Southern League hitters

 
Every year, one league usually stands out as having the most talent and this year it appears that the Southern League was it.  Not only did the Southern League has some extremely high quality pitching prospects (Jon Rauch, Ben Sheets, Mike Bynum, Wascar Serrano to name a few) but it had a preponderance of quality hitters too.

Jay Gibbons has a tall order ahead of him if he wants to play for the Blue Jays.  He's a first baseman by trade and the Jays just signed their current first sacker Carlos Delgado to a 4-year deal.  So he needs to learn a new position or get traded if he wants a major league job.  Whatever happens, he definitely deserves one.  Gibbons is a fine hitter, displaying good power and the strong knowledge of the strikezone that separates very good hitters from average ones.  While Toronto's lineup isn't exactly hurting for good hitters, another one certainly wouldn't hurt and Gibbons is good enough to bring a quality pitcher in return if the Jays opt for the trade route.  Regardless, Gibbons will hit wherever he ends up.

Ben Broussard was drafted out of McNeese State University last year and promptly assaulted the record book in two minor leagues, hitting .407 in the Pioneer League and .500 in the Midwest League.  Only when he was promoted to the Southern League did he slow down.  He got a much longer look at the Southern league this year, and though he didn't break any records, he certainly held his own.  Limited by several injuries, Broussard still managed to post fine on base and slugging averages.  When healthy, he's a Frank Thomas-like masher, hitting for average and power and getting on base at a ridiculously high rate.  Although he may be a little old for the level, there's no reason to expect any drop off in performance once he reaches Cincinnati.  Simply put, this guy knows hitting.

In 1998, it looked like Joe Crede was going to be a star.  After his 1999 season, people weren't so sure.  His numbers were way down and his season was wracked with injuries.  This year, Crede left little doubt that when healthy, he has the stuff to excel in the big leagues.  he could challenge for the third base spot next spring, as the White Sox have a very ordinary group manning the position currently.  If not this spring, then no later than 2002.

With the huge outfield that they have in Coors, the Rockies need a centerfielder who can cover a lot of ground.  They thought they had that kind of guy when they signed Tom Goodwin last offseason and Brian Hunter to back him up.  What they forgot was that same guy had to play offense as well.  He didn't have to hit homers necessarily, but he certainly had to get on base.  Neither Hunter or Goodwin really do that.  Juan Pierre does.  Pierre has tremendous speed and a solid knowledge of the strikezone.  He'll never be a guy who hits more than a few homers, even in Coors, but he will provide the Rockies with what they desperately need: a solid leadoff guy and a defensive wiz in center.

Marcus Giles is the younger brother of Brian Giles.  This probably won't be the last time you read that, although it should be because Marcus is a terrific hitter in his own right.  And just like Brian, he's not particularly accomplished on defense.  Although with as good as Raphael Furcal is at short, I'm not sure second base defense will be as important to the Braves, especially when they see how good a hitter they have in Giles.  Will his offense make up for his miscues and lack of range?  Probably.  Will Bobby Cox recognize that fact?  Who knows.  History is not on his side though, as he's preferred "defensive specialists" over guys with decent bats in more than one postseason line-up.  For Giles to get the everyday position he deserves, he may have to get off to a hot start; Cox has always had trouble going against the "hot bat" theory.

The Rockies might soon regret their decision to extend shortstop Neifi Perez' contract.  Elvis Pena turned in yet another very good year on his way up the minor league ladder and looks poised to make a run at the starting job next season.  His arm may be a little weak for the shortstop position, but he has the range and Pena is already a better offensive player.  His career on base is more than 50 points higher than Perez' at the same point in his career and Pena is an excellent base stealer.  While he doesn't have great power, he does have enough to get the ball into the gaps for a good number of doubles and triples.

The Cubs have a difficult decision this winter: re-sign Mark Grace or not.  Grace has been the heart and soul of the Cubs for over a decade and it will be difficult to part with his leadership and defense.  Of course, the Cubs will make that move one day, if only to open the spot for Hee Seop Choi.  But Choi won't be ready for another couple of years so the question is do they have any current alternatives.  Julio Zuleta and Ross Gload are the primary candidates from AAA.  Eric Hinske is a nice compromise between them.  Hinske doesn't have as much raw power as Zuleta, but has better plate discipline.  The converse is true when comparing him to Gload.  What separates Hinske as a candidate for the position is that he is a decent fielder at first and he's much younger than either of the others.  Hinske played third base for most of this year and may end up there if the Cubs decide to re-sign Grace.  What keeps them from simply putting him at third is the fact that he's not a particularly strong defender.  Either way, it'll be a tough call for the Cubs front office.

This won't be a very tough call for the Cubs: Corey Patterson will be their centerfielder.  If not in 2001, most certainly by 2002.  It's amazing to consider that he dominated the Arizona Fall League last year when he was only 19.  This year, at 20, he more than held his own against players 2 years older in Double A.  Although he still doesn't get the whole controlling the strikezone thing, he still has a lot to offer, and he's still ridiculously young for the level.  If/when he learns to hit good pitches and lay off bad ones, his combination of speed and power will be something special.  Think of Eric Davis in his peak years.  Now think of an outfield with that guy AND Sammy Sosa.  A very pleasant thought for Cubs fans this winter.

Mike Peeples must have lifted an awful lot of weights last winter because his power simply exploded in 2000.  The most extra base hits he had ever had in a season was 33, back in 1997.  This year, he nearly matched that in doubles alone, finishing with 48 long hits total.  I imagine he's also the reason the Blue Jays felt comfortable dealing AAA second baseman Brent Abernathy at the trading deadline.  Peeples is a solid player at 3 positions but his primary spot is second.  Craig Grebeck and Homer Bush will be his primary competition there for the next couple of seasons so there's a high degree of likelyhood that Peeples will be a major league regular soon.

Eric Munson was drafted as a catcher out of USC last year, but it was pretty apparent from the get-go that defense wasn't his forte.  The Tigers have alternated him at DH and first base through his first full season, so it's still unclear where he will end up.  The majors seems pretty certain, but what position is anybody's guess.  Like a lot of Tiger's hitters, he doesn't show a great deal of patience so he's probably not gonna be the tonic for their run scoring woes.  However, he will be a decent hitter.

Jay Bell is starting to show the affect of age and the D-backs are looking for a way to shed some salary.  The hard part will be finding someone to take Bell's salary.  The easy part will be finding his replacement: Jackie Rexrode.  He doesn't possess much power but has decent speed and a phenomenal knack for getting on base.  For his career, he has an on base of nearly .420.  He's not very adept with the glove, but then again, the Diamondbacks have never really stressed that from their middle fielders so I guess they know how to work around that.

Jody Gerut is another guy who might make some noise in Coors in the next few years.  There's nothing really exciting about his game - he has a little power, a little speed, plays solid defense, makes smart plays... what stands out about him is his outstanding plate discipline.  It's unlikely that he'll ever be an impact player in the majors, but what he will be is a solid role player like Daryl Hamilton who simply helps his team win.

Pedro Santana has tremendous speed.  Over the past 3 years he has stolen nearly 140 bases.  The problem is that he just doesn't get on base enough to take full advantage of the speed.  Further dimming his future is the fact that he spent 2000 in AA for the second straight year and showed little if any improvement.  The Tigers could use someone with his speed, but with Damian Easley in his way at second and his slow learning curve, it may be a while.

Kevin Eberwein kinda came out of nowhere.  Last year he was this old guy hitting bombs in A ball.  Now, it looks like he might just be a prospect.  His plate discipline still has a ways to go, but it has improved dramatically from last year: he reduced his strikeouts by nearly half from last year.  If he can learn to draw more walks, he could find his way onto the Padre's roster.  A position change might be necessary as Phil Nevin and Ryan Klesko currently hold the positions which he's accustomed.  But he's a good athlete and might be able to make the change to outfield.

Everyone knows about Sean Burroughs.  How his father Jeff was a #1 pick who won the AL MVP, how Sean pitched in the Little League World Series, throwing several no-hitters and leading his team to back-to-back championships, how he batted over .360 in his first year in the minors when he was just 18.  Well, now he's 19.  And although he didn't dominate AA the way he did A ball, he improved steadily as the year progressed.  He showed the most progress defensively but is still a bit raw for the majors.  Burroughs is such a good athlete that they are considering moving him to second base in order to keep Phil Nevin at his natural position at third.  I have no doubt that Burroughs will hit regardless of his final position.