Trevor Crowe

Trevor Crowe - Outfielder
Age: 24 Height: 6'0" Weight: 190 Bats: Switch Throws: Right

	AVG	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	K	SB	OBP	SLG	OPS
2007 Akron	.259	133	518	87	134	26	4	5	50	62	71	28	.341	.353	.694
Career	.266	293	1134	187	302	58	11	11	123	154	176	84	.356	.366	.722

History: The Indians selected Crowe in the 1st round of the 2005 draft out of the University of Arizona. His junior year in college, Crowe hit .403 with 83 rund scored, 25 doubles, 15 triples, 9 home runs, 27 stolen bases, 54 RBI, and a 1.192 OPS. He was named the 2005 Pacific-10 Conference Baseball Co-Player of the Year and was a Golden Spikes Award Finalist representing the best player in college baseball. He hit .350 with a .992 OPS as a sophomore, and .316 with a .789 OPS as a freshman.

Strengths & Opportunities: Crowe has the ability to hit for average with some pop, but his biggest strength is his excellent plate discipline and pitch recognition skills. Crowe has a very good approach at the plate, and is a student of the game that understands his skill set as a player. Crowe has a very advanced bat, which has allowed him to be moved quickly through the farm system. He has a contagious swagger, and is a very high energy and explosive player who has an engine that never stops. The Indians feel he will hit for more power in the future, and prior to nixing the second-base move in 2006 felt his best comp as a major leaguer was Brian Roberts of the Orioles. Even as an outfielder, Roberts is exactly the offensive player the Indians envision Crowe being. His approach makes him a potential leadoff or two-hole hitter for the Indians down the road.

Defensively, Crowe grades out as an above average center-fielder with an above average arm. While Crowe has good speed, he really does not have the quickness or range to play center field in the big leagues which will push him to left field. The Indians moved him around last year among all three outfield spots, although he mostly played center field and right field.

Crowe's struggles the first few months of the season last year are well documented, and it was the first time he ever experienced such adversity as he never encountered such a tough stretch as a high school and college player, or even in his first two years in the Indians system. Crowe was so lost at the plate, the Indians sent several different hitting instructors to Akron to work with him, but the results did not change. Crowe was putting a lot of quality at bats together and continued to get on-base drawing walks, but his problems last year were mostly mental and not physical, and he just ran into some tough luck at the plate. He was pressing some at times, and also was working on some adjustments from coach instruction. He was on record as saying he was trying to make an early impression in Akron last year since he knew he was being fast-tracked to be the eventual leadoff man in Cleveland.

Crowe's biggest problem was that he made a lot of bad swings at breaking balls early in the count, and his focus was too much on numbers and hitting home runs rather than putting the ball in play consistently, getting on-base, stealing some bases, and playing good defense. Crowe worked hard all season to try and get out of the offensive funk he was in, and often came to the park early to take extra batting practice and instruction from the coaching staff. Even when things were at their worst, Crowe stayed mentally strong and remained focused and eventually his unwavering persistence finally paid off. By midseason, he got back to the leadoff approach that made so many people rave about him as he was bunting the ball more, hitting the ball the other way, and taking what opposing pitchers were giving him and not trying to do too much.

Crowe finally got things going at the end of June when he started a hitting streak that ended at 14-games in mid-July. During the streak, Crowe hit .367 (22-for-60) and saw his batting average jump well over .200. The .200 mark seemed to be a psychological barrier for Crowe as he hovered somewhere around .170 to .195 for almost the entire year up until that point, but could never get over it. Once he finally was able to get over .200, he seemed to relax. Crowe's overall numbers were not that great, but he showed significant improvement in the second half of the season. Before July 1st, in 278 at bats Crowe was only hitting .212 with 9 extra base hits for a .263 slugging percentage and he had a .566 OPS. But, from July 1st on, Crowe showed why he was a top outfield prospect in the system as in 229 at bats he hit .310 with 23 extra base hits for a .459 slugging percentage and he had an .838 OPS.

Last year, the Indians wanted to see Crowe play a full year in the minors, which is something he had yet to do in two previous seasons in the Indians system. In 2005, he was hampered with a few nagging injuries, and in 2006 he missed parts of the season on the disabled list for a strained oblique and ankle sprain. Crowe managed to stay healthy in 2007, only missing a handful of games due to a minor injury in July, and showed he could handle the workload. Crowe went out to the Arizona Fall League (AFL) to get some extra work and played in only ten games before leaving because of a minor injury. In the AFL, Crowe hit .286 (11-38) with 2 home runs, 7 RBI, 3 stolen bases, and an .864 OPS. Going forward, the Indians want to see Crowe continue to shore up his approach from the right side of the plate. He also needs to show more consistency and not be such a streaky hitter.

Outlook: Crowe has always been very successful in life and in baseball, and the struggles he endured the first half of last season may do more good than bad in the long run. Crowe learned to realize and understand the importance of a routine, the importance of the mental side of the game and actually applying himself in that area and doing what it takes to be consistent and a professional. Natural ability only gets you so far, and it is what happens between the ears that is what takes you to the next level. Crowe should start the year in Buffalo, but with the outfield depth already on the Indians 40-man roster, he will be hard pressed to make his major league debut anytime before September 1st. He could be rostered late in the season as a September callup, especially considering he will be Rule 5 Draft eligible next offseason. Crowe could figure into the big league outfield mix in 2009.

Video: Crowe at the plate.

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