In an effort to find something interesting to talk about, I thought I'd do a feature on several Rookie Level prospects that are years away from being Reds. These are Fran Fraschilla's years away from years away guys. I haven't seen any of them. I have no clue who they might be. But the numbers can be fun regardless.
Prospect: Johnny Ascanio
Position: Mainly SS (13 games there, out of 30), with 2B (9), and 3B (6) sprinkled in.
Pedigree
None, really. Ascanio was signed very young (DOB: 7/4/2003) out of Venezuela for apparently very little. His scouting report (via Doug Gray) talks of solid bat-to-ball skills and a high baseball IQ. It also mentioned his tiny stature-- 5'10" and 150 lbs. is not a big guy.
Production
This is where Ascanio has shone. After today's 2-3 game, he's at .333 with an OBP north of .450 and an OPS right at .900. More than that, his approach is likely his best tool-- a nearly 1:1 K;BB ratio is outstanding though it should be noted that we're working on a rather small sample of just more than 100 PAs (112 after today). Ascanio owns an exceptional 13% BB rate and an equally exceptional 13.9% K rate. He'll need to continue to hit for a high BA and take a ton of walks because his ISO is only .107. Ascanio doesn't help himself much so far as a baserunner-- even though he's mostly hit leadoff, he's got 7 SB against 7 CS. Not ideal. Among those with 75 or more PAs in the Dominican Summer League, Ascanio ranks 9th in OBP and 29th in both BA and OPS. His hitting line is 54% better than league average, as his wRC+ is 154.
Did I mention Ascanio plays up the middle? More, he's a legitimate up the middle guy, as the scouting report indicates he has tools enough to stick as a shortstop. Ascanio is relatively sure-handed, with only 3 errors so far. (That's a solid rate in the DSL.)
Comparables
Ascanio is, again, so far from the majors that comparables are a fool's errand. But hey, I'm a fool, so it all works out. He's tiny and hits for no power. But he's still a more than solid offensive player. There are scores of those guys from the Dominican who never make it to the majors-- or anywhere close. Among those that do, however, most profile more as solid than extraordinary. That was the profile of former Red Henry Rodriguez. (No, not that Henry Rodriguez. The other one.) Johan Carmago is probably the platonic ideal of Ascanio as a player-- and he played SS (among other positions). Another comparison might well be Luis Rengifo. It's not exactly a murderer's row of offensive prowess here, but these are guys who might be interesting enough to hold a roster spot.
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