Future Friars: Sean Burroughs

Everybody and their mother has talked about Sean Burroughs, so there's probably not much that I can add. That said, I'm not one to shy away from voicing my opinion, so here it is.

As prospects go, the Padres have had very few marquee hitters come through the system over the years: Dave Winfield, Tony Gwynn, Roberto Alomar. I'm not saying he's a future HOFer, but Sean Burroughs is very much in the same category as those three.

Burroughs first made a name for himself as a pitcher for the Long Beach (CA) squad in the Little League World Series some years ago. He is a good athlete and a disciplined hitter with developing power. His father, Jeff, was the first pick overall back in 1969 and arrived in the big leagues at age 19. The elder Burroughs retired after the 1984 season, with 1603 games, 234 homers, and an MVP award under his belt.

Unlike his dad, Sean bats from the left side. He possesses a very quick stroke and can drive the ball to all fields. There is very little doubt that Burroughs will challenge for batting titles once he reaches the bigs. What is open for debate is how much power he will have.

Burroughs hasn't hit a great many homers in his minor-league career; however, he has been a doubles machine, and this year, as the youngest player in Triple-A, he set a career high with nine bombs. That may not seem like a lot, but he is only 20 years old and power is a relatively advanced hitting skill. Burroughs is a big kid who is still filling out and learning how to use his natural strength.

In the field, Burroughs has good hands, an above-average arm, and adequate range. He is generally regarded as a better defender than current Padre third baseman Phil Nevin.

The Padres are doing everything they can to clear a path for Burroughs, including possibly moving either him or Nevin to second base for the short-term. If Burroughs does break camp with the big club in 2002, expect him to hit like the Cubs' Bill Mueller. Eventually--and this is an admittedly lofty comparison--I believe he'll produce along the lines of Atlanta's Chipper Jones. Even if his power doesn't develop the way I think it will, he should at the very least settle in as a Jeff Cirillo/John Olerud type hitter.

2001 Stats:

Level    AB    H  2B  3B  HR  BB  SO  SB  CS   E    BA   OBP   SLG
AAA     394  127  28   1   9  37  54   9   2  10  .322  .386  .467