a bit of a reach for the Royals in the third round. But there is something to be said for a player that is the consensus top talent in a city the size of New York. He didn't amaze in the Arizona League but he showed a bit of pop that is promising moving forward.

Orlando Caxito (Steady): The artist formerly known as Paul Carlixte the million dollar man. Caxito showed a good eye at the plate in just twenty games. I'm interested to see where he is assigned in 2011.

Humberto Arteaga (Steady): I don't have a lot to say about Arteaga except that I read that the organization loves this kids makeup and work ethic. It's going to take a lot more than that for him to not be a million dollar bust though.

*Interesting note but 7 of these short stops have been acquired within the last year. Good work by the organization addressing a position of need. Hopefully some of these investments can pay off.

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