2010 Indians Top 50 Prospects: #48 John Drennen

48. John Drennen - Outfielder
Born: 08/26/1986 - Height: 5'11" - Weight: 195 - Bats: Left - Throws: Left

Year	Age	Team	Lvl	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	SB	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS
2005	18	Burlington	R	51	168	24	40	7	1	8	29	18	37	6	.238	.325	.435	.760
2006	19	Lake County	A	67	240	33	77	12	3	6	30	31	52	6	.321	.409	.471	.880
2006	19	Kinston	A+	31	113	15	27	6	2	0	8	12	21	2	.239	.328	.327	.655
2007	20	Kinston	A+	131	496	72	126	25	2	13	77	53	104	6	.254	.336	.391	.727
2008	21	Kinston	A+	117	460	71	108	27	1	3	39	46	73	5	.235	.313	.317	.630
2009	22	Kinston	A+	17	63	10	17	6	1	0	5	12	10	1	.270	.395	.397	.792
2009	22	Akron	AA	93	325	45	89	23	5	8	40	21	59	0	.274	.320	.449	.769
		Totals		507	1865	270	484	106	15	38	228	193	356	26	.260	.338	.394	.731

History:  Drennen was a supplemental 1st round pick by the Indians in the 2005 Draft out of Rancho Bernardo High (CA). Knowing he had a scholarship in hand to attend and play at UCLA, the Indians quickly signed him for $1 million.  He has spent the better part of his five year career at High-A Kinston, playing there for parts of four seasons with two full seasons in 2007 and 2008 and parts of the 2006 and 2009 seasons.

Strengths & Opportunities:  Drennen has a compact build with good power and also creates a nice smooth bat path with his swing. As he has matured he has not developed the power some in the organization thought he would when they drafted him, so he is still more of a gap hitter with average power. He is an extremely hard, intelligent worker with a motor that does not stop, and is very aggressive at the plate, on the bases and in the field.  He has good instincts as a runner, but only has slightly above average speed.  He has also proven to be a very durable player, missing only a few weeks of action in 2006 with a thumb injury. He is a versatile defender where he can play any outfield position, but he is just an average defender at best with a fringy arm and limited range.

Coming off a 2008 season in Kinston where he was often overmatched at the plate and hit .235 with a .631 OPS it really looked like the light in his prospect star was in danger of going out.  After he opened last season at Double-A Akron and proceeded to hit just .191 with 1 HR, 10 RBI and a .601 OPS in 21 games before being shipped out to Kinston in May it looked like that little bit of light left in that star had been extinguished.  But something happened when he went to Kinston where things began to click.  Some say that his demotion to Kinston was a reality check, while others think some of his recent adjustments at the plate from the past few seasons finally began to take hold.  Through it all he remained upbeat and his commitment never wavered as he worked hard in the cages to make more consistent contact, maintain a consistent approach at the plate, and even his bat path.  It really was as simple as staying within himself and getting a good pitch and hitting it.  It all finally seemed to come together when he returned to Akron on June 1st, where upon his return he hit .296 (76-for-257) with 7 HR, 30 RBI and an .819 OPS in 72 games.  He was simply electric in September where in 13 combined games in the regular season and playoffs he hit .377 with 6 HR and a 1.174 OPS.

One of the good things to see was at the end of last season Drennen showed a better load at the plate and as a result he started to show his power stroke again with the home runs and was pounding the gaps and lines like he did when he first broke into the system.  If that line drive, gap-to-gap approach that the Indians loved when they drafted him has returned then he could still have some potential as a big league player.  The question is whether his showing the final four months of last season was an aberration or if it will really stay, so his 2010 season should go a long way at providing some answers to that question.

Drennen still has a tendency to chase pitches, so needs more work when he steps in the box of being prepared and narrowing his zone down to get a better pitch to hit.  Once he shows he is settled in and has seemed to grasp a better handle of the strike zone a larger focus will be placed on him attacking the zone more so some of those doubles start turning into a few more home runs again.  He is still a bit showy at times at the plate, but did a good job of cutting down on this last year.  He also did a better job last year of calming down at the plate and keeping his head down on the ball to drive it back through the middle of the field.  He does a lot of damage on the inside part of the plate, but pitchers know this and often pitch him away which gives him trouble so he needs to become better with going with the pitch and taking the ball the other way if needed.  He still struggles a lot with recognizing the changeup.

Outlook:  One thing to remember is Drennen did not turn 23-years old until late August, so he was 22 years old for most of the 2009 season.  This is something that is easily glossed over since he seems so much older because he has been with the Indians for so long as a high school draft signing, so he still has some time left in his prospect clock.  He is still young with some upside, and sometimes with a high school player it takes a little bit longer to become what they were projected to become.  His surge in the second half of last season at Akron is him making one final push as a prospect to prove he belongs and can still improve as a player and maybe someday realize that dream of being a big league ballplayer.  While he had a solid comeback season last year, he probably does not project as a big league regular, but his versatility and athleticism could make him a solid fourth outfielder or platoon player down the road.  He will likely return to Akron to start the 2010 season, and could find his way to Triple-A Columbus near the end of the season provided there is room there and he is playing well.

Photo courtesy of Tony Lastoria

John Drennen MinorLeagueBaseball.com page

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