Astros Minor League Depth - Shortstops

In an ongoing series on the minor league depth in the Astros system, this week we're looking at the middle infield. On Monday, I posted this piece on the Second Basemen in the system. Today, we look at the Shortstops. Once again, I am separating them into two groups -- those who finished the season at Advanced A or above and those who finished the season at Low A and below. And once again, I am sorting them from high to low in terms of on-base percentage. As a reminder, there are a few players who were used more as utility infielders than shortstops in the past season and I will be addressing them in a later post.


It is no surprise that Nolan Fontana leads this list in that his OBP led the Astros minor league system for all full season teams in 2013. The second round 2012 draft pick got on base at a .415 clip in 2013 which was actually a decline from the .464 rate he put up in 2012, and he translated those on-base skills into a healthy number of runs scored. Fontana did not, however, fare well in the Arizona Fall League, collecting only six hits in 18 games, walking 13 times and striking out 16 times. And, although he has played exclusively at shortstop since coming in to the Astros system, look for him to spend time at second base in 2014. The reason for this is two-fold. He is not the strongest defender at short, and there is a dearth of second basemen at the upper levels.

At the upper levels of the organization, Jiovanni Mier and Ronald Torreyes both excel defensively. Mier, the Astros 2009 first round draft pick, took a big step backwards with his bat, though, as he struggled in his first season in the Texas League. Torreyes, acquired from the Cubs in exchange for two international bonus pool slots, has shown himself to be much more adept with the bat. The 21 year-old Venezuelan (he turned 21 in September) hit well at the AA level both before and after his acquisition, putting up a .269/.329/.368 batting line and striking out only 29 times in 103 games. In his final 10 games, Torreyes was on a tear, hitting .487/.512/.641. [Note: Torreyes was used both at short and at second base by the Astros, but was used in more games at short.]

Ronnie Torreyes - August 2013

Photo by Jayne Hansen

At the lower levels (but not for long), Carlos Correa is a standout both defensively and at the plate. What the first overall 2012 draft pick accomplished as an 18-year old against competition averaging three years older than him was outstanding. Correa just turned 19 in September and will likely start the season in Lancaster, but is not likely to stay there for very long.

Carlos Correa - April 2013

Photo by Jayne Hansen

Aside from Correa, the best overall defense in this group (based on fielding percentage and range factor per game) comes from Thomas Lindauer and Kristian Trompiz. Lindauer, drafted in the 23rd round in 2013, struggled offensively with Tri-City in his first 22 games and was sent to Greeneville where he hit .247/.306/.320 in his final 29 games. Trompiz, who just turned 18 in December, was in his first professional season with the Dominican Summer League Astros team in 2013. He topped this list of players with his 5.25 range factor per game.

Chan Moon spent his fourth professional season with Tri-City despite having spent the prior season in Lexington and Lancaster. Moon had a solid season both offensively and defensively. His otherwise good offensive numbers were brought down by a subpar August. He will be 23 next month.

Jack Mayfield started his season at Greeneville, but finished it with Tri-City. Signed by the Astros as an undrafted free agent out of the University of Oklahoma, Mayfield spent almost as much time at second base as he did at short and actually had better defensive numbers at second. It would not surprise me to see Mayfield moved to second or used as a utility infielder in the upcoming season.

Luis Reynoso, who just turned 19 in September, was in his first season in the U.S. in 2013, playing all but one game with the GCL Astros before a late promotion to Greeneville for his final game. Reynoso, a right-handed hitter, hit well against righty pitchers in 2013, putting up a .271/.365/.364 batting line, but struggled against lefties. Yoel Silfa, a 20-year old from the Dominican Republic, only appeared in 24 games for the GCL team and ended his season on a high note, hitting .276/.323/.379 in his final 10 games.

Jose Fernandez also spent most of his season with the GCL after starting his season with Tri-City and struggling at the plate. He was one of three Astros minor league players suspended at the end of the season for testing positive for an amphetamine.

Dariel Aquino, who just turned 18 last month, barely got his feet wet for the Dominican Summer League Astros. Aquino spent as much time as a DH as he did in the field, giving way to Trompiz at short.

Astros Minor League Depth - Shortstop

Over the next few weeks as we approach Spring Training, I'll be looking at the Astros minor league depth, position by position. Today, we look at the shortstops in the organization who had the best seasons in 2012.

The embedded chart shows shortstops in the organization ranked from high to low in terms of OBP. I have noted their current age, the last level at which they played and, if they spent significant time at multiple positions, that information is included as well. I am including Jake Elmore's minor league numbers since he is new to the system so that you can see how his 2012 minor league numbers compare.

Nolan Fontana leapfrogged rookie league and short season A ball in his first season and went directly to playing for the full season Lexington club where he led the organization in OBP thanks to 65 walks in only 49 games. He will ultimately have to show more aggressiveness at the plate, but it was a solid first season by any measure. Jake Elmore and Ben Orloff also showed very patient approaches at the plate. Both players drew walks more often than they struck out in 2012.

Carlos Correa had an uneven season thanks to a slow start with the GCL team. However, once he got to Greeneville, he turned on the afterburners and hit .371/.450/.600 in his final 11 games and exhibited stellar defensive capabilities. Another young player to watch is Luis Reynoso. Reynoso was one of the few bright spots offensively on the DSL team in 2012. He just turned 18 in September as did Correa.

Jonathan Villar was having a good season offensively and appeared to be catching up to AA pitching when his fist came out on the losing side after an unfortunate encounter with a door. The tools are there, but he still has a ways to go, both offensively and defensively. But one thing he has a very good feel for is the stolen base. He swiped 39 bags in 86 games and was caught only eight times. Another player exhibiting some wheels was Joe Sclafani. In his first season in the organization he stole 16 bases in 70 games and was caught three times.

Jiovanni Mier was having a great comeback season when injury put a large dent in his season. He came back strong after the injury, though, and continued his progress with a very successful Arizona Fall League season. Alex Todd was one of the players to fill in for Mier; he put up good numbers at Lancaster after starting the season in Lexington. [UPDATE: After posting this, I found out that Alex Todd retired from baseball during the off-season.]

Monday: First Base
Tuesday: Second Base
Coming Thursday: Third Base

WTH 25-Man Roster - Shortstop

As posted over the weekend, RHP Jarred Cosart won the 11th spot on the WTH roster as our third Starting Pitcher.  Also receiving votes were Kyle Hallock, Luis Ordosgoitti, Tommy Shirley, Nick Tropeano, Tanner Bushue, Brandt Walker and Vincent Velasquez.  Go here for more info on the What the Heck 25-Man Roster.

Next, let's pick our shortstop.  I included some additional information on these players, including fielding percentage, since the shortstop is such an important defensive position.  It would be nice to have a player there who can hit above the Mendoza line, but fielding the position well is frankly more important.  A good balance between the two assets is gravy.

Those with the best fielding percentages (I used SS FLD% only) are Ben Orloff, Jio Mier and Chan Moon.  The best power numbers belong to Jonathan Villar.  Juan Santana has good batting skills, but he fields like the 17-year old that he is.  And then you have the unknowns - Jonathan Merritt and Jimmy Howick who were both on the DL in 2011.  Merritt had good power numbers in 2010 but that was accompanied with a fielding % at SS of .924.  Jimmy Howick was a 21st round pick by the Astros in 2011 but we don't know a whole lot beyond that.

With all that said, here are the 2011 stats for the players.  Look them over and vote for one.