Teagarden's an interesting case study in prospect expectations versus performance. When he was first drafted by the Rangers in the third round in 2005, no one had any questions about his defense. However, the conventional wisdom was that Teagarden's bat might not fare well moving from aluminum to wood. However, he quashed those expectations with a strong half season in the Northwest League. He had TJ surgery and missed almost all of 2006, but came back with a monster power year in 2007, smacking 27 HR between High-A Bakersfield and Double-A Frisco. Big things were expected, but there were some warning flags.
Even in college, Teagarden was a three-true outcomes hitter, but this propensity was magnified as a professional. His BB/AB dropped a great deal in AA, which meant that he was either not reading pitches as well at the higher level, getting tougher strikes he couldn't deal with, or a small statistical anomaly. Judging by this year's results, it's not an anomaly. The walks are up, but not enough to justify the stratospheric K/AB rates. He's also hitting for power, but a 413 SLG at AAA for a 24-year-old college catcher isn't inspiring.
The Rangers called him up since Jarrod Saltalamacchia is battling a head cold. Teagarden also was tabbed for the 2008 U.S. Olympic team, and could still go if he's sent back down. Teagarden's call up, then, sounds like a short-term move, so for teams in non-keeper leagues
I'd say No Bid. In keeper leagues, you might want to put in a conservative $4 bid. Teagarden hasn't impressed, but Gerald Laird is a light-hitting catcher, Jarrod Saltalamacchia looks like his defensive future might not be behind the dish, and Max Ramirez might not be any better than Teagarden. There's possibly a future here, but there are too many variables right now to even commit a big FAAB bid in anticipation of 2009.
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