John Tolisano
| AB | 2480 |
|---|---|
| AVG | .239 |
| OBP | .324 |
| SLG | .397 |
| HR | 74 |
- Full name John L. Tolisano
- Born 10/07/1988 in Sanibel, FL
- Profile Ht.: 5'11" / Wt.: 190 / Bats: S / Throws: R
- School Estero
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Drafted in the 2nd round (85th overall) by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2007 (signed for $391,500).
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Tolisano's father Michael is a chiropractor who played baseball at Connecticut before moving to Florida, and his amateur career has been well documented. He was named Baseball America's top 14-year-old in 2003 when he played on the same AAU national champion team as Michael Main, and he was considered one of the country's top underclassmen as a freshman and sophomore. Tolisano's performance fell off last summer, however, and he enters the draft as something of an enigma. He has a fair stroke from both sides of the plate, with average bat speed and solid-average power to all fields. He made better contact late in this season, but has struggled to square balls up enough that teams questions his ability to hit for average. He's a 50 runner on the 20-80 scale with flashy actions on defense. He has below-average hands and poor footwork, and some scouts believe he's best suited for the outfield. He could be drafted as high as the second round.
Top Rankings
Organization Prospect Rankings
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One of the four high schoolers the Blue Jays drafted in the first two rounds in 2007, Tolisano led the Gulf Coast League with 10 homers in his pro debut. Like the rest of those premium picks, he has struggled to hit since. Tolisano's bat is supposed to be his strong suit. He has a compact body and swing, showing surprising power for his size. A switch-hitter, his swing is solid from both sides, albeit slightly better from the left. He made more contact in 2009, but he still needs further improvement on his plate discipline. Though Tolisano has slightly above-average speed, he's not a basestealing threat. He's an average defender at second with an average arm, and he has made improvements on the angles he takes to balls. He's a slightly above-average runner. He's a hard worker, but he needs to improve his conditioning after wilting in the heat of the Florida State League toward the end of last season. He'll return there to open 2010. -
Tolisano made the loudest initial splash of the four high schoolers the Blue Jays took in the first two rounds of the 2007 draft, swatting 10 homers in his debut to pace the Gulf Coast League. But like Justin Jackson and Kevin Ahrens, he struggled with the grind of playing every day in the Midwest League last season and faded in the second half. He hit just .173 in July and .151 in August to finish on a sour note. The Blue Jays believe that adversity was good for Tolisano, who consistently was better than his competition as an underclassman--Baseball America ranked him as the top 14-year-old player in the United States in 2003. A switch-hitter with a mechanically sound swing from both sides, Tolisano has much more hitting ability than he showed in 2008. He's short to the ball and has average bat speed, though his natural strength and the loft in his swing could lead to average power down the road. His lefthanded swing still is ahead of his righty stroke, as he tends to get out on his front side from the right side. Primarily a shortstop as an amateur, Tolisano has played second base exclusively as a pro. While he has made strides there, he still rates as below-average in terms of his hands, positioning and reads on grounders. He made clear improvements in his double-play technique, both in turning the pivot and making feeds to the shortstop. He's an average runner with more than enough arm for second base. Because of their depth at second base, the Blue Jays can afford to be patient with Tolisano. He may require more time in low Class A to get back on track. -
Tolisano has been on Baseball America's radar since 2003, when we named him the top 14-year-old player in the United States. Though he was home-schooled, Tolisano played for Estero (Fla.) High, where he was considered one of the nation's top underclassmen as a freshman and sophomore. His stock slipped somewhat afterward and he lasted until the second round last June. Signed for $391,500, he led the Gulf Coast League with 10 homers in his debut. With strength and loft in his swing from both sides of the plate, Tolisano is short to the ball and has average bat speed and solid-average power to all fields. His swing is more fluid from the left side, and he tends to get out on his front side too much as a righty. He commands the strike zone and is more mature than most players his age, suggesting he'll get the most out of his abilities as a hitter. He's an average runner and has a strong arm for a second baseman. Tolisano's days of playing shortstop are behind him, and he still has work to do to stay at second base. His hands don't work particularly well and his footwork has a long way to go. Some scouts suggest he'll end up in right field. While the Blue Jays concede that Tolisano never will be much better than an average defender at second, his bat might be enough to carry him. He'll head to low Class A, where he could continue to provide more immediate returns than Toronto's other early-round high school draftees from 2007.
Minor League Top Prospects
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Tolisano has been on Baseball America's radar since 2003, when we named him the top 14-year-old player in the United States. Though his performance and stock slipped somewhat between then and the 2007 draft, he still went in the second round and his power was the talk of the GCL in his pro debut. The switch-hitter led the league with 10 homers. Tolisano's swing is more fluid from the left side, where the ball jumps off his bat to all fields. Though he didn't hit for a high average, his defense is a bigger question. His arm strength grades out as average to plus, but his hands don't work particularly well and his footwork has a long way to go. Tolisano best profiles as a right fielder with enough arm and power to handle the position.
