As the
free agent marketplace is now officially open, the St. Louis Cardinals will look
to add more stability and offense to its middle infield. With Rafael Furcal and Orlando Hudson
being the most attractive players at shortstop and second base, respectively,
both will look to commandeer large multi-year contracts.
If
this is not the route for the Cardinals to take, General Manager John Mozeliak
will have to be creative in looking for candidates to fill the two largest holes
in the Cardinals’ lineup.
Look
for Heavenly Inspiration
Mozeliak
might first look to the Los Angeles Angels for possible middle infield
help. The Angels may have the
deepest stable of middle infield prospects around. Shortstop Brandon Wood has always been thought of
as one of the upper echelon prospects but has never been able to produce in
limited big league call-ups. In 150
big league at bats, Wood hit .200/.224/.327 with five home runs and 13
RBIs. At Triple-A, he slugged .595
while hitting 31 home runs.
If the
Angels ever decide to make Wood the team’s full-time shortstop, Erick Aybar may find himself as the odd
man out. The Dominican
Republic native possesses electric speed and
great range on the diamond but is still a work in progress at the plate. The switch-hitter posted a line of
.277/.314/.384 in 346 major league at bats in 2008, sharing time at short with
Maicer Izturis.
If the
latter name sounds familiar, that is because his older brother Cesar was the
Cardinals’ starting shortstop in 2008.
The younger Izturis hit .269/.329/.362 during 2008. The Angels everyday second baseman, Howie Kendrick, is a superb hitter
whose biggest weakness is an inability to stay healthy.
Another
player in the Angels’ system that I have always liked is Sean Rodriguez. Their Minor League
Player of the Year in 2006 has played shortstop but is probably better suited
for second base. He has nice pop (21 home runs at Triple-A) and is better than
what he showed in his limited MLB debut.
In the
lower minors, P.J. Phillips (brother
of Brandon Phillips) and former first round pick Ryan Mount formed a very athletic
double play tandem at High Class-A.
Hanley Statia struggled with the bat at Double-A, but is still highly
regarded for his glove work at the shortstop position. The Angels lack a prototypical third
baseman (unless Wood finally makes the move over to the hot corner) so David Freese and/or Allen Craig could be of interest.
Don’t
Be Blue
If
Rafael Furcal returns to Chavez Ravine, Chin-Lung Hu would find himself as the
Los Angeles Dodgers’ odd man out.
Coming behind Hu is one of the Dodger’s top position prospects, Ivan DeJesus, Jr. Rumor has it that if Furcal doesn’t
re-sign, the team will look at other veteran replacements such as Orlando Cabrera.
Hu had
a breakout season in 2007, hitting .325/.364/.507 between Double-A and
Triple-A. The native of
Taiwan was named the MVP of the
Futures Game before making his big league debut. The electric fielder with superb speed
hit .241 in 12 games for the Dodgers.
In
2008, Hu really struggled at the plate in the big leagues hitting only
.181/.252/.233 in 116 at bats. The
24-year-old did seem to find his stroke with a .295 average in 41 games at
Las Vegas. He possess above average arm strength,
footwork, and hands that could make him a perennial contender for the Gold
Glove.
October
Performers
The
two teams in the Fall Classic, Tampa
Bay and Philadelphia, could become interesting trade
partners. The Rays’ Reid Brignac was once thought of as the
shortstop of the future in Tampa but veteran Jason Bartlett’s defense and
clubhouse presence was one of the keys to the team’s historic run.
Brignac
is only 22 years old and is coming off a year in which he hit .250/.299/.412 at
Triple-A. During 2007, the
left-handed hitter led the Southern League in runs scored,
total bases, and extra-base hits.
As a 20-year-old in 2006, the 2004 draft pick put himself on the prospect
map when he .321 with 24 home runs and 99 RBIs between high Class-A and
Double-A.
A few
levels behind Brignac is Tim Beckham, the number one overall pick in the 2008
MLB First-Year Player Draft.
Beckham is a five-tool talent that has drawn comparisons to Justin and
B.J. Upton and as such could help soothe the potential loss of Brignac.
The
World Series Champion Philadelphia Phillies’ double play combo of Chase Utley
and Jimmy Rollins are blocking a solid middle infield prospect named Jason Donald. At Double-A, the 24-year-old hit
.307/.391/.497 earning him a trip to the Futures Game and on the Bronze Medal
winning USA Olympic team. During play in China, the University of Arizona product led the team at the games
in batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage. In the Bronze Medal game, he had two
hits including a home run.
Donald
is now playing in the Arizona Fall League where he has posted an impressive line
of .405/.466/.696 in 22 games in the desert.
Everything’s
Bigger
In
Texas, that
is. The Rangers’ second baseman Ian Kinsler is one of the best young players at the position in baseball and
shortstop Michael Young is a perennial All-Star with a big long-term
contract. Waiting in the wings in
Arlington are
two interesting middle-infield prospects.
Joaquin Arias has been on the prospect map for years but is still only 24 years
old. In part-time duty for the
Rangers, he hit .291/.345/.409 in 110 at bats. At Triple-A, he hit .296 and stole 23
bases in 28 attempts. Plus, he
would be the Cardinals first Joaquin since the team had the “One Tough
Dominican” on the mound.
The
flashier of the two is also the youngest, Elvis Andrus. The Venezuelan played most of the 2008
Double-A season as a 19-year-old (he turned 20 at the end of August). A former Atlanta Braves farmhand that
was part of the Mark Teixeira trade, Andrus hit .295 with 54 stolen bases and
was named a Texas League All-Star.
In the
News
There
have been plenty of rumors about the Cardinals’ interest in the Atlanta Braves’
middle infield starters Yunel Escobar and Kelly Johnson. The Braves
have the luxury have having good depth to replenish the big league team if
needed. Brent Lillibridge is a leadoff type
with above range and arm strength that really struggled at the plate between the
big leagues and Triple-A in 2008.
Even so, he was able to steal 23 bases at Richmond.
Diory Hernandez hit
.288 in his first experience at Triple-A while providing sound defense for the
Braves. The 24-year-old is above
average in the field with the range to play shortstop but with an arm that is
more adequate at second base.
On
Lillibridge and Hernandez’ heels is Brandon Hicks. The Texas A&M product provides
superb power from the shortstop position.
At High Class-A, the then-22-year-old hit 19 home runs and slugged
.480.
In the
Division
There
are several interesting options around the National League Central. Milwaukee’s J.J. Hardy is just coming into his
own and the Brewers’ best position prospect, Alcides Escobar, has the look of being
big league-ready.
The
Cardinals former General Manager’s team has a variety of middle infield options.
Cincinnati’s
Walt Jocketty can choose from Jeff Keppinger, Paul Janish, Zach Cozart, Todd Frazier, and Chris Valaika.
Keppinger
logged 459 at bats for the Reds in 2008, his first season in the big
leagues. Janish is a defense-first
player whose bat has yet to develop.
A former Ole Miss Rebel, Cozart’s defense is better than Janish’s and he
also has more power, but he hasn’t played above the Midwest League.
Drafted
in the supplemental first round in 2007, Frazier has the range to play shortstop
according to scouts, but few of them believe in his bat. The 22-year-old is slugging .547 in the
Hawaii Winter League this off-season.
Valaika hit over .300 in each of his stops, including a .302 average in
106 at bats playing in the Arizona Fall League. The 23-year-old displayed solid power
with 20 home runs in 2008.
Dustin Mattison can be reached via
email at dustin@whiteyball.com.
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