Phillies prospect Scott Kingery was ranked as the seventh-best second-base prospect in baseball by MLB.com as they continued their positional rankings.
Scott Kingery is without a doubt the best second-base prospect in the Phillies farm system, and is already one of the best prospects at the position across all farm systems. MLB.com ranked Kingery as the No. 7 second-base prospect in all of baseball Monday.
Kingery is the third Phillies prospect to be ranked in the top ten at their position. Jorge Alfaro was ranked as the No. 3 catching prospect and Rhys Hoskins was the No. 9 first baseman.
Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com wrote a blurb about each prospect on the list. He had the following to say about Kingery:
"“The 2015 second-rounder made it to Double-A in his first full season, though he struggled some once he got there. The main culprit for Kingery was getting away from his typically advanced approach at the plate. He’ll get back to making hard contact, drawing walks and using his speed to be a threat on the bases.”"
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Kingery started off 2016 in strong fashion, hitting for a .293/.360/.411 line along with stealing 26 bases in 31 attempts. He struck out in just 12.8% of his plate appearances while walking in 7.9% of them.
When he reached Double-A, Kingery stumbled as he managed a meager .606 OPS. Part of the problem was the fact he walked just five times in 166 plate appearances.
As Mayo mentioned, Kingery’s discipline is a huge part of his game, and he will need to return to it.
Kingery also spent time in the Arizona Fall League, appearing in 20 games. He managed a .234/.294/.312 line with five stolen bases in that span. He was outshone by other prospects on his team like Gleyber Torres and the nagging storyline that is Tim Tebow. Despite his struggles, Kingery still appeared in the AFL’s “Fall Star” game.
Kingery ranked as the No. 5 prospect in MLB.com’s 2016 second base rankings, so he did fall a bit. Ozzie Albies was added to the list as the Braves moved him to second so he could play alongside Dansby Swanson. In addition, Atlanta’s Travis Demerit surpassed Kingery in the rankings as he was No. 7 last year.
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Here’s more on what MLB.com had to say about Kingery:
"Scouting grades: Hit: 55 | Power: 35 | Run: 60 | Arm: 50 | Field: 55 | Overall: 50Kevin Newman, who went in the first round of the 2015 to the Pirates, might be the better-known of the middle infield prospects to come out of the University of Arizona in that Draft, but it would be a big mistake to look past Kingery, the Phillies’ second-rounder. Already on a fast track, Kingery reached Double-A in his first full season, though he scuffled a bit upon initially getting there.It’s possible Kingery was a bit fatigued by the end of his first full season, a reason why he seemed to lose a bit of what is typically a very advanced approach at the plate. He sprays line drives to all fields, making consistent contact with a quick, short right-handed swing. He sees pitches and can draw walks and while he doesn’t have much power, his speed and instincts allow him to take extra bases, as well as steal them. Defensively, Kingery should be a more than capable defender at second base when all is said and done.Kingery is the type of hitter to take his struggles in Double-A, as well as the lessons learned during his Arizona Fall League stint, and use them to make him a more complete player. Expect him to continue to making a beeline to Philadelphia."
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Kingery shouldn’t be the last Phils prospect to land on these position top tens. Check back in the next few days as MLB.com continues to release those lists.