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As the season progresses, there are going to be a number of you who are playing in keeper leagues who have made the decision to play for the future, and are going to be looking to move older players for young prospects. With this in mind, we will be doing some prospect reviews in the coming days. First up on the list is a player who has been rocketing up the prospect rankings, Mike Trout of the Angels.
The Basics
Trout was drafted out of high school by the Angels in the 2009 draft, with the 25th pick overall. Just 17 years old at the time of the draft, he signed shortly after the draft for a $1.2 million bonus, and was sent to the Arizona Rookie League then.
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Current Age: 18 (Will be 19 on August 7th)
His Stats So Far (Through Tuesday's Games)
| Year | Age | Tm | Lg | Lev | G | PA | AB | R | HR | RBI | SB | CS | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 17 | Angels | ARIZ | Rk | 39 | 187 | 164 | 29 | 1 | 25 | 13 | 2 | 18 | 28 | .360 | .418 | .506 | .925 |
| 2009 | 17 | Cedar Rapids | MIDW | A | 5 | 20 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 6 | .267 | .421 | .267 | .688 |
| 2010 | 18 | Cedar Rapids | MIDW | A | 81 | 368 | 312 | 76 | 6 | 39 | 45 | 9 | 46 | 52 | .362 | .454 | .526 | .979 |
My Thoughts after the Jump...
My Thoughts
Wow. No wonder he's rocketing up the rankings. 45 steals in just 81 games? And a .362 batting average? The Midwest league is not particularly viewed as a hitters' league, so the numbers Trout put up there are that much more ridiculous. As I've written before, I'm a huge proponent of a prospect's ability to show good plate discipline, and Trout has been right in the ballpark of what I would like to see from a prospect. The fact that he has walked nearly as much as he has struck out at all 3 of his stops so far bodes very well in my opinion, as it will lead him to be able to get on base enough to exhibit that ridiculous speed he showed at the Futures game and so far in the season.
Clearly, it's not just me that's pretty excited about what he could do. Keith Law of ESPN ranked him as his 3rd best prospect in the minors at the end of June. Baseball America put him as their #2 prospect in their midseason rankings. Even John Sickels over at SBNation's Minor League Ball had this to say:
I had Trout rated as a B+ and Number 28 on my pre-season prospect list; he's a virtual lock for the Top Ten at this point unless he completely flounders at Rancho.
Trout was recently promoted to High-A, and I am extremely interested to see what he can do there. If he is still available in your keeper league, he is a player who should be at the top of your rankings going forward. We could be looking at a player who could potentially be another Carl Crawford at the Majors. For fantasy purposes, you're looking at a leadoff type hitter who has plus speed and could conceivably develop power as well.
Predicted ETA: Late 2011 or 2012.