A's Call Up Chris Carter
- Monday, August 9, 2010 1:39 PM
- Written By: AccuScore
The next top prospect has been called up, and before you rush out to grab him in your fantasy leagues, take a moment to examine Chris Carter. The Oakland A’s are completely out of the race with just a 1.9% chance at the playoffs according to AccuScore’s latest numbers. And that is up from just 0.5% just last week. Carter will fill in at 1B and OF, and management has said that when he comes up he will be up for good. With the variety of injuries currently plaguing the A’s, playing time will probably be plentiful. Success however might be in short supply.
Carter has hit .262/.368/.531 with 27 homers in 424 at-bats at Triple-A Sacramento in the offensively oriented PCL. He started the season off very slowly, but has picked it up considerably since the All-Star break hitting .362 with a 1.151 OPS and 8 HR in 25 games. The downside though is clear: 124 strikeouts, a rate of nearly 30%. The power is legitimate, but he will be playing in a poor hitter’s environment in Oakland as well as Anaheim and Seattle.
The best comparable out there is probably Florida’s Mike Stanton, another prospect with huge power and problems making contact. Stanton has a K-rate of 36% while hitting the ball a long way when he does connect (10 HR). Expect much of the same from Carter which makes him barely on the fringe in standard mixed leagues and an AL-only play.
