Dillon Dobson Scouting Report Video: San Francisco Giants, April 2017

Lancaster, California —— At the top of this post, watch our scouting video of San Francisco Giants utility infield prospect Dillon Dobson, taken from a three-game road series for his San Jose Giants against the host Lancaster JetHawks in California League play from April 10-12, 2017.

Earlier this week, Dillon Dobson was placed on the seven-day disabled list with an elbow injury; before then, he slashed .286/.375/.452/.827 with two doubles, a triple, a home run, and five walks through his first 48 plate appearances with High-A San Jose.

For our feature interview with San Francisco Giants utility infielder Dillon Dobson that was also published today, please click here.

Dillon Dobson scouting report notes

Dillon Dobson’s future in professional baseball will hinge on his ability to hit the ball with some power while playing as many positions as possible around the diamond. A jack-of-all-trades type of ballplayer who isn’t particularly stellar (or particularly poor) at any one position, Dobson’s flexibility in the field is his biggest strength, and it is the thing that will propel him to a National League roster if he can get all the way to a big league career in the next few years. He’s a natural fit at third base more than anywhere else, but already in his professional career he’s played second, first, left field, and third while also working out at shortstop. If he can hit well enough to do it, there’s an opening there for Dobson to carve out a super utility role in the future, and his consistency in preparation and dependability in outcomes—especially with the glove—make him a great candidate to watch, wait, and see.

At the plate, Dobson has a bit more power than what you might expect for somebody in his role. He’s physically well-built with very strong wrists and forearms, and that combined with a short, easy left-handed swing gives the San Francisco Giants’ utility infielder the ability to wreak havoc on low balls and hit the ball al long way at times. There’s a fair amount of swing-and-miss in his game, though, and Dobson shows some tendency to lunge off-balance at breaking balls right now. That’s not necessarily a deal breaker—especially if his power continues to develop—but it bears watching as he climbs into the high minors and faces better pitchers. Nevertheless, he’s a Division I product with the maturity you’d expect of his station in baseball, and that makes him exactly the type of guy who could thrive as a 25th man in the San Francisco Giants’ system.

Both in his body type and his style of play, Dobson reminds me a great deal of TJ Bennett, another Giants utility infield prospect now in Double-A after spending last year with San Jose. If Dobson and Bennett are more broadly emblematic of the type of organizational depth/utility role player the Giants seek to develop, that says volumes about the organization’s top-to-bottom attention to shrewd, well-thought player development.

For our interview with San Francisco Giants prospect Dillon Dobson, please click here.

To visit Dillon Dobson’s player page, please click here.

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Dillon Dobson scouting report: 140 characters or less

A jack of all trades with some pop in his bat, Dillon Dobson is in the perfect organization to maximize his value in a utility role.

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