Neftali Soto

[Blitz Dorsey]

Very pleased to see him develop like this. He leads all Reds minor league players with 22 HRs this season ... and he's done it in just 277 at-bats. He's got a robust OPS of .931. All at the age of 22 at the Double-A level.

I expect him to be put on the 40-man roster this offseason and begin the 2012 campaign at Louisville. Long-term, he could be the answer at first base for the Reds if disaster occurs and we don't re-sign Votto.

Supplemental third-round pick in 2007 for those who don't know.

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/m...pbp&pid=519304

[dougdirt]

I would like to see some better plate discipline out of him, but man, the ball jumps off of his bat in a big way. Can't wait to see him in 8 days.

[mth123]

Another reason that Alonso could be dealt for something they need without "mortgaging the future."

[dougdirt]

Originally Posted by mth123

Another reason that Alonso could be dealt for something they need without "mortgaging the future."

Eh, I wouldn't go that far just yet. Soto doesn't really have all that good of plate discipline right now, so he is far from a sure thing to count on at this point.

[Blitz Dorsey]

Originally Posted by dougdirt

Eh, I wouldn't go that far just yet. Soto doesn't really have all that good of plate discipline right now, so he is far from a sure thing to count on at this point.

Well, Soto certainly isn't a sure thing ... but Alonso isn't either. I just think the point he was trying to make was that the Reds can't really use "We can't trade Alonso because he's our Plan B if we lose Votto" excuse when they also have Soto high in the ranks as a first baseman.

[dougdirt]

Originally Posted by Blitz Dorsey

Well, Soto certainly isn't a sure thing ... but Alonso isn't either. I just think the point he was trying to make was that the Reds can't really use "We can't trade Alonso because he's our Plan B if we lose Votto" excuse when they also have Soto high in the ranks as a first baseman.

Alonso is much more of a sure thing though. Yes, both still have to prove it, but Yonder has something that tends to project well moving forward (good plate discipline), while Soto has something that tends not to (poor plate discipline).

[Blitz Dorsey]

Originally Posted by dougdirt

Alonso is much more of a sure thing though. Yes, both still have to prove it, but Yonder has something that tends to project well moving forward (good plate discipline), while Soto has something that tends not to (poor plate discipline).

Interesting take. Yonder seems to flail at some pitches, so I didn't realize he was considered a guy with good plate discipline at the professional level. I knew that was his rep coming out of college, but the little I've seen of him he seems like a free-swinger to some extent.

As for Soto, I'll be honest: Haven't seen the kid play. I just follow his stats. Very impressed with putting up 22 HRs in 277 ABs (and a .931 OPS) at the Double-A level though. Especially considering the fact he had to overcome an injury during the season. Give this kid 500 ABs at Louisville next year, play him as much as possible at 1B so he develops defensively too ... and let's see exactly what we've got here.

[Blitz Dorsey]

Actually, now that I think about it Doug, Yonder has put up a few impressive ABs with the Reds already in his short stint this year. He worked a walk the other night after being down in the count where he fouled off a few good pitches. It's just that he swings so damn hard (which I love) that at times it looks like he doesn't have good plate discipline because he goes flailing. But I see what you're saying and it's easy for me to believe that, overall, Yonder does have good plate discipline.

[bubbachunk]

Originally Posted by Blitz Dorsey

Interesting take. Yonder seems to flail at some pitches, so I didn't realize he was considered a guy with good plate discipline at the professional level. I knew that was his rep coming out of college, but the little I've seen of him he seems like a free-swinger to some extent.

As for Soto, I'll be honest: Haven't seen the kid play. I just follow his stats. Very impressed with putting up 22 HRs in 277 ABs (and a .931 OPS) at the Double-A level though. Especially considering the fact he had to overcome an injury during the season. Give this kid 500 ABs at Louisville next year, play him as much as possible at 1B so he develops defensively too ... and let's see exactly what we've got here.

May be a stupid question here, but what batter does not flail at some pitches?

[partisan]

Originally Posted by bubbachunk

May be a stupid question here, but what batter does not flail at some pitches?

Prince Fielder.

[OnBaseMachine]

It's a shame Soto couldn't stick at third base. With his bat, he could have been an All-Star at 3B.

[UKFlounder]

Is it fair to compare Soto to Juan Francisco at all?

[JKam]

It's a shame Soto couldn't stick at third base. With his bat, he could have been an All-Star at 3B.

Didn't Soto start off as a SS? Then he moved to 3B. Then he moved to catcher. Now he's 1B. He pretty much ran the gamut there. All that is left is DH.

[partisan]

Originally Posted by UKFlounder

Is it fair to compare Soto to Juan Francisco at all?

Slightly better BB/K ratio, but still suffers from the same lack of discipline.

[dougdirt]

Originally Posted by partisan

Slightly better BB/K ratio, but still suffers from the same lack of discipline.

Eh, Soto has much better plate discipline than Francisco does, which says a whole lot about Francisco.

Soto has a K/BB this season of 3.73 and his career is 3.63.
Francisco has a K/BB this season of 6.00 and his career is 5.91.

That isn't slightly better, that is incredibly better.

But as for a tools comparison at the plate, I think that game power wise, they are pretty equal. Francisco has Raw power that hardly anyone has, but he can't use it as often because he swings at too many crappy pitches because at times he can hit those pitches for singles. The hit tool probably plays the same as well, though Francisco's hit tool is better on the Raw side, it plays down because he swings at so much crap at times.