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Advance Scouting Report
Filed by: Chris King
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Player Name: Evan Longoria |
Context: 9/10-17; 8 games |
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Sample vs. Season: |
Average from the sample slightly above season total; on-base and slugging shows a slight decrease in both; no home runs and only one walk during sample. |
SCOUTING BREAKDOWN
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Physical/Health: |
6’2” and 210; very powerful lower half and core; very strong wrists; exceptional hand strength and control; hamstring injuries plagued him last season; hasn’t missed time this year, but fear of re-aggravating has toned down his aggressiveness on the bases. |
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Hit Tool |
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Stands tall at the plate with an open stance; keeps his hands high pre-swing; gets his front foot down early; very quiet and balanced while loading; aggressive hitter; more patient early in the count; rarely swings at the first pitch; gets much more aggressive late in his ABs; expands the zone when attacked down and away; good hand-eye coordination and pitch recognition; strong wrists generate very good bat speed; lets the ball travel deep in the zone; swing stays in the zone a long time; really unloads with his hips, creating serious torque; swing has natural uppercut; generates good backspin; power to all fields; does a good job covering the entire plate without sacrificing any power; will drop his upper body and hands when pitched outside; keeps his hips closed when going through the zone; will open early up at times when attacked down and away; can be beaten with off-speed down and away and down and in; will expand the zone when pitchers nibble and don’t give in; much better hitter than he’s shown this season. Grade: 55 |
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vs. LHP |
vs. RHP |
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More aggressive against LHP; swings earlier in counts; doesn’t seem to see the ball as well coming out of the hand; more contact-based approach; really attacks the opposite field. |
More patient approach vs. RHP; protects the inner half well; does a good job keeping his hands inside the ball when pitched inside; very aggressive when pitched down and away; will expand the zone more. |
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Notable At-bats |
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Date |
Description |
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9/11/2013 |
Top second vs. (RHP) Dempster; Notable because this is one of the few ABs he jumped on a first-pitch FB; pitch was belt high and caught a lot of plate; bat speed was on full display; good extension; whips his hips around for a line-drive 2B. |
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9/10/2013 |
Bottom seventh vs. (LHP) Breslow; Takes FB away; check swing on SL down and in; now 0-2 count; fouls back a FB up an in; on 0-2 Breslow throws a SL down and in; good mix of moving the batter’s eye up and down, in and out; count at 1-2; rolls over on a CH out of the zone away; weak groundout to SS; can be had with off-speed away behind in the count. |
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Power |
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Very consistent power year to year; quick hands and strong wrists allow him to go deep to any part of the park; natural uppercut and backspin allows the ball to carry; good extension at point of contact; really uses his hips to generate pop; thrives on mistake fastballs; very dangerous when pitched on the outer half; bat speed and torque allow him to pull inside pitches. Grade: 65
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vs. LHP |
vs. RHP |
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Half of hits vs. LHP this season have gone for extra bases (16 2B, 9 HR); Lefties tend to stay away and he’s been feasting on that approach this season. |
Slugging is almost 90 points lower this season when facing a RHP; isn’t able to get full extension as much; can and will turn on inside pitches |
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Notable At-bats |
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Date |
Description |
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9/13/2013 |
Top fifth vs. (RHP) Correia; started off with a CB down followed by CH at knees; even count 1-1; bad swing at a CB in the dirt; behind 1-2, takes a SL just outside, 2-2 count; then frozen by a SL at the knees away for strike three; again showing he’s vulnerable away with off-speed. |
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9/12/2013 |
Bottom second vs. (RHP) Peavy; Peavy tries to attack with a FB and CB sequence; starting with a FB down and away then FB up and in; another FB, this time up and away; count is now 2-1; check swing on a CB away, now 3-1; another CB away gets a swing and miss; full count; missed location on a 3-2 FB down and away; driven into RF for a triple. |
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Speed/Baserunning |
Has been very conservative on the bases; Earlier in his career he had above-average speed and an aggressive style on the bases; due to hamstring injuries he’s really toned things down; not as willing to take an extra base as he was in the past; was able to take third on his triple due to RF slipping on the warning track; only attempted one SB the entire season; consistent times to first in the high 4.2-4.3 range. |
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Conclusions and Means of Attack |
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A very solid major-league hitter who can torch you at any given time to any given part of the park; Longoria is patient early on during most ABs; takes some very drivable FBs trying to work the count in his favor; as the count gets deeper he will begin to attack and hack; expanding the zone the more pitches he sees; only drew one walk during this sample; disciplined pitchers who won’t give in are rewarded by his willingness to chase; CH seem to be very effective against him; makes sense to take advantage of his early patience by locating up and in with hard stuff then changing his eye level by attacking down and away; he’s very vulnerable to off-speed pitches down in the zone and away when behind in the count; pitchers that try to show off deep in the count by throwing FB near the plate will get burned; especially knee high on the outer half.
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Matchup Stats at a Glance |
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First Pitch Swing |
5/35; 14.3 percent |
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Bunt Threat (Sac, Push, Drag) |
No bunt attempts |
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Defensive Positioning |
Straight up; corners play slightly deeper than normal |
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Outfield |
Straight up; fairly deep; look to take away extra-base hits |
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Splits |
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vs. LHP |
.167/.167/.333/.500 |
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vs. RHP |
.296/.345/.481/.826 |
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