What to expect from Brandon Marsh

No one has ever doubted that Brandon Marsh had tools. He just had a bit of a tough time staying on the field to put them to good use consistently. Now that he’s completely healthy, Angels fans will get the chance to see what he can do in a big league outfield.

The club's top prospect (No. 38 overall) was called up for the first time and started in center field for Los Angeles on Sunday, with holes in the outfield due to injuries to Mike Trout and Justin Upton needing to be filled. This isn’t necessarily just a fill-in situation. If Marsh can do what he’s done pretty much everywhere he’s been when healthy, he has the chance to be part of the regular outfield rotation even when the two stars return.

The 23-year-old has shown glimpses of his enormous potential ever since he was the Braves’ second-round pick in 2016 as a two-sport star in the Georgia high school ranks. He didn’t play in the summer of 2016 as bonus negotiations got complicated because of a back issue. But in 2017, instead of heading to pro ball as a raw but toolsy outfielder who would take a long time to learn a feel for the game, Marsh went out and hit .350/.396/.548 during his pro debut, giving notice of what he was capable of.

Since then, he’s shown why he has four plus 60 grades on the 20-to-80 grade scouting scale. In 2018, he played across two levels of A ball and while his strikeout rate was high that year, mostly after his promotion to High-A, he also drew a ton of walks, hit 10 homers and stole 14 bases. Marsh batted .300 in his first move to Double-A in 2019, but he also missed the first month of the season with an ankle injury. He made up for lost time in the Arizona Fall League and posted a .909 OPS in the process.

Then the shoulder issues started. He was slowed in 2020, but did come back to swing the bat well at the Angels’ alternate site last year. Shoulder inflammation slowed him again this year, but he was red-hot upon his return, hitting .382 with six extra-base hits in eight games before his callup.

Expecting Marsh to hit .380 might be a bit unrealistic, but the Angels are getting a left-handed hitter who has an extremely advanced approach at the plate. His discerning eye has led to a career Minor League walk rate north of 11 percent, and outside of that first year, he’s kept his strikeout rate relatively in check. The power has come in fits and bursts, but it’s in there, with plenty of plus speed for at least average big league pop in the future. His plus speed that made him a good high school wide receiver has helped him be an effective base stealer (45-for-56), something that should continue in the big leagues.

That speed enables Marsh to cover a ton of ground in the outfield. He has the range and instincts to play a plus center field for a very long time. No, he’s not going to push Trout to a corner when the future Hall of Famer returns. But he has the chops to play either corner equally well, and now that he’s 100 percent, he can show off the kind of arm teams like to see in right field.

That’s what could keep Marsh around for a while, beyond that beard, of course. An advanced feel for hitting, speed and defense are enough for him to contribute, with the upside of him becoming an All-Star down the road.