If you could waive a magic wand and ensure that just one Colorado Rockies prospect would reach his full potential, it might be wise for the Denver fan to spend this power on Michael Toglia.
Don’t get me wrong, Ezequiel Tovar, Zac Veen and Drew Romo are still the guys who the club most needs to pan out in order for the organization to turn things around but Toglia could end up being the difference between this group of players being exciting and this group of players being transformative.
Currently, Toglia walks a sharp edge familiar to baseball fans and analysts for years. He is an exceptionally talented athlete with top-end power and the ability to provide elite defense at first base and in the corner outfield spots.
The 6’5, 230 lb. switch-hitter has all the tools except speed (and he’s not exactly a set of square wheels either, he swiped seven bags at Double-A last year which is approximately seven more than most power-hitting first baseman.
Of course, fans are probably slightly more excited about the 30 home runs he hit in 114 games across Double-A and Triple-A, adding two more once he got to MLB.
While we are on the truly encouraging points, it’s also worth noting that Toglia has been working closely with Rockies legend Todd Helton, someone who knows a little something about being a cornerstone first baseman.
But if this isn’t your first rodeo projecting prospects, you could probably guess even if this was your first time hearing about him what the major concern is for Toglia. Like thousands of players before him, his fate will be determined by whether or not he can make enough contact.
Toglia has some worrisome strikeout numbers throughout his minor league career. He has hovered right at 30 percent and that jumped to 36 percent during his brief stint in the bigs last year.
That profile may remind folks around here of Sam Hilliard who spent the last couple of seasons in Colorado trying to get all of the other tools to shine through but simply could not get on base enough to justify keeping him on the roster.
That is the low-end comparison for Toglia’s potential future and why you might want to consider using that magic wand on him.
An inability to adjust to major league pitching can end a career before it ever really has a chance to begin but if this young man can figure it out, he will become a local favorite in a hurry.
One bright spot on his resume that may help him navigate this is that he has always had decent walk numbers sitting between 12 and 13 percent in the minors.
So far this spring, we’ve seen it all. He is hitting .255/.345/.412 with a pair of home runs and a stolen base in 55 plate appearances. Those numbers would be more than acceptable if they largely translated to the regular season.
However, he has also struck out 18 times which trails only teammate Nolan Jones for most across all of Spring Training. He’s also tied with Yonathan Daza for the team lead in hits with 13.
This looks like it is going to be the Toglia experience for a little while. And frankly, the Rockies don’t need him to reach his absolute maximum potential in order for him to carve out a long and important future here.
There is a version of him that settles in as a guy who swings and misses too much to anchor a lineup and may not ever come close to having a decent batting average. He could be anywhere from Joey Gallo at his best to Joey Gallo at his worst. A ton of empty at-bats. Phenomenal defense. Occasional game-changing pop.
But boy oh boy could the Rockies have something special here if the best tendencies of Helton – a well-known battler at the plate – can rub off on Michael Toglia and he can become the best version of himself… even without the magic.
