A.J. Hinch said that he isn’t surprised by anything fellow Stanford University graduate Carlos Quentin does.
"When he didn’t make the roster out of Spring Training, he got off to a bad start," said Hinch, the Diamondbacks’ manager of minor league operations, "but for him a bad start is like hitting .280."
Quentin actually was batting .269 at the end of May in his second season at Triple-A with the Tucson Sidewinders, but he went on a tear during June and early July.
By the time Arizona called up the corner outfielder, Quentin was mirroring the performance of Stephen Drew (MLN FAB50 Baseball 2006 No. 1) by batting .289 with nine homers, 52 RBI and five stolen bases.
For the Sidewinders, Quentin walked 45 times and struck out just 46.
It is good that Carlos doesn’t bruise easily: He continued his knack for being hit by pitches with 31 HBPs, a high in the Pacific Coast League. That brought his total for two-plus seasons in the minors to 103 potentially painful plunks.
His free passes are one indication that Quentin has a baseball maturity beyond his age. He won’t be 24 until Aug. 28, but his .401 on-base percentage at Tucson meant that he has been above .400 in each of his stops in the D-Backs farm system.
"He draws his walks, but he’s aggressive at the plate when he has to be," Hinch said. "You look up at the All-Star break, and his numbers were eerily similar to what they’ve been in the past."
That is also no surprise. Quentin was the Diamondbacks’ second pick in the first round of the 2003 draft, where he placed 29th overall, behind current teammate Conor Jackson (MLN FAB50 Baseball 2005 No. 9, 2004 No. 28). He has passed Jackson up as the heir apparent of the next available outfield slot in Phoenix.
Carlos has shown remarkable consistency during his first two pro seasons, with 21 homers and 89 RBI each year as he moved through the top three teams in the Arizona organization.
As might be expected, Quentin’s average dipped last year when he played a full Triple-A season at Tucson, but he still batted .301 and walked more often than he struck out.
Compared to Magglio Ordonez, we project that Carlos Quentin’s future will be as a definite top-of-the-order hitter. How much power he shows will determine whether that’s as a number 2 or 3 batter, or drops into the cleanup or 5 holes. Most scouting reports project Quentin as having enough power to succeed in one of those run-producing spots.
The 6’1", 225-pounder didn’t play pro ball in 2003 because he underwent Tommy John surgery. He has regained enough arm strength that he still can play right field in the majors.
In his big-league debut July 20, he started in left field in place of Luis Gonzalez, but Quentin also has spelled right fielder Shawn Green in Arizona’s lineup. Playing time has become less frequent for the right handed-hitting rookie, but he has adjusted to coming off the bench to pinch hit.
"He’s stuck behind two guys with a combined 30 years of experience," Hinch said. "That’s a luxury for us. All three are very good players. Carlos is earning his playing time. He’s a viable card for us to play. Each of those players has different qualities, so I don’t know that things will change drastically for him."
Here is where Hinch raises a wily eyebrow. "Maybe the surprise is just his ability to do well off the bench. Other young players don’t thrive in that role. He’s really taking over and making the most of his opportunity. But it’s hard to be surprised by any of this."
For his part, Quentin affirmed that he can handle bench duty if that’s what it takes in a recent interview with another publication.
The weakest part of Quentin’s game is his foot speed, but he knows how to position himself in the field well enough that he’s considered a possible Gold Glove outfielder.
Quentin is an exceptionally smart base runner, but you might think he plays a thinking man’s game, with a bachelor’s degree in political science from Stanford. In two seasons in Tucson, he stole 14 bases and was thrown out only once.
Quentin has put up impressive numbers everywhere that he has played. His lowest season batting average was the .301 that he posted in 2005 with the Sidewinders. His best year in college was a whopping .396 and a .630 slugging percentage. Unlike 95% of players coming into pro baseball, though, he hasn't had a bad year. His consistently high numbers with the Lancaster JetHawks and the El Paso Diablos both demonstrate big league steadiness and smarts.
In three seasons for Stanford, Carlos captured numerous PAC-10 awards and made the College World Series All-Tournament Team. In 2004 BA made him a First Team Minor League All-Star, and he was the Arizona Diamondbacks Minor League Player of the Year.
The Diamondbacks are in postseason contention. They are likely to keep Quentin, their most reliable pinch hitter, on their bench rather than sending him back to Tucson to play every day.
Manager Bob Melvin said, "He's not here to be an everyday starter. A lot of his playing time will be based on how he does – and he's done very well."
Daily playing time for Quentin is likely to come by next season. He gives Arizona both financial and longevity incentives for moving Gonzalez or Green off of the roster.
- Lary BUMP
