Cincinnati Reds Top Prospects: 3B Seth Mejias-Brean

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After finishing the second half of 2014 with Pensacola, Seth Mejias-Brean returned to play third base for the Blue Wahoos in 2015. The season didn’t get out to a quick start in his return, as he would go just 2-12 in the first week. Things picked up in the second week of April though as Mejias-Brean would hit .300 in 20 at-bats with three extra-base hits and three walks. The final eight games of the month were a mixed bag as he hit just .240, but walked six times  and had two extra-base hits. For the month the third baseman would post a .246/.368/.404 line with as many walks as strikeouts (11) in 68 plate appearances.

The first week of May got out to a very rough start for the former Arizona product, going just 3-23 (.130) in eight games. Things didn’t go much better in the second week of May as the third baseman went 3-18 (.167). The following week he would go 7-22 (318) with five walks and two doubles as things began to turn around. They really picked up over the final seven games of the month as Mejias-Brean went 12-31 (.387) to push his line on the month to .266/.346/.309. It was light on power output with just four doubles, but after such a rough start to the month, things turned around nicely.

Things were out to a nice start in June, going 2-5 with six walks in the first four games, but then he would miss the entire next week of play before returning to the field. The first week back was limited as he maned just 12 plate appearances, going 2-10 with a home run in that span. The final six games didn’t go much better as Mejias-Brean went just 3-18 with a triple, though he did walk seven times to keep a healthy .423 on-base percentage on the week. In just 14 games during June the third baseman would hit .212/.469/.364 as he walked 15 times with just seven strikeouts in 49 plate appearances.

July began with an 0-4 night against Jacksonville, but the final six games of the week all contained at least one hit, going 8-21 (.320) with a double and a home run. His hitting streak would continue for three more games, but he would go 3-18 over the week. After three days off Mejias-Brean returned to the field and put together a strong third week by going 9-27 (.333) with four extra-base hits and four walks. A slump quickly followed though, going 1-11 to start the final week of the month before picking things up a bit and finishing things in July by going six for the next 16. It was arguably the best month of the season as he would hit .268/.351/.423 in 111 plate appearnces with nine extra-base hits.

The first week of August was all-or-nothing. Two games were multiple-hit nights, but the other four games would see him go 0-11. The second week was a struggle as well as Mejias-Brean would hit just .192 in 26 at-bats, but four of his five hits on the week went for extra-bases. The slump continued into the third week of August by going 3-22 (.136) with a double. From the 22nd through the 27th the third baseman managed just one hit in 17 at-bats (.059) before catching fire to end the season. In the final ten games, stretching into the first week of September, Seth Mejias-Brean would go 14-40 (.350) with four walks and three extra-base hits. Over the final 34 games of the year he would post a .226/.307/.331 line.

Seth Mejias-Brean Scouting Report

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Hitting | He’s a below-average hitter right now, but could be an average hitter in the future.

Power | His current power is below-average, but he’s got 15-20 home run potential if he can make some changes and get the most from his raw power.

Running | When he’s at his top speed he is an average runner.

Arm | He’s got an above-average arm that plays well at third base.

Defense | At third base he can make all of the plays. He’s got range to both sides as well as coming in on balls.

Seth Mejias-Brean is ahead of the game defensively, but his bat has some things that need to improve. He seems content to slap the ball the other way too often and it’s resulted in a lot of weak contact, sapping him of power production and an ability to hit for a higher average. As you can see in the spray chart below, when he goes the opposite way, his average and power output decline massively. While most players do see diminished returns going the other way, it’s to a large extreme for Mejias-Brean. Perhaps being a bit more pull-conscious would be beneficial to his offensive output. He has a good understanding of the strikezone and is a patient hitter. If his bat doesn’t fully develop, he could profile as a corner player off of the bench who provides strong defense, a quality at-bat and occasional pop.

Spray Chart

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