Meet a Prospect: Eric Jagielo

Eric Jagielo was drafted with the New York Yankees first round pick in the 2013 MLB First Year Players Draft 26th overall. Eric spent his college years playing for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish manning their hot corner and mashing the heck out of the ball. Jagielo stands 6'3" and weighs in at 215 lbs while hitting left handed and throwing right handed and while his natural position is third base he does have some experience in the outfield, although limited. This is not Jagielo's first time being drafted as he was drafted in the 50th round by the Chicago Cubs in the 2010 draft.

Jagielo put himself on the map in 2012 when he went out and hit .310 with 13 home runs as a sophomore for the Fighting Irish. Jagielo would follow up that impressive performance with a trip to the Cape Cod League that summer where he put up an equally impressive .291 average with 13 home runs to go with a .374 on base percentage. Jagielo would finish his 2013 season with a very impressive .388/.500./.633 with 19 doubles and nine home runs on his way to being named 201 Big East Player of the Year.

Jagielo is a patient hitter and a power hitter that has a left handed stroke that is made for the new Yankees Stadium. He has a very upward stance that allows him to keep his hands low and compact and allows him to drive the ball. He has a bit of a long swing but it allows him to spray the ball to all fields with ease. He will strike out his fair share but he more than makes up for it with his ability to see a ton of pitches, grind out at bats, take his walks, and knock the ball to all fields in gaps and over the fence. I have seen his hitting graded on the normal scale of 0-80 as high as 55 which is considered to be above average. I have also seen his power rated as high as a 60 on the same scale with a strong lower half and an ability to punish mistakes.

Jagielo is not considered to be a speedy guy but is also not considered to be a liability on the base paths either so you take the good with the bad I guess. His quickness is one of the major downfalls of his defense. He can make the plays and has a nice throwing arm but his speed really limits his range and ability to get to certain balls. He is still widely considered to be an average defender and made big strides over the winter and this season before the draft so there is always the possibility for improvement there. His arm is considered his best defensive attribute and would also translate to left field or first base if he were ever transplanted off the hot corner.

Jagielo finally made his professional debut and finished the season as the Big East Player of the Year award winner for the 2013 season. Jagielo split time between the Staten Island Yankees and the Gulf Coast Yankees 1 and GCL Yankees 2 putting up a combined .264/.376/.451/.826 with six home runs and 27 RBI's. Jags took 26 walks and struck out 56 times in 55 games so he will have to get his discipline under control but I really think Eric could be in the majors by mid to late 2015 at the rate he is going. Jagielo plays a position, third base, that we are seriously thin at and have an aging veteran in Alex Rodriguez nearing the end of a contract and a career so now may be the time for this former Fighting Irishman.