Bats new and old set to improve upon a rough 2013 at the plate
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Felix Perez is one of the names who will be leaned on for production in the Bats’ lineup.[/caption]
It’s no secret that offensive production wasn’t the forte of last season’s Louisville Bats. The team struggled mightily, finishing last in hits and on-base percentage en route to the lowest run total in the International League. When this season’s edition of the club arrives in Louisville after Spring Training, it will likely look a bit different, but the areas for improvement will remain the same.
As is customary for this time of year, the roster that the Bats will bring to Louisville Slugger Field is far from concrete. One sure thing about the upcoming season is that the 2014 team will have shoes to fill offensively after offseason departures saw category leaders either leave the organization or become entrenched in new roles with the Cincinnati Reds.
Much has been made of Billy Hamilton’s anticipated debut as the Reds’ full-time center fielder, which should happen on Opening Day in the big leagues. The dynamic speedster led the Bats in runs and stolen bases as the lead-off man last season, leaving a hole in the outfield that will need to be filled admirably for Louisville to take steps forward in the new season.
The Bats will presumably open 2014 with a host of outfielders at their disposal. That group will almost certainly include returnees in Josh Fellhauer and Felix Perez, who should be joined by the recently signed Thomas Neal and Mike Wilson. Wilson was featured on The Bats Signal last month, and could provide an offensive boost despite his relative anonymity.
Perez, a staple in the middle of the order for the Bats last season, was heralded for both his knack for delivering clutch hits and his walk-up music, chronicled here. He was the team’s leader in RBIs with 65 and will be a critical cog should the Bats’ offense improve. Another outfield returnee, Josh Fellhauer, was the Louisville leader in on-base percentage and posted the team’s third-best batting average.
Neftali Soto and Henry Rodriguez will lead an infield that should be more familiar to Bats fans this season. Rodriguez rode a torrid second half at the plate to a team-best .274 batting average on 131 hits (also a team-high). Soto, who saw time at both corner infield spots in 2013, was right behind Perez in the RBI category with 61 on the season. The duo, both ranked on MLB.com’s list of the Reds’ top 20 prospects (Rodriguez is 12th, Soto 17th), were part of Cincinnati’s September call-ups last season.
Leaving the infield picture is Mike Hessman, a legendary slugger in the minor league ranks that returned to the Detroit Tigers organization this offseason. Hessman led the Bats in doubles (32), home runs (25), walks (53) and slugging percentage (.495). Unfortunately for Louisville, Hessman will likely spend the season with a division foe, the Toledo Mud Hens.
Such is the way of the minor leagues and the unique challenge that faces managers across all levels of the system. This season, an influx of new talent in the lineup from within the Reds’ farm system may be the most exciting component of the Louisville roster.
While veteran leadership remains all over the starting nine, outfielder Ryan LaMarre and catcher Tucker Barnhart are a couple of names to watch as they are projected to play their first full seasons at the Triple-A level this year. Barnhart was ranked as the Reds’ tenth-best prospect heading into the new year by Baseball America, while LaMarre finished 2013 ranked 14th in the organization by MLB.com.
Where both LaMarre and Barnhart could have a more profound impact is in the field, as they were named the Reds system’s best defenders at their respective positions by Baseball America. Barnhart threw out 37% of would-be base stealers last season with Double-A Pensacola. For the sake of perspective, the Pittsburgh Pirates’ Russell Martin threw out just 31% of would-be base stealers and led the Major Leagues in the caught stealing category.
At the plate, the Blue Wahoo teammates both posted on-base percentages north of .325, while Barnhart batted with an average 15 points higher than LaMarre’s (.260). LaMarre’s batting average in 2013 was down significantly from his 2012 season in which he hit .263, but he hit a career-high ten homers and stole 23 bases.
It’s difficult to predict the makeup of an everyday minor league lineup in early February, but the mix of prospects and veterans should lead to an intriguing season at the plate and a chance of improvement from Louisville’s meager 2013. The picture will start to become clearer in the next couple of months.
The Reds open Spring Training in Goodyear, Arizona in nine days.
