This was at the end of Ken Rosenthal’s notes column. And it was obviously there for fun so let’s not pretend it’s some serious deal. But still:
And finally, a scout offers this comp for Evan Gattis:
Harmon Killebrew.
I suppose there is something to be said about Gattis’ raw power compared to that of immortal power hitters. The guy can hit the ball a friggin’ mile. But at the moment, that’s about all he can do, so let’s not go crazy with the comps.
Gattis just turned 27. He has a mere 300 plate appearances under his belt and a .303 on-base percentage. By the end of his age-26 season Killebrew had over 2,700 plate appearances and a line of .257/.367/.532 with 178 homers. And then he got better. Starting in his age-27 season in 1963, Killebrew did not post an OBP below .349 until his age-38 season, coming when he was clearly done as an elite hitter, in 1974. Over those seasons he posted a line of .261/.387/.515. And need I remind you that the bulk of that line came during an era that was the friendliest to pitchers since the Dead Ball Era ended?
Sure, Harmon Killebrew > than Evan Gattis is not exactly a controversial proposition. But then neither is saying that Killebrew is a Gattis comp. That before you realize that the scout who told this to Rosenthal, like everyone else, hasn’t seen the late Killebrew hit for 38 years and hasn’t seen a truly productive Killebrew for 41 years. Thus rendering his expertise as a scout on the matter kinda superfluous.
Comps are fun. But comparing a one-tool backup catcher to one of the greatest sluggers the game has ever seen is the sort of thing that makes fans angry when that one-tool backup catcher doesn’t become better than he is. And it’s not fair to the one-tool backup catcher.
