Adam Lind Stats & Scouting Report

AB	4577
AVG	.272
OBP	.33
SLG	.465
HR	200

Full name Adam Alan Lind
Born 07/17/1983 in Muncie, IN
Profile Ht.: 6'2" / Wt.: 195 / Bats: L / Throws: L
School South Alabama
Debut 09/02/2006
Drafted in the 3rd round (83rd overall) by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2004 (signed for $445,000).

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An eighth-round pick out of an Indiana high school by the Twins in 2002, Lind is a draft-eligible sophomore who will go as far as his bat takes him. He's put together a consistent career for South Alabama, posting nearly identical seasons and showing a fluid stroke with good bat speed and raw power potential. His swing played well with wood last summer as he hit .269 (well above league average) in the Cape Cod League. While he has shown the ability to draw a walk, his power would evince itself more in games with better pitch recognition and strike-zone judgment. Lind isn't a great athlete, making him a fringy defender in left field and better suited for first base.

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

Lind was an eighth-round pick by the Twins out of an Indiana high school in 2002 but opted to attend South Alabama. He showed a fluid stroke and promising raw power in college, but only hinted at the hitter he would become. He hit a more-than-respectable .269 with wood bats in the Cape Cod League in the summer of 2003, then won the Sun Belt Conference batting title with a .392 average as a draft-eligible sophomore in 2004. After the Blue Jays took him in the third round, he signed for $445,000. He had no problem adapting to pro ball, leading the short-season New York-Penn League in doubles (23) and ranking second in extra-base hits (30) and RBIs (50). In his first full season, Lind jumped to high Class A and topped the Florida State League in doubles (42) and extra-base hits (58). He began to develop more over-the-fence power in 2006, when he won the Double-A Eastern League MVP award despite being promoted in late July. The Jays have named him his team's MVP in each of his three pro seasons, and only Carlos Delgado and Luis Lopez have won the award three times as well. Lind had one of the best seasons in the minors--batting a cumulative .330/.394/.556--and was just as dangerous during his September callup. In the final game of the season, he pushed Toronto into sole possession of second place in the American League East with a ninth-inning, two-run shot to dead-center off a 98 mph fastball from Kyle Farnsworth at Yankee Stadium. Lind's classic lefthanded swing projects more power because his bat stays in the zone longer than that of most hitters. His hands are quiet and he's adept at staying inside the ball. Lind has exceptional balance at the plate and hits for power from line to line. His spread and slight crouch help him stay back on breaking balls. Every time he has moved up to a new level in pro ball, he initially has tried to go up the middle and to the opposite field. His first major league home run went to left-center. Once comfortable, though, he began to pull the ball with more authority. Lind doesn't seem to let anything bother him and is comfortable hitting behind in the count. A first baseman in college, Lind isn't a great athlete and never has been much of a defender. He has come a long way with the glove in left field, working in batting practice by taking live rounds off the bat to improve from well below average to adequate. His arm is also below average but playable. Some scouts believe he'll eventually wind up at first base or DH. Lind is slow coming out of the batter's box, though he has average speed once he gets underway. His strike-zone judgment is certainly acceptable, but he could stand to draw a few more walks. With Frank Catalanotto's departure for Texas as a free agent, Lind and Reed Johnson are frontrunners for Toronto's left-field job. But with Frank Thomas on board, DH is no longer an option for Lind. Either way, he should be one of the AL's top-hitting rookies. He figures to be batting in the middle of the Jays lineup by no later than 2008.
One year after Lind signed with the Blue Jays as a draft-eligible sophomore, he has become the best hitting prospect in the organization. He led the high Class A Florida State League in doubles and extra-base hits while ranking second in batting and hits. Lind has the quickest bat in the system, making him Toronto's only position prospect with star potential. Described as a natural-born hitter by one Jays official, he uses a picture-perfect lefthanded swing to make hard contact to all fields. He's doesn't panic when he falls behind, as his advanced two-strike approach allows him to be more selective and get pitches to hit. Lind's desire to improve defensively has been questioned. To his credit, he worked doggedly to improve his left-field play, taking two rounds of batting practice flyballs a day to hone his jumps and routes. His arm is fringy and he's a below-average runner. Lind is expected to start 2006 at Double-A. The Blue Jays see him as their left fielder of the future and a middle-of-the-order presence capable of hitting .300 with 40 doubles and 20 homers. If his glove proves unplayable in left, he may return to first base.
Some Blue Jays scouts say Lind is the best hitter they've selected in the three drafts under general manager J.P. Ricciardi's watch. An eighth-round pick of the Twins out of high school in Indiana in 2002, he batted .372 in two seasons at South Alabama, including a Sun Belt Conference-best .392 average in 2004. Toronto took him as a draft-eligible sophomore with the second of two draft picks it received for the loss of free agent Kelvim Escobar. Lind kept hitting in his pro debut, making the New York-Penn League all-star team, topping the league in doubles and ranking among the leaders in several categories. He has a fluid lefthanded stroke, bat speed and raw power that presently shows up mainly as doubles. His strike-zone judgment and pitch recognition can improve. Lind's bat will have to carry him because his speed and defense are below-average. He played first base as a freshman and right field as a sophomore, then mostly left field as a pro. He was just adequate there and may face a return to first base in the future. The Jays could challenge him by moving him to high Class A to begin his first full season.

Minor League Top Prospects

Like Votto, Lind came into the season with high expectations after winning the Double-A Eastern League's MVP award and hitting .367 in 60 September big league at-bats in 2006. He started 2007 with Syracuse, earning an early callup when Reed Johnson had back surgery. American League pitchers were ready for Lind this time and he struggled to make adjustments, hitting .230/.274/.383 before a July demotion. Lind regained his confidence and his stroke in the IL, and he fared better (.273/.298/.473) after a September callup. He's balanced at the plate and stays inside the ball well, using his classic lefthanded swing to drive the ball from line to line. "His hands somewhat work independently from his body," Syracuse manager Doug Davis said. "He's got such good hand-eye coordination that it's very easy for him to put the barrel of the bat on ball. That's my biggest thing. He's a natural hitter who can not only put the ball in play, but drive it." Lind missed two weeks in early August when he strained a muscle in his neck after violently banging his head on the ground while making a diving attempt for a catch. A similar play in 2006 caused a concussion. He remains a work in progress in the outfield, where below-average speed and just playable range and throwing mechanics limit him to left field.
Managers rated Lind as the EL's best hitting and power prospect at midseason, and he also won the league MVP award. He performed even better in Triple-A, batting .394/.496/.596, and hit .419 in his first 12 games with Toronto. Lind is a pure hitter who will fit in the middle of a big league lineup. He allows pitches to travel deep in the hitting zone before driving them to all fields with a quick, leveraged swing that lends itself to above-average power. His pitch recognition, plate coverage and discipline are all pluses. Like Harrisburg's Kory Casto and Akron's Kevin Kouzmanoff, two more of the league's better hitters, Lind offers little behind his bat. He's stiff and slow with a below-average arm. He could be a liability in left field, move to first base or wind up at DH, where he saw most of his initial major league action.
Lind had perhaps the league's prettiest swing, a smooth lefthanded stroke that ripped line drives to all fields. He stayed on top of the ball, and he did a great job of staying back, waiting to rip his pitch while using his excellent pitch recognition to avoid being fooled. "This kid has a nice-looking swing, and he's very patient at the plate," Dunedin manager Omar Malave said. "His swing is so compact and so nice, there isn't much you can do to fix it when he gets in a slump. He just has a natural ability to hit." Malave also raved about Lind's approach. He showed a reasonably quick bat and solid gap power, leading the FSL in doubles and extra-base hits. Some of those doubles could turn into homers as he matures. While Lind's hitting is very advanced, his work in the field has a long ways to go. A former first baseman, he's a liability in the outfield, where he struggles to get good jumps, misplays balls and has a below-average arm and speed. Some observers wondered if he'd ever be more than a DH, though his bat will be enough to get him to the big leagues.