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2008 At this point, there is no doubt that Jaso can hit; he's exceeded a .300 batting average in each of the last four seasons. All of the questions about him concern his defense. He's a below-average catcher, and a slow recovery from rotator cuff surgery had him playing the position only part time in 2007. As strong as his bat may be, it doesn't profile well enough for first base, the only other position he can play, so this year's showing at Triple-A Durham will be key. 2007 Jaso followed up his breakout 2005 with a .309/.362/.451 line for Visalia in High-A ball. Careful, though: Everyone hits in the Cal League, which means he only managed a .246 EqA. If he doesn`t stick behind the plate--Jaso`s defense gets an `e` for effort--he doesn`t have enough bat to be an asset at first or DH. 2006 At 19, Jaso hit about as well as you would expect from a 12th-round pick, but he has blossomed since. He`s selective, and showed home run power for the first time last year. Ostensibly a catcher, he was limited to DH duties late in the season because of a shoulder injury. The next step is to play over 100 games in a season and see what shakes out.
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