The Cleveland Indians enjoyed the services of switch-hitting dynamo Victor Martinez until his trade to Boston last summer. Soon enough, another power-hitting backstop who takes cuts from both sides of the plate (Carlos Santana) figures to pick up where V-Mart left off.

Until then, Lou Marson will try to establish himself as more than just Santana’s placeholder. The 23 year-old came to Cleveland from Philadelphia in last July’s Cliff Lee trade, along with INF Jason Donald, RHP Carlos Carrasco and RHP Jason Knapp.

Philly’s 4th-round pick in the 2004 draft, Marson was a premium high school quarterback prospect in Arizona. He broke his collarbone as a senior, however, and decided to focus on baseball.

The 6-1, 200 pound righty batter didn’t light up the box scores in the Gulf Coast League in 2004 (.257/.333/.389 in 126 PA) or the Short Season New York-Penn League in 2005 (.245/.329/.391 in 252 PA). Still, Marson controlled the strike zone (10.6 BB%, 18.5 K% between the two stops), and Baseball America said he was capable of becoming “an intelligent, dependable receiver with an above-average arm and solid power.”

It was more of the same in Marson’s 2006 full-season debut. He hit a mild .243/.343/.351 in 410 PA in the Low-A South Atlantic League. While he showed little pop (.109 ISO) and his K rate crept up (23.4 K%), Marson drew walks at a 12.3% clip. That advanced eye, coupled with Marson’s blossoming receiving skills, led BA to gradually nudge him up Philly’s prospect list (27 in 2005, 23 in 2006, 19 in 2007). However, there were holes in his offensive game: “his swing can become very long at times, and breaking balls give him fits.”

In 2007, Marson made significant progress at the plate in the High-A Florida State League. Batting .288/.373/.407 in 457 PA, he maintained a patient approach (11.7 BB%) while paring down his whiff rate (20.4 K%) and lacing a few more extra-base hits (.120 ISO). Marson moved up to 8th in the Phillies farm system prior to the 2008 season. BA noted a shift in hitting philosophy: he “shortened his swing and developed a much more consistent two-strike approach.”

Bumped up to AA Eastern League in 2008, Marson did nothing to dent his improved prospect status. He hit .314/.433/.416 in 395 PA, taking a free pass a whopping 17.4% of the time and punching out 21.7%. Marson’s ISO (.102) was down somewhat, and a .389 BABIP no doubt played a big role in the batting average spike. Even so, he earned a September call-up and climbed to third on Philly’s list of farm products before the 2009 campaign. Though they considered his power ceiling low, Baseball America lauded Marson’s advanced plate discipline and “professional approach.”

Marson actually spent much of April in the majors in 2009, helping to fill in for a banged-up Carlos Ruiz. He was sent to the AAA International League once “Chooch” was healthy. In 241 PA with Lehigh Valley, Marson posted a .294/.382/.370 triple-slash, with a 12.4 BB%, a 19 percent K rate and a .076 ISO.

After the Lee swap, Marson was sent to AAA Columbus, where he batted a bland .243/.319/.340 in 116 PA. He walked 8.8%, whiffed 18.4% and had a .097 ISO. Lou’s overall AAA line in ’09 was .277/.361/.360. Marson got some starts in Cleveland in September. In 72 total big league PA between the Indians and Phillies, he hit .246/.347/.361, with a 14.4 BB%, 34.4 K%, and a .115 ISO.

Kelly Shoppach is now a Tampa Bay Ray. Santana thrashed AA pitching last year (.290/.413/.530), but he underwent surgery to remove a broken hamate bone in his right hand in December. The needed recovery time might push back Santana’s major league ETA, and he’ll likely open 2010 with Columbus. The only other catcher on the 40-man roster is 27 year-old Wyatt Toregas.

As such, Marson has a short window to avoid being cast as a backup at the major league level. He’s definitely not going to hold off Santana’s impact bat for long, and perhaps Cleveland will prefer to keep Marson as a capable second-string option. But he could become trade bait again if he shows promise.

CHONE has Marson hitting .255/.342/.349 in 2010, while ZiPS envisions a .247/.338/.325 line. He reminds me of Cincinnati’s Ryan Hanigan (good eye, little power), though he doesn’t have Hanigan’s contact skills. Marson has a shot at being a starting catcher in some other city later on, but he may be best utilized as Santana’s caddy in the long term.

A former 38th-round draft pick lost briefly as a Rule V selection, right-hander Randy Wells never enjoyed elite prospect status. Yet, the 1,143rd player taken in the 2002 draft managed a 3 WAR season as a rookie starter with the Chicago Cubs in 2009. Wells was about as valuable as Randy Wolf and Roy Oswalt. Where did this guy come from, and what should we expect going forward?

The 6-3, 230 pound Wells played his college ball at Southwestern Illinois Community College. He was a catcher back then, and was drafted as a backstop. Wells’ career behind the dish was short-lived, however, as he “hit” to the tune of a .399 OPS in limited playing time between 2002 and 2003. Despite never pitching in high school or in college, Wells tried his hand at throwing heat, instead of whiffing at it.

He transitioned to the mound full-time in 2004, tossing 107.2 IP (15 starts, 21 ‘pen appearances) in the Low-A Midwest League. Wells’ 4.43 ERA looked lukewarm, but he did post rates of 10.1 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9. In 2005, he pitched mostly in the High-A Florida State League, with a late-season cameo in the AA Southern League. In 108 combined innings (10 starts, 37 relief stints), Wells whiffed 9.2 hitters per nine frames, with few free passes to boot (2.4 BB/9). His ERA dipped to 2.83, and his FIP was 2.89.

Perhaps encouraged by Wells’ smooth transition, the Cubs made him a full-time starting pitcher in 2006. Wells began the season back in AA, shredding hitters for 7.8 K/9, 1.88 BB/9 and a 2.65 FIP in 62.1 innings. While his ERA was nearly five after a promotion to AAA Iowa, Wells still held his own with 7.7 K/9, 3 BB/9 and a 3.85 FIP in 69 innings pitched. A .371 BABIP was to blame for the bloated ERA.

Wells still wasn’t considered much of a prospect, failing to crack Baseball America’s top 30 Cubs prospects at any point. Returning to Iowa in 2007, he was pushed back to the bullpen for the most part (just nine starts in 39 games). He compiled a mediocre 4.60 ERA, though his peripherals (9.57 K/9, 3.73 BB/9, 4.00 FIP) were a little more encouraging.

Following that tepid ’07 season, the Cubs chose to keep Wells off the club’s 40-man roster, leaving him unprotected in the upcoming Rule V draft. Chicago liked Wells’ high-80’s to low-90’s sinker, but felt his slider and changeup lagged behind. The Toronto Blue Jays snatched him with the 11th pick, hoping to get some cheap middle-inning relief. While Wells did break camp with the Jays to begin 2008, he made just one appearance before being offered back to the Cubs in mid-April.

While he tossed a few late-season innings in the big leagues, Wells spent another summer in the Pacific Coast League. Pitching mostly in the rotation this time (19 starts in 27 games), Wells had a 4.01 FIP in 118.2 IP. He struck out 7.74 per nine, while displaying better control with 2.58 BB/9.

In 2009, Wells looked destined to spend yet another year in the cornfields. He had a 21/7 K/BB ratio and a 2.89 FIP in his first five starts with the I-Cubs, but he got the big league call in early May when Carlos Zambrano (pulled hamstring) went on the DL after doing his best Ichiro impression down the first base line.

Wells never relinquished his rotation spot, posting a 3.05 ERA in 165.1 innings with the Cubs and finishing 6th in Rookie of the Year voting. What’s in store for Wells in 2010? Is he a good fantasy option?

While Wells was a decent starter in 2009, that very low ERA might lead to some unrealistic expectations heading into next season. He struck out 5.66 batters per nine innings, while issuing 2.5 BB/9. Those aren’t bad rates, and when coupled with slight groundball tendencies (47.9 GB%), Wells was an above-average starter.

However, both his rate of stranding runners and home runs allowed per fly ball suggest that his 2010 ERA is more likely to be in the low-fours. Wells had a 76 left on base percentage, well above the 70-72% average for starters. Perhaps he pitches better from the stretch than most, but that number will probably fall somewhat next year. Also, his HR/FB% was rather low, at eight percent (10-12% average). Wells’ Expected Fielding Independent ERA (xFIP) was 4.24. Useful, but not ace-worthy by any means.

Wells went after batters with four offerings: An 89-90 MPH four-seam fastball, a slightly slower two-seamer with more tailing and sinking action, a low-to-mid-80’s slider and a low-80’s changeup.

Keep in mind that Wells’ pitch run values are look better than they should, due to the aforementioned high strand rate and low HR/FB rate. But his four-seamer and two-seam fastballs checked in at +0.04 runs per 100 tosses, with his slider gobbling up batters with +2.88 runs/100. His changeup wasn’t anything special (-0.67). Wells’ breaking pitch helped him generate a 27.8 outside-swing percentage (25% MLB average). He also did a nice job of getting ahead in the count, with a 61.4 first-pitch strike percentage (58% MLB average).

Attacking righty hitters with that slider, Wells held same-handed batters to a 60 sOPS+ (40 percent better than the league average). Lefties got a bunch of changeups, though, and hit him for a 108 sOPS+ (eight percent worse than the league average).

Wells is worth drafting in NL-only leagues and perhaps in deep mixed leagues, but expecting a repeat of his 2009 season would be quixotic. The 27 year-old is no top-of-the-line arm, but he looks like a solid mid-rotation option. Not bad for a guy who didn’t toss a pitch in high school or college.

Along with RHP Neftali Feliz, lefty Derek Holland is supposed to anchor the Texas Rangers pitching staff for years to come.

The lanky, 6-2 Holland was taken in the 25th round of the 2006 draft as a product of the now defunct draft-and-follow system. Holland impressed Rangers brass at Wallace State Community College, earning a $200,000 signing bonus.

He made his pro debut in 2007, and immediately began tearing minor league hitters to shreds. Holland whiffed 11.1 batters per nine innings in 67 frames in the Short-Season Northwest League, issuing 2.8 BB/9 and posting a 3.29 FIP.

While Holland didn’t crack Baseball America’s list of Texas’ top 30 prospects before the 2008 season, he caught everyone’s attention by rocketing from Low-A to AA that year. In 150.2 combined IP, Holland punched out 9.4 batters per nine frames, walking just 2.4 per nine with a 2.64 FIP.

The scouting reports were every bit as promising as the stats. BA ranked Holland as the second-best talent in a deep Rangers farm system prior to 2009. They noted a gradual increase in velocity for the southpaw. He started the season sitting 89-93 MPH, but he was popping the radar gun in the mid-90’s during the regular season and touching the upper-90’s during the AA Texas League playoffs. Holland also had an above-average low-80’s changeup, a promising, if inconsistent, low-80’s slider and a curveball.

Holland was one the fast track for sure, but he was surprisingly in Texas by April of 2009 after just one start at the AAA level. He ended up tossing 138.1 innings for the Rangers, making 21 starts and 12 relief appearances.

At first blush, the results suggest that Holland shouldn’t have been anywhere near a major league mound. After all, his ERA was a macabre 6.12, and he was blasted for nearly 1.7 home runs per nine innings pitched. However, beneath that gory ERA, Holland showed a lot of promise in 2009.

He struck out 6.96 hitters per nine frames, while issuing a solid 3.06 BB/9. Unfortunately, Holland suffered from a .321 batting average on balls in play. He did give up his fair share of fly balls, posting a 41.5 GB% that was a few ticks below the 43-44% major league average. But even with fly ball tendencies, Holland’s homer rate was too high. His home run per fly ball rate was 14.9 percent. That was the fourth-highest rate among pitchers with at least 130 innings pitched. Expect that figure to regress more toward the 10-12% average in 2010.

Overall, Holland’s Expected Fielding Independent ERA (xFIP) was 4.38. The difference between his ERA and xFIP was among the largest in the majors in 2009.

Holland featured a four-pitch repertoire. He used his 92-93 MPH fastball often, tossing the pitch 70 percent of the time. Baseball America said that Holland’s “slightly across-the-body delivery and excellent extension give his fastball deception and life.” His Pitch F/X numbers bear that out, as Derek’s fastball tailed in toward lefty batters 8.8 inches more than a pitch thrown without spin (6.4 average for LHP). The precocious lefty supplemented his heat with 82 MPH sliders (thrown 12 percent), 84 MPH changeups (11 percent) and mid-70’s curveballs (7 percent).

Throwing his fastball with great frequency, Holland posted an 82% contact rate (80.5% MLB average). His percentage of contact within the zone was 89.6% (87.8% MLB average). Holland’s 7.4 swinging strike percentage was a little below the 7.8% average for starters.

When Holland gets more comfortable implementing his breaking stuff and changeup, it’s reasonable to expect those contacts rates to drop (fastballs have the highest contact of any pitch). His slider, in particular, showed promise with a high whiff rate. More sliders, curves and changeups could mean more free passes, but also more strikeouts.

As a 22 year-old with minimal experience past A-Ball, Holland managed to hold his own in the majors in most respects. The usual injury caveats with a young pitcher apply. But Holland has high-caliber stuff and a superb minor league track record, making him a nice sleeper pick for those willing to look past that ugly ERA.

This picture neatly sums up the 2009 season for the New York Mets. The Amazins hoped to celebrate the opening of Citi Field with a deep run into October. Instead, the club was ravaged by injuries. They lost up-the-middle stars Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran, 1B Carlos Delgado and ace Johan Santana, among others, for big chunks of the season.

Third baseman David Wright wasn’t immune to the baseball injury equivalent of “Captain Trips,” serving a DL stint in August after a frightening incident in which he took a pitch off the helmet. But Wright must have felt like the last man standing. Forced to call upon a cast of Quad-A characters, the Mets ranked 9th in the NL in team Park-Adjusted Batting Runs (-28.1). Wright (+24.1) and a hobbled Beltran (+21.3) were the only batters to cross the +10 mark.

That’s not to say that Wright enjoyed a typical season, though. Since he hit the majors in 2004, the 27 year-old’s skill-set has been well-defined: a double-digit walk rate, a K rate in the high teens and an Isolated Power figure north of .200. Here are some of Wright’s key stats from 2005 (his first full year as a starter) to 2009. One of these things is not like the other:

2005: 11.1 BB%, 19.7 K%, .217 ISO, .343 BABIP
2006: 10.2 BB%, 19.4 K%, .220 ISO, .350 BABIP
2007: 13.5 BB%, 19 K%, .222 ISO, .362 BABIP
2008: 13.1 BB%, 18.8 K%, .232 ISO, .328 BABIP
2009: 12.2 BB%, 26.2 K%, .140 ISO, .400 BABIP

From 2005-2008, Wright was a metronome at the plate. But his ’09 season was just bizarre. His punch out rate increased considerably, his power output took a dive, and his BABIP was obscenely, unsustainably high.

That .400 BABIP was by far the highest mark in the majors. Among batters with 500+ PA, Ichiro Suzuki was second at a distant .384.

Wright does have the attributes of a high-BABIP hitter. He works the count well, possesses decent speed and has generally hit for a lot of power. His career BABIP is .350, and his Expected BABIP (xBABIP) in 2009 was .346. But even so, no one can keep up a mark that high. Wright had the third-largest split between his BABIP and xBABIP among hitters in ’09.

How goofy was Wright’s performance on balls put in play? Here are his batted ball numbers from this past season, compared to his career averages and the NL average in 2009 (data from Baseball-Reference).

Wright has generally hit for a better average on grounders than most, but that 2009 figure is ridiculously high.

He didn’t hit for near as much power when he lofted the ball or hit a line drive. Wright didn’t pull the ball quite as much, and when he did, he didn’t produce the same forceful contact. He fared better on balls up the middle (due to a big spike in batting average), but his opposite-field slugging suffered, too:

(Data also from Baseball-Reference)

Overall, Wright cracked just 10 home runs, with a 6.9 HR/FB% that pales in comparison to his near-14 percent career average.

Citi Field likely didn’t do Wright any favors. Greg Rybarczyk of Hit Tracker Online has a fantastic article in The Hardball Times Baseball Annual 2010 that takes an in-depth look at Citi’s dimensions and how the switch from Shea Stadium to Citi Field affected various hitters. Rybarczyk concluded that Wright was the most negatively affected batter. According to Rybarczyk’s research, Wright had nine would-be homers become seven extra-base hits, one single and one out due to a “combination of deeper and taller fences”. Had those balls left the yard, Wright’s slugging percentage would have been .482 instead of .447.

Trip Somers Pitch F/X Blog has Wright’s 2009 spray chart. You can see some near misses here:

David also whiffed more often that he usually does. Those extra K’s are reflected in his plate discipline stats. Wright made contact with 87 percent of pitches within the strike zone in 2009, compared to an 89% career average (87-88% MLB average). His overall contact rate dipped to 80.4% (83.2% career average, 80-81% MLB average).

Courtesy of Somers’ Pitch F/X site, we can see that Wright’s extra swings and misses came against fastballs:

Wright’s whiff rate by pitch, 2008-2009

He saw a few more fastballs than usual in 2009: 62.6 percent, compared to a 60.8% career average. Wright didn’t whap those pitches with the same force. While still a quality fastball hitter in ’09, Wright was +0.69 runs above average per 100 pitches, well short of his career +1.55 run/100 mark.

Wright had an all-around wacky year. Going forward, it’s best to expect a lot of these Twilight Zone numbers to more closely resemble his career averages. In 2010, Wright will likely have a much lower BABIP, fewer whiffs and a higher ISO. Here are his projections for next season:

CHONE: .305/.391/.502, .197 ISO, 19.1 K%
ZiPS: .307/.396/.507, .200 ISO, 20 K%
Bill James: .302/.393/.499, .197 ISO, 22.4 K%
The Fans: .310/.398/.513, .203 ISO, 20.4 K%

David Wright should still be near the top of draft boards. It’s very likely that he’ll hit with more authority next year, giving owners his typical blend of power and speed.

Lost in the Jason Bay, Marlon Byrd and Kelly Johnson signings, Miguel Olivo has agreed to a deal and will be joining the Rockies next year. The thought is that Olivo will be the Rockies backup catcher, but could he challenge incumbent Chris Iannetta for playing time?

After hitting .264/.390/.505 with 18 homers in 407 plate appearances in 2008, Iannetta was penciled in as the Rockies starting catcher going into the 2009 season. He started the ’09 campaign slowly, hitting .174/.333/.391 during the first month of the season. He bounced back in May, hitting 5 homers with a .276 average in 66 plate appearances. Late in the month of May, Iannetta hit the DL with a thigh strain. After his return from the DL, Iannetta’s batting average did not please the Rockies, and he lost playing time to Yorvit Torrealba. Iannetta played only 9 games in September and October, and ended the year with a .228/.344/.460 line with 16 homers in 350 plate appearances.

Iannetta’s LD% dropped from the 21.4% mark he posted in 2008, down to 16% in 2009. He also hit less grounders, focusing on getting the ball elevated in an attempt to hit more homers. His 14% HR/FB rate was down from his 18.2% mark he had in 2008.

While a drop off in LD% is not a good thing, most of Iannetta’s problems came from a fluky BABIP. His stats suggest an xBABIP around .306 last year, while his actual BABIP came in at a low .253 mark. Fans are currently projecting a .255 average with 21 homers for Iannetta, who is currently the 11th catcher being taken off the board according to Mock Draft Central’s ADP reports.

Olivo is another power hitting catcher, but doesn’t walk like Iannetta does. Olivo posted a .249/.292/.490 line playing for the Royals last year, adding 23 homers to the mix in 416 plate appearances. A career big league line of .243/.278/.423 is disgusting, but his raw power potential has attracted many teams to Olivo and given him a career for the last eight years. Right now he is the 16th catcher off the board according to ADP, but that is likely to decline now that he is no longer a starting catcher.

It seems that the Rockies intend for Iannetta to hold onto the starting role next year, but have a backup plan just in case. They don’t trust Iannetta for some reason, but if he can manage to keep Lady Luck off his back next year, Iannetta should be able to hold onto the starting catchers job and give good value to fantasy owners.