Alex Blandino

Blandino spent the first part of the 2019 campaign recovering from ACL and MCL tears suffered at the tail end of the 2018 season. When he returned to action, the 26-year-old looked to be the same light-hitting player he has been throughout his minor-league career. Blandino owns a career .259 average across all levels of the minors and has little power; last season he posted a .125 ISO with Triple-A Louisville and a .111 ISO in 36 at-bats with the Reds. His saving grace is his ability to take a walk. Blandino has registered consistently high walk rates throughout his professional career, and his 20.0 BB% with Cincinnati in 2019 was tops in the majors among players with 50 or more plate appearances. That number is bound to come down, however, and with little else to offer at the plate or on the basepaths, Blandino is unlikely to ascend past a utility infielder role in the big leagues.

Blandino's 2018 season ended prematurely after a takeout slide by the Pirates' Max Moroff went wrong and ended up tearing the ACL in Blandino's left knee. The injury robbed him of an opportunity to get a lot of at-bats down the stretch for the rebuilding Reds. Prior to the injury, the 2014 first-round pick had struggled at the plate, making contact only 68% of the time with a minuscule .055 ISO. He profiles as a utility infielder and might struggle to hold onto a 40-man roster spot if he doesn't show some improvements in 2019.

In what may have been a make-or-break year for Blandino in the Reds organization, he answered the bell, posting a 145 wRC+ in a repeat trip to Double-A and a 137 wRC+ in a 63-game run at Triple-A to close out the year. His 0.86 BB/K ranked third in the International League, ahead of more highly-regarded plate discipline masters like Rhys Hoskins, Jesse Winker and J.P. Crawford. The Reds rewarded him this offseason with a spot on the 40-man roster, so they at least see the potential for a major-league role. Since signing he has moved from shortstop to second base to third base. While he could probably still masquerade at second or short, his glove isn't good enough to play up the middle on a regular basis. His .270 average was his best mark since 2015 when he was at High-A, and he doesn't hit for a ton of power, so his best chance at relevancy is in deeper OBP leagues. He is clearly behind Eugenio Suarez and Nick Senzel on the organizational depth chart.

Blandino has progressed reasonably well since getting drafted with the 29th overall pick in 2014, advancing to Double-A Pensacola in August. Once he got there, he struggled a bit to hit for power, and that's a big question mark going forward for him. Is he good enough defensively to stick up the middle, particularly at shortstop? If not, does he hit for enough power to play third base? He has some speed, but is still learning how to use it, having been caught 17 times in 33 stolen-base attempts. The Reds' acquisition of Jose Peraza in the Todd Frazier deal likely blocks Blandino up the middle for the near future, so don't expect him to have a meaningful major league opportunity until 2017.

Blandino was taken in the first round of the 2014 draft with the 29th overall pick by the Reds, the pick gained when the Rangers signed away Shin-Soo Choo. Though he was selected as a third baseman from Stanford, Blandino has been used as a shortstop as a professional so far, and if he can stick there he'll have a lot more value, especially for the Reds given their lack of organizational depth at the position. He doesn't project to hit for a lot of power, but should be a good line drive hitter that could benefit quite a bit from playing in Cincinnati's home ballpark. There are some analysts that believe that he might even have more power than originally projected, as Stanford hitters typically have their swings adjusted to hit for less loft.