Not enough? Throw
in a great on-base clip and the fact that this competitor feels he has
everything in the world to prove coming off of an injury.
Meet Travis Buck.
With the 36th
overall pick in the 2005 Draft, the Oakland Athletics selected the
promising Arizona State outfielder. Buck wasted no time getting
acclimated to playing professional ball. The 6-foot-3, 210-pounder
needed a mere nine games at Low-A Vancouver before he received a
promotion to the next level. In the final 32 games of the 2005 season,
Buck put up an impressive .341 batting average and a stellar .427
on-base percentage for Single-A Kane County.
The strong
stretch run landed Buck a roster spot with High-A Stockton to start the
2006 campaign. In his 126 at-bat stint, the 22-year-old posted a round
.400 OBP to go with an even more impressive .603 slugging percentage.
This
constant success and development left Buck packing his bags once again,
this time for Double-A Midland and the Texas League, where his
impressive ascension through the minor leagues hit a speed bump.
Midland
brought yet another twist to the rapid-changing career of Travis Buck.
In July, the injury bug hit Buck for the first time in his professional
career in the form of a hip flexor ailment.
Playing through
the pain, Buck somehow continued his offensive assault with a vital
line of .302/.376/.472 over his 50-game stretch in a Rockhounds’
uniform before being shutdown for the remainder of the season.
The
only problem was that Buck's hip was fine. As he continued his rehab at
the Arizona Fall League, Buck reaggravated the injury. Three months
after the original diagnosis, Buck’s injury was correctly diagnosed as
a sports hernia, putting him even further behind schedule.
Over
the course of his four-city, 497 at-bat tour as a professional, the
lefty has posted a .328 average, 10 home runs, and 79 RBI. While he
only managed to put 10 over then fence, Buck did pound out a more than
impressive 53 doubles. Look for this gap-to-gap alley power to
transition into more of a long ball threat as Buck continues to develop.
But he still may never hit 30 home runs in a season.
Is
that really a problem? Despite the 10 home run number, Buck has managed
a strong .511 slugging percentage over the course of his minor league
career thanks to his marks as a doubles hitter.
The power
doesn’t need to develop – it would be a bonus. Buck has proven himself
to be an on-base machine, walking 60 times and posting a .399 OBP.
Over the course of his minor league career, Buck has posted a batting average well over .300 to go along with his impressive on-base clip, put up a strong .511 slugging number, and used his speed and arm strength on defense playing as an excellent outfielder. Look for Travis Buck to bring his five-tool package to a big league stadium near you sometime soon.
Continuing next on Christmas Eve, Farm Feed will highlight a new prospect every Sunday morning. Have a player you would like to see profiled? Simply email Adam Loberstein at adamloberstein@gmail.com with the player(s) of your choice.