Before I start, I am not going to lie to you and tell you that I know what kind of a player the Indians are getting in OF Tyler Naquin. I have never seen him play. However, I have done enough reading over the past few days to be aware of his skill set and what he potentially can bring to the table for the organization.

In case you have been living under a rock, you know the Indians are in dire need of some outfield help. Above A ball, there is really nothing in the pipeline you would consider a top tier prospect. It has left the Indians very thin and vulnerable at the positions.  Their current left field state has become a disaster. Their centerfielder Michael Brantley, is the guy they would prefer to be in left long term. That moves the hole back to the center of the diamond. So the Indians decided to hopefully take care of that with their first round pick.

They took Naquin with the 15th selection overall in the 2012 MLB Draft with the hopes that he will become their centerfielder of the future. Despite the fact that he played a corner outfield spot at Texas A&M, the scouts say he should have no problem making the transition to center. the 6’1, 175 lb left-handed bat is known as a high-average, speed guy, and was rated as the “best pure hitter” in the class by Baseball America. Jonathan Mayo, MLB.com’s draft and prospect expert, had Naquin ranked 30th overall, and had this to say about him leading up to last night’s first round: [Read more...]