75. Nate Recknagel - Catcher/First Baseman
Born: 04/26/1986 - Height: 6'2" - Weight: 220 - Bats: Right - Throws: Right
| Year | Age | Team | Lvl | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| 2008 | 22 | U of Michigan | C | 58 | 209 | 56 | 77 | 9 | 1 | 23 | 68 | 33 | 30 | 5 | .368 | .465 | .751 | 1.216 |
| 2008 | 22 | GCL Indians | R | 1 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .750 | .750 | 1.000 | 1.750 |
History: Recknagel was a 19th round pick in the 2008 Draft out of the University of Michigan. Strengths & Opportunities: Recknagel has very good power and strength, and set a Michigan home run record with 23 last year. He also showed an advanced approach at the plate with a 33:30 walk to strikeout ratio at Michigan last year. The Indians sent him out to the Instructional League to work on catching, so at the outset it looks like he will initially break in and be developed as a catcher. He is challenged defensively at first base where he is a below average defender who needs a lot of work, so for now he is a better asset behind the plate where his good arm can be better utilized. He did not play until the final week of the season for the rookie level GCL Indians - playing in just one game - since he spent most of his time over the summer rehabbing a dislocated elbow that he suffered in the college regionals right before the draft.
Outlook: The Indians have a lot of catching depth in the system, particularly in the lower levels. That said, Recknagel's power is hard to overlook and he will likely be given a chance as a starting catcher and open the 2009 season as the starting catcher at Single-A Lake County.
Photo courtesy of Michigan Athletic Department
Nate Recknagel MinorLeagueBaseball.com stats page
Everything on this site is free, but for those interested in making any monetary contributions to help support the stability and growth of this site please click on the "Donate" button below.
5 comments:
Hi TL,
He has power potential but it appears to be generated by a long swing rather than bat speed. He didn't appear very athletic so I wonder how his timing to 2nd will hold up even with his good arm. With the organizational catching, I think he is a max of Akron. I didn't overlook bringing his name up in our discussion as was the case with Moncrief.
I actually did not see him play, but saw him down in the GCL when I was down there near the end of summer. Have a good source I trust who saw him in college. Reminds me of a Gimenez kind of guy....lots of intriguing guys from the 2008 Draft! Really going to be interesting to see how those guys fare this year. Excited.
I have watched him play for many years. He does not have a long swing, but extremely quick hands. Very athletic kid with a cannon arm, was actually being highly recruited for football too. The injury posted above is wrong. He never broke a bone in his hand, he suffered a dislocated elbow and has recovered 100% from the injury (watch the video on MGOBLUE.com and I was there when it happened). He shows much promise behind the dish and at first, what the Indians need. Great hands, great defensively at both spots. Very smart, analytical, intuitive hitter at the plate. Looking foward to watch him progress thru the organization, i predict great things for this kid.
As I mentioned before, I have not seen him play and am relying on the information I have received from Indians officials and from a scout I have a lot of faith in. I look forward to seeing him play this year, hopefully at Lake County where I spend most of my time between all the affiliates.
I can't comment on the swing, but will say that I do know IndiansInker does see these guys a lot during the season. I still see potential based on what I have been told he sounds like a Gimenez type hitter, or maybe even a Ryan Garko.
Yes, the injury is wrong as he did in fact dislocate an elbow. I have yet to correct it though since the report is already out there and the book went to press as is. I still need to verify some additional info with the injury before I change it because according to someone outside of the Indians I spoke to he had a wrist problem and one of the national pubs (I think Baseball America) even reported on it. There may be a mix up with the injury. The elbow issue is legit....but it is possible the wrist injury happened during his rehab or down in Winter Haven. It had to come from somewhere....so I will check. I think I even have Recknagel's contact info so will avoid the red tape elsewhere and just ask him if possible. Thanks for the correction and providing this, I very much appreciate it. My goal is to get this stuff as accurate as possible.
Talked to Recknagel, and there was no broken hamate bone....just the elbow. Thanks for the heads up folks.
Post a Comment