The San Diego Padres made more noise in the offseason with a number of splashy additions than they have at any point during the 2015 campaign, so they elected to get younger and add some depth to their farm system Tuesday in the form of catcher Marcus Greene Jr.
MLB.com noted that San Diego acquired Greene Jr. and a player to be named later from the Texas Rangers for veteran outfielder Will Venable.
Despite the additions of Matt Kemp, Justin Upton, Wil Myers, James Shields and Craig Kimbrel before the season began, the Padres find themselves in fourth place in the National League West and well out of the postseason race. This year is virtually a lost cause at this point, so Greene Jr.'s youth (he turns 21 Wednesday) offered more long-term value than Venable.
Baseball Prospectus ranked San Diego’s farm system a middling 16th in the league before the season started and noted that it was particularly top-heavy:
The Padres feature a top-heavy system with some impact talent nearing major-league readiness, but there’s a drop-off midway through the top 10. The trio of Austin Hedges, Hunter Renfroe, and Matt Wisler give the Padres a solid core for the future—or a solid trade package for a big-name veteran, with plenty of young talent still remaining after them, albeit with much development in front of them. Rymer Liriano is also on the brink of major-league contribution, though is currently blocked by the Padres glut of major-league outfielders.
Greene Jr. at least provides some depth below that top tier, although he is still recovering from his June 29 Tommy John surgery on his right elbow. He will likely need plenty of time before he is fully healthy again, but his youth is on his side.
Before the injury, Greene spent the season with the Single-A Hickory of the South Atlantic League and hit .218 with five home runs in 25 games. He was a 16th-round pick in the 2013 first-year player draft out of New Mexico Junior College and turned heads in 2014 when he was selected to the Short-Season Northwest League North Division All-Star team.
He hit .318 for Spokane to earn that All-Star nod and demonstrated his athleticism behind the plate and occasional power at the dish.
Despite Greene Jr.’s promising performance last year, Vince Lara-Cinisomo of Baseball America noted the surgery could hamper his future at catcher:
Greene had elbow ligament replacement surgery in June, so his catching future—already in question despite his athleticism—is uncertain. Greene has a muscular build at 5-foot-11 and 200 pounds. At bat, he has raw power potential, but has trouble staying back and rolls balls over. He recognizes breaking balls, but sometimes tries to cheat on fastballs and gets caught out front.
Fortunately for the Padres, he demonstrated versatility early in his professional career with 16 career starts in the corner outfield. Assuming he eventually returns to full health, Greene Jr. could find himself among the outfield mix in the San Diego system.
Moving away from catcher should also take some of the physical stress off his body, which could lead to a healthier future and a chance to finally unleash that athleticism and “raw power potential” that Lara-Cinisomo mentioned at the major league level.
Greene Jr.’s long-term health is the most important concern at this point following the surgery, but the Padres added some much-needed youth to the farm system with Tuesday’s trade.
Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com
- Login to post comments