Cincinnati Reds #14 Prospect: 3B Taylor Sparks

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The 2015 season got out to a rough start for Taylor Sparks. The Cincinnati Reds plan heading into spring training likely had the third baseman heading to Dayton to begin the year, but the suspension of Tanner Rahier likely led to his being bumped up to Advanced-A Daytona. In his first eight games he would hit .172/.200/.276 with a walk and 13 strikeouts. He would rebound over the next week in a big way, going 11-25 with five extra-base hits while hitting .440/.481/.720. In that stretch he had two hits in five of the seven games played. He would slump in the final week of the month and finish up with a line of .267/.304/.413 over 79 plate appearances. Sparks walked just three times and he had 30 strikeouts, good for a strikeout rate of 38%. He would also make nine errors in the month.

The slump that ended the final week of April carried over into May. In the first 22 days of the month the Tortugas third baseman would hit just .187/.228/.240 with three walks and 27 strikeouts in 80 plate appearances. He would catch fire shortly, going 7-15 over the next four games, but followed that up by finishing the month with a 1-12 stretch. In 108 plate appearances on the month he would hit .216/.252/.255 with three walks and 33 strikeouts. The plate discipline was again an issue as the strikeout rate was very high and the walk rate remained very low. Defensively he made 13 errors in the month, struggling on that side of the ball as well.

June got out to a strong start. Over the first two weeks of the month, Sparks would hit .302/.340/.698. He would put on a power display over that stretch, smacking three doubles, a triple and four home runs. A slump would come on quickly though as he would go just 2-23 over the next week, hitting .087/.087/.087 without a walk. In the final week of the month he would catch fire once again, hitting .400/.367/.550, but would go a second straight week without a walk. On the month he would finish with a .267/.283/.500 line to go along with three walks and 30 strikeouts. The plate discipline remained suspect as he drew just three walks for the third consecutive month and had a strikeout rate over 30% of the third consecutive month. He did start showing good power for the first time on the season though. He also cut down on his errors, making just five on the month.

The strides made in June carried forward into July. Over the first 10 games of the month, Sparks would hit .371/.436/.457. That line did come along with 15 strikeouts in 39 plate appearances though (38%). Over the next nine games he would go into a big slump, hitting just .121/.167/.212, but cut down on the strikeouts some, with just 10 in 36 plate appearances. Something clicked in the final eight games of the month as he went on the best stretch he had in the season, posting a .429/.515/.786 line in 33 plate appearances with four walks and four strikeouts. July would easily be the best month of the season to that point for the third baseman. He would post a .302/.370/.469 line with nine walks and 29 strikeouts. The nine walks matched his total from the previous three months and his strikeout rate of 27%, while still high, was the best of the season as well. The defensive improvements carried forward from June as well, as he made just four errors in the month.

For as strong as July was, August got out to a very poor start. In the first seven games of the month, he would go 1-24 with two walks and 11 strikeouts, hitting just .042/.115/.042. He would heat up for a three game stretch, going 7-11 with two doubles, two walks, two home runs and no strikeouts, but followed that up by going 0-12 over the next four games with 10 strikeouts. Sparks would have a huge game on August 19th, going 3-3 with a triple and a home run, but that game was followed up by finishing the month going 1-26 with 15 strikeouts. When the calendar flipped to September he would rebound by going 4-11. That stretch helped some, but he would post a .184/.298/.391 line in 105 plate appearances with 12 walks and 40 strikeouts. The improved walk rate from July carried forward and was a good sign, but his strikeout rate jumped up to a season worst 38%. He would keep the error total down, making just five errors in the month.

The late season struggles would carry forward into the playoffs. In six games for the Tortugas in the Florida State League first round and Championship Series, Sparks would go 3-24 with no walks and with 16 strikeouts.

The consistency throughout the season didn’t exist for Sparks in his first full season. He would go through hot-and-cold streaks nearly every month, which isn’t surprising given that his plate discipline was a struggle for most of the year. He improved that as the season progressed, but his strikeout rate remained incredibly high throughout the year. Defensively he made strides as the season moved along, but will need to continue to make progress there as well.

Scouting Report

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Hitting | Sparks has a below-average hit tool. He can use the entire field and hit the ball hard to all fields, his pitch recognition struggles really hold back his ability to hit for an average.

Power | His best offensive tool, he shows above-average power now and flashes plus potential where 30 home runs isn’t out of the question.

Running | Despite his size, listed at 6′ 4″ and 200 lbs, Sparks is an above-average runner.

Arm | Another above-average tool in terms of arm strength, but he still needs to improve his accuracy with his throws.

Defense | Much like his arm, the defense shows above-average potential. He is able to make all of the plays, both routine and highlight reel caliber. He still needs to be more consistent with the glove though.

Offensively, the tools are present to be an above-average player, but his plate discipline/pitch recognition skills are currently holding back his ability to use the raw skills that he has at the plate. He made improvements in that regard later in the season, but there is a lot more improving to do in order to be where he needs to be. His swing is rather long and big strikeout totals are likely to be something that remains a part of his game in the future. Defensively he also profiles as a potentially above-average player, but he’s going to need to continue to find more consistency. All of the tools are there for Taylor Sparks, but there’s a lot of work to turn the tools he currently has into every day skills on the baseball field.

Spray Chart

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