Atlanta Braves Top 100 Prospect: #18 Rio Ruiz

Scouting Report

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Ruiz is listed as 6’2 and 215 pounds via Baseball Reference. He is a lefty hitter and righty thrower.

Hitting
Ruiz has a tall stance, seeming actually taller than his 6’2 frame at the plate, but he gets into good position in his swing to keep the bat in the zone for a long time while at the plate. He has good plate coverage as well, with an ability to get to pitches throughout the zone, and no seeming weakness on any particular handedness, velocity, or type of pitch in the viewing I had. I watched multiple games from April and May and multiple games from June and August (his two hottest months), and the biggest difference was that his line drives were finding the outfield grass instead of the top of a leaping shortstop’s glove or a diving outfielder’s mitt. He did have more home runs as well, but it wasn’t until August that I saw a change in his swing at all, and that was only in his follow through, finishing with the bat head at shoulder height rather than level, giving the ball a bit more lift, and it was evidenced as 4 of his 5 home runs on the season came in August and September. I noted The difference in watching two series against Pensacola, one in mid-May and one in late August. Pensacola was about the only team he hit well in April and May, but you noticed a major difference in August with that lift at the end of his swing as he racked up 4 extra base hits in a 5 game series. David Ortiz had a similar swing change take him from the line drive hitter he was in Minnesota into the beast he became in Boston. Now, we only got to see Ruiz for about 140 plate appearances with the “new” swing, but if he can have similar results going forward, it’d be very good indeed.

Base Running/Fielding

So, Ruiz steals bases like he’s dragging a bus behind him. How he ever stole 12 bases in the Midwest League in 2013 is beyond me, but I would seriously reconsider acquiring any catcher who played in that league that season. That said, he does have solid instincts on the base paths, especially on ground balls. He sometimes will get crossed up off the bat on a line drive and freeze for second when a lot of those watching the game knew immediately it was a ball that’d be between the infielders and outfielders, and sometimes that costs him taking an extra base, but he picks up an extra base on a slow roller or a ground ball very well. As long as there’s not anyone out there expecting double-digit steals going forward, I think we’re all on the same page.

The defense, well, I feel shorted. I was told by Houston folks I know that he’s a work in progress, but the raw stuff is good. Then I was told by one of our own staff writers that his movements were stiff and made it seem like he may need to move off the position. I saw neither of those things. I’d love to come out and tell you that I see the requisite skills that will make Ruiz a future Gold Glover at the hot corner…or tell you that there’s not a chance that he ever sticks in the 5-hole on the defensive card, but I just didn’t see anything that definitive.

Much like his base running, anything on the ground, he was solid on. He struggled to read balls lined off the bat and make moves laterally that many third basemen in the majors make in order to snag liners down the foul line or toward their left. I was impressed with his ability in bunt coverage, so that’s one area that I can be definitive about. I would say that his hands are quite good, in that, if he’s getting to a ball, he’s rarely misplaying the ball. However, I did see a few sinking line drives off the bat eat him up. He was given an error on two of the four I saw, but those are seriously difficult plays for defensive aces at the third sack in the majors like Manny Machado, so I wasn’t going to down grade him for just that. From my viewings only, I think there’s still enough to keep him at the hot corner, but the recognition off the bat of liners is a troubling thing that he needs to work on. All that said, the arm is plenty to handle the position, so there are no worries there.

Next: 2016 outlook

Video

2016 Outlook

Ruiz may have needed to earn his way to Mississippi in 2015, but his performance in 2014 in high-A certainly would have warranted a promotion to AA. The Braves may decide that they want to see him get his feet under him in 2016 by starting him in Mississippi and letting him earn his promotion up to Gwinnett. The real problem is the dearth of third basemen in the system, especially at the upper levels, which could mean that Ruiz is allowed to fail at each step rather than allowed to earn his way up the ladder.

Next: Braves Top 100 Prospects Updated

Ruiz’s swing reminds me a lot of an old third baseman that many may not recall, former Royals third baseman Joe Randa. While a guy who had a career slash of .284/.339/426 with a career high of 17 home runs may not inspire Braves fans, Randa was a steady hitter that was certainly valuable for many years in Kansas City. I could see Ruiz having a similar major league career with the bat. The big deciding factor for Ruiz will be his glove. If he’s not able to stick at third, does he move to the outfield or to first base? Most importantly, is he willing to put in the work to become better at third, and if not, will he do the requisite work to transition to outfield? He needs to answer those questions in 2016 to really set his future in the Braves organization.