Jeff Arnold, C. B-R, T-R. 6'2", 205 lbs. 1/13/1988.
High A: .251/.333/.460, 13 HR, 38 BB, 116 K in 350 AB.
Jeff Arnold is a defensive catcher drafted in the 26'th round of the 2010 draft out of Louisville. He has moved slowly, but steadily up the organizational ladder on the strength of his defense, but enjoyed a bit of an offensive breakout in 2013. At the plate, he shows both patience and power with a walk rate of 9.6% and 43 of his 88 hits going for extra bases. He did strike out at a 29% rate, which sometimes happens to guys who work deep into counts.
He has already developed a reputation for helping young pitchers. There is an interview out there that Cove Chatter linked awhile back that really impressed me in how much Arnold knew about the stuff the SJ pitchers threw, what worked in certain situations and what they need to improve on or develop. He may have a future as a backup catcher in the majors, but I think his real calling is in coaching or managing. He should move up to Richmond along with the majority of the 2013 SJ pitching staff.
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Arnold has outlasted his draftmates Joe Staley (played Indy ball in 2013) and Dan Burkhart (out of baseball I believe). Both of those guys were early selections in 2010, 8th and 10th rounds.
ReplyDeleteGiants catchers drafted since 2010: Staley, Burkhart, Arnold, Eric Sim, Andrew Susac, Drew Stiner, Trevor Brown (playing 2B), Leonardo Rojas, Ben Turner (splitting time at 1B), Sam Eberle (splitting time at 1B/3B/C), Ty Ross, Eugene Escalante, Rene Melendez and John Riley.
14 guys signed. Big money on Susac, pretty big overslot on Riley and paying the max minimum for Ty Ross. The DSL team has a couple guys who might be coming over as well. It'd be nice to keep up catcher as a position of strength in the system.