I think Horst is going to win this one by quite a bit, so I'm going to go ahead and lobby for Dave Sappelt. Here are his numbers since being drafted:
Code:
Year Age Tm Lg Lvl Aff G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS SB CS SB% SH SF IBB HBP GDP
+----+----+---+---+---+---+----+-----+----+----+---+---+---+----+----+----+-----+-----+-----+-----+----+---+----+---+---+---+---+---+
2008 21 BIL PIO Rk CIN 62 254 47 76 19 5 7 35 21 45 .299 .354 .496 .850 6 3 67% 2 1 0 1 5
Sappelt is a toolsy, stocky outfielder who turns 22 next month and will almost definitely be Dayton's starting center fielder. Baseball America rated Sappelt as the Reds' best defensive draft pick of 2008.
Let me sum that up for you:
Sappelt is said to play an above-average center field, which is a prime defensive positon, and on top of that, he is very toolsy and has production to go with it.
Before he was drafted, scouts questioned his strike zone knowledge, but Sappelt is quickly putting that question to rest, managing to put together a .354 OBP while striking out only 45 times in 62 games.
That leaves only one thing working against him: his size. He's only 5'9", but somehow, he manages to put up good power numbers. Keep in mind, though, that he's projected to be a center fielder, so he doesn't necessarily need to continue his .850 OPS to be a very valuable player. However, if he does continue to produce at this rate, we could be seeing a future Kirby Puckett, who was almost identical in size and skill set.