When the 2018 baseball season began for Brian Rey he was entering his sophomore season at Miami Dade Community College. For the second year in a row he hit .400 and this time showed an uptick in power, slugging .655. He also walked more often than he struck out. That helped lead to the Cincinnati Reds drafting him with their 13th round selection in the draft.
The Reds assigned Brian Rey to their newest affiliate in it’s inaugural season, the Greeneville Reds. With the Appalachian League season not beginning until June 20th, he only played in seven games during the month of June. He had hits in six of them. He only struck out in one game. Over the 10 days of play with Greeneville he hit .458/.526/.583 with three doubles, three walks, and two strikeouts.
Riding a four game hitting streak entering July, Brian Rey kept things going. Over the first two weeks of the month the outfielder racked up at least one hit in 10 more games, extending his his streak to 14. Only two of the games were multi-hit affairs, going 12-42 (.286) during the 10 in July. The second half of the month didn’t go nearly as well as he went into a slump. In 13 games played, Rey had a hit in just four of them, going 8-38 (.211) with just one double. He did walk five times, and was hit by another four pitches in that span. In his 23 games played during July he hit .250/.355/.288 with three doubles, eight walks and six strikeouts in 93 plate appearances.
Brian Rey continued his slump into August. He played in 12 games through the 19th and hit just .167, going 7-42 with a double and no walks. Things picked up over the final ten days of the season for Greeneville as he went out and hit .320, going 8-25 with two home runs – his only homers of the season. The 20-year-old played in 19 games during the month and hit .224/.264/.328 in 72 plate appearances. He struck out just six times, but walked just once in that span.
For all 2018 Season Reviews and Scouting Reports – click here (these will come out during the week throughout the offseason).
Brian Rey Spray Chart
Brian Rey Scouting Report
Position: Outfield | B/T: R/R
Height: 5′ 11″ | Weight: 170 lbs | Drafted: 13th Round, 2018
Born: 2/22/1998 in Deltona, Florida
Hitting | Brian Rey makes a ton of contact, and he uses the whole field. He’s got an average hit tool, though it could play up a tad.
Power | He slugged just .345 in 2018, but there’s more power in there than that. He’s got below-average raw power, but double digit home runs is not out of the question.
Speed | He’s got above-average speed.
Defense | In college he played shortstop and second base, but made a smooth transition to the outfield. He split time between center and right field and is a quality defender.
Arm | He’s got a solid arm.
The 2018 season has some things to like from Brian Rey. He made contact at a rate unlike any other player in the organization. He struck out just 14 times in 193 plate appearances. That’s a strikeout rate of just 7.3%, which was easily the best in the farm system. No one else in the system with 150 or more plate appearances finished better than 11.7%. He walked nearly as often as he struck out, too. The right-handed hitter used the entire field in his approach and that’s always a positive.
Offensively there was one issue that did show up, though. The power he showed in college completely disappeared. He’s listed at 5′ 11″ and 170 lbs, and he’s a strong guy. There’s more power in there for him to tap into, and a lot more than his .345 slugging percentage would suggest. While I wouldn’t count on him going out and hitting 15+ home runs in the future, 10-12 doesn’t seem unrealistic.
On the defensive side of things he made a quick, and seemingly easy transition to the outfield. He played center field for Greeneville most days until Mike Siani showed up. That’s when he slid over to right field, and in just 27 games he picked up four assists. He also didn’t make a single error during the season in the outfield over 42 games. Rey also made two starts at second base.
Brian Rey is a bit undersized when it comes to what you think of in a professional baseball player. But he’s got some tools and skills to work with. Ideally you would like to see a few more walks, and maybe trade some contact for power – as he’s got a whole lot of leeway in the contact department to trade in. But he also provides plenty of positional flexibility, capable of playing anywhere in the outfield and over at second base.
Longest Home Run of the Year
417 feet on August 20th.
Interesting Stat on Brian Rey
In a very limited sample size of just 41 plate appearances he really struggled against left-handed pitchers. He hit just .200/.293/.229 against lefties. Against right-handers he hit .287/.362/.375 in 152 plate appearances.