Gabriel Lino, young catcher

[stef]

He's at the instructional league now, which is a good sign.

I have heard some nice things about Gabriel Lino, an 18-year-old catcher from Maracay, Venezuela who was signed by Calvin Maduro. Lino may well have the strongest arm of any catcher in the entire O's minor leagues, rated a 70 on the 20-80 scouting scale by one observer. This year in the Gulf Coast League, Lino hit .282 with two homers, 11 RBIs and a .832 OPS.

http://www.masnsports.com/steve_mele...al-league.html

He is listed at 6'3" and 195 lbs. Pretty big for an 18-year-old.

SSS, but his stats are o.k., but he did have five errors:

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/m...pbp&pid=593449

[RVAbird]

He's at the instructional league now, which is a good sign.



http://www.masnsports.com/steve_mele...al-league.html

He is listed at 6'3" and 195 lbs. Pretty big for an 18-year-old.

SSS, but his stats are o.k., but he did have five errors:

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/m...pbp&pid=593449

Big boy for sure. I was more impressed with him than with any other positional player on the GCL squad, even though I only saw him in game action twice. Despite his size, he moves well behind the plate. His actions are raw right now, but what 18 year old catcher's aren't? I don't know if he'll stick behind the plate or outgrow it, but he's got a cannon for an arm that plays well there, in RF or possibly even at 3B depending on how athletic he stays. As far as the stick, I need to see more at higher levels but he has a nice, fluid swing. There's a little bit of power potential there, considering his mass. The reason I found him more intriguing than the higher-profile Bernadina was a more compact, contact-oriented swing (coupled with potential plus positional value). I fear Bernadina will swing and miss too much to be successful, but his raw pop and patience make him a nice name to watch as well.

Glad to hear Gabby is in instructs and taking well to it. I hope to see him in full season ball next year to get a better feel for his bat against pro pitchers.

[DrShorebird]

How do you compare his arm strength and accuracy to that of Luis Bernardo?

[RVAbird]

How do you compare his arm strength and accuracy to that of Luis Bernardo?

Doc, I never got a chance to scout Bernardo, as I don't get a chance to make it out to Delmarva much. I probably saw him play in Frederick but wasn't paying much attention to him as his bat rendered him a non-prospect. From what I understand, though, he brought mid-90s heat and had plus skills behind the plate. Bernardo probably has similar arm strength, but is much more raw in terms of action and footwork. I didn't get a pop time, but I have tape I'll try to time and get back to you.

[stef]

Thanks RVA, very interesting.