The fine folks over at Bullpen Banter (in particular, Al Skorupa, who once frequented our comments section) have taken the time to scout top Red Sox draft pick Deven Marrero. The word is mixed.
Skorupa was once very high on the shortstop, as were so many scouts back when he was considered a surefire top-10 pick. As Skorupa points out, though, an ankle injury sent him a bit off-track, and since then he's been fighting to regain his former reputation.
The problem Skorupa sees with Marrero is the same as most: the bat is a question mark. The glove, by all accounts, is all the way there, but the Sox already have a more extreme version of that in Triple-A by the name of Jose Iglesias. You may have heard of him.
The good news is that Skorupa leaves the impression that there are a few things to like about Marrero's bat. It's got plenty of speed behind it, he can make contact, and consistent gap power is certainly more than we've seen from Jose Iglesias and his .050 ISO in the minors.
Skorupa also seems to suggest that some of Marrero's problems are the type that can be ironed out. If the ankle injury affected his swing, if he's struggling with mechanical consistency, that can all be worked on with coaches. The biggest issue will be his plate discipline, which is rather harder to learn.
Frankly, the impression I was left with was one of Mike Aviles. Good contact, good power for a middle infielder, a glove that will probably be more effective than Aviles' assuming he doesn't suffer from the mental lapses that seem to cost our current shortstop in the field from time to time. It's not a glowing comparison, but I'm of the mind that we've seen a particularly bad form of Aviles this year.
But don't take my word for it, take Skorupa's and make your own judgement.