by Bill Moriarity / A’s Farm Editor
May 5, 2023
After originally joining the A’s organization as an area scout under the Billy Martin regime 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 over 13 years ago to serve as a special assistant. And he’s since been honored by his baseball peers with prestigious awards for his service as a scout as well as for his contributions in the area of player development.
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).
We were fortunate enough to catch up with Fuson earlier this week while he was spending some time checking in on some of the A’s top Double-A prospects in Midland. And, as always, we were happy to have the opportunity to pick the brain of one of baseball’s top talent evaluators and get the inside scoop on some of the A’s top prospects. You can listen to our complete conversation on A’s Cast
(Portions of this interview have been edited for clarity and brevity.)
AF: It seems like a lot of the A’s top prospects are at Double-A Midland, and I know you’re there in Midland right now too. So, I wanted to start out by asking you about a bunch of A’s prospects there. I think a couple of the most exciting players who are there at Midland are outfielders Lawrence Butler and Denzel Clarke. They both had good springs and I think they’ve put themselves on the radar for a lot of A’s fans. But I’m curious to know what you’ve seen out of Lawrence Butler and Denzel Clarke and what you project for those two guys going forward in the future.
GF: Well, certainly with Butler, we’re seeing some maturity. Every year he comes to camp, his body gets better. He’s getting stronger and physical. He’s learning the strike zone better. Obviously, he is the talk of the town right now in Midland, the way he’s performed at big league camp and the way he’s kicked it off here. He’s been very aggressive attacking strikes. If he’s making an out, it’s a hard bullet somewhere. He’s a tick faster running. He’s become a little bit better outfielder. So, all the things that you kind of project when he’s young are starting to come to fruition, and he’s putting up some kind of month so far. So, hopefully, he keeps it up. Denzel’s kind of a different type character who’s obviously a very quick-twitch physical athlete with speed and power with unique moves to his approach. But he caught fire last week, had the best week of anybody in baseball, I think, his first week in Midland. So, he’s going to continue to learn and try to fortify that approach a little bit. But playing well.
AF: Yeah, I think Denzel had four home runs in his first four games.
GF: Yeah, he’s leading the club in homers in one week!
AF: He was the Texas League Player of the Week in his first week back in action after coming off the IL. Is there anything in particular with those guys that maybe they need to focus on to get over the hump and get themselves to be able to be competitive and successful at the next level?
GF: Well, Butler, over the years, it’s certainly been about trying to calm down the monster swings but, at the same time, trying to build some more balance, some pitch selectivity while, at the same time, still being aggressive and letting that thing fly. The biggest thing that I’ve seen since spring training, and even here now, is the improvement in his two-strike approach. He’s changing his setup with two strikes. He’s got his head buried in the strike zone, and he’s spot-on with what he’s getting after and what he’s taking, so those are big steps for Lawrence. With Denzel, his whole thing is about timing, because he’s got very unique moves. He’s got the front heel way up in the air, tries to get it down. So, it’s all about getting his timing modes just synced up a little bit better.
AF: Well, another very interesting young player there at Midland this year is shortstop Darell Hernaiz, whom the A’s acquired from the Orioles in the Cole Irvin deal. I think he’s still just 21 years old. He might be one of the youngest players on that team there, and this is his first season in the A’s organization. So, I’m curious to know what you’ve seen out of him and how the future looks for Hernaiz.
GF: A lot of improvements since we first put our eyes on him in spring training. He didn’t quite look shortstop-ish. The arm was kind of bugging him a little bit, and he hid that, so we couldn’t really tell. The arm, his technique, his footwork was a little bit suspicious for what we teach. But it does come off his bat hot when he’s balanced and he gets good pitches to hit. Like you said, he’s just 21. But we all know [Midland manager] Bobby Crosby‘s a very good infield coach, and he’s done a great job, just in the month he’s had him, about working on technique, first step, footwork, and he’s looking much improved right now. I don’t know, long-term, how the arm plays itself out, especially when you use comparisons of a Jeremy Eierman or Logan Davidson or Nick Allen that have all come through here. But for a young player, he’s got strength that comes off hot. He’s got decent hands. Whether he ends up at short or second when it’s all said and done, that’s still to play itself out.
AF: Now a guy who’s been in the A’s system for a good while now – it’s been a long and winding road for Lazaro Armenteros – and he was finally just recently promoted to Double-A Midland. I’m curious where you feel we’re at with Lazaro. What’s the future hold for him? Tell me something about our friend Lazarito.
GF: Well, I don’t think that there’s a lot changed. I mean, we all know how physical he is and how well he runs, and there’s raw power in there. He’s taken advantage of a Stockton ballpark and a Lansing ballpark, because his biggest bolts still continue to be to right-center, because he’s very much inside the baseball. He still hasn’t addressed or gotten better with getting the head out and back-spinning balls to the pull side of the field. But like Laz does, he goes through a two-week funk, and then he goes through a one-week monster week and puts himself back on the map. When he started out in Lansing, he had a rough couple weeks, and then, all of a sudden, put 10-15-20 at-bats together that were of quality. And there’s just times you’ve just got to try and keep a guy moving and see if he can accept the next challenge. So, that’s where we’re at with Laz.
AF: There’s a guy there at Midland who I feel that doesn’t get enough attention, who I really like, and that’s third-baseman Brett Harris. It seems like he does a good job all around. He has a good batting average, gets on base, has a little pop, plays some defense, and I was really hoping that we’d get a chance to see him at Triple-A Las Vegas by this stage of the game, but he’s been a little blocked, so he’s still there at Midland. And he’s probably been the best all-around hitter there this season. But can you tell me what your impressions are of Brett Harris and how you see his future?
GF: Well, I’m glad you brought him up. He’s the most under-rated, under-discussed player we have here, and he’s a baseball player with decent skills, instincts. He plays the game the right way. He uses the whole field. He’s disciplined. He’s got a little thump. He puts up numbers wherever he goes – he’s doing it again now. So, I’m glad you brought him up because he’s a good player, he’s a good person. His skills don’t wow you, but when you watch this guy play the game on an everyday basis, this guy’s a complete package. He defends. He’s instinctual. He knows the game. He puts the ball in play, hits doubles, occasional homers, gives you good ABs four or five times a game.
AF: Well, hopefully, we’ll get a chance to see him in Vegas before too terribly long anyway.
GF: Yeah, agreed.
AF: Well, it sounds like we’re on the same page on that! Let me ask you about a few pitchers there at Midland. It seems like most of the most promising arms there came over from Atlanta in one deal or another. And I wanted to start out by asking about Ryan Cusick. He had a bit of a rough go of it last year there at Midland. He’s back there this year, but right now he’s in the top five in ERA in the Texas League. I know he’s still walking a few too many guys, still has some control issues, but it seems like he’s made some improvements this year so far. But I’m curious to get your impressions of where Ryan Cusick is at at this stage of the season.
GF: Well, good timing, because he just had his all-time best professional appearance last night. He was as good as I’ve seen him. He landed his slider much, much better – got swings and misses on it. Instead of using the top of the zone and trying to throw 98, he used the entire strike zone, from the bottom to the middle to the top. He’s kind of let up on the gas pedal a little bit. Instead of throwing 98 and having no clue, he’s throwing 95s and having a little bit more feel for what he’s doing. Didn’t use his changeup much, which has been the calling card for most of the starting pitchers that we try to develop is shoving that changeup. That really hasn’t come, but as far as just commanding the baseball, being efficient, looking confident all the way through last night, it was a major step in the right direction.
AF: Yeah, I think he allowed just one hit and over 6 1/3 scoreless innings, so that’s always good to see. That definitely looks like progress. Another guy who came over in the Matt Olson deal that you don’t hear quite so much about is right-hander Joey Estes. He’s still quite young as well, and he had a pretty solid season in Lansing last year. He got off to a good start there in Midland. I think his last start was a little shaky, but it seems like he’s gotten off to a pretty good start there in Double-A. But I’m curious about your impressions of young right-hander Joey Estes.
GF: Yeah, Joey’s got good stuff. He’s up to 95. He can sink it when he’s on. He’s got a decent slider, good changeup. He’s behind the baseball this year much better than he was last year. I thought last year, because of his slot and his hand finish, that he had a lot of balls that unintentionally moved out of the strike zone when he wasn’t trying to, just because of that slot. This year, he’s behind the baseball much better. He’s leveraging the baseball. The other night, he just had a different game plan, and it didn’t quite work out. He threw like 12 straight fastballs to start the game off, and he got the first two guys out, no problem. But I talked to him about it. I said, “How come you didn’t come back with a breaker? Just show them a breaker or a changeup, so it gets them off your fastball, and then go back to it.” But that got him in trouble with a couple of walks and a base hit. Then the next inning, he gave up the homer. But Joey goes again Sunday, so I’ll get a chance to see him twice on this trip. But Joey is starter-esque and, again, like you said, he’s another young one. He’s only 21.
AF: Yeah, he really seems to have a pretty good idea of what he’s doing out there on the mound most of the time for a guy that young. At that age, sometimes they seem a little clueless out there as to what the plan is.
GF: Yeah, he’s got some maturity, as far as pitching IQ and the things he knows he needs to do.
AF: Another intriguing arm there at Midland who came over from Atlanta in the Sean Murphy deal, and he seems to be a guy who’s the least mentioned part of that package, is right-hander Royber Salinas. He’s gotten off to a good start there in Midland, and I know he’s leading all A’s minor league pitchers in strikeouts this year – I think he’s been striking out about a guy and a half per inning so far in the early going. But tell me what you’ve seen out of Royber Salinas since he’s joined the system.
GF: Not a whole lot because, basically, he has touch-and-feel stuff, and he came late to camp, but I did see him a couple of times. There’s big stuff in there. Obviously, we’re starting to determine how well this guy pitches. He goes tonight. I think he’s second in the league in strikeouts here. He’s striking guys out pretty good. Everything I’ve heard from Chris Smith and Bobby is all positive, so I’m looking forward to seeing him tonight.
AF: By the way, that’s former A’s pitcher Chris Smith, who is the pitching coach at Midland this season. You’ve got a couple of former A’s there with him and Bobby Crosby on the staff. And a final guy I wanted to ask you about there at Midland is J.T. Ginn. He’s definitely had some injury issues since joining the system. I know he’s back on the IL again. I don’t know if you’ve had a chance to see him pitch at all early on or know much about his status at this stage of the game, but I’m curious to ask you where J.T. Ginn’s at at this point.
GF: Yeah, between last year, the Fall League, spring training, he’s been pretty good. But once again, something’s barking in his shoulder-elbow area, and he just hasn’t been very good here so far this season – maybe that’s because of the feeling that he has. But, anyway, he’s back in Arizona, and they’re taking a look at him and trying to figure out what’s going on.
AF: Well, let’s take a look at Las Vegas. The big club, as we all know, could use a little help, and I think there are a number of guys down there at Vegas that folks look to as guys who are going to be a part of the A’s future for a good while to come, and possibly a part of the near future. And the first guy I was going to ask you about is a guy who got off to a tremendous start in Triple-A, and he just got called up the other day and had a chance to make his Major League debut for the A’s, and that’s outfielder JJ Bleday. He’s a former first-round draft pick. I know he struggled a bit in his big league time with Miami last year, but I’m curious what you’ve seen out of him and what you imagine for his potential as a major leaguer going forward.
GF: Well, we’re certainly counting on JJ being a part of the future. There’s a lot of upside there if we can get the overall hitting prowess intact. There’s power. There’s defensive ability. So, you know, he went down to Triple-A, had an okay camp, wasn’t in there a long time – came down to minor league camp about halfway through. Good guy. Didn’t phase him that he got sent out. Came down with a great attitude. Went to Vegas, has performed in the first month, which has created this opportunity for him when they brought him up and sent Capel down. So, as a young player coming to the big leagues, it’s just development as needed, and we’ll see where this guy goes.
AF: What do you think was the cause for his struggles in Miami last year? He’s obviously a very skilled player, but he did have some real struggles when he had a chance in the Major Leagues last year. Whatever his issues were, do you think they’re fixable, or they’ve been fixed?
GF: Well, it’s hard to tell, because we weren’t around him in Miami. But when you talk to him, he was told they thought he was too patient, letting too many good pitches to hit go by. I don’t know if that’s the real issue or not. He is a fairly patient, selective-type hitter, so it’s just all about that balance, as you get closer to the big leagues, about being in a position to attack good pitches and being in a position to check out and say no. So, I’m not sure he’s just not going through growing pains that all young players in the big leagues go through.
AF: Well, I thought it was good to see that he was leading Vegas in walks, and he wasn’t striking out too much. He had more walks than strikeouts, and generally, that seems like a pretty good sign to me.
GF: Yeah, it’s a good trait to have.
AF: A guy at Vegas who everyone’s always curious to hear about is your former first-round pick, Tyler Soderstrom. He’s been playing first base and catching there, splitting time between the two. He’s continued to show some power there – a lot of extra-base hits he’s racked up in the early going. He’s still very young as well. He will, at some point, obviously, be a part of the A’s future, but I’m curious to see where you feel he’s at at this point, and also how you feel about his development defensively at both positions as well.
GF: He continues to get better behind the plate, not only receiving, but growing up and learning how to control a pitching staff. He’s throwing well. For the most part, he’s been solid offensively. He’s had some highs and some lows, which he’s going to have, because there’s times where he sees it really well and just squares it up all over the place, and then there’s times where he kind of just starts turning into a hacker a little bit, and that’s still the growing part of him as a hitter. But as far as ability and talent, for his age and what he’s doing, I think we’re definitely still in a really good position to be on track.
AF: What kind of a hitter do you foresee him being in the Major Leagues…and how close do you think he is to being able to seize that opportunity?
GF: I don’t think he’s that far away. It could be a year from now, it could be a September call-up. You don’t ever know. It goes kind of by the needs of the club and where he’s at. But when it’s all said and done, he should be a fairly decent average hitter using the whole field, a lot of thunder to the pull side, a lot of thunder to the middle of the ballpark. But it’s just about getting those at-bats to be more consistent throughout the week, like most kids.
AF: I think another guy there at Vegas that we can very easily foresee as being a part of the A’s future is second baseman Zack Gelof. He’s a former second-round pick, and kind of like Brett Harris in a sense, a guy who can bring a lot of things to the table. He’s got a good batting average. He’s been getting on base like crazy there in Vegas. Has a little pop, has a little speed, can play a little defense. Where do you feel Zack Gelof’s at and what do you see his future looking like?
GF: He’s right where he needs to be. You’ve got to remember, he’s kind of come quick. He’s had some highs and he’s had some lows, but he’s been very, very consistent so far his first month in Triple-A on all phases of the game. He hasn’t hit the ball out as much as maybe he will as the season keeps going, especially in a place like Vegas. But there’s nobody that has any worries about Zack. He’s playing well.
AF: Probably two of the most interesting arms there at Vegas are Luis Medina and Hogan Harris. Both of them have the stuff, but they’ve both got some real control issues, and we’ve seen that play out. But what have you seen out of them, where do you feel they’re at, and what do you think these guys need to do? I know, like we talked about Ryan Cusick, sometimes velocity isn’t everything, and sometimes if you dial it down a notch, you might have a little better sense of where it’s going to end up. But I’m curious to get your perspective on those two guys.
GF: Well, Hogan, especially, he’s got to get better with his fastball command. That’s what gets him in trouble nine times out of ten. He’s got a good breaker. He’s got a good changeup. He lands those pitches a lot better than he lands his fastball. He’s got some crooked moves when he’s trying to overthrow the fastball, and it hinders the repeatability of his delivery, and he gets into deeper counts and hitters’ counts and places that you just don’t want to live. The same with Medina – younger guy, certainly power stuff. This guy, I’ve seen him touch 100. He pitched at 96 yesterday in Sacramento. He’s got stuff – it’s just about repeating. And your command is a byproduct of your delivery and how much you can repeat and have some direction and be on line so that you can locate. And both these guys are going through this. Hogan, to me, has been a little bit more stubborn about it, just because I guess I’ve known him longer, and we’ve talked about these things over and over and over. But if he ever gets that cleaned up, he’s got a chance to be good.
AF: Yeah, well, it’d certainly be good to see those guys make the improvements they need to make, because they’ve certainly got the stuff anyway. By the way, how good is it to see Mason Miller doing what he’s been able to do at the Major League level after such a brief time in the system with you guys?
GF: Yeah, it’s pretty cool. A guy gets one win in his minor league career and goes to the big leagues and throws seven innings of no-hit baseball. It’s pretty special. It was just good to see him land his breaking ball the other night. The other games that I’ve seen on TV, he’s throwing hard, he’s had command with his fastball, but he hasn’t been able to throw his slider for quality strikes when needed. The other night was much better.
AF: Yeah, well, it certainly seems if he’s going to be able to continue to do that, he’s going to be pretty unhittable.
GF: We need some unhittable guys.
AF: Yeah, definitely. Five would be great, but I think at this point, we’ll settle for two.
GF: I’ll take ten. We need ten.
AF: Alrighty, deal!
If you’d like to hear the rest of our conversation about A’s prospects at Lansing and Stockton like Daniel Susac, Max Muncy, Caeden Trenkle, Brayan Buelvas, Clark Elliott, Colby Thomas and Henry Bolte, you can listen to our complete conversation here on A’s Cast
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