Morrison = Pujols

Coming to a ballpark near you. Granted, he'll only be a Marlin for three of those years, but still ...

Chuck Johnson over at Dugout Central made an interesting observation in that the Jacobs trade opened the door for Logan Morrison at first for next season. At first, I thought, "You're nuts. Gaby Sanchez is the heir-apparent," but after looking at what he said, I didn't think he was so crazy. Still, I doubt the Marlins would just hand over the job to a guy who's only played in A-ball when they have a guy who smashed the ball at AA. Ultimately, however, Morrison is 4 years younger and only one step behind, so he's probably the long-term solution. Yet, Sanchez did hit .314/.404/.513 this past season, so I think he'll get the first crack at the job. Anyway, how much does Morrison really compare to Albert Pujols, to whom Johnson compares Morrison's potential rise.

Age
Albert Pujols was 20 when he played 109 games at low-A ball, 21 at high-A, and 3 at AAA. Logan Morrison was 20 this past season, a season he played completely in high-A. Those three games in AAA seem like an advantage for Pujols, but it really seems like Morrison was further developed here.

Stats
Pujols hit a combined .314/.373/.543 in his age 20 season, but he only hit .284/.341/.481 in high-A. Morrison hit .332/.402/.494 this past season at high-A, which again gives the edge to Morrison although Pujols's overall SLG is much better. As an interesting note, Morrison hit 11 fewer HR (24 to 13) this season but hit 16 more doubles (22 to 38).

Defense
Pujols is probably more versatile. He was a third baseman, left fielder, and first baseman, and he is now a Gold Glover at first (although evidently the writers/managers don't agree). Morrison is pretty much locked in at first and, apparently, doesn't have much range. If he moves quickly, there might be an interesting situation with Sanchez, but Sanchez did play half of his games at third this past season (albeit badly). Could Morrison play a corner outfield spot (he's a lefty) because he did the other day?

Batting Eye
One of the things that makes Pujols so good is his eye at the plate. He walks a lot and doesn't strike out. That season, he walked 46 times while striking out 47 times. Morrison, by contrast, walked 57 times (better) and struck out 80 times (much worse). Pujols wins here, but you have to like that Morrison didn't strike out 100 times like most other big-time power prospects.

As you can see, Johnson's comparison has plenty of merit, and if you really want to look at it, Morrison did better than Sanchez in high-A (.279/.369/.433). Therefore, Morrison could be a better option at first next season, but I don't really see it happening. Interestingly enough, Jason Grey wrote a blog post over at ESPN.com about Morrison's great play in the AFL. Maybe Morrison has a better shot than I thought.