2014 Hagerstown Suns in Review-The Hitters

The 2014 Hagerstown Suns were much more well known for their pitching prospects than their position players,but there were a few that shows prospect potential this season..

We start behind the plate as we then work our way around the diamond.
Spencer Kieboom returned from an injury marred 2013 and hit well (over.300),but showed signs of defensive issues to the point of being a liability.
Kieboom was 23 and a little old for the level,but considering he missed 2013,that was to be expected.
I like his bat and think he is someone to keep track of next season.
Craig Manuel's numbers in Hagerstown (.270 4 HR) were better than those that he posted in Potomac and he may be on his way to battling Cole Leonida as the organizational catcher.
Austin Chubb replaced Manuel after his promotion and showed little at the plate in limited action.
Considering Chubb's age (25) I'd scratch him off any prospect list.

The infield starts at first base with Jimmy Yezzo,a solid performer that could continue to progress.
Yezzo bats lefthanded and has a chance to hit prospect status with a solid 2015.
John Wooten hit over .300 in the first half for the Suns before being promoted to High A Potomac.
Wooten's numbers there were unspectacular and next year will be pivotal for the former Oakland Athletic.
Carlos Lopez replaced Wooten as the DH/part time first baseman and delivered exactly what you would hope from a 24 year old at Low A-a little power (6 homers) and a lot of leadership ability.
Lopez is the type of Crash Davis type that might hit his ceiling at Harrisburg down the road.
The Suns shuffled their lineup in the middle infield constantly with many of the group spending time at both second base and shortstop.
Wilmer Difo was the breakout star in winning the SAL MVP award.
Difo looked overmatched in his Hagerstown stint in 2013,but his play this year put him on the prospect map.
Showing power (team leading 14 homers) and speed (49 steals),Difo might best project as a super sub type that plays every day in different positions.
The rest of the bunch do not show ability to succeed at upper levels,
Brennan Middleton hit for the highest average (.253),but with no homers and average speed (5 steals) along with turning 24,Middleton doesn't seem to be hitting many prospect lists.
David Masters started the season at shortstop and ended the season there with Willie Medina playing in between during a Masters injury.
Both players straddled the Mendoza line offensively and should return to Hagerstown next season.
Cody Dent played all four infield positions and corner outfield spots and hit the homer that rocked the Muni in the playoffs.
Otherwise,Dent's offensive numbers were nothing to rave about (.204),but his versatility should keep him around the Nats system somewhere....
Drew Ward spent the entire season as a 19 year old in Hagerstown at third base and showed promise (.269,10 homers).
Ward might not be at third long term (18 errors) and he tends to wave at outside curveballs,but with patience,I think Ward has potential.
I might think about returning Ward to Hagerstown to start next season considering his age,but his numbers will most likely land him in Potomac.

Rafael Bautista leads the outfielders as Bautista hit a solid .290 with 69 steals on the season.
It wasn't a totally punchless .290 either with 5 homers and 20 doubles,so the 21 year old could develop into a higher level prospect,if he can develop a little more power as he fills out.
I compare Bautista to Michael Taylor,who was less than impressive in Hagerstown and turned into a fine prospect with some patience.
I liked Bautista the better of the two,looking at past notes and think he is worth keeping an eye on.
Issac Ballou was decent in Hagerstown and Potomac,but not spectacular and being that the Marshall product will start next season at the age of 25,he will need to do something special to start in 2015 to have any chance of being considered a prospect...
Narciso Mesa was overmatched at Potomac before being returned to Hagerstown at the age of 22.
Mesa improved as a Sun and I'm not ready to give up on him,but the struggles at Potomac cause me some concern...
Wilman Rodriguez was ok in a year that saw him injured and never seemed to really get on track.
Rodriguez will turn 24 in the middle of next season,so I suppose the team will try to move him to Potomac if they think he has a chance of being a higher level player.
Estarlin Martinez returned to Hagerstown after spending 2013 with the Suns and after a month of hitting over .300,was moved to Potomac.
Martinez looks the part of having power,but between the two levels,Martinez hit just one home run and power questions continue to plague him.
Not ready to give up yet,but I'm very interested in following him in 2015.

The position players for the 2014 Suns are a mixed bag,but they have a few that are solid prospects,even if none of them are five star prospects.
The Nationals continue to use older players in Hagerstown (although this years team was a bit younger than 2013) to give their teams a chance to win championships.
That's great for fans here,but it can hurt the development of prospects or not have younger players at all.

I may be be back sometime soon with some thoughts on memories of the 2014 season for the Suns and the graphing circuit along with more thoughts on the status of the team as far as Fredericksburg Va goes.....