August 28, 2013 at 11:45 AM
Scouting Scratch: Garin Cecchini
With Xander Bogaerts in the major leagues, the best pure
hitter left in the Red Sox minor league system is third baseman Garin Cecchini (pictured).
After a blistering start with the Salem Red Sox, during which Cecchini put up a
line of .350/.469/.547 in 214 at-bats, he has slowed down somewhat with the
Portland Sea Dogs, but he has still put together a very respectable line of
.294/.420/.393 in 214 at-bats as of August 27.
Cecchini has a solid frame, listed at 6-foot-2 and 200
pounds, but looks bigger than that. He has filled out since he entered the
system, especially in his lower half, and has limited physical projection left.
Cecchini’s calling card is his hit tool, which is his only truly plus tool. He
has plus-to-better bat speed from the left side and a simple, smooth, aesthetically
pleasing swing. He has solid swing mechanics, starting with a slightly open
stance that he closes on approach. He uses a slight leg lift as his timing
device and gets good hip rotation in his swing. He is short and direct to the
ball and does an excellent job of staying inside the baseball. He doesn’t try
to do too much at the plate, rarely over-swinging or getting caught trying to
cheat on a pitch by clearing his hips early. Cecchini has a knack for making
solid contact, and even when he gets out he tends to hit the ball hard. He has
also shown a willingness to use all fields, but at his best, he works from gap
to gap and up the middle.
Cecchini’s hit tool plays up because of his advanced
approach at the plate. He has very good pitch recognition skills and an
advanced knowledge of the strike zone. He also consistently puts together
quality at-bats, isn’t afraid to take a walk, and rarely gets cheated or chases
pitchers pitches at the plate. At times, he does seem to get a little fidgety
and jumps at the ball, often resulting in him rolling over a ground ball to the
right side of the infield.
The question mark with Cecchini at the plate is how much
power he has. Even if he hits for below-average power (12-15 home runs a year at
the big league level) he brings a lot of value to the table because of his hit
tool and instincts. Even though he has the frame of a power hitter, his swing
isn’t really one designed for power, but instead, for hitting hard line drives
to the gaps. He uses a lot of upper body in his swing and doesn’t get great
leverage. He also doesn’t sell out for power by dropping his back shoulder. Instead,
he keeps his swing path more level and straight through the ball. Finally, as
Cecchini is very selective at the plate, he takes a decent amount of hittable
pitches, especially early in counts. In some at-bats those pitches will be the
best one to drive that he will see. Currently, Cecchini has seven home runs in
428 at-bats, with only two of those coming with Portland. At his peak, Cecchini
could have average power at the big league level, as he still has shown, albeit
infrequently, the ability to drive the ball with lift and backspin. However,
it wouldn’t be surprising if he settles into more fringe-average power (15-17
home runs a year).
Cecchini also has great instincts on the diamond, which
allow his tools to play up. He comes from a strong baseball family; his brother
was a first round pick of the Mets in 2012 and both his parents coached, and he
really understands how to play the game. The area where his instincts show up
in the box score is on the base path. Though he only possesses average speed,
he is an adept base stealer, with 51 stolen bases with Greenville in 2012 and
22 combined between two levels this year. His speed plays because he does an
excellent job reading pitchers, frequently picking the right pitch to run on,
and he gets really good jumps.
Defensively, Cecchini should be able to stay at third base,
but he doesn’t project to be much more than an average to solid-average
defender over there. Back in his first season with Lowell, Cecchini was
adjusting to third base for the first time while coming off a significant knee
injury that caused him to miss his entire senior season of high school. He looked
uncomfortable and was tentative going after balls, especially when he had to
push off his knee. Since then he has steadily improved, but he still is rigid at
the position and doesn’t always stay down on the ball. He has a plus arm, but
is relatively straight up when he throws. Cecchini’s bat is a lot more valuable
at third base than elsewhere, so moving him off the position would only be a
last resort. If he had to move, his defensive skill set profiles best in left field, but that would put a lot more pressure on his bat.
How Cecchini plays over the rest of the season and in the
Arizona Fall League will likely determine where he starts next season, either
back with Portland or in Pawtucket. Regardless, he has positioned himself to
potentially see the big leagues at some point in 2014; the key things to watch
for, going forward, are his defensively ability and power development.
Photo Credit: Garin Cecchini by Kelly O'Connor
Ian Cundall is a Northeast Scout for SoxProspects.com. Follow him on Twitter @IanCundall.