The Impending Arrival of Wes Hodges

Wes Hodges - The Third Baseman of the Future

Last year, I was a member of the press box staff for the Akron Aeros. In my various positions last year, I was an assistant scorekeeper, line score operator and music director, and in these various roles I had the pleasure of witnessing some phenomenal prospects leading the Akron Aeros to their third Eastern League Championship appearance in four years.

Randy Newsom, Trevor Crowe, David Huff, Matt LaPorta, Chris Gimenez, Scott Lewis, Stephen Head, and many others spent a significant amount of time with the Double-A affiliate last season. But out of all of these players, Wes Hodges arguably stuck out the most as arguably the most sure-fire future Major Leaguer.

The 24-year-old former Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket is currently starting everyday in Columbus for the Clippers, in a stellar infield that also includes prospects Jordan Brown and Luis Valbuena, and the artist formerly known as Andy Marte. What makes Hodges special is that he has shown absolutely consistent production at all levels of the game.

In his three years at Ga Tech, he had at least a .387 on-base percentage and .467 slugging percentage every year. He played 167 games in these three seasons, which means you can somewhat accurately look at how it projects to a 162-game Major League season, albeit a much easier strength of schedule. During these three seasons, he hit .349 with 24 home runs, 150 runs batted in and 54 doubles to go along with a .426 on-base percentage and a .540 slugging percentage.

Then in his first year of professional baseball with the Kinston Indians in 2007 after being a 2nd round draft pick, Hodges continued to produce on the offensive end. He hit .280 with 15 home runs and 71 runs batted in, in his 104 games played, not too bad of a start at all for a first-year in high-class single-A. Then in his 133 games with the Aeros last season, he finished with a .290 batting average, 18 home runs and an Aeros franchise record 97 runs batted in. His on-base percentage and slugging percentage were both down slightly in his second year, but he still projects as an above average hitter with excellent plate discipline.

Currently in the Indians organizational depth chart, Mark DeRosa is the everyday third baseman after a trade with the Chicago Cubs this past off-season. DeRosa, who is 34 years old, is in the final year of a three-year, $13 million contract he signed with the Cubbies after the 2006 season. Also in contention for work at the third base spot in the future is Andy Marte, who is still only 25 years old as well, and will steal some playing time away from Hodges in Columbus this season. Over in Akron at the hot corner is soon-to-be 24-year-old Jared Goedert (#44 on the Indians Prospect Insider rankings) and then over in Kinston is 20-year-old Lonnie Chisenhall (#9 on the prospect rankings and a 2008 first round draft pick).

What this means is that the job is pretty much Hodges to take in the spring of 2010. Chisenhall is clearly two years away from Major League contribution, while we already know what Andy Marte is capable of. Jared Goedert is not a very high-end prospect, and thus Hodges will have more than just a chance of winning the everyday spot as the third baseman for the Indians next season. Hodges has proved that he is capable of producing .290/20/100 at any level, and that would be a huge bonus in the corner spot for the Indians in the long-term.

Keep in mind, his numbers might have also been better in college had he not suffered a stress fracture in his leg which cost him much of his junior season. He has initially a much higher rated prospect, and has very much proved so in his two full seasons in the Cleveland Indians organization. One minor issue I do have with his ability is his diminishing talents in the field. He had 19 errors and a .922 fielding percentage in Kinston, then became the most recent in a string of very bad third baseman at Akron with 28 errors and a .899 fielding percentage. This will have to improve significantly this season, and I am sure that alongside Valbuena and others he will face tremendous pressure to succeed in Columbus.

In the end, it seems like that path is clear for Wes Hodges to become the Indians everyday third baseman in 2010. Get used to hearing the name now boys and girls, as scouts will be all over for him for the next 11 months to see if he can seize the opportunity and make the ball club next season.

Outside Links:
Baseball-Reference Profile
Indians Prospect Insider Profile