Rio Ruiz

Ruiz is the type of player good enough to start for a 110-plus loss team, but not good enough to be even a bench bat on a contending team. He can play both corner infield positions, but does not hit for enough power to handle either spot full time. His expected stats were in the bottom 15th percentile last season, and he shouldn't really see the light of day against lefty pitchers. He really enjoys hitting in Camden Yards (.751 OPS) rather than hitting on the road (.618 OPS), but that is about the only upside Ruiz has to offer. Simply put, this is a guy you pick up during the season when your Plan A and Plan B have both become injured and you need someone to collect some stats in a deep league.

After batting 173 times in 2017, Ruiz received just 15 plate appearances last season, losing opportunities as the Braves suddenly became a competitive team. He didn't exactly make a great case for more playing time at the Triple-A level, as he hit a mediocre .269/.322/.390. That on-base percentage was an exact tie with his mark from the year prior. While his batting average rose by 22 points as Ruiz cut his strikeout rate from 25.5% to 16.6%, that contact came at the expense of his power, with Ruiz's slugging percentage falling by 56 points. Picked up by the Orioles in December, Ruiz now has a path to playing time on one of the weakest rosters in the league. If he can keep his contact improvements while getting back some of his old power, he could have some deep-league value.

Although he struggled during his time in the majors last season, Ruiz produced at an above-average level at Triple-A Gwinnett (112 wRC+) against competition that was nearly four years older than him on average. The third baseman showed off an impressive eye at the plate (9.7 percent walk rate), but still struck out too often (over 25 percent of his plate appearances) and those issues followed him to the big leagues. Over the course of 103 contests with Gwinnett, he hit 16 home runs with 56 RBI -- he continues to add power to his game, but still packs a relatively modest punch. Moving forward, Ruiz may not profile as an everyday third baseman, especially with Johan Camargo seemingly locking up that position for now and Austin Riley on the way. Ruiz could be the odd-man out when it comes to the Braves' optimal lineup, both in the immediate future and long term.

Ruiz began the 2016 season with Triple-A Gwinnett looking to rebound from his disappointing 2015 performance in which he posted a .657 OPS with Double-A Mississippi. The change of scenery paid off, as the young third baseman put together a solid season. As one of the youngest players in the International League, he had 10 home runs, 62 RBI and a .755 OPS over 133 games. He continued to draw walks (11.4 percent walk rate) but also struck out in nearly 22 percent of his plate appearances. He was called up to the big leagues for a cup of coffee in late September. Despite being a part of perhaps the best farm system in baseball, Ruiz is one of only a few notable Braves prospects who are nearly big league ready. The smart money is still on Ruiz falling a tad short with the stick to profile as an everyday third baseman. Fortunately for him, he should get his chance soon, presumably whenever the Adonis Garcia experiment comes to a close.

The 21-year-old third baseman turned in a .657 OPS with five home runs in 489 plate appearances at Double-A last year, so on the surface it would be pretty easy to cut bait, and in leagues where only 100 prospects are rostered, the smart move is probably to move on. However, Mississippi is by far the worst place to hit in the Southern League, and it is perhaps the worst place to hit home runs in all the minors. This means Ruiz’s struggles last year should open up a prime opportunity to buy low in deeper leagues. A strong approach remained in tact for Ruiz despite the suboptimal hitting environment last year, and he will presumably start the year at Triple-A as a 21-year-old, so he also has youth on his side. Adonis Garcia could be the Braves’ starting third baseman on Opening Day, so nothing is standing in Ruiz’s path to a big league job sometime in 2016 if he can get back on track at the plate.

Ruiz took a step forward in the hitter-friendly California League, hitting .293/.387/.436 with 37 doubles, 11 homers and 77 RBI in 131 games for High-A Lancaster. He drew nearly as many walks (82) as strikeouts (91), improving his walk rate (13.6%) by three percent compared to the year prior. At 6-foot-2 and 215 pounds, the 20-year-old third baseman hasn't displayed much power for a player his size, but he's shown ample range and agility as a defender. Traded to the Braves as part of a blockbuster deal in January, Ruiz is expected to open 2015 at Double-A Mississippi for his new organization.

Ruiz, a fourth-round pick by the Astros in 2012, hit the ball well in his first full minor league season, slashing .260/.335/.430 with 12 home runs and 63 RBI over 114 games for Low-A Quad Cities. The 19-year-old third baseman tallied 50 walks against 92 strikeouts and even contributed 12 steals. Ruiz is several years away making an impact in the majors, with likely stops at High-A and Double-A this season if all goes well at the former. His path to the big leagues may ultimately hinge on whether third base becomes the position of choice for top prospect Carlos Correa, but that issue is one that will be sorted out after it's determined if Ruiz can handle more advanced pitching as he moves through the Houston system.

Part of the reason the Astros had what many believed to be the best draft of anyone last summer was their ability to use the slot money saved on signing Carlos Correa for talent later in the draft. One such signing was Ruiz, who the Astros lured away from USC with a fourth-round pick. Ruiz has drawn comparisons to Eric Chavez, and not just because he is third baseman from Southern California that bats left-handed and throws right. Ruiz has a short stroke with good bat speed and sure hands in the field, all of which should translate as he develops. He battled a life-threatening blood clot as a high school senior, but with the surgery now behind him, nothing stands in the way of his development.