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The First-ever Baseball Prospectus Futures Guide - now just $6.95 at Amazon ( bbp.cx/fg ) |
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February 7, 2013 Prospect ProfileJoe BensonBlessed with obnoxiously loud tools, Twins outfielder Joe Benson has found his way onto Baseball Prospectus’s Twins rankings on multiple occasions. To start, here are the strength and weakness write-ups on Benson from each of his appearances on Kevin Goldstein’s top 10 lists. The Good: On a pure tools level, Benson compares with anyone in the system. He has plus raw power and was beginning to show some signs of tapping into it during the last few weeks of the season. He's also an above-average runner with solid range in center field and good acceleration on the base paths. Despite his overall struggles, he showed a patient approach at the plate as he adjusted to the leadoff role. The Bad: Benson is still raw in many aspects of the game. He has both a long swing and a hitch in his swing mechanics that combine to limit his ability to make contact. He needs to improve his reads and routes in the outfield, as well as his base-stealing ability. The Good: On tools alone, Benson ranks with nearly any outfielder in a system rich with them. He has above-average raw power, plus-plus speed, covers more ground in center field than Ben Revere, and his arm also rates as plus. A former football star in high school, he brings that gridiron mentality to every plate appearance while maintaining good plate discipline.
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Surprise Me!
Introducing the Minnesota Twins 2013 opening day starting CF... Joe Benson.* Enjoyed the article, Hudson, and the format of walking through past BP assessments. Prediction on Benson's season - triple slash and where? Any thoughts on Twins OF in September - and 2014?
Thanks!
Sean
* If healthy and shows anything in spring training. Twins love the spring training stats. Hicks tests Benson's makeup after the June call-up (resulting in an extra year of player control), provided that the holes in Benson's swing are not too large to send him down before June.
It's difficult to make a projection for his 2013 season without seeing how he looks in Spring Training. Last year was sort of a lost season for him. He's a volatile player; he could win a job out of ST and hit .250 with power and plus defense in center, but he could just as easily NOT win a job and struggle in Triple-A.
If things go right, the Twins' could have some nice problems in the outfield by 2014. In an ideal world, it'd be Hicks, Benson, and Arcia. They could stick Arcia in left and shift whoever's in CF to the left to flank Arcia. Still, we're a very long way from that point.