Orlando Arcia will be called up by the Brewers to take over the shortstop position with Jonathan Villar moved over to third base on a full time basis. Days from turning 22, his b-day is August 4th, Arcia stands 6’0”, weighs in at about 165 lbs and swings/throws right-handed. He’s one of the better prospect in the game, you will see that below, but being an elite baseball prospect does not always mean a guy will be an elite fantasy prospect.

 

Level

AB

AVG

HR

RBI

RUNS

SB

2013

A

442

.251

4

39

67

20

2014

High-A

498

.289

4

50

65

31

2014

FgW

211

.265

7

28

31

2

2015

AA

512

.307

8

69

74

25

2015

FgW

109

.312

1

18

20

0

2016

AAA

404

.267

8

53

59

15

Career

540 games

2074

.282

30

247

312

104


* FgW – Venezuelan Winter League
 

Prospect Rankings (2015): Baseball America (94th), Baseball Prospectus (93rd), MLB.com (88th)

Prospect Rankings (2016): Baseball America (8th), Baseball Prospectus (12th), MLB.com (6th)

THE SKILLS

Arcia is one of the best defensive shortstop prospects in baseball, maybe the best. We don’t care about that in fantasy.

As a hitter…

Arcia is very aggressive at the dish and that might be exploited at the big league level. Arcia has never walked 45 times in a season and that includes 29 walks this season in 100 games at Triple-A. That aggressiveness has capped Arcia’s OBP at .339 in the minors including just .320 this season.

Arcia handles the fastball very well, but he also struggles with off-speed pitches at times. The lack of walks, the lack of performance against off-speed pitches, and it’s safe to suggest that over the top performance in the batting average category is unlikely in the short run.

Arcia doesn’t yet display any type of significant power. Arcia has never reached double digits in homers, though the power could develop as he gains size and strength as he matures. He’s a gap hitter at this point, one who often sees his swing get a bit long. Note that Arcia has a mere .404 SLG in his career and just .404 this season is his mark at Triple-A.

Arcia can steal a base though. He has plus speed with at least 20 steals each of his three full minor league season. Well on his way to that mark yet again, he has 15 this season in 23 attempts, he will continue to run in the big leagues. Note that he has a league average type of success number of 72.2 percent in the minors.  


PLAYING TIME

The top prospect in the Brewers organization, as I noted above he will be asked to play shortstop on a daily basis as Jonathan Villar moves over to third base (the loser for playing time is likely Hernan Perez who will have to play a super sub role).  


CONCLUSION

An immediate add in NL-only leagues, caution is warranted with Arcia in mixed leagues. He owns a mere .723 OPS this season in Triple-A. He doesn’t walk enough. His production on off-speed pitches is a concern. He has yet to develop pop, at least nothing more than gap-to-gap kinda stuff. He will run, and will play daily, but he’s not yet a finished product. A best case scenario would be Elvis Andrus, while a worst case scenario would be Alcides Escobar. Caution is advised in mixed leagues.  

 

Ray Flowers can be heard Monday through Friday, 7 PM EDT and Friday on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio (Sirius 210, XM 87). You can also hear Ray Sunday nights at 6 PM on the channel talking fantasy sports. Follow Ray’s work at Fantasy Alarm and on Twitter (@baseballguys).