Tomahawk Take’s 2016 Top 20 Atlanta Braves Prospects: #20-16
19. Rio Ruiz
– by Alan Carpenter, Tomahawk Take Editor
Who He Is
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Rio Ruiz will be just 22 years old in May and is a lefty-hitting third baseman currently at AA Mississippi. He was born in Covina, California and was originally selected in the 4th round of the 2012 draft by the Houston Astros.
Ruiz was part of the January 2015 Evan Gattis trade that also brought in Mike Foltynewicz and Andrew Thurman to Atlanta. That news came as a shock to Ruiz, as he tweeted a one-word reaction: “Bummer”. Nonetheless, prior acquisitions by the Astros made them believe that Ruiz was tradable, and the Braves were happy to bring him in.
His 2015
Ruiz was challenged in 2015 as a young player in a new pitchers’ league. It did not go very well for him other than a torrid stretch in August. He finished the year hitting .233, though kept his strikeout numbers in an acceptable range (under 20%) and maintained his usual patience plate approach (13% walks). This contrasts sharply with a .293 average in 2014 with 11 homers and an .823 OPS.
This fangraphs video shows Ruiz hitting as an Astro. He appears to be heavier in this 2014 footage than when I saw him at Mississippi late in 2015.
My own concern is not his bat – that will come around in due course – but it’s his glove. In 2015, Ruiz was credited with 16 errors, tied for the Mississippi Braves’ team lead with shortstop Emerson Landoni. I do not have information about the details on these errors, but noticed what seemed to be a slow-reaction time to balls hit in his direction. Again: he’s just 21 and playing ‘ahead of schedule’.
Of note: while he committed 20 errors in 2013 with the High-A Quad Cities club for Houston, there was a kid by the name of Carlos Correa standing at shortstop beside him who tallied 15 errors. And there was this Andrelton Simmons character who chalked up 28 errors for Lynchburg in 2011. So maybe I should just withhold further defensive judgments on Ruiz at this time.
2016 Projection and Future
Fangraphs likes this young hot-corner man, giving him excellent future grades for most tools (50 or 55 across the board, excepting speed). Some critics have been concerned about his ability to hit to all fields and to exhibit ‘game power’, though I personally saw signs that he might be shaking off those concerns as of late in his 2015 year. Ruiz will be susceptible to the double play due to his lack of foot speed – 30 combined GIDP in 2014-15.
Next: Prospect Number 18
It is likely that Ruiz starts at Mississippi again this season, with a possible move-up if he starts well. After a year of acclimation to the league, the new organization, and additional experience, I would anticipate that he could bust out strongly this season. At that point, it becomes a contest to see who the better 3B prospect is: Ruiz or Austin Riley.