Billy Butler Is The Natural
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Have you guys heard of Billy Butler? He’s supposed to be a pretty good hitter.
Butler was drafted in the first round in 2004, with the 14th overall pick.
After a couple of disasterous drafts where the Royals chose college seniors and
offered them $5,000 to sign, this too was charged with being a signability pick
. In some ways, it was. The Royals and Butler had agreed to a $1.45 million
signing bonus prior to the draft, which was about $250,000 less than MLB’s
slot recommendation. Not knowing much about a high school baseball player out
of Florida, it was easy for some to mock the pick as another example of the
Royals putting dollars ahead of talent.
But here’s the deal. This pick was different. Butler could hit.
Butler was immediately assigned to the Idaho Falls team in the Pioneer Rookie
League. It’s all fun and games when you dominate, and that’s pretty much what
Butler did:
Level AB H 2B HR AVG OBP SLG
Rk 260 97 22 10 .373 .488 .596
Butler has a stance where he basically stands open with his hands held high.
But his hands are so fast, it really doesn’t matter where he positions them.
In naming Butler the top prospect in the Royals system, Baseball America sang
his praises about his natural ability:
Butler has quick hands and excellent hand-eye coordination that allow him
to let the ball get deep in the zone and to make quick adjustments. He
centers the ball well, uses the whole field and generates natural loft
without slipping into the uppercut swing plane that befalls many power
hitters.
The natural loft was on display the following year when Butler began the 2005
season in the hitters paradise known as High Desert. Again, he tore through the
league with his bat - there are sure to be some pitchers still experiencing
nightmares - and he was promoted to Double-A Wichita before the year was over.
Level AB H 2B HR AVG OBP SLG
A+ 379 132 30 25 .348 .419 .636
AA 112 35 9 5 .313 .353 .527
Just look at that slugging percentage from High Desert. Awesome. The fact that
he made such tremendous strides in the power department, while still hitting
for an excellent average should be noted.
By now, the only knock on Butler was his defense - or his lack of. He began his
career as a third baseman, but it was obvious he would have to move. Just 41
games into his career, he shifted to left field. He has an above-average
throwing arm, but was never comfortable in the outfield, misjudging flyballs
and running poor routes. But the Royals (and the fans) weren’t letting his
defensive misadventures detract from his offensive studliness.
That winter, Baseball America compared Butler to one of the game’s premiere
sluggers:
Butler should develop into an all-star caliber offensive player along the
lines of Travis Hafner. He’ll begin 2006 in Double-A, and the only fear
the Royals have is what to do if his bat becomes major league ready before
his defense is passable. That could happen this year.
Defensive follies and a regime change in the front office conspired to keep
Butler in Double-A for the 2006 season. Given the fact that Butler was just 20
at the time, it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing to keep him in Wichita for an
entire summer. Besides his usual hot hitting, he was part of the US national
team that qualified for the 2008 Olympics.
More of the same from Buter for a full season:
Level AB H 2B HR AVG OBP SLG
AA 477 158 33 15 .331 .388 .499
It was during this season in Double-A, that Butler really worked on making
contact. As a pure hitter, it’s not like strikeouts are a problem. But after
posting strikeout rates of 24.2% in Rookie ball and 21.1% in Single-A, Butler
cut his rate dramatically to 14% for his full season of Double-A. With the
increase in contact, there was a decrease in power, but that was because he was
“Teahening” the ball - in other words, going to the opposite field on inside
pitches. The quick hands and power potential were still there and according to
Baseball America, he was knocking on the door to the majors:
With excellent bat speed, balance and a cerebral approach, Butler has no
real weakness as a hitter. His bat could force him to Kansas City by
midseason.
It didn’t even take him that long. When Ryan Shealy hit the DL with his bum
hamstring on May 1, the Royals turned to Butler.
Butler made his debut that night when the Royals squared off against Bartolo
Colon and the Los Angeles Angels. Starting in left field and batting seventh,
Butler went 2-4 and handled his lone chance in the field.
He played in seven games over his first eight days with the Royals, starting in
left field in five of those contests. He had his troubles in the field, running
bad routes and not getting to some balls but he lost the patience of his
manager when he committed an error that lead to a run in the Royals 6-1 loss
against the A’s on May 8. He was the DH in the last two games of the homestand
, began the first game of the road trip, and then sat until he was demoted to
the minors four days later.
Buddy’s handling of Butler was bizarre, strange and borderline criminal. Clark
was not happy either, and said so. Forcefully:
Buddy Bell takes the blame for a lot of this team’s woes: some deserved,
much of it not. In this instance, however, there is no one else to blame.
Whether Dayton Moore was right to bring up Butler or not, the fact is he’s
on the squad, and Bell is flat out wrong to not be playing him. It is
short-sighted, stubborn and a dangerous game to play with a hitting talent
like Butler. It is also just the kind of attitude that gets managers on the
wrong side of their boss.
If that got Buddy sideways with Dayton Moore, let’s consider it a small price
to pay and continue.
When Mike Sweeney hit the DL on June 19 (that ticked me off since I had June 12
in the Sweeney To The DL Pool), the Royals recalled Butler. Kind of symbolic,
where the old guard makes way for the new.
Playing mostly as a DH for the remainder of the season, Butler was impressive,
hitting .298/.358/.466. In that timeframe, he led the Royals in slugging
percentage and was third on the team in batting average and on base percentage
behind Mark Grudzielanek and Joey Gathright.
The Royals still seem to hold a sliver of hope that Butler can play in the
field. He’s been working at first base and got into a couple of games last
year, but I don’t see it happening. Although you normally put your weakest
glove at first, footwork is an important asset at that position. However,
Butler is horribly slow and moves like he wears cement shoes. That’s not a
criticism, that’s fact. There’s no way he becomes a first baseman.
But it doesn’t stop him from trying. Butler spent his winter playing first for
Azucareros in the Dominican League where he hit .234/.308/.298. I have no idea
what is going on in that league, but the team totals are .229/.314/.290. At
least that’s what their website says. And somehow, he didn’t make an error in
115 chances at first base.
I’ve always maintained the sooner Butler loses his glove, the better. The
Royals need to drop this folly that he can become a competent fielder. It’s
not going to happen. Just give him a batting helmet and a piece of lumber and
let the guy take his swings.
Butler turns 22 in April and figures to be KC’s everyday DH while hitting in
the middle of the lineup. It’s been a meteoric rise through the system where
Butler has dominated nearly every step of the way. His strikeout rate while
with the Royals last summer was around 16%, so he didn’t revert to his old
habits once he got to the big leagues. Expect to see that percentage continue
to fall while his walk rate increases, along with his contact rate. Butler has
the tools and the talent to become one of the best hitters to play for the
Royals.
I can’t wait to see him for a full season in Royal blue.
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