Lost in the shuffle during the pre-season rookie of the year articles and Jordan Schafer homer happy 1st week, Colorado's Dexter Fowler is off to quite the start this year. Ranked as the 17th best prospect in baseball by Jim Callis of Baseball America heading into 09, Fowler had a strong spring training making the team as the 4th OF. With a starting OF consisting of only one full time regular (Brad Hawpe), it seemed as though the plan was to watch Fowlers playing time and pick his matchups while giving him 2-3 starts per week so as not to expose him too much. Fowler has not co-operated. Taking advantage of the playing time, Fowler is off to a great start hitting 286/364/490 with a pair of home runs and 4 steals in 56 plate appearances; earning a near everyday job with starts in 8 of the Rockies last 10 games entering play tonight. These numbers appear legit as he currently sports a BABIP of 300, right around league average, and a LD rate of 24.4%.
Fowler is a prototypical 5 tool talent with one major difference, he actually seems to know how to play baseball thus setting himself apart from the Greg Golson's of the world. Fowler has not had a normal development as he was instructed to switch hit upon being drafted and has lost large chunks of playing time to injury in both 2006 and 2007. He spent almost all of 08 at AA compiling slash rates of 335/431/515 with a walk rate of 13.4%. With an IsoP of just under 200 and a wOBA of431 at AA Fowler earned a cup of coffee with the parent club in 08. While he did not perform well, posting a 154/185/154 line with no walks and 5 strikeouts in 27 plate appearances, it was apparent that Fowler had legitimized his prospect status in 08 and would soon be patrolling spacious Coors Field.
In 07 when the Rockies went to the World Series one of the main foundations of their success was team defense, and this is another area where Fowler is currently contributing. Fowler gets rave reviews for his defense, with Baseball Prospectus stating that he has "Gold Glove-level talent in center field." Baseball America notes that he has a plus arm for center and gets good reads on balls in play which combined with his speed makes him a potential plus defender at the major league level.
Most people expected Fowler to start the year at AAA with the Rockies calling him up around th all-start break due to either trade, injury or the sheer suckiness of Scott Podsednik. However, the combination of Fowlers great spring and lack of good OF options past Hawp and Spilborghs led the Rockies to break camp with Fowler and Seth Smith in a platoon/time share and Fowlers perfomance in the opportunity given him has garnered more playing time for this potential roookie of the year. Dexter Fowler has been a top prospect for a couple of years now and looks on his way to producing a strong rookie season that might put him at the head of the coming CF vanguard. Don't be too surprised if he finishes somewhere in the neighborhood of 280/350/460 with 12-15 home runs and 30 SB's as he claims ROY honors.
**UPDATE**
So far in tonights game Fowler has gone 2-2 with a pair of walks and FIVE stolen bases. This guy is good.
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