Something got into Daulton Varsho in July 2019, and the results were spectacular!
- Born: July 2, 1996
- B/T: Left/Right
- 5’10”, 205-lbs
- Drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2nd round of the 2017 MLB June Amateur Draft from University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (Milwaukee, WI)
The Numbers
His raw numbers are listed above courtesy of baseball-reference.com. Let’s aggregate by year then focus on the important numbers for minor leaguers:
That OBP is a thing of beauty! How sick we get of rostering catchers who barely get on base, so to see that solid column of green is refreshing. That power is nice too, bouncing back in AA to his previous high mark.
Bat control? He’s got it. He just does not strike out much, and he takes walks. All very solid stuff, and you get why he’s a Top 100 prospect at so many sites.
Did I mention he has speed too?
The lefty-swinging Varsho likes hitting righties, and certainly has his power against them. But he was no slouch against lefties. I mean, you’d take a .371 OBP against LHP, wouldn’t you?
We see the pull power, but we do see opposite field power as well, and the doubles go all over the park.
It’s like he hit the gas pedal in July of 2019, right? His career OPS was always solid, just under .900, but last year he broke out in a big, big way.
The Scouts
- Rotowire: #99 on their Top 400.
- BaseballHQ: #78 on their Top 100.
- Fangraphs: #59 on their Top 120.
- Fantasy Six Pack: #452 on their dynasty list.
- Prospects365: #68 on Ray Butler’s Top 200.
- Imaginary Brick Wall: #89 on the Top 487.
- Fantrax: #60 on the Top 250.
Warnings
His arm strength and defensive chops as a catcher are merely adequate. It is widely assumed he will play elsewhere in the majors, even playing a little OF last year and doing it credibly. So he might be a catcher in the majors, but one who catches a game or two a week as a backup, while playing elsewhere the rest of the time.
Conclusion
Flirting with a 20/20 season as a catcher? Yes, please, very much.
He’s a likely big leaguer; we just don’t know where he will play yet, but that bat can play wherever they put him.