Oscar Taveras Ranked Top Overall Prospect By ESPN
Mar 19, 2013; Jupiter, FL, USA; St. Louis Cardinals center fielder Oscar Taveras (87) rounds third base and scores a run in the fourth inning during a spring training game against the Miami Marlins at Roger Dean Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
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According to the St Louis Post-Dispatch’s Jeff Gordon, ESPN’s Keith Law ranks Cardinals prospect Oscar Taveras number 1 overall. Here is an excerpt from Jeff Gordon’s article:
"• Outfielder Oscar Taveras, recently bumped up to No. 1 in minor-league prospect rankings by ESPN expert Keith Law, was 2 for 4 with a double, a walk and two RBIs in the two games. Law offered this take on the O Train: “Taveras hasn’t had a huge start in Triple-A this year, hitting for average but not power with a poor walk rate, although he won’t turn 21 until mid-June, and the raw hit and power tools are beyond any doubt. Whenever the Cardinals have an opening in their outfield, he’s ready, as soon as he gets over a recent ankle injury that has had him on the shelf for a couple of weeks.”"
This creates a dilemma for the St. Louis Cardinals right now. Oscar Taveras is hopefully going to be a great right fielder for the Cardinals. However, the Cardinals are the best team in baseball at 42-22 and Right fielder Carlos Beltran is one of the top producers for the Cardinals right now. I would suggest that the Cardinals send down Ty Wigginton to Memphis and put Oscar second in the depth chart at every position in the outfield. This way if one of the outfielders needs a day off, Oscar can get some experience in the major leagues without sitting Carlos Beltran for an extended period of time.
The future is still very bright for the St. Louis Cardinals.