Prospect Countdown: #28 Ramon Torres

28. Ramon Torres Short Stop

www.baseballtucson.com

Age: 20
Height: 5'10"
Weight: 155 lbs
B/T: S/R
Acquired: Signed as non-drafted FA by the Kansas City Royals in 2009.

Landon Adams (16): Ramon Torres makes the Royal Revival top 30 countdown solely because of me. That's okay, I'll look forward to bragging about this one in September. As my colleagues have displayed, Torres is often the forgotten young prospect of the Arteaga-Calixte-Mondesi bunch. This is a mistake. Torres has an excellent blend of bat skills, good eye, and quality glove to stick at the position long term.

As a 20 year old in the pitcher friendly Applachian League he hit 30 points higher than league average and slugged 60 points better than his peers. upon a promotion to Lexington, Torres numbers dipped in large part due to an increased strikeout rate. One thing to note is that even during 42 difficult games with Lexington, the young Dominican still managed to hit line drives 6% more than the average South Atlantic League player, who also on average was 2 years older than Torres.

I look for Torres to rebound in 2014 and he is on the short list of position prospects that I will consider for my breakout prospect pick for 2014.

Paden Bennett (NR): Once Ramon Torres got promoted to Lexington last season he really struggled compiling a .218/.274/.264 slash line.  Nothing impressive.  However at age 20, Torres still has a lot of potential and has shown that he can put together good at bats by his walk rate and limiting his strikeouts.  Hopefully Torres will start in Lexington and make strides this season.

Joe Cox (NR): Torres is a 20 year old switch hitting shortstop who has been with the organization since 2010, and this season made his first at bats above rookie league baseball.  While he didn’t fare well in those 87 AB’s, he has had a solid career up to this point in the lower minor leagues.  At the plate, the 5’10’’ 155 lb. shortstop has shown the ability to draw walks while limiting strikeouts.  He does not have much power, but has hit for a decent average to make him a decent OBP player.  Last year, he significantly cut down his walks and strikeouts, but I wonder if he was coached to try to make as much contact as he could.

I don’t know much about him defensively, but it does look like he played some second base, though I am not sure if that implies that he may not be able to stick at short.  Basically any middle infield prospect with a pulse has value, and Torres is better than that.  We will answer a few questions this year during his year in a full season league.  

Dan Ware (NR):  Last season, Torres split up his time between both Rookie level Burlington and Low-A Lexington.  Ramon, who turns 21 in January, fared well in the Appalachian League, posting a line of .278/.306/.420 with 3 HR and 20 RBI.  Once he got the promotion to Lexington, he clearly struggled as his BA dipped 60 points.  Torres has a good discipline at the plate and is considered above-average on the base paths.  At shortstop, he has decent range and a plus, but Ramon is still years away from seeing Kansas City.  It would be no surprise to see him start 2014 in Lexington.  He'll need a better showing against South Atlantic League pitching before going any further in this organization.

Total Points: 15