40 Taylor Teagarden C Texas Rangers TOP '07 LEVEL: AA (Frisco) 24 Teagarden was drafted out of the University of Texas as a plus defensive catcher who might hit a little. He blew out his elbow after signing and required Tommy John surgery, but he has developed into a better offensive player than the Rangers could have hoped for. He has a strong base at the plate and centers the ball extremely well, peppering the middle of the field with line drives, staying back well on breaking balls and showing a good two-strike approach. His main remaining question mark is his arm, which finally showed signs of a full recovery in Arizona. It's not a swing or hitting plan that is going to produce more than doubles power, but a catcher who works the count, hits lots of singles and doubles, and has a plus arm and good receiving skills will be one of the top 10, maybe top five, catchers in the game. LINK
I am hoping Taylor can step up this year to the Rangers, but that's a very big leap. Salty appears to be a terrific athlete, but I'm not convinced yet that he can be a big-league catcher. If Taylor can make the team as the catcher, that would leave Salty available to learn to play 1B (where his height would be an advantage). HornHuskerDad
Salty won't go to first. He was pretty clear about that this offseason when they tried to move him there. I'm not sold on Salty as a catcher, I remember seeing him get 5 bases swiped on him with Atlanta last year, but apparently the Ranges are ready to turn it over to him.
