Jon GastonHow did he get here?: Drafted, 7th Round (2008)
Stats: 6'0", 210 lbs, Bats/Throws: Left/Right
Age as of April 1, 2010: 23
2009 Overview
| AB | Avg/OBP/SLG | K:BB | XBH-RBI | XBH/H% | K/PA% |
| 518 | .278/.367/.598 | 164:71 | 81-100 | 56.3% | 27.0% |
Career (2008-09)
| AB | Avg/OBP/SLG | K:BB | XBH-RBI | XBH/H% | K/PA% |
| 725 | .254/.346/.509 | 229:96 | 95-125 | 51.6% | 27.2% |
What happened?
Your guess is as good as mine. Gaston broke out this year, after posting a .193/.292/.285 line at Tri-City. Whether it was conditioning, luck, or thin air. His BABIP in Tri-City was .271, compared to a .331 BABIP in Lancaster. He struck out at a similar rate in Lexington, it's just that the balls made their way out of the park a lot more (35 HR in 2009, compared to two in Tri-City).
Gaston fits the mold of a power-hitting corner outfielder, but committed nine errors in LF/RF, with 16 outfield assits in 121 games.
What went right?
Because of his stint in the Arizona Fall League (.239/.358/.457, 9XBH-19RBI), we don't have his splits from Lancaster. But the increase in power is staggering over what we saw in his first full professional season.
What went wrong?
Against LHP in the AFL, Gaston hit .100/.250/.100 in 20ABs. It's not a big sample size, but the 60% K-Rate is alarming. He does strike out quite a bit, but draws enough walks/has enough power to offset that liability. As with Clemens, we'll be closely watching in 2010.
