AKS
Richard Palacios, IF
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Scouting report
Palacios will be 24 years old by the time he finally gets at-bats at a full-season affiliate since he missed all of 2019 recovering from labrum surgery. He took advantage of his rehab and looked absolutely jacked during instructs, his first action in nearly two years. Had he not gotten hurt and were it not for the pandemic, Palacios might have reached the majors already. He was a polished college hitter who walked 52 times and struck out just 16 as a junior at Towson while also swiping an ultra-efficient 25 bases in 26 attempts, and he hit .360/.420/.538 against low-level pro pitching after he signed. He's a nearly plus-plus runner and a capable middle infield defender (probably at second, based on how his arm stroke works) with premium hand-eye coordination and bat control. He's a line drive spray hitter without big game power, despite his impressive physique. There was some concern that Palacios beat up on small conference pitching his entire career, and that he may not replicate that performance against pro pitching, a concern he hasn't yet had the opportunity to allay. He was one of the older prospects at instructs but also hadn't seen in-game pitching for quite some time, making him a very difficult contextual evaluation. It's rare for contact-oriented hitters to be high variance prospects, but the layoff and injuries push Palacios into that bucket. (Fall Instructional League)