A few days ago we asked which player you would prefer to slot at your 3B position and gave the following information (taken from the original post here) assuming you were in a keeper league:
Player A: 51 Games / .348 Ave. / .417 OBP / .702 SLG / 17 HR / 63 RBI / 19 Doubles
Player B: 66 Games / .277 Ave. / .363 OBP / .533 SLG / 13 HR / 53 RBI / 15 Doubles
Player A is playing in AA and is 21 Years old. This player was selected #2 overall in the 2007 draft as a short stop and eventually moved to third base to better suit his large frame (230 lbs. @ 5'11")
Player B was just called up and is 23 years old - he compiled the above statistics in AAA. He was selected #2 overall in the 2008 draft.
Players revealed after the jump...
Player A is Mike Moustakas of the Kansas City Royals minor league system.Player B is the recently promoted Pedro Alvarez of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Mike Moustakas is having a fantastic year - easily his best since being drafted in 2007 - and should earn some nice recognition by prospect lists and post-season awards, even if he sees a modest drop-off in production. Since the question was posted he has added 1HR, 3RBI, 2 Doubles and thus raised his batting average to .359 his OBP to .426 and his SLG to .718. These are player of the year numbers.
It was reported earlier in the month that the Royals have no plans to promote Moustakas to the Majors even for a cup of coffee - however, I don't how they can not at least give him a couple games in September if he remains anywhere near the tear he has been on thus far.
Moustakas has pretty much met his previous season(s) marks in half the games this year:
2008: 126 Games / .272 Ave. / .337 OBP / .468 SLG / 22 HR / 71 RBI / 25 Doubles
2009: 129 Games / .250 Ave. / .297 OBP / .421 SLG / 16 HR / 86 RBI / 32 Doubles
2010: 54 Games / .359 Ave. / .426 OBP / .718 SLG / 18 HR / 66 RBI / 22 Doubles
He has a .368 BABIP so far this year compared to .280 in 2009 and .292 in 2010 (courtesy of minorleaguesplits.com)... thus, I would expect him to slow down somewhat, but maybe not quite as much as you may think as the league he plays in (Texas League) traditionally is considered hitter friendly. Pitchers have been dominating the league this year prompting some articles investigating why, but traditionally hitters rule the roost in that league...
He plays 3B and there is some modest competition the big league gig with Alex Gordon at AAA, but if he proves his bat is for real, I don't see Gordon getting in his way (yes Gordon has been quite good since being sent down to AAA to work on things)... I would expect him to continue to rip it up at AA and only get moved to AAA if Gordon gets recalled or a quick cup of coffee with the big club very late in the year. If you are in a keeper league, I expect mid to late 2011 as a call-up time if he proves his bat is for real.... otherwise expect 2012 to be the arrival date. I would expect getting him now as he may be making a case to be the #1 prospect in many lists next year (an upcoming article will examine that)...
Pedro Alvarez is the big bruiser who was recently called up by the Pirates to provide some much needed pop to the MLB line-up.
After a .288 Average with 27 HR and 95RBI in 2009, his first professional season, which spanned A-Ball and AA, the Pirates started him in AAA this year where he excelled. Alvarez played college ball at Vanderbilt and proved quickly that the #2 pick in 2008 was well used by performing as above in 2009.
At 6'3" and 223 lbs, Alvarez has big projectable frame - he has shown the power translates to games and he will start to figure out the MLB level as he gets more comfortable... Currently with the Pirates he is batting .125 in 24 AB (0HR and 1 Double) with 3 RBI and 2 Runs. He has struck out 9 times.
The is what ScoutingBook had to say about Pedro:
"A left-handed power hitting third baseman, Alvarez has a very very high ceiling and is almost big-league ready. He could be a big part of a devastating future Pittsburgh lineup. He's now fully-recovered from a hamate bone he broke in 2007; all reports are positive.
An offensive sleeper for 2010, depending on how deeply the Pirates shake up their roster, and likely to be playing every day by 2011."
I think it takes him some time to figure out Major League level pitching but ultimately the projections for a middle of the lineup power bat for many years to come seem likely....
So with the players revealed - does anyone change their vote or is Moustakas the overwhelming favorite as the pick to man your fantasy team's hot corner assuming its a keeper league and you can wait for his call-up... or is there such a vast difference in competition that has made Moustakas' stats look otherworldly?