Quinn's Path to the Phillies Depends...
Quinn's Path to the Phillies Depends on Durability Roman Quinn is among the Phillies most exciting prospects. Staying on the field could be the only thing that detours him from a permanent trip to Philadelphia.
Quinn is again on the disabled list after suffering a concussion when he was hit in the head on a pick-off throw at first base.
Before the injury, Quinn was having a solid, but also injury-plagued season at Double-A Reading.
The 23-year-old Quinn was the Phillies second round draft choice in 2011. He was an shortstop in high school and when he first began with the Phillies, but was moved to center field in 2014 to take advantage of his tremendous speed. In fact there may not be a faster player in the Phillies system.
Another reason for the move was that the Phillies top prospect is 2013 first round pick J.P. Crawford, 21, considered among the top prospects in baseball.
The thought of Crawford and Quinn batting at the top of the order for the Phillies is an exciting prospect.
Quinn is batting .282 with a .791 on base plus slugging percentage and 29 stolen bases. Due to injury, he has yet to play more than 88 games in a minor league season.
Last year he suffered a season-ending quadriceps injury during the second week of June.
He has been injured in each of the last four seasons and some have been lengthy.
For instance, in 2013 he was placed on the DL on June 26 and stayed there the rest of the season with a hairline fracture in his wrist.
His injuries have taken away from the development Quinn has made. He is a switch hitter, who has worked hard to be consistent from both sides of the plate.
For instance this season he is hitting .293 with an .819 OPS as lefthanded hitter. As a righthander he is hitting .315 with a .797 OPS.
What's most intriguing is his speed. Even with all the missed time in the minors, he has put up strong stolen bases numbers. Quinn had 30 stolen bases in 66 games in his first year at short-season Williamsport. In 2013 at Lakewood he had 27 steals in 67 games. Playing for advanced Single A Clearwater in 2014 he stole 32 bases in a career-high 88 games. Last season he swiped 29 bases in 58 games for Reading.
And as mentioned, he has 29 steals in 70 games this season for Reading. Despite all his missed games this year, Quinn is still sixth in the Eastern League in stolen bases.
In addition he started playing the corner outfield spots this season in an attempt to increase his versatility and marketability. Quinn has played four games in left field and three in right.
He is already a member of the Phillies 40-man roster and there has been talk of having him called up sometimes in September. Now who knows about that plan after the latest injury.
Quinn's talent is undeniable and his improvement since he was signed by the Phillies has been impressive. Yet until he can show he is more durable, Quinn will remain a question mark.
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Author: Marc Narducci
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