Padres 1st-Rounder Spangenberg Off To Blistering Start, Gets Promoted
By Aaron Somers
When the Padres selected infielder Cory Spangenberg with the 10th overall pick in this year’s draft, it was widely viewed as a “safe” selection made primarily because the Padres would lose the pick if they didn’t sign their selection, since it was compensation for failing to sign Karsten Whitson last season.
Spangenberg did indeed sign quickly, and the early returns on his pro career are rather stunning.
Just 20 years old, Spangenberg was dispatched to short-season Eugene just days after the draft, and in 25 games there, he went 33-for-86 with ten doubles, ten steals, a homer, just fifteen strikeouts, and 31 walks.
31 walks! In 25 games!
That’s a cool .384/.545/.535 line.
Obviously, he’d mastered the level, so Spangenberg was promoted to Low-A Fort Wayne yesterday, a level which he’s fairly young for.
If he performs well down the stretch, Spangenberg could well open 2012 in High-A Lake Elsinore, or even Double-A San Antonio. Meanwhile, many of his fellow draftees will hold out for more money and wind up in lower levels. Down the line, it’s certainly possible to make up the money you leave on the bargaining table by reaching the big leagues more quickly and thus having a longer major league career (not to mention hitting free agency in your prime).
It’s way too early to be discussing that about Spangenberg, since he’s just now in full-season ball, but it is a general point to keep in mind that getting in 60 or 70 games can sometimes benefit a player more than an extra few thousand dollars.
Spangenberg is clearly an advanced talent who is going to make pitchers work at every level while bringing solid speed and defense at second base. He doesn’t seem to have tremendous home run power, but that’s not needed to be a solid starting second baseman in the majors, and it’s kind of a pointless skill to have in the Padres organization anyway, given the cavernous home confines of the big league ballclub.
Anyway, count this as the first real news about a 2011 draftee’s on-field professional performance. Spangenberg’s off to as good of a start as anyone could hope for.