Juan Rivera Stats & Scouting Report

AB	3471
AVG	.274
OBP	.323
SLG	.443
HR	132

Full name Juan Luis Rivera
Born 07/03/1978 in Guarenas, Venezuela
Profile Ht.: 6'2" / Wt.: 220 / Bats: R / Throws: R
Debut 09/04/2001

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

Rivera nearly won the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League triple crown with a .333-12-45 effort in 1998. He re-emerged at Double-A Norwich in 2001. On his way to his first game at Yankee Stadium last June, he got lost on the subway. Then he broke his right kneecap when he ran into a golf cart during pregame drills, which knocked him out for two months. He looked more like a veteran the second time around, finishing the season as a regular in left and right field and starting in all four games against the Angels in the American League Division Series. While Rivera doesn't employ a prototypical swing--his front foot bails a la Roberto Clemente--he crushes fastballs and covers the outer half of the plate when he keeps his hands back. He has above-average raw power, though his power production has been average at best. Rivera's defense may have been the deciding factor in his postseason starts. He has 65 arm strength on the 20-80 scouting scale. He makes good reads off the bat and takes good routes to the ball. Rivera could produce more power with improved selectivity, and he can be susceptible to offspeed stuff away. Rivera has a thick lower half and is an average runner. As he continues to fill out, his speed will diminish. In spite of his playoff experience, Rivera could be squeezed out of New York with the signing of Hideki Matsui and the team's inability to unload Raul Mondesi and Rondell White, and it's not clear whether the club considers him a long-term answer in the outfield.
Rivera's ascent is similar to that of former Yankees prospect Ricky Ledee, who spent seven seasons in the minors before making his major league debut. Rivera made his debut after his best offensive season since he emerged as the top prospect in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League in 1998. Rivera's tools far surpass Ledee's and he's a better all-around athlete. Hard work with Norwich hitting coach Dan Radison paid off. Rivera got bigger and stronger before last season, and more important he did a better job staying back and recognizing breaking balls. He is a prototypical right fielder with an above-average arm. Rivera's strength allows him to hammer mistakes on the inner half, but he has holes in his swing that experienced pitchers can exploit. His walk rate declined and he'll have to be more patient. Rivera continued to play well this winter in Venezuela. The acquisition of Rondell White and John Vander Wal clouds his immediate future, so he'll likely return to Triple-A.
Signed in 1996, Rivera spent two seasons in the Rookie-level Dominican and Venezuelan summer leagues before making his U.S. debut in 1998, when he led the Gulf Coast League in homers and RBIs and ranked as its No. 1 prospect. He hasn't excelled like that since, repeating the Florida State League last year and struggling after a late-season promotion to Double-A. Rivera makes decent contact and has hit for gap power, but he won't hit for a higher average or tap into his raw power until he develops more patience at the plate. He's an average runner with a plus arm, which makes him a legitimate right fielder. When Jackson Melian was included in the Denny Neagle trade with the Reds, Rivera became the Yankees' top upper-level outfield prospect. But he's still at least two years away from New York.
Background: Rivera made his pro debut in 1996 in the Dominican Summer League then spent 1997 in the Venezuelan Summer League. He narrowly missed the Gulf Coast League triple crown in 1998, leading the rookie league in home runs and RBIs while finishing fourth in batting average. Strengths: Rivera is a tools player with a classic resume for right field: plus bat speed, easy power to all fields, above-average throwing arm and solid overall defensive skills. His strikeout and walk numbers were impressive for a young power hitter. Weaknesses: If there is a weakness in Rivera's tool set, it's that he is only an average runner. He signed at an older age than most Latin players. The Future: The Yankees already had one phenom Venezuelan outfielder, Melian. Now they have a pair, though Rivera is more than a year older and has not played above Rookie ball. If Rivera can handle the jump, it wouldn't be surprising to see the two together in the Tampa outfield in 1999.

Minor League Top Prospects

If it weren't for a poorly placed ground-crew cart at Yankee Stadium, Rivera probably would be the Yankees' regular right fielder right now. He ran into that cart while shagging fly balls on June 8, three days after being recalled, and fractured his kneecap. By the time Rivera returned from the DL in August, Raul Mondesi had been acquired and Rivera returned to Columbus. Despite the injury, he continued to refine his raw tools. Managers said he matured from a sloppy hitter to one who makes pitch-to-pitch adjustments. The ball really jumps off his bat, and he has power to all fields. Rivera also possesses a strong outfield arm. "Next year he should be the right fielder in New York," Malave said. "He's a five-tool player. Seeing him last year to this year, there's been a lot of improvement. He's got more patience at the plate and is not chasing everything."
After tearing up the Double-A Eastern League, Rivera did the same to the IL. He always has been a free swinger, but the difference in 2001 was that he began driving balls out of the park rather than into the gaps. "Wow. He has some kind of juice in his swing," Tosca said. "He hits to all fields. You see him recognize the breaking ball. He doesn't necessarily hit it, but he'll be a great hitter." Rivera has a plus arm and decent speed, but his routes to fly balls could use improvement. Soon after Paul O'Neill retires, Rivera should be ready to take over in right field at Yankee Stadium.
Rivera might have won the EL triple crown if not for a midseason promotion to Triple-A Columbus, where his .327-14-40 numbers in 55 games mirrored those of what he did in 77 games with Norwich. Rivera has a quick bat and a clean swing that gives him good plate coverage. His combined 28 homers doubled what he produced in each of his two seasons at high Class A Tampa in the pitcher-friendly FSL. "He's made some big strides from a couple of years ago at Tampa," Harrisburg manager Luis Dorante said. "He puts more power numbers up now and he's a good two-strike hitter. Defensively, he's solid and he has a good arm. He's one of those four-tool guys. "The one tool he's missing is running, but maybe that's because of the organization. The Yankees just don't run a whole lot. He gets down the line pretty good. I don't know why they don't let him steal more."