2 The Bigs

By Matt Castagna: Jan 25, 2024

When the Athletics are mentioned in the baseball world, the conversation is usually centered around ownership ineptitude and how the best ways to alienate a fan base. However, I am here to highlight something the Athletics organization does really well…develop prospects. Even in the last year they’ve had quality prospects move quickly through the organization and debut (Mason Miller, Zack Gelof, Lawerence Butler, Esteury Ruiz). When a prospect gets drafted or signed by the A’s, it not only gives the fans excitement but also the player personally. With the lack of commitment to spend on players at the major league level; instead they turn their focus to development.

With the Athletics moving to Vegas in the coming years here’s a prospect I’m willing to take a gamble on… Colby Thomas.
A Mercer University product, scouts were intrigued with his bat speed, raw power ability and athleticism. He was among the top power-hitters in the NCAA with 17 HR, until his season ended abruptly due to a shoulder injury. His play before the injury led the A’s to confidently use a 3rd round pick in 2022, to select Colby Thomas. His early returns have been promising as he’s produced a slash line of .286/.351/.493 in his first pro-season in 2023. Additionally, he produced a solid hard-hit rate (28%). Not to mention his athleticism and speed can’t go unnoticed as he racked up 25 stolen bases across those 125 games.

The one drawback and why Colby is currently ranked 16 within the A’s prospect rankings is his is strikeout rate (28.8%). His strike-out rate is 20 points higher than his walk-rate, that’s top-50 highest across all A/A+ outfielders. But lets look at the bright side. If he can maintain a .286 average and .351 on-base percentage while striking out every four at-bats, where is his ceiling if he can bring that strikeout rate down even just 5%? The problem is that it will only get harder. As a 22-year-old, this season is extremely important for Thomas. He will (hopefully) take on Double-A pitching where he will need to work on his plate vision and his ability to hit breaking balls. If he can, his power/speed combo brings a nice upside for a prospect like Thomas.

Thomas was held out of the 2022 Bowman Draft set and instead was included in 2023 Bowman. His prices are extremely low. Because of this, I would recommend buying a color parallel if you believe in the upside. A team color auto match (green refractor $25-40, yellow refractor $70-90) pop with the Athletics color scheme. The upside is there for Thomas, but let’s see if he can improve his plate vision and cut down on those K’s.