Charlie Blackmon Stats & Scouting Report

AB	449
AVG	.256
OBP	.329
SLG	.412
HR	12

Full name Charles Cobb Blackmon
Born 07/01/1986 in Dallas, TX
Profile Ht.: 6'3" / Wt.: 221 / Bats: L / Throws: L
School Georgia Tech
Debut 06/07/2011
Drafted in the 2nd round (72nd overall) by the Colorado Rockies in 2008 (signed for $563,000).

View Draft Report

Blackmon has been drafted twice before, by the Marlins out of high school in 2004 (28th round) and then by the Red Sox in 2005 after his freshman year at Young Harris (Ga.) JC (20th round). In both cases he was taken as a lefthander, but after transferring to Georgia Tech he didn't see any time on the mound, and he redshirted in 2007. Blackmon played in the Texas Collegiate League last summer and batted .316 as an outfielder, so when he returned to Georgia Tech he got a chance as a position player and took full advantage. In his first year as a hitter, Blackmon has led the Yellow Jackets in batting and was among the team leaders in nearly every offensive category. A natural athlete, Blackmon has five tools that are quickly gaining refinement. At 6-foot-3, 200 pounds, he has the prototypical pro body. He runs well and could play any of the three outfield positions but probably fits best in left. At the plate, Blackmon has a natural lefthanded swing and makes consistent contact. While his approach is still raw, he projects to hit for power and average. He's a college senior but a young hitter, so he has plenty of room for improvement. He is one of the biggest sleepers in this year's draft.

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

Blackmon earned a promotion to the Rockies on June 7 and that night made the first of 14 consecutive starts in left field. A freak injury ended his season a month later, however, when he broke his left foot while rounding second base. Drafted as a pitcher out of high school and junior college, he moved to the outfielder in a college summer league in 2007 and played his way into the second round of the 2008 draft. Blackmon has an easy swing and doesn't strike out often, a trait he carried to the big leagues. He did a better job of handling lefthanders last season and should be able to hit for a solid average. He shows flashes of power, but how much he'll ultimately have is a question. Blackmon may lack the bat speed to catch up to quality fastballs and do a lot of damage. Though he was a center fielder in the minors prior to 2011, he's more of a corner outfielder and will need better than average pop to profile as a regular. Blackmon runs and bunts well. His routes, reads and first-step quickness in the outfield need to improve further, but they have gotten better. He has plus arm strength and has learned to streamline his throwing mechanics. Very focused and aggressive, he plays with an edge. Given Colorado's troubles last year, Blackmon would have played a lot had he not gotten hurt, which would have given the club a better read on whether he'll be more than a fourth outfielder. He should open 2012 in that role for the Rockies.
Drafted twice as a pitcher (by the Marlins out of high school and Red Sox out of junior college), Blackmon moved to the outfield while playing in a summer league after the 2007 college season, and wound up as the Rockies' second-round draft choice the next June. He had a setback out of spring training last year, suffering a strained hamstring that sidelined him the first two months--the result of an ill-advised attempt at bulking up in the offseason--but finished strong in Double-A and then played in the Arizona Fall League. Blackmon's compact stroke and ability to drive the ball into gaps keeps him from extended slumps. His contact approach serves him well against lefthanders. His above-average speed returned as his hamstring healed, and he has stolen 62 bases in the minor leagues while being caught 27 times. He is working on getting better jumps in center field and needs to streamline his throwing mechanics. He has a tendency to wind up. Blackmon will make the move to Triple-A this year and figures to see time in the big leagues by September, if not sooner.
Blackmon was drafted out of high school (Marlins, 28th round, 2004) and out of Young Harris (Ga.) JC (Red Sox, 20th round, 2005)--both times as a lefthander. After he transferred to Georgia Tech and redshirted for a year, he pulled a joke on his coach in the summer Texas Collegiate League by playing in the outfield. It worked out well, and he stayed there for his junior season at Georgia Tech, playing his way into the second round of the 2008 draft. Blackmon has a simple, consistent stroke and a feel for driving the ball gap to gap. His splits are strikingly similar against lefthanders and righthanders, day and night, home and road. The Rockies think he could turn some of his doubles turn into homers as he gets older. His well above-average speed makes him a stolen-base threat, though he could improve his efficiency. Blackmon handles center field well despite his limited experience. He needs to improve his jumps and reads so he doesn't have to rely as much on his speed. He has a solid arm but tends to wind up rather than using a crow hop and quick release. He'll continue to refine his game as he moves up to Double-A in 2010.
A pitcher at Young Harris (Ga.) JC, Blackmon moved to the outfield during the 2007 summer in the Texas Collegiate League. He was drafted out of high school (2004, 28th round, Marlins) and again out of Young Harris (2005, 20th round, Red Sox) before opting to transfer to Georgia Tech, where he ranked fourth in the Atlantic Coast Conference in batting in 2008. Blackmon shows five-tool potential. He runs well enough to play any of the three outfield positions, primarily playing right field in college and moving to center field in his pro debut. He has a picture-book lefthanded swing and has shown line-drive power into the alleys. He has plus-plus speed and the arm strength that would be expected from a converted pitcher. Blackmon's inexperience as a hitter shows, however. He makes contact but will chase pitches out of the strike zone. With his speed he has to realize that walks are of value. He has quick hands but tends to get started too soon in his swing. Signed as a college senior, Blackmon needs to be challenged in the minor leagues, with a jump to Modesto likely. With his defensive ability, he has what it takes to be a fourth outfielder, but with continued maturation offensively he could be an everyday center fielder.

Minor League Top Prospects

Blackmon put up the best numbers of his career in the first two months at Colorado Springs, resulting in his first big league callup at the start of June. His dream season came to an end a month later, when he fractured his left foot on a slide into third base. He should be 100 percent by spring training. Blackmon has a short stroke and a gap-to-gap approach that allows him to make consistent contact, and he fanned just eight times in 98 big league plate appearances. The question is whether he'll have more than average power and enough to profile as a regular on an outfield corner, because he tends to get around the ball rather than square it up. He has above-average speed and could steal 25 bases per year. Primarily a center fielder before 2011, Blackmon played right field for the Sky Sox and left field for the Rockies. Recruited as a pitcher in college, he has above-average arm strength and recorded 11 assists in 56 PCL games.
Drafted twice as a pitcher before the Rockies signed him as an outfielder in 2008, Blackmon brought a .318 career average into the season. He struggled in the first half of the year, though, first with a strained hamstring that he initially injured in spring training and then with Double-A pitching. He didn't see action with Tulsa until the end of May and was batting .200 in mid-June. Blackmon has a knack for putting the bat on the ball, with a strong frame that should allow him to hit 20 homers per year in the big leagues. He's still learning the subtleties of hitting, which sometimes slows him down at the plate. With experience, he should gain more quickness with his swing that should translate into power. Blackmon played mostly in center field for Tulsa and has above-average speed, but most TL observers projected him as a left fielder. Despite his pitching background, his arm isn't a weapon in the outfield, as he has average arm strength but a long release. He takes good routes on balls and could end up in the mold of Seth Smith, who plays all three outfield spots for Colorado.
Blackmon has been a full-time hitter for little more than a year, spending two years at Young Harris (Ga.) Junior College as a pitcher and then redshirting at Georgia Tech in 2007 after developing elbow tendinitis. After starring in the Texas Collegiate League as an outfielder that summer, he got a chance to hit with the Yellow Jackets and led them with a .396 average last spring, playing his way into the second round of the draft. Blackmon has quality tools that are even more impressive considering his lack of experience. He makes consistent contact and has some power, possibly enough to hit 20 homers on an annual basis. He uses his plus speed to his advantage, bunting for base hits and getting great jumps on balls. He also has average arm strength that plays up because he gets to balls quickly.

Career Transactions

RF Charlie Blackmon retired.
Colorado Rockies activated CF Charlie Blackmon from the 10-day injured list.
Colorado Rockies placed CF Charlie Blackmon on the 10-day injured list retroactive to June 19, 2024. Right hamstring strain.
Colorado Rockies placed CF Charlie Blackmon on the 10-day injured list. Right hand fracture.
Colorado Rockies activated CF Charlie Blackmon from the bereavement list.
Colorado Rockies placed CF Charlie Blackmon on the bereavement list.