Atlanta Braves: four Rule 5 bats worth a close look today
By Fred Owens
Jose Rojas 2B/3B, Angels 27-years old L/R 6-0, 200 pounds
Selected out of Vanguard University, in the 36th round of the 2016 draft, Jose Rojas has hit well at every level.
He batted .308/.372/.471/.843 in Rookie League ball his first year, and hit a combined .286/.321/.438/.759 in 2017 when he split time between A+ and AA. He followed that with a .289/.355/.501/.857 between AA and AAA in 2018.
The Angels asked him to play winter league ball following that season and promoted him to AAA Salt Lake full time this year. He batted .293/.362/.577/.938 with 31 homers, striking out at a 22.7% rate and walking an above-average 10%. Rojas might well be the Angels’ second baseman if he could have improved on defense (link is behind a paywall):
". . . The Angels front office (is) lower on him than his minor league coaches and opposing scouts, who like his high-quality at-bats, knack for barreling the ball in the zone and hitter’s instincts from the left side. (but he’s) a below-average defender at third base, second base and first base and . . . but there is a lot of conviction in his ability to hit."
My dad would say find a place for him to play, hitters will hit, and Rojas is clearly a hitter at every level. This year the Angels sent him to the Mexican Pacific Winter League and finally woke up to the idea he might be able to play left field.
Related Story. Remember day 2?. light
Kai’ai Tom OF, Indians 25-years old 5-9, 190 pounds
The Indians selected Ka’ai Tom out of the University of Kentucky, in the fifth round of the 2015 draft. At Kentucky Tom batted .352/.429/.483/.912 in 493 PA over two seasons.
Cleveland bypassed Rookie League and started him in low-A ball where he batted .283/.374/.403/.777 in 299 PA. They moved him to A-ball in 2016, where he batted .323/.446/.434/.881 in 123 PA, earning a bump up to A+ Lynchburg.
He cooled off in terms of average and OBP after moving up but hit ten homers, 31 doubles and seven triples in 457 PA. He played in the AZFL that fall and found himself in AA to start 2018. He didn’t adjust as well in 2018 and finished batting .245/.329/.399/.728.
He improved his swing and approach over the winter and batted .285/.386/.512/.898 in 51 AA games before moving to AAA, where he batted 298/.370/.564/.933 with 14 jacks in 81 games.
Combined, that’s a .290/.380/.532, line with 27 doubles, ten triples, and 23 homers. J.J. Cooper’s scouting report ($) provides some details.
". . . doesn’t play center field well enough to be more than a very limited fill-in . . .very solid in the corners and has a very solid hitting approach.(with) over 1,000 plate appearances at Double-A and Triple-A. . . .if a team wants . . a lefthanded hitting backup outfielder who can pinch hit, he has a pretty compelling case."