Che-Hsuan Lin Stats & Scouting Report

AB	12
AVG	.25
OBP	.25
SLG	.25
HR	0

Full name Che-Hsuan Lin
Born 09/21/1988 in Hwa-Lian, Taiwan
Profile Ht.: 6'0" / Wt.: 180 / Bats: R / Throws: R
Debut 04/14/2012

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

Lin controls the strike zone and plays center field better than anyone in the system, but it's still uncertain whether he can contribute enough with the bat to make an impact in the major leagues. Signed for $400,000 out of high school in Taiwan, where he was a national 100-meter and high-jump champion, he has continued to play for his nation at the 2008 Olympics and 2009 World Baseball Classic. The Red Sox named him their minor league defensive player of the year in 2010, when managers rated him the top outfield defender in the Eastern League. He has plus speed and tremendous instincts in center field, getting quick jumps and making good reads. Unlike most center fielders, he has a cannon for an arm and has recorded 33 assists during the last two seasons. He settled down defensively last year, making just three errors after trying to do too much at times and committing 11 in 2009. Though Lin is an extremely disciplined hitter who draws walks and rarely strikes out, his offensive contributions have been minimal. He has just fair bat speed and a flat swing, so he makes a lot of soft contact. He had just 23 extra-base hits in 2010 and owns a career .363 slugging percentage. He gets on base but isn't an efficient basestealer and makes mistakes on the basepaths. Until Lin starts driving the ball, it's difficult to project him as a big league regular. He'll advance to Triple-A at age 22.
Signed for $400,000 out of high school in Taiwan, Lin was a national 100-meter and high jump champion. He remains a key member of the Taiwan national team, leading the club with four RBIs at the 2008 Olympics and going 3-for-7 at the World Baseball Classic last spring. He has a good mix of tools, but unless he shows more upside with the bat, he's going to have a hard time getting big league playing time in an organization that already has Jacoby Ellsbury, Ryan Westmoreland and Reymond Fuentes as center-field options. Lin is a special defender, blanketing the gaps better than anyone in the organization, including Ellsbury. He also has the best pure arm strength of any of the organization's outfielders, and he led the Carolina League with 18 outfield assists in 2009. He sometimes tries to do too much defensively, which resulted in 11 errors last year. Lin has good bat speed, shows power in batting practice and won MVP honors at the 2008 Futures Game when he homered off a 94 mph fastball from the Rockies' Ryan Mattheus. But he doesn't drive the ball in games, making consistent if relatively soft contact. Lin controls the strike zone better than any Red Sox farmhand, so it would be easy to project him as a big league regular if he showed more pop. He's a plus runner under way and has basestealing instincts. He'll move up to Double-A in 2010, with Westmoreland and Fuentes getting closer in his rearview mirror.
The Red Sox have fortified their big league pitching staff with Japanese big leaguers Daisuke Matsuzaka and Hideki Okajima, and they've also worked the Far East for prospects as well. One of five Taiwanese players in the system, Lin missed the end of the minor league season to play in the Beijing Olympics, where he tied fellow Boston farmhand Chih-Hsien Chiang for his team lead with four RBIs. A national 100-meter and high jump champion in high school, Lin signed for $400,000 in 2007 and came straight to the United States. The Red Sox' 2008 defensive player of the year, he's one of the best center fielders in the minors. He has uncanny instincts, a quick first step and plus speed, allowing him to glide to balls with ease. He also has plus-plus arm strength, rare for a center fielder. Lin has yet to produce big numbers at the plate, but he handled low Class A as a 19-yearold and the offensive potential is there. He has bat speed and shows raw power in batting practice, but it hasn't translated into games yet. He did homer off a 94-mph fastball from the Rockies' Ryan Mattheus, helping him earn MVP honors at the 2008 Futures Game. He incorporates a big leg kick into his swings, and Boston is trying to improve his timing. Lin controls the strike zone well for his age, and he'll be valuable if he can develop on-base ability and occasional value to go with his defense and basestealing ability. Headed to high Class A, he's similar to but not quite as explosive as the Red Sox's incumbent center fielder, Jacoby Ellsbury.
While Daisuke Matsuzaka and Hideki Okajima were helping to pitch Boston to a World Series championship, the club made another Asian investment on a smaller scale. In June, the Red Sox signed Lin out of Taiwan for $400,000. He held his own as an 18-year-old in his U.S. debut while showing off some exciting tools. Chief among them are his plus-plus arm, his instincts and above-average play in center field and his plus speed. Lin has some ability at the plate, too. He holds his hands high and employs a big leg kick, drilling line drives to the gap. He has some strength and projectable power, and he does a nice job of imparting backspin on the ball. Lin generally uses a whole-field approach, though he sometimes gets pull-conscious. He'll need to adjust to breaking balls down and away, which led to many of his strikeouts in his debut. Boston could challenge him by sending him to low Class A in 2008.

Minor League Top Prospects

The MVP of the 2008 Futures Game, Lin is one of the best minor league prospects from Taiwan. Right now, his tools play better on defense. His plus-plus arm was the best in the CL, and he covers tremendous ground in center field. His pure speed is only a tick above average, but he has a quick first step and excellent instincts. His offensive game needs to take a leap forward if he's to be more than a reserve outfielder. He has a strong understanding of the strike zone and can work the count, but he got off to a sluggish start in Salem. He shows some bat speed but his power is below average. "I had Jacoby Ellsbury in 2006, and this kid is right up there with Ellsbury the way he plays center field," Epperson said. "And he loves to show off his arm."
Lin is making the Red Sox's $400,000 investment in his signing bonus last year look like a bargain. He showed tremendous poise and consistency for a 19-year-old in the SAL before earning MVP honors in the Futures Game as well as a spot on Taiwan's Olympic team. While some pitchers were able to take advantage of the way Lin holds his hands high and employs a leg kick, he was able to adapt and drive balls to all parts of the field. He controls the strike zone and has the speed and know-how to steal bases. Managers rated him the best defensive outfielder in the league and some scouts thought his arm was just as strong as Burgess'. "He's a tremendous talent," Boles said. "He has great bat speed and he can run the ball down in center field. He has plus speed and plus, plus arm strength. He has so many tools that he has a chance to be a premier defender at the major league level. Time will tell about the bat, but the offensive potential is definitely there."
Boston signed Lin out of Taiwan in late June for $400,000 and sent him straight to the GCL, where he was one of the most impressive outfielders in the league. He still has much to learn about the American style of the game, but he handled himself well in his pro debut. An above-average runner and solid-average defender in center, he's more than just a slap hitter who tries to get on base and utilize his wheels. He packs surprising power in his compact line-drive stroke, creating good backspin with the ability to take pitches on the outer half to the opposite field as well as to turn on inside fastballs. He does get too pull-conscious though and has trouble with breaking balls down and away. Like a lot of players from the Pacific Rim, Lin has a unique approach at the plate. He holds his hands high over his head, putting all his weight on his back leg. He incorporates a high left leg kick to get his quick hip turn started.