Prospect Watch: Frisco RoughRiders Julio Borbon

After a lost 2007 season due to injury, Julio Borbon has been back to full stride in 2008. After a mid-summer call up to the Firsco RoughRiders of the Double-A Texas League, Borbons numbers have been scorching hot. Prior to the hop to Double-A, he played 66 games for Cal League’s Bakers field, Borbon batting .306 with 36 SB and 20 2B. 52 games at Frisco, Borbon has batted .326 with 14 SB and 10 2B, including going 17 for his last 44, while helping Frisco push to the Texas South Conference title.

In the 2007 draft, he was taken in the supplemental round by the Texas Rangers as the 35th overall pick. Borbon has all of the amenities of big-league lead-off hitter. Amazing speed, minimal strikeouts, and great fielding make him an ideal threat next year for the Rangers. He may never poses the power that some of today’s great lead-off guys have, however, his great plate discipline will win him far more battles than the long ball can.