During his four years of professional baseball, Travis Demeritte has played all over the infield. He began as a third baseman/shortstop in the Texas Rangers system but was shifted to second because of the organization’s depth on the left side of the infield.
At the major league level, Adrian Beltre and Elvis Andrus were entrenched at third base and shortstop, respectively. At the minor league level, prospects Joey Gallo and Jurickson Profar appeared to be the next in line should Beltre or Andrus falter.
Now with the Atlanta Braves organization, it appears that Demeritte has taken to the cornerstone quite well.
In his latest “Fall League Daily Notes” piece, FanGraphs lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen had the following to say about the Braves prospect:
“Braves 2B Travis Demeritte has looked tremendous at second base this fall. Not only has he made several acrobatic plays but he’s handled some bad hops and sucked up errant throws on steal attempts as well. While his hands remain somewhat rough, Demeritte’s range and athleticism have forced me to reckon with the idea of plus-plus defense at second base…”
He went on to reference Ian Kinsler, Brandon Phillips, Dustin Pedroia, and Chase Utley as recent examples of his potential defensive value at second.
Of course, at age 21, Demeritte is far from a finished product. Still, this report is particularly exciting since he was never considered a glove-first prospect.
Demeritte’s calling card is his bat. His profile at the plate looks more like that of a DH than a middle infielder. He draws walks (12.6 BB%) and hits for considerable power (28 home runs in 123 games). However, he also has a tendency to be aggressive and struggles with the breaking ball (leading to a 33.0 K% last year).
While he again has competition ahead of him (top prospect Ozzie Albies is expected to challenge for the starting second base job next season), Demeritte continues to show impressive potential with both the bat and glove.
Scott Ferris covers the Braves as a Staff Writer for Outside Pitch MLB. You can follow him on Twitter @ScottHFerris
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