Hunter Cole, OF. DOB: 10/3/1992. B-R, T-R. 6'1", 195 lbs. Drafted in 2014 Round 26 out of Univ. of Georgia.
2016 AA: .271/.319/.420, 25 2B, 3 3B, 13 HR, 6.0 BB%, 22.4 K%, 513 PA.
2016 AFL: .235/.316/.338, 2B, 2 HR, 10.1 BB%, 21.5 K%, 79 PA.
Hunter Cole does a lot of things kind of average. OK, hitting .271 with 13 dingers in Richmond is probably more above average, but that comes with an average walk rate, average K rate, average speed, maybe above average arm. When you see videos of Hunter Cole hitting, you can see he has surprising power packed into that frame. The problem is, where does he play? He's got the arm for RF, but the lack of speed probably does not play in AT&T Park's RF. He could probably play LF, but is there enough bat there? He apparently does not have the hands to play IF as the Giants tried him at 3B and 2B and moved him to the OF. If he gets the promo to Sacramento for 2017, there might be a call up in his future. If he's back in Richmond, he's getting passed on the depth chart right and left.
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Finally I see a prospect list that doesn't have Slater and Cole right next to each other in the rankings. Never understood why evaluators kept putting them side by side, especially after midseason last year. Wow, you ended your analysis on kind of a potential downer. Sounds like this season is a major crossroads to you on Cole's future. What OF prospects do you think may pass him up on the Richmond depth chart? Davis, Reynolds or Quinn? That would be good and bad at the same time. Good that Giants have prospects that are fast tracking. Bad that Cole is stagnant.
ReplyDeleteMaybe all 3? Reynolds and Quinn are pretty obvious. Reynolds because of his ability to play all 3 OF positions and probably hit better and Quinn because he can do everything Cole does on defense with a lot better hit and power tools. Davis has shown way more power potential so if he keeps his BA up, he would be moving way up too.
DeleteIMO, the best hope for Cole to have a meaningful MLB career is as a utility/bat off the bench guy, in which case he should try to get experience playing as many positions as possible on defense.
DeleteAnd yeah, I don't really see Austin Slater and Hunter Cole as being close in prospect rankings. I think the Giants made it fairly obvious they feel the same way by their assignments/promotions.
DeleteI see Cole with a AAA depth ceiling in this org, and not because he's done anything less than expected. He'll probably have to get another chance somewhere else. There are too many young OF around him, and coming up from behind. It's a nice position to be in for the Giants.
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