Astros Minor League Profile: Drew Sutton

This is the second minor league profile I put together over the winter.  It essentially collects all the information I could find from scouts, news articles, and message boards to try to put together a comprehensive picture of the player.  Let me know if you see anything that sounds obviously wrong, since I haven't gotten to see many of these guys in person.  This time around, it's Drew Sutton.

Drew Sutton

Second Baseman

History:  Out of high school in Jacksonville, Tennessee, Sutton first played at Texarkana Junior College before moving on to Baylor.  In his final season at Drayton McLane's alma mater, Sutton sported a line of .304/.387/.480.  The Astros drafted Drew Sutton out of Baylor in the 15th round of the 2004 draft (454th pick overall). 

Sutton has taken an interesting career path.  In the lower ranks of the farm system, he drew little attention as a prospect.  Last year, however, was like a switch turning on.  Scouting evaluations tell the story pretty well.  In 2006, Baseball Prospectus called him a fringe prospect, due largely to "his power and patience."  And even as recently May of 2008, BP said that although he hits line drives and takes walks, he "probably doesn't do enough of either to ever start in the big leagues."

Shortly after that statement, Sutton went out and had a 20/20 season, leading the Texas League in runs (102), hits (165), and doubles (39). But the carnage didn't stop there.  He went on to the AFL where he led the Scottsdale Scorpions in both home runs (7HR - tied for 5th in the league) and OPS (1.038 - 11th highest in the league). 

Scouts are now projecting him to be a contributor in the big leagues.

Offense: What accounted for Sutton's sudden metamorphosis into the Corpus Christi Hooks' 2008 Offensive MVP?  Well, he got some good advice on his swing-from a golf instructor.  According to Baseball America, Jamie Cevallos worked with Sutton on controlling and positioning his body during his swing, apparently learning quite a bit from watching video of Ted Williams and Albert Pujols. 

Sutton is a switch hitter who has a good bit of power for his size.  His knowledge of the strike zone is good, and he credits part of his AFL performance simply to the umpires having consistent strike zones.  He's got good patience and is willing to take the first pitch for a strike and work the count. 

Defense:  This is a bit of a downside.  He was a bit error-prone in Corpus, leading the team with 26 errors.  On the other hand, 10 of those errors came in his 230 innings at 3B and SS, which were not his usual position.  Commenters on message boards have suggested that most of his errors at 2B were in double play situations and that they arose from either rushing throws or his timing with his SS being off.

His errors at SS and 3B are also a bit worrying, since if he makes the major league team, it will likely be in a utility role.  They moved him around the field a bit in the AFL to get him used to playing different spots, and he played some outfield in Corpus when Bogusevic missed time due to a tweaked hamstring.

Future: Regardless of Sutton's defense, one scout said that "his bat is going to find a position for him."  According to one interview, the front office told Sutton that there was a possibility that he could go straight to the big leagues without putting in time at AAA.  Given that fangraphs has started raising warnings about Sutton turning into the second-coming of Brooks Conrad, skipping AAA might actually be the best outcome for him (although he doesn't have a franchise icon clogging his path to the majors like Conrad did).  He'll likely be given an opportunity to show off in spring training, and depending on how the competition plays out, he'll either be on the big club as a utility infielder, or he'll be in Round Rock, working on his defense, waiting to get called up when Kazuo Matsui get his inevitable obscure injury.     

Bonus Material:  The past 3 offseasons, he's been workout partner with Ben Zobrist in Nashville, Tennessee.  This offseason, he's moved to Houston to prepare for the season.  He pretended to be Cal Ripken Jr. when playing baseball as a kid, his favorite player is Ted Williams, and Lou Gehrig is the historical figure he would most like to meet. 

Here's some video from the AFL: 

Sutton's Home Run Swing

Sutton Gets a Hit

Sutton Being Patient At The Plate