RAY SADLER

9/19/80; '99 30th (Chicago Cubs); Hill (Texas) JC
R/R; 6-1, 200

Level
BA
OBP
SA
AB
2B
3B
HR
BB
K
SB
CS
2000 R (ChiC)
.339
.395
.448
165
5
5
1
16
27
4
 
2001 A (ChiC)
.341
.378
.508
378
27
3
10
22
58
18
 
2002 AA (ChiC)
.067
.263
.100
30
1
0
0
5
5
2
 
2002 A+ (ChiC)
.286
.333
.429
462
31
1
11
27
81
30
 
2003 AA (ChiC)
.291
.352
.434
412
31
5
6
33
81
17
7
2003 AA
.264
.310
.415
53
5
0
1
3
16
0
0
2004 AA
.268
.307
.471
429
25
1
20
23
89
16
6

The Pirates acquired Sadler from the Cubs for Randall Simon. He didn't have much baseball experience when he signed as a draft-and-follow, but still advanced steadily with the Cubs. He has good speed. He's played almost exclusively in the corners since the trade and the Pirates don't seem to regard him as a CF. The Pirates originally seemed to regard Sadler as a potential leadoff hitter, but he doesn't profile that way and he batted exclusively toward the bottom of a good Altoona lineup in 2004. After a very bad start, he got hot and started hitting for considerable power, getting his slugging average up over .500 for a while despite playing home games in an extreme pitchers' park. He stopped hitting late in the season, though. Sadler's main flaw is a big one: very poor plate discipline. His walk rate, already low, dropped in 2004 and he finished with an unacceptable OBP. It's uncertain whether the Pirates really regard him as a prospect. When they first acquired him, Dave Littlefield described him as a prospect, but Littlefield routinely claims that minor leaguers he's acquired are prospects, only to have it become apparent later that the team really doesn't regard them that highly. After he was acquired, he didn't play every day, as Altoona preferred to play minor league veteran Bret Roneberg regularly during the team's drive for a playoff spot. The Pirates are, however, a strongly tools-oriented organization and they regard Sadler as very toolsy. He was eligible for the Rule 5 draft but was not selected. He'll open 2005 at Indianapolis. Once Jon Nunnally returns from his steroid suspension, the OF there will be a little crowded, with Nate McLouth, Chris Duffy, Nunnally, and Rich Thompson, so it's uncertain how much Sadler will play. He'll be 24, which is not too old to be considered a prospect. Still, he's a long-shot due to his poor strike zone judgment.

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