Andrew Knizner Continues Breakout in AFL

PEORIA, Ariz.—Andrew Knizner’s 2017 was a breakout year not many saw coming.

Thanks to the Arizona Fall League, it isn’t over yet.

Knizner went 2-for-5 with a double and an RBI, continuing his torrid pace in the AFL and leading Surprise to an 11-5 rout of Peoria on Friday night.

Knizner raised his AFL slash line to .333/.382/.524 with the performance, a superb follow-up to a first full season that saw him finish at Double-A and hit .302 with 12 homers, 51 RBIs and an .820 OPS.

“That’s what it takes to be a great hitter and to be a big leaguer, to take your best swing and ride it out as long as you can and when you lose it, find it as quick as you can,” Knizner said. “That’s kind of what I focus on.”

Knizner ripped a double off Blue Jays righthander T.J. Zeuch to the wall in center field in the first inning, laced an RBI single back up the middle in the fifth, and smoked a grounder that second baseman Chad De La Guerra couldn’t handle in the sixth. Though the play was officially an error, it was a direct result of how hard Knizner hit the ball, and it sent another run home.

“He’s got some power for sure and I don’t think it’s maxed out,” said Surprise manager Spike Owen, a 13-year big league veteran who now manages in the Rangers system. “He gives you quality at-bats, hits the ball to all fields, gap-to-gap. He’s been swinging the bat well, been a really good player.”

The Cardinals drafted Knizner in the seventh round out of North Carolina State in 2016. He played third base as a freshman before moving to catcher as a sophomore. The rigors of catching took a toll on his offense, and he slugged just .388 as a junior.

That’s what made his offensive outburst in 2017 so impressive. While still squatting behind the plate and dealing with the demands of catching, Knizner found a way to access his power.

“Catching is not an easy position to learn,” Knizner said. “It’s definitely the hardest position on the field, strictly from a physical standpoint. The transition wasn’t easy, but I’m finally starting to put it all together…. It’s about getting into a rhythm, locking into the different zones I’m hitting, and getting that power out.”

Knizner’s conversion behind the dish continues to trend in the right direction. He guided fellow Cardinals farmhand Sandy Alcantara through four scoreless innings against a powerful Peoria offense, and threw out the speedy Jonathan Davis stealing in the third.

“He’s good back there,” Owen said. “He blocks well, he throws well, and he handles the staff well. I like him back there.”

Increasingly, Knizner is looking like a complete catcher with solid defense, hitting ability and power. With one week to go in the Fall League, he’s on track to put a positive finishing touch on what’s been a breakthrough season.

NEWS AND NOTES

—Alcantara, the Cardinals No. 4 prospect, delivered four scoreless innings of one-hit ball for Surprise. He sat 95-98 mph with his fastball and 84-88 mph with his inconsistent breaking ball. Despite shaky control at times, he managed to escape without any walks (although he did hit a batter) while striking out four, and picked up his first AFL win.

—Davis, a Blue Jays outfielder, went 3-for-4 with two doubles and two RBIs. He pulled both doubles with authority down to the left-field line. Austin Riley provided Peoria’s most emphatic hit of the night, crushing a hanging breaking ball on the inner half for a solo home run that nearly hit the scoreboard 40 feet back of the left-field wall.

—Zeuch, the Blue Jays first-round pick in 2016, sat just 89-92 mph, down from his normal 92-94 range, and struggled mightily to find feel for his 83-87 mph slider. The result was seven hits and six runs allowed in 4.1 innings.