Down On The Farm with A’s Special Assistant Grady Fuson

by Bill Moriarity / A’s Farm Editor

After originally joining the A’s organization as an area scout under the regime of Billy Martin back in 1982, Grady Fuson rose through the ranks and eventually ended up serving as the A’s scouting director from 1995 until 2001. It proved to be a very fruitful period for the organization when the team drafted such talented players as Eric Chavez, Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder, Barry Zito and Rich Harden.

He left the A’s at the end of 2001 to become the assistant general manager of the Texas Rangers and, after moving on to head up the San Diego Padres scouting department, Fuson eventually returned to the A’s a little over eight years ago to serve as a special assistant to the general manager.

Of course, many know Fuson as the scout in the cinematic version of Moneyball who has a dramatic confrontation with Billy Beane and ends up getting fired – though that’s not quite how it happened (which we chronicled here). And this past offseason, he received a pair of prestigious awards from his baseball peers for his service as a scout as well as for his contributions in player development.

During spring training, Fuson can frequently be found at the A’s minor league complex, now located at Fitch Park in Mesa, keeping a close eye on the team’s most prized prospects. And it was there, just about two weeks before opening day, that we took the opportunity to sit down and pick the brain of one of baseball’s top talent evaluators to get the inside scoop on some of the A’s top hitting and pitching prospects…

 

AF:  Well, you won two big awards in the offseason. You were named Scout of the Year and you also won the Sheldon “Chief” Bender award for distinguished service in player development. And no one’s ever won both of those before, so it must have been nice to get that kind of recognition from your peers.

GF:  It was. It was a tremendous honor on both sides. I really never expected the player development one. Most people probably think of me more on the scouting side of the game historically. But I’ve been involved with player development every step of the way except for the years I was a scouting director.

AF:  Well, I’m sure it was nice after all your years in the game to be recognized like that. So, let’s put your expertise to work and talk about some of the top young prospects currently in the A’s system! Your top hitting prospect, infielder Franklin Barreto, has really been hitting well in the big league camp this spring. How close do you feel he is to being ready to be a real contributor for the major league team?

GF:  He’s getting there. He’s taken another step. He’s played hard and he’s played aggressively in this camp. I think, for the most part, the at-bats have been of quality. He hasn’t been chasing as much. I think the biggest thing, speaking for the big league staff and everybody else, we just want to see him show us that he can control the strike zone a little bit better. But he’s close.

AF:  He seems to look a lot more comfortable at second base than at shortstop. Do you feel that way about him as well?

GF:  Yeah, I think most of us, at this point, think that that’s his best position. He definitely still has the skills to still be involved at short. The throwing, from time to time, comes and goes, and that doesn’t get as exposed as much at second…but he’s still going to play both.

AF:  And that brings up his fellow infield prospect, Jorge Mateo, who came over from the Yankees in the Sonny Gray deal last summer. He’s obviously got a lot of tools, but what’s he got to do to take his game to the next level and be ready for the big leagues?

GF:  Well, this spring has been my first look at him. After we made the trade last year, I never got back to Midland to see him. So, I’ve been excited to see him. You’ve already heard the things about how live and fast he is. The body’s live, the strength is real and he can really throw. I think, at this stage, he’s probably still a real toolsy guy who…maybe needs to put the tools together with the game. So, we’ll see how that goes.

AF: So, he just needs a little refinement.

GF:  Yeah, I think it’s just experience, just playing, learning the nuances of the game, and getting healthy. That knee’s kind of slowed him down a little bit this spring.

AF:  He certainly seems to have a strong arm. Does he look like a guy who’ll stick long-term as a shortstop to you?

GF:  Yes. I don’t know that you’d want to waste that arm anywhere else.

AF:  Do you expect him to start the year at Triple-A?

GF:  Yeah.

AF:  So, I guess he’ll be there working in the middle infield with Barreto and getting ready to do it together in Oakland before long. Another interesting young infielder you picked up last summer is Sheldon Neuse, who came over from Washington in the Ryan Madson/Sean Doolittle deal. He’s certainly done nothing but hit, so what have your impressions been of him so far?

GF:  Well, I do have some history with Neuse because I saw him as an amateur for a few games. And he’s everything we expected. This guy’s probably jumped into our top two, if not top one, minor league offensive players. He’s got a good swing, he’s short to the baseball and he knows the strike zone. He’s got power, especially to right-center. He puts on displays to right-center like [Matt] Chapman did. We’ve kind of got him playing all over because we’re still unsure where it all settles in. He played short in college, and he played half a year at second. But he’s growing into his body – he’s a bigger man. He looks more like a corner player, but don’t be fooled by that. This guy’s got footwork, he’s got good hands and he’s got a plus arm. He still needs a little technique and fundamental work, but that’ll come. But things have happened fast for him. The guy signed and, all of a sudden, he’s in Double-A in his first full year, and now in a big league camp. But he’s got legit upside on both sides of the baseball.

AF:  He mainly played at third base, and a little bit at shortstop, in the A’s system last year. You’re also planning on playing him a little bit at second base and getting him some time there this year as well, right?

GF:  Yeah, play him all over.

AF:  Your top catching prospect, Sean Murphy, is a guy who seems to be moving pretty fast too. He’s obviously very talented behind the plate. The question is how much he’s going to end up hitting. So, what have you been seeing out of him?

GF:  Just growth – he’s just growing. He’s been through a full season now, where day in and day out, you’re working on those swings and positioning and balance. He’s always been a little rotational, which we’ve been working on for the last year. He’s got that big, raw power tool that sometimes gets him in trouble with his approach, and then “boom,” all of a sudden, he hits one, and you go, “yeah, we’re on it!” But he’s had great at-bats in the big league camp, so hopefully things continue.

AF:  And I guess you don’t have to worry about his abilities behind the plate too much.

GF:  Well, you’re always working on the receiving part. The throwing part’s intact. He’s got one of the better arms we’ve had around here in that position in a long time.

AF:  Have you had a chance to see much of center fielder Dustin Fowler and get a feel for how he looks after coming back from the knee injury and the long layoff?

GF:  You know, I didn’t know what to expect, except for what I saw on video. His legs have rolled through this whole rehab thing really good. He’s really been running well. I don’t see any problem in his gait in the outfield or going down the line. The swing’s a little different – he’s very handsy, he’s got a little bit of a pull approach. So, I know the guys across the street [in the major league camp] are trying to get him to stay inside it a little bit longer to try to take advantage of the opposite part of the field a little bit. But he hasn’t been in there for any structured period of time. He kind of plays half a game one day, then he’s got to sit and recover. He’s come over here [to the minor league complex] and taken a lot of at-bats in sim games, and they’ve all been good. But the intent is a little different when you turn the lights on. So, we’ve got a couple weeks to go. He’s a big part of how that club breaks. Do they think he’s ready? Do they think he needs a little bit more time? So, we’ve got a couple weeks to sit on that decision.

AF:  Your new catcher, Jonathan Lucroy, has also been over here with you getting at-bats at the minor league complex. How’s he been looking to you?

GF:  He’s been awesome. I think he’s leading the minor league camp in hitting! He jumped right in day one. He looks in shape. He looks like he’s ready to go. He doesn’t look like he’s far off from getting into games and being comfortable. I’m hoping this guy’s a super addition.

AF:  Okay, let’s talk about a couple of talented young outfielders you’ve got here, starting with your number one draft pick from last year, Austin Beck. How’s he been looking to you his first time here in spring camp?

GF:  Good. He’s starting to get on track with where the development needs to be. He’s calming down things. He’s starting to learn more about the pace of the game and how guys really do pitch in the pro game. He knows where his strengths are – we all know where his strengths are – but we’re trying to put that together with some kind of balance and performance. In fact, I was just talking to him today. I said, “You’re right on track. You’re calming things down. The timing’s starting to come.” You know, you’re dealing with a teenager, so it’s just about time. But I like where he’s come back to this camp.

AF:  So, it sounds like you think he’s making the progress he needs to make anyway.

GF:  Without a doubt.

AF:  And then what about Lazaro Armenteros? Obviously, he’s a very toolsy guy, but I’m sure he must still look very raw from your point of view.

GF:  Lazarito? He’s an ambush guy – when you’re not looking is when something really, really good happens. We’re just trying to put a game together with a very talented but very raw player, so it’s going to take some time. It’s still a decision of ours where he breaks and how he breaks. But there’s no doubt about the raw strength, there’s no doubt about the speed, but the little nuances of the game are where our focus is and trying to get him to understand how the game is truly played.

AF:  I was going to ask you about what the plan was going to be to start the year for Beck and Lazaro. Is it still up in the air if they’ll start the year with a full-season team or stay down here in Arizona till June?

GF:  Yeah, those are two guys that are decision makers. And there’s a lot that goes into that, because that level is Beloit as you know. And, you know, Beloit, the first month of the season, no matter who you are, is rough because of the way things play out with the weather. And you can’t get on the field as much, and you’re hitting in cages, and it’s 40 degrees. And you’ve got to make some kind of call. Is it best for him to stay here and play in the sunshine and get day-to-day work, and then send him out a month later? Is it best just to shove him into the action and see how he responds? If both Beck and Lazarito don’t go, which I don’t necessarily think they won’t, it won’t be because of where they stack up talent-wise. It would just maybe be a little bit more protection, a little bit more grooming, a little bit more of a spot where they can get daily work.

AF:  Well, as far as what you were saying about Beloit, when it comes to your top college hitters lately, it seems like you’ve been having a lot of them skip over Beloit altogether and go straight to Stockton.

GF:  Well, yeah, because those are the advanced guys. You know, guys like Greg Deichmann and Will Toffey and Kevin Merrell, those guys have been through big Division-I programs – they’ve performed at that level. And they’ve shown us somewhere between last summer and instructional league that they’re ready to be challenged.

AF:  So, are there any other hitters who’ve really opened your eyes here in the minor league camp this spring?

GF:  Merrell’s played extremely well. He’s gotten a lot of time in big league camp because he’s useful over there playing both short and second. Deichmann’s given them a good look. But there’s some guys we’ve been waiting on to break through – like Skyler Weber. This is a kid we took two years ago out of the University of Georgia. He was kind of a converted guy and didn’t know how this catching thing was going to go. At one point, he wanted to flop back to being an outfielder. And we had to tell him, “We didn’t take you to be an outfielder.” Then he was hurt a little bit last year, but he’s really come back in this camp. He’s bigger, he’s stronger and he’s healthy. The ball’s coming off his bat and he’s been receiving good. So, this will finally be his first chance to get out of Arizona and go make a mark. He looks good. Nick Allen‘s been special. He’s cat-like, and he’s starting to get some things going with the bat a little bit, so it’ll be interesting to see how things take off for him. I just really love the top part of our draft last year – when you get past Beck and you start talking about Merrell and Nick Allen and Deichmann and Toffey.

Click here to get the inside scoop on top A’s pitching prospects A.J. Puk, Grant Holmes, Logan Shore, Jesus Luzardo, James Kaprielian and more…

 

AF:  Okay, let’s talk about some of your pitching prospects, starting with your top pitching prospect A.J. Puk, who looked pretty good in the big league camp this spring, with the exception of his last outing, where he really struggled a bit. Could he be pitching in the major leagues right now?

GF:  Well, anybody could be pitching there if you put them there…

AF:  It just depends on what happens if you do!

GF:  Well, you know, collectively as an organization, in a perfect world, everybody would like to see a little bit more seasoning at Triple-A. But at the same time, everybody knows the spotlight’s on him. He’s probably got our best stuff. And our starting pitching at the big league level has not really been lights out at this point. So, it’s easy for people to go, “Why isn’t he on the big league club?”

AF:  What’s left for him to work on, mainly just his consistency at this point?

GF:  Yeah, and command, making sure of his ability to command the baseball at the big league level. It’s not stuff, we all know that, even though he was a little lighter velocity-wise the last couple outings. But you can’t expect this guy to pitch at 97 mph all the time.

AF:  Is there any reason for that dip? Is it just a little spring lull?

GF:  Yeah, who knows? Puk feels good. Sometimes, it’s just timing. Everybody hits a little lull sometimes down here. As long as he feels good. You don’t want both things to suffer – you don’t want command and velocity to suffer. Last night, he was a little rough. He wasn’t as efficient as he’s proven he can be. But his delivery is good. It wasn’t like you could find anything faulty in his delivery last night.

AF:  You’ve got another big arm who was a former 1st-round pick, Grant Holmes, who came over from the Dodgers. We’re expecting to see him at Triple-A this year. Last year at Midland, he could really look dominant at times, but he still seems to be learning what he needs to do to be consistently successful. So, what do you think he’s got to do to take his game to the next level?

GF:  Well, we’ve got to get him healthy again. He had a little tweak in his shoulder in big league camp. I think he only had one outing, if that, maybe a sim game, before that started tugging on him a little bit. I think medically they think that maybe he pushed it a hair too quick. So, basically, we’ve kind of backed off. So, he’s probably at a point where I don’t think he’s going to be ready to break. But yeah, all along the plan was for him to be in the rotation at Triple-A. We’ve got to find a way to maybe – and [A’s minor league pitching coordinator] Gil Patterson has worked on this a lot – try to close him up and try to get some more deception out of him, because as good as his stuff is, there’s times he throws pitches that you’re going, “My God, how did they hit that?” And over the years since we’ve had him, the last thing that’s left is – maybe there’s something in there where he’s too easy to see. So, all eyes are on that aspect. It has nothing to do with the stuff. We all know he touches 95, he’s got a good breaker and change…but it’s just getting him to miss more bats.

AF:  With all the injuries to the A’s pitching staff last season, Daniel Gossett ended up making 18 starts for the A’s. He’s been pretty successful in the minors, but he was hit hard at times in the majors last year. So, what’s he need to do to become a more solid, dependable major league pitcher?

GF:  Probably more opportunity. He had hits and misses last year in the big leagues. He’s come into camp and it’s kind of been the same. There’s just some things in his delivery that don’t allow him to repeat, locate, execute enough all the time to be as good as he wants to be. And trying to get him to stick that front side and get down the hill a little bit better, that’s been the thing with him since A ball. He feels good, his health looks okay. So, you know, when is that time where consistency takes the next step?

AF:  And what about A.J. Puk’s old teammate at Florida, Logan Shore? He was injured for a while last year, but he looked pretty good when he was on the mound for Stockton. He should be getting a shot in Double-A this year. So, where’s he at at this stage of the game?

GF:  Kind of the same as Holmes. He went down early with a lat strain. I think it’s the same lat that he hurt in Stockton last year. So, he’s been out basically this whole spring. So, it’s a little bit more of a restart for him. He’s close to going again down here. If he’s good enough where he can go 3 [innings]/50 [pitches], then he’ll probably go on out with a club. If not, we’ll probably leave him here and get him extended before we send him out.

AF:  A young lefty who really seems to be impressing a lot of people here lately is Jesus Luzardo. You picked him up from Washington last summer when he was coming back from Tommy John surgery, and he’s looked really sharp ever since you got him.

GF:  He’s our new teenage phenom! He’s got a great disposition about him. He’s put on a lot of strength. This is his second year off Tommy John, so we might be able to open him up a little bit more. But the velo, the breaking ball, the feel for the changeup – everything is growing at a rapid pace. So, high expectations for this kid.

AF:  I guess he’ll probably still be on some kind of innings limit this year, right?

GF:  Yeah, I think he had 60 total last year. We’ve talked about 100 this year, so he’s still probably a full year away from just opening it up and getting the kind of workload of a major league starter.

AF:  Considering how good he’s looked, despite the innings limit, are you likely to be aggressive in terms of pushing him to face higher levels of competition?

GF:  Yeah, once he gets out there. I mean, this year there’s going to be limits. So, next year will be the big key on durability, how his stuff holds up. But yeah, once we can get to that point where the reins are taken off as far as health is concerned, he could be a quick fix.

AF:  You guys also picked up another guy who’s coming back from Tommy John surgery, former 1st-round pick James Kaprielian, who came over from the Yankees last summer in the Sonny Gray deal. I know he’s been throwing off the mound out here this spring. So, how close does he look to being ready?

GF:  Well, when you talk about Kaprielian, you’ve also got to talk about Daulton Jefferies, because they’re hooked to each other’s side. Their Tommy Johns came basically at the same time. They’re only a week or two apart on their whole rehab deal. They play catch together, they move together, they’re in the training room together, they throw their sides together. So, you’ve got to talk about them both at the same time. Just from a fastball/changeup standpoint, they’re both throwing great. They’re free, they’re easy, they’re throwing firm, they’re excited. They’re probably maybe a week away from starting to spin some off-speed. So, May will probably be when they get to start facing some batting practice and some sim games. But so far, without seeing them spin and throw breaking balls, they both look great.

AF:  So, it sounds like maybe we’ll start to see them back in competitive action in June when the short-season teams get started.

GF:  That’s kind of the target.

AF:  What about Frankie Montas? He’s a talented arm who’s already dealt with a lot of injuries in his young career. He only threw a couple times early this spring and now I know he hasn’t thrown at all since the first week of March.

GF:  I can’t give you much there. He hasn’t pitched. He’s got some soreness that they’re just trying to work through. It’s nothing major, but it’s just soreness that’s eliminated him from pitching.

AF:  Is that shoulder soreness?

GF:  Yeah, shoulder.

AF:  I know the plan had originally been to stretch him out as a starter this spring. So, I guess that gets put on hold now.

GF:  Yeah, that gets put on the back burner for now.

AF:  It originally looked like he might be a good candidate to start the year in the Triple-A rotation at Nashville, but now it sounds like that’s not going to happen. And with Cotton’s injury, it looks like the only guys who seem pretty certain to start the year in the Triple-A rotation might be Puk and Gossett. Holmes would have been there, but it sounds like he won’t be ready to start the season now. So, who else is left for the Triple-A rotation?

GF:  Well, yeah, you got Puk, you got James Naile who’ll probably be in there, Gossett…

AF:  Would guys like Corey Walter or Ben Bracewell maybe be in there to start the season?

GF:  Yeah, Corey and Bracewell – that would give us five until we get everyone back healthy.

AF:  And then who’s likely to be in the Double-A rotation at Midland? Maybe Casey Meisner and Dustin Hurlbutt? I had been thinking Logan Shore, but it sounds like he might not be ready to go.

GF:  Joel Seddon.

AF:  Oh yeah, you’ve got him starting again. And would Evan Manarino or Dalton Sawyer maybe factor in there?

GF:  No, those guys are both on the shelf.

AF:  What’s wrong with each of them?

GF:  Sawyer’s got an elbow. I think Manarino’s got a shoulder.

AF:  So, you don’t think either of them will be ready to go to start the season?

GF:  No, they haven’t even touched the baseball. I think Manarino just got involved in his throwing program, so they’re both a ways away.

AF:  Well, just like at the major league level, I guess it just goes to show you, you can never have too much pitching depth! So, are there any other pitchers here in the minor league camp who’ve really opened your eyes this spring?

GF:  There’s two pitchers in there to keep an eye on – Parker Dunshee, and Brian Howard out of TCU. He and Dunshee are very similar. They’re not overpowering, but they both pitch around 90-92 mph. They both command the baseball, they both have good secondaries, they both have good changeups, and they’ve just been pounding the strike zone in this camp. Dunshee went through Double-A over here yesterday like a knife through butter. So, they’ve been good.

AF: Well, it seemed like nobody could hit either of them last year at Vermont. So, do you think those guys are likely to start the year off at Beloit?

GF:  They’ve got a chance to maybe make a step. Like I said, we’ve got a couple weeks to go. We’re in no hurry to make decisions. Health and everything else ends up coming into play the last couple weeks. But those guys are advanced.

AF:  Well, sounds like Stockton could be a possibility then too. Lately, it really seems like you guys have been more inclined to let some of your pitching prospects go to Beloit, and then some of the hitting prospects you’ve just been pushing straight up to Stockton.

GF:  Well, you know, historically the California League’s been an offensive league, so even though the talent’s better, it’s just a more comfortable league to hit in. For the most part, you’ve got consistent weather, you’re on the field every day and you can get your work in, whereas Beloit, you know, it’s tough. You’ve got to fight through that stuff. You’ve got to get your mental skills going, because every day brings something different when it comes to the environment. It can be tough on young guys. That’s why, if you look at the Midwest League, pitching is always ahead. There’s no runs scored in the Midwest League the first two months.

AF:  Well, I guess if you’re a hitter, pray for an assignment to the California League, and if you’re a pitcher, pray for an assignment to the Midwest League!

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