Indians Top 100 Prospects: #48 Matt Brown

48. Matt Brown - Outfielder
Born: 02/21/1985 - Height: 6'1" - Weight: 183 - Bats: Left - Throws: Right

Year	Age	Team	Lvl	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	SB	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS
2007	22	Mahoning Vy	A-	63	224	22	56	14	3	0	31	25	41	6	.250	.325	.339	.664
2008	23	Lake County	A	122	451	64	139	26	3	8	75	35	62	3	.308	.356	.432	.788
		Career		185	675	86	195	40	6	8	106	60	103	9	.289	.346	.401	.747

History: Brown was a 13th round pick by the Indians in the 2007 Draft out of Wichita State.

Strengths & Opportunities: Brown is an intriguing outfielder who offers a great package of overall tools with good bat speed, raw power, plus arm strength, and average speed. He makes consistent contact, swings hard, and is very aggressive in the outfield. He could develop into a prototype right fielder if his bat starts to show more thunder down the road as he already is very good defensively and has a gifted arm. He was an outstanding pitcher in high school and threw 92 MPH, and that arm strength has translated well to the outfield. He has excellent makeup, and his focus is a rarity for a player at this stage of their development cycle. Because of this, he has a head start over most of the players his age or at his level because of the routine he has developed. He is mentally prepared for the ups and downs of the game as well as with what he needs to do to improve as a player.

Coming out of college Brown's biggest challenge was developing better plate discipline and he did an excellent job last season of implementing a new plan and preparation routine with his at bats that the Indians worked with him on during the 2007 offseason and in spring training. His revised plan is more just him simplifying his approach, looking for a good pitch to hit, looking to hit the ball in the middle of the field, and staying within the strike zone with his swing. His new plan was the catalyst to his very good season and the adjustments he made helped his approach and overall plate discipline as he only struck out once every seven at bats whereas in 2007 he was striking out about once every five at bats. Also, his long, maximum-effort swing was shortened which has helped him create a more consistent bat path to square up the ball and make good contact more often. He is an all-out player which is good in the field, but can take a toll on his body and at the plate some times. He hurt his left wrist diving for a ball in the outfield near the middle of the season, so missed a few weeks. He is that type of fiery player where the Indians will continue to work on getting him to learn to pull it back a little and stay on more of an even keel throughout the game.

Outlook: Brown had a very good season last year, and was one of the few players in Single-A Lake County to do so. He was close to the league average as far as age goes, so it will be interesting to see how he handles the more advanced pitching in the Carolina League next year. He will open the 2009 season in the advanced Single-A Kinston outfield.

Photo courtesy of Ken Carr

Matt Brown MinorLeagueBaseball.com stats page

Matt Brown Baseball-Reference page

Matt Brown MinorleagueSplits.com page

Matt Brown video:

Posted in: Matt Brown