Thinking about Josh Vitters
Ranked as the top high school hitter in the class this year by Baseball America, Vitters is a product of Cypress High School in California, and has been a monster on the showcase circuit the last year. I like his size at 6-3, 195 pounds: not too small, but not so large that his strike zone gets unmanageable. He has plus power to all fields, and scouts expect he'll be able to hit for average as well. No one questions his bat; about the only doubt is if he's a 20 homer guy or a 30+ homer guy in the long run. His swing isn't long and he handles both breaking stuff and fastballs well according to scouts.
Physically, his speed is just average. He has a strong arm but has to keep working on his defense at third base; it should be OK in the long run as long as his legs don't get thick. He could end up as a right fielder if hot corner defense becomes an issue.
Trying to think of some comps here....Best Case : Chipper Jones without the steals early in his career.. Medium Case: Mike Cuddyer. Worst Case: hmm....someone who gets injured or tops out as a Triple-A slugger.
Rumor has the Cubs hard on Vitters with the third overall pick. This is logical, considering that the D-Rays and Royals are set at third for the foreseeable future. I very much doubt he'll get past the Pirates at four.
Loading comments...