Maikol Escotto: “There’s a lot of thump in that bat”

Maikol Escotto opened the season as the second-youngest player in the South Atlantic League.

The shortstop, acquired by the Pirates in last year’s Jameson Taillon trade, entered the season with a lot of promise, fueled mostly by tools, and partially by a .701 OPS in Low-A in his age-19 season.

Escotto has struggled in Greensboro so far this year.

He’s hitting for a .186/.246/.389 line, while showing some alarming swing and miss issues. Escotto is striking out 34.1% of the time, which is up from 30.4% last year at the lower A-ball level. The alarming part is that his walks have plummeted to 5.7%, down from the 14% range the last two seasons.

“He’s been expanding the strike zone,” said Greensboro manager Callix Crabbe. “You’re talking about someone who is 19-years-old with very limited playing experiences as a pro. … What we want from Escotto, more than anything, is the ability to stay focused on every pitch, both offensively and defensively.”

Escotto’s potential flashes through at times, whether through his raw power from the middle infield, his speed, or his defensive abilities to stick at shortstop. He’s not exactly a bat-first prospect, but the potential from the bat is driving his value right now in the absence of consistent hitting.

Crabbe feels that the bat will continue to grow, and will one day play.

“I think the chase is a byproduct of just trying to do too much at certain times, not getting himself in a position to hit,” said Crabbe. “The word is trying to take the slack out of his system sooner. That’s something he’s working through mechanically.”

Crabbe said that Escotto has times where he’s not ready to hit properly — either from a timing or loading standpoint. This can lead to swing and miss when he chases. Escotto has been good at times. Some weeks he hasn’t. That’s to be expected from someone who turns 20 in two weeks.

Crabbe remembers being a 20-year-old prospect in A-ball, and the drive to impress.

“You want to do well,” said Crabbe of the experience. “Often times it’s wanting to do too well that could be leading to some of those issues. I think that’s part of it.”

I asked Crabbe about the challenges of managing through the struggles with such young players like Escotto and his infield teammate Dariel Lopez.

“You have to find a perfect balance between when you coach them,” said Crabbe of Escotto and Lopez. “You know it’s not lack of effort, but they’re probably trying too hard at times, and they’re probably worried about the wrong things. They’re probably going ‘I’m 20, I could be in the big leagues next year, I’ve gotta do more.’ That’s not the case. They’ve got to develop. They’re a ways away from Pittsburgh. The talent in both of them is real. It’s just how can we continue as a staff to put them in position to continue to grow?”

As long as Escotto is flashing his plus raw power, and showing the ability to stick at shortstop, he’ll keep getting opportunities to grow.

“There’s a lot of thump in that bat,” said Crabbe. “People realize how much pop he has. I think, over time, the consistency and power will begin to show. I don’t think we can expect that just yet, at 19-years-old. He’s been decent. I expect to see him continue to grow and our group is doing a good job of trying to put him in a position to do so.”