POSTED BY Joe Tarring ON 5:38 am, August 30, 2012 - POSTED IN Friends
Moving on to some of the more interesting names who are in line for a September call up in the AL after looking at the NL last time around. For no particular reason it’s a trio of outfielders looking to make their mark in the big leagues this autumn.
Wil Myers – Kansas City Royals
After some tough periods at Double-A last summer that resulted in a disappointing final line of .254/.353/.393, Myers has spent this year crushing the ball in the high minors and is now in the conversation for the best prospect in baseball. He put up a ridiculous 1.146 OPS while repeating Double-A for the first 6 week of this year and has since found Triple-A pitching to be scarcely less of a challenge with a slash line of .294/.375/.542. He has the same question marks around whether he will hit from the start of his big league career but few are questioning that he is the Royals future in right field and the heart of their line-up. Only the team’s attachment to Jeff Francoeur has stopped Myers getting his shot before now.
Leonys Martin – Texas Rangers
In many ways Martin is the prototypical September call up in that he’s a player who can offer some speed and defense off the bench and can fill in for the occasional start to give an everyday outfielder a chance to take a breather before the post-season. What Martin may also offer is a chance for the Rangers to decide if he is going to be an everyday outfielder himself in 2013. The team thought enough of the Cuban to give him a $15.5m contract a year ago and with Josh Hamilton a free agent this winter there could be a natural opening in the line-up for Martin to fill. His .217/.280/.413 line from just 51 plate appearances in the bigs so far is pretty awful but a .365/.425/.622 effort in Triple-A this year, even in the hitter friendly PCL, offers far more optimism.
Anthony Gose – Toronto Blue Jays
The Blue Jays have recently been employing Mike McCoy and Moises Sierra in their outfield, neither of who, with the best will in the world, will stand in the way of a good young talent getting playing time. There is little question of Gose’s raw talent, however there are doubts over whether he can actualize that talent with in-game performances. Gose looked completely out of his depth in his first exposure to big league pitching this year, striking out 36 times in 82 at bats, but his arm strength, power and speed are all exciting tools if he can wield them effectively. There is a slight whiff of the Corey Patterson’s about him but the Blue Jays will likely use September to see if Gose has made the necessary adjustments to succeed at the top level.
