Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Pretty Girl 01.11.12 - Julie Gonzalo
Tribe Prospect Countdown: #14 OF Thomas Neal
Bats: Right; Throws: Right
2011 Stats (AAA Fresno/ AAA Columbus): .289, 2 HR, 26 RBI, .734 OPS, 4.07 K/BB
Acquired from the Giants last summer in exchange for Orlando Cabrera, Neal struggled through an injury plagued season both before and after the trade. While he placed in the Baseball America Top 100 prior to the 2010, Thomas has yet to duplicate his phenomenal 2009 production (.337, 22 HR, 90 RBI, 1.010 OPS). Still, his AA season (.799 OPS, 11 SB) was successful, before a recurring shoulder problem and a heal issue ruined his 2011. Neal is right-handed (Yay!) line drive hitter who rakes against lefties and was still respected enough to place #7 on San Francisco's prospect list last year. While the power boon of '09 is likely an abberation, Thomas has all of the intangibles to be a third or fourth outfielder at the big league level. In fact, every single opinion that I have read has said exactly as much. The only troubling number is his massive K/BB value, but last year's ratio is double the average of his other seasons combined (2.02) and his career .371 OBP goes a long way in mitigating it anyway. Assuming that he can keep his shoulder healthy, he has an above average arm and plays all three outfield effectively. Although I honestly do not expect Neal to compete for a spot out of Spring Training, I do see him rebounding well with Columbus and joining the Indians before summer's end. He will help the Tribe and help them soon, that's why they kept him on the 40-man roster and that is why he is ranked so high on this list.
Up Next: #13 C Chun Chen
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