| By Hudson Belinsky |  | By 03-17-2013 |
PHOENIX, Ariz. -- Last week I snuck away from the SABR Analytics Conference to catch a pair of World Baseball Classic games at Chase Field.
The first game I went to featured Team Canada and Team Italy. I didn't see a plus fastball at the game, and the best players in the game were mostly established big leaguers. Watching prospects play in this environment is actually very telling.
You get to see how a hitting prospect might handle a crafty left-hander, or how a fringy arm might attack, or at least try to attack, Joey Votto. With that, here are some notes I had on some of the players who played in the game:
Tyson Gillies, OF, Canada -- Philadelphia Phillies
First off, I like that Gillies rhymes with Phillies. I also like that Gillies can take good routes to the ball in center field, and that he has the speed to negate some of the mistakes he makes out there. He made one awesome play in center where everything went correctly; he read the ball well off the bat, took a straight route to the ball, dove for it, then hopped up and delivered a laser to the cutoff man. At the plate, Gillies got a little bit long with his swing and didn't show great bat speed, but he was able to barrel balls left inside, once delivering a liner that unfortunately sailed right to the pitcher.
I worry about whether he'll remain exploitable on the outer half of the zone, or if he'll have trouble with elite velocity.
I've discussed Gillies with scouts in the past. When he's been on the field, things have typically gone well for him. His floor is probably as a fourth outfielder that gets 40 starts a year and often comes in as a defensive replacement in late innings. The ceiling is a plus centerfielder with an average bat. Not a superstar, but definitely a dude.
It helps that he's a solid base stealer, thanks to the big run tool, and that arm is plus.
Phillippe Aumont, RHP, Canada -- Philadelphia Phillies
It seems like every time I write about Gillies, I write about Aumont too. The two of them became Phillies when the Seattle Mariners included them with right-hander JC Ramirez in the deal for left-hander Cliff Lee prior to the 2010 season. They've also taken longer to develop than the Phillies had hoped, and they're both Canadian.
They differ in athleticism, however; Aumont isn't a bad athlete, but he isn't a great baseball athlete, either. In the past he's struggled to repeat his delivery and field his position, and he's had a hip problem with which to deal.
At the WBC, Aumont was 91-93 mph with his fastball, which is down from where I've seen him in the past, but that's probably because it was so early in the spring. (When I saw him in Triple-A last season he was sitting 94-95 and touching 97.) He threw a splitter in the 79-82 mph window. It's a pitch that could be monstrous if he can throw it for strikes, or disguise it as four-seamer.
Jimmy Henderson, RHP, Canada -- Milwaukee Brewers
Henderson reached the big leagues in 2012 and missed plenty of bats in his rookie campaign, striking out 45 batters in 30 2/3 innings, and it's not difficult to see why. He sat 92-94 mph with life on the fastball, and complemented it with a sharp, mid-80s slider. Like Aumont, the velocity was down a tick, probably for the same reasons. Henderson has the stuff to close some day, but in 2013 he'll likely set up for John Axford.
Chris Colabello, 1B, Italy -- Minnesota Twins
Don't let the age fool you, this 29-year-old is a legitimate prospect. He showed plus bat speed, and in-game power in the WBC. There was a decent amount of load in the swing, but he kept the path smooth through contact. He also showed good plate coverage, fouling off pitches away and waiting for the ones he could pull on the inner half of the zone. It's a first-base only profile, but, for me, the bat will play, and he'll be a high role 5 type.
Colabello spent seven years in the Can-Am League before the Twins signed him to play for them in 2012, and it looks like Minnesota found a big leaguer.
Notes
I saw several players who have either spent significant time in the big leagues or who are older but still have a chance to make it in smaller roles. Here's a quick run-down on a number of those, including some names from the Mexico-USA game:
Drew Butera, C
Athletic, plus arm, good footwork behind plate
Oscar Villareal, RHP
Low-90s fastball, average changeup, could still be middle reliever
Pat Venditte, LHP/RHP
Still NP; switch-pitcher, 82-83 mph as LHP, below-average breaking ball in 70 mph range
Tim Collins, LHP
Lively fastball at 92-94 mph (touched 95), plus curveball with excellent bite, average changeup
Fernando Salas, RHP
Fastball in the low 90s, good movement, plus changeup, excellent fade
Hudson can be reached at belinsky@prospectinsider.com. Follow him on Twitter here.
scouting-notes:-wbc
Comments
The following 2 comment(s) for this article are shown below:
| 1. By: maqman on 03-18-2013 12:31:42 It would be kind of nice if the Phillies got something of value out of the Cliff Lee trade eventually. Z hosed them pretty good. Likewise nice to see someone like Colabello catch a break late in the game. It validates all the time he spent to get there, good for him. |
| 2. By: bobbysee1 on 03-20-2013 20:02:38 It would be kind of nice if the Mariners eventually got something of value out of the Cliff Lee trade! |
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