Josh Barfield, 2B, San Diego Padres

January 30, 2006 @ 14:29:34

By David Wysocki
Edited by KFFL Staff

To say the San Diego Padres brass have a lot of confidence in second base prospect Josh Barfield would be a pretty large understatement.

The son of former Yankee, Blue Jay and AL Home Run Champion Jesse Barfield, he has been seen as the Padres' most coveted talent in the minor leagues for the past two seasons. He has won California League MVP and Padres Minor Leaguer of the Year multiple times to go with his hearty statistics. In 2003, he batted in 123 RBI to lead all of Minor League Baseball.

Early this offseason, San Diego dealt fan favorite and productive 2B Mark Loretta to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for career backup C Doug Mirabelli in what was the most controversial of all the Padres moves thus far.

A comparison of the aging Loretta and the up and coming Barfield is hard, but the Padres saw it one way, all the way.

Loretta, 34, is coming off arguably the worst season of his career, though he is one year removed from an All-Star season. He was also due a hefty payday in 2006. Barfield, who has never stepped up to the plate in a major league game, will be expected to exceed Loretta's numbers.

San Diego has seen some of the worst drafts in all of baseball in the past decade. While the Padres found possibly the brightest young pitcher in baseball, Jake Peavy, they have seen flop after flop come up and fail after large expectations. 3B Sean Burroughs, C Ben Davis and OF Xavier Nady are just a few. Barfield is supposed to be the one to reverse it all.

Barfield, 23, has never had a problem hitting and can even steal a few bags. Only one time has he hit with a sub .300 AVG, and this was in 2004. This was the year Barfield put up his best HR total (18).

Padres CEO Sandy Alderson loves this type of hitter. Barfield is a " Moneyball" type player with power, speed, and youth. But with these positives, you must not ignore the negatives. With a " Moneyball" type guy, sometimes you are left with a large strikeout total. Barfield is not excluded. In fact, Barfield has two large knocks on his resume: strikeouts and defense.

In 2005, Barfield struck out 108 times. However, he coupled this with a .310 AVG, .450 SLG, 15 HR, and 72 RBI, numbers that are nothing to yawn at. Barfield's 13 errors were rather high, but Barfield tends to respond quickly with progress in his defense.

One big question with Barfield in 2006 and his success is if he will make the club at all. The Padres brought in Mark Bellhorn and Bobby Hill to compete with Barfield at 2B, but they hardly seem stiff enough competition to unseat the first of many to lead San Diego in their desired youth movement. All indications point to Barfield taking the job. GM Kevin Towers has said it is " (Barfield's) job to lose." But if he fails miserably in spring training, he may start at Triple-A.

Upon his making the club, Barfield will most likely bat in the eighth slot. The Padres lineup will be much better than last year which will most certainly benefit Barfield. The Friars have added CF Mike Cameron, C Mike Piazza and 3B Vinny Castilla. They will also bring up RF Brian Giles and SS Khalil Greene, who is bound for a breakout season. Barfield may even have a shot at the top of the lineup if LF Dave Roberts struggles or is thrown back to what seems like his second home, the disabled list.

A safe prediction on Barfield's production in 2006 would be for him to struggle in the early months. He has never been at this level, and will feel it. This kid seems to be legit, and has proven he can make adjustments successfully in the minors - an attribute not many prospects see in their short-lived careers. Look for Barfield to finish with a .265 AVG, a solid 14 HR, and 68 RBI in a full season.

If manager Bruce Bochy can somehow find a way to keep him on the club for a full season as the everyday starter, he should see the benefits as the Pads surge towards the NL West title race. This kid should be a good one...but shouldn't they all?

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David Wysocki

David has been a KFFL writer since 2005. He is a San Diego native and a History and Geography student at California State University-Chico. He has a writing background and has appeared in, and helped produce, various local newsletters and magazines on sports and music. He also pitched for the No. 2 nationally ranked Rancho Buena Vista Longhorns his senior year of high school in 2002.

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