Damiano Palmegiani is likely to reach the majors in 2024. But where will he play?
- Born: January 24, 2000
- B/T: Right/Right
- 6’0″, 195-lbs
- Drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2021 MLB June Amateur from College of Southern Nevada
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:
The bad news is the way his strikeout rate climbs steadily.
The good news is that his power is real and it’s spectacular.
He draws walks, and he mostly gets on base. Sometimes doing so very well, and he is a productive batter for his team.
Monthly Splits
He got off to a hot start in April, and then his power warmed up but he couldn’t get on base in May and June. He corrected getting on base in July and August but he struck out too much.
In September all was well, in fact more than well, quite great. Nice level to do that at, and it’s a nice way to get the organization to notice you at the end of the season.
Handedness K% and BB%
AA (vs RH): 27%K and 13%BB. (vs LH): 28%K and 10%BB.
AAA (vs RH): 33%K and 16%BB. (vs LH): 19%K and 15%BB.
He draws walks against anyone at any time. That’s what power gives you.
The only hint at a difference is his strikeout rate against RHP in Triple-A versus his rate against lefties. Small sample size.
The Scouts
- Rotowire: #347 on their Top 400
- Fantrax: Not on their Top 400
- RotoProspects: #395 on Top 500
- Toolshed Fantasy ($): Not on Top 500
- PARSlist ($): 69.7 (67th-best minor league batter)
- PLIVE+: 114 (145-best minor league batter)
Warnings
He has power, but will the strikeouts be worth it?
Was his great September a matter of him stepping up at a new level, or small-sample luck? We’ll know next spring when he almost certainly will start the season at Triple-A.
Conclusion
The book on Palmegiani is that the power is real and is big-league ready (his Hard Hit% was 28.6% for the entire season, and that shows the power is not luck, it’s real), but where would he play? On the power side, he has a long swing, but when he gets to two strikes he shortens his swing. His bat speed is impressive. On the defense question, where will he play?
No, seriously, where’s he gonna play? He’s been playing 1B and 3B, but the Blue Jays got those covered for the near future. So scouts speculate he might wind up eventually at 2B, but he hasn’t played there yet. There’s DH, of course, but MLB tends to have plenty of those.
Palmegiani should reach the majors in 2024 at some point. For which team is the question.