Wishy update

[Dale]

NMLR Rangers Prospect Previews: Outfielders

6) Andrew Wishy:

After a shaky start that saw him hit just .200 through the first two weeks of his professional career in 2003, Andrew Wishy came on strong to have a startling rookie season, ultimately going .285 / .416 / .462 for Spokane, drawing 54 walks while fanning 58 times and driving in 55 runs, which was second best in the NWL.

Wishy began the 2004 season in Clinton and once again he got off to a slow start. After struggling to adjust to the new league for the first seven weeks (he hit .231 through the end of May), Wishy went on a two month tear, hitting .301 / .418 / .493 in June and .327 / .407 / .510 in July before falling to .195 / .287 / .325 in August when he simply ran out of gas.

In many ways, Wishy’s progression invokes that of Jason Botts and in many ways they are similar hitters. Both are big strong guys with good strike zone judgment who draw a lot of walks and project to have a lot more power than they show at an early point in their careers. Of course, Wishy led the L-Kings with 14 long balls, but if you’ve seen him take BP, you know that he’s capable of driving the ball out of the yard with far greater frequency.

As statistician and co-author of "Essential Baseball" Dave Lawson will tell you, hitters like Botts and Wishy who rely upon selectivity, tend to slump a bit as they move up through each level of play. They have to learn the new zone, gain a comprehension of the better stuff and finer control from the pitchers they face, and then when the learning period is over, the tend to improve quickly. First come bunches of bases on balls, followed by hits. Wishy has followed this track to the letter throughout his career and it probably bodes well for him in the future as it is evidence that he can learn and adjust and will continue to do so, just as Botts has.

The left-handed Kansas City slugger hasn’t yet demonstrated that he can handle southpaw pitching, going just .202 / .296 / .298 while hitting right handers at a .269 / .368 / .438 clip and he is still an awkward outfielder. Wishy’s focus in fall instructionals was outfield technique and he feels he made tremendous progress in that area.

PROJECTION: Wishy should be the left fielder in Bakersfield this year. He was told at the end of the 2004 season that the organization might look at moving him to third base, but he didn’t take a single ground ball in fall instructionals. Odds are that he will start slow and finish strong in the Cal League, putting himself in position for a promotion to Frisco in 2006. The system is short on left-handed power hitters, so there is certainly something riding on Wishy’s continued development.