Rays See Something In Cronenworth That Other Teams Missed
[shareprints gallery_id=”169487″ gallery_type=”thumb_slider_desc” gallery_position=”pos_center” gallery_width=”width_100″ image_size=”large” image_padding=”0″ theme=”dark” image_hover=”false” lightbox_type=”slide” titles=”true” captions=”true” descriptions=”true” comments=”false” sharing=”true”]A year ago, most teams viewed Michigan two-way standout Jake Cronenworth as a pitching prospect in pro ball—and probably a reliever at that. After all, the Wolverines’ closer/first baseman/occasional starter stood 6-foot-1, and his two-pitch arsenal of a fastball up to 95 mph and average splitter suggested a future in the bullpen.
The Rays didn’t quite see things that way. Their Michigan-based area scout James Bonnici singled out Cronenworth as a sound hitting prospect back in 2013, when he was a first-year UM starter fresh from St. Clair (Mich.) High.
“He really knew how to get the bat on the ball and drive the ball gap to gap,” Bonnici said, “but he could turn on the above-average fastball in on his hands. He didn’t have the success his sophomore year that he would have liked to have, but still had sound at-bats.”
Bonnici and the Rays watched as Cronenworth improved dramatically at the plate in 2015. He established career bests as a junior by hitting .338, scoring 62 runs in 64 games, connecting for 18 doubles and six homers and recording a .419 on-base percentage. He won MVP honors in the Big Ten Conference tournament, recording the final out on the mound.
“I always believed in this kid’s bat,” Bonnici said. “His hands were so loose, his bat stayed in the strike zone a long time and he used his lower half extremely well, which are all good qualities for good hitters. Plus, he was lefthanded.”
Now, Tampa Bay is reaping the benefits of selecting Cronenworth in the seventh round of the 2015 draft—and also for seeing something that other teams might have missed.
Through 32 games at low Class A Bowling Green this season, Cronenworth hit .381/.480/.508 with 12 extra-base hits, six steals and as many walks (22) as strikeouts (22) through 126 at-bats. He ranked among the most productive players the Midwest League by leading the circuit in hits (48), OBP, runs (32) and OPS (.988). He even carried a .407 average through the first 30 games of the season.
“His personality, work ethic and feel for the game have stood out to our development staff since he got here,” said one Rays front office executive, “but he’s definitely taken his game to another level so far this year.
“His walk-to-strikeout ratio isn’t shocking given how well he controlled the zone at Michigan, but as well as he’s hitting, it’s easy to overlook that he’s playing shortstop every day, and playing it well—which he didn’t get to do at UM.”
That’s right: Not only does Cronenworth no longer toe the rubber—he says he misses pitching “a little bit”—but he’s playing a position he never played in college after focusing on second base, left field and then first base as a junior (to save his arm for pitching).
New Position As A Pro
After signing last June, Cronenworth began his pro career at short-season Hudson Valley, playing mostly second base, but with some shortstop mixed in. The Rays saw enough that they had intended to convert him to full-time shortstop in instructional league, but Cronenworth broke his wrist in late August, scuttling that plan.
“I showed up this spring and was taking groundballs,” Cronenworth said, “and the Rays said, ‘We want you to move over to shortstop.’ I had no experience there. I played second, third or first at Michigan, depending on the day, if I wasn’t pitching.
“It’s just about putting in the work every day at shortstop, seeing different hops. At first the transition was tough from second, but it’s like any other position, you put in the work.”
Putting in work has never been a problem for Cronenworth, who grew up in a hockey family just across the St. Clair River from Canada. Rays scouts and evaluators from other clubs use words like “warrior” and “drive” when describing the intangible qualities that elevate his game.
“He has a chip on his shoulder,” Bonnici said. “Guys who went before him (in the draft), players he knows he’s better than” is what motivates Cronenworth, whose mother Anne passed away from cancer when he was young.
Cronenworth played mostly hockey in high school, not really focusing on baseball until he reached Michigan.
“I was kind of the outcast (in my family) who played baseball,” Cronenworth said. “I still use those hockey tools—more like the mind set. I have a chip on my shoulder, (and) I just want to be in that play all the time.”
Still, the Rays might not have selected Cronenworth had others not spoken up on his behalf. After all, his loose, athletic, lefthanded swing appealed to clubs who might have been eying him as a position player later in the draft.
“As we went into our (draft) meetings in early May,” Bonnici said, “our head of research and development, Shawn Hoffman, who is a Michigan graduate, asked me, ‘What about Cronenworth?’ I told Shawn, ‘You’re right, he’s a plus bat.’
“We had (special assistant) Bobby Heck, (special assignment scout) Fred Repke and (regional supervisor) Brett Foley see him in the Big Ten tourney, and he did quite well. I saw him in regionals and he excelled against tough pitching. We all were on the same page, thinking he could play second base at the professional level.
“But in all honesty, I’d love to say I found (Cronenworth) myself, but really if it weren’t for all the guys I mentioned, he may have been a pitcher in some other organization.”
Additional reporting: Vince Lara-Cinisomo
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