Jobu weighs in on one of the best hitting prospects in all of baseball.

When you team is languishing in last place, that is the opportune time to bring up young players to see if they can play, right? It’s what the Royals did with Mike Moustakas and Eric Hosmer last year, so why aren’t they doing that with their next great hitter, Wil Myers? Either way, allow me to introduce you to the guy you’ll be scrambling to your fantasy baseball league’s waiver wires to pick up.

For those of you scratching your heads and wondering who I’m talking about, meet Wil Myers. Myers is the 21 year old slugging outfielder currently destroying AAA pitching. The Thomasville, North Carolina native was drafted in the third round (91st pick) of the 2009 draft out of Wesleyan Christian High School in North Carolina. He’s 6’3 and 190 lbs, and he hits and throws with his right hand. He’s also still in AAA despite downright gaudy numbers.

The season actually started in AA Northwest Arkansas, but that didn’t last too long. In 35 games, Myers hit .343/.414/.731 with 13 homers and 49 RBI before everyone realized he was way too good for AA and the Royals called him up to their AAA Omaha affiliate. The beat hasn’t stopped in Omaha, as Myers has continued to mash, hitting .284/.366/.572, walloping 20 more homers and driving in 63 in 72 games. For the season, his minor league numbers sit at .303/.382/.624 with 33 homers and 93 RBI in just 107 games, Those, my loyal readers, are video game numbers.

How does he put up all these numbers? According to Scouting Book, he’s a “hard-nosed grinder who some call a throwback to a dirtier era, a ballplayer that can perform well at almost any position.” Myers was drafted, and started his minor league career, as a catcher before being moved to the outfield full time in 2011. Because the Royals will probably have Salvador Pérez behind the dish for the next six years (before the Yankees sign him), moving Myers to the outfield is the fastest path to getting him to help at the major league level. It should also keep him a lot healthier and prolong a career that I imagine could be pretty special. There’s a reason why he ranked in the top 30 prospects from Baseball America to start the season, and I imagine he’ll be a little higher than that come next season.

It’s not all peaches and gravy for Myers though. Defensively, he’s still learning a new position, and the Royals might not want that going on at the major league level. At the plate, while his 500-foot home runs (video below) have become the stuff of legend in Omaha, his strike out rate is pretty prolific too. The kid has struck out 123 times in those 107 games, which would be more alarming if he ever actually goes into a slump. He has balanced that a bit with 51 walks, which is about on pace with the 85 he had in AA in 2011, but I’m curious as to whether his eye is that good, or everyone in the minors is just scared to pitch to him. While the homers might remain consistent once he reaches the big leagues, it’s probably realistic to expect his walks to go down and those Ks to go up until he fully adjusts.

So, are we going to see Myers this season? There really is no reason to believe we won’t. At the very least, we’ll see him when the rosters expand in September. If I were the Royals fanbase though, I’d be clamoring for him now. I’m sure they started when they caught a free glimpse of “Wumbly” at the Futures Game in Kansas City last month though, and I hope the Royals listen.

So, if you’re reading this Dayton Moore, call this guy up! I might need a boost for my fantasy baseball playoffs…

Myers’ Hits An Absolute Bomb:

Featured image courtesy of: Yahoo Sports