Three Gifted Rookies Are Blooming in Spring Training Camps

One is a 21-year-old outfielder who is already drawing comparisons to Willie Mays and Roberto Clemente despite the fact he has played only 29 major league games.

Another is straight off the campus of Oklahoma State where his home run hitting prowess turned the heads of every major league scout. But he has yet to play his first professional game.

A third is considered so adept at both hitting and fielding that his club refused to re-sign a surefire Hall of Famer in order to make room for him in the lineup. However, he has never played a game in the major leagues.

Jose Canseco of the Oakland A’s, Pete Incaviglia of the Texas Rangers and Wally Joyner of the Angels are the rookies attracting the most attention in spring training camps this year. But there are a number of others who could make an impact on the pennant races in both leagues.

Canseco has the cameras clicking most often. Canseco is a 21-year-old outfielder who, according to A’s minor league instructor Bob Watson, a former major leaguer, has the same kind of skills that Hall of Famers Mays and Clemente possessed. He was voted the Minor League Player of the Year by Baseball America last year and is considered by many scouts to be the best offensive weapon to come along in a decade.

A native of Havana, Cuba, who was raised in Miami, Fla., Canseco played on three different levels last year and was a raging success at all three stops. In 58 games at Huntsville, Ala., of the Class AA Southern League he hit .318 with 25 homers and 80 RBIs in 58 games. Promoted to Tacoma of the Class AAA Pacific Coast League, he hit .348 with 11 homers and 47 RBIs in 60 games.

The A’s brought him up in September and he hit .302 with 5 homers and 13 RBIs in 29 games. Putting it all together, Canseco batted .327 with 41 homers and 140 RBIs.

“Here is a kid who is going to have to more or less play his way out of the lineup,” said A’s Manager Jackie Moore. “I know I’m going to have to protect him throughout the season. He’s still a youngster. But like all youngsters, there will be times when he takes two steps forward and one backward.

“Last season he showed me he could adjust and that’s very important for a young player. When he came up they kept throwing him breaking balls, but he adjusted and started hitting to all the playing areas. I just don’t know how good this kid is.”

Incaviglia, 21, has awesome power as evidenced by his 48 homers in only 60 games for Oklahoma State last season and Ranger Manager Bobby Valentine would like nothing better than to see the 6-foot-2, 220-pound slugger in the middle of his lineup.

The problem is Incaviglia’s lack of experience. Hitting against collegiate pitching isn’t remotely close to facing major league stuff and Incaviglia may not be ready. Still, he could follow in the footsteps of another collegiate slugger from several years ago, Bob Horner of the Atlanta Braves, who went right from the college playing fields to the major leagues and hit 23 home runs in a little over half a season.

Incaviglia has already excited the Rangers with his long ball prowess.

In his first day in the batting cage, he put on a hitting exhibition that has not been seen at the Rangers’ spring training camp since Jeff Burroughs was in his prime. With Valentine pitching batting practice, Incaviglia hit a shot up the middle that knocked the Rangers’ manager to the ground, even though it had been softened by first hitting the protective netting in front of the pitcher’s mound. Another blast hit the top of the wall and actually put a dent in it.

“After the second pitch I had the fear of God put in me,” said Valentine. “I throw batting practice to a lot of guys, and it was only batting practice. But I’ve never seen anything like that.

“His days in the majors may be delayed, but they won’t be denied.”

Joyner is not in the class of Canseco or Incaviglia as a power hitter, but he is considered a good enough all-round player to squeeze seven-time American League batting champion Rod Carew out of a job. The Angels think so much of Joyner’s ability that they refused to re-sign the 40-year-old Carew for another year.

A left-handed hitter, the 23-year-old Joyner batted .283 with 12 homers and 73 RBIs at Edmonton of the Pacific Coast League last season. This past winter he won the Triple Crown in the Puerto Rican League with a .356 batting average, 14 home runs and 48 RBIs in 54 games.

Joyner also is considered an exceptional defensive first baseman who reminds many scouts of a left-handed version of former Gold Glove winner Vic Power.

“We don’t know if he’s ready,” admits Angel Manager Gene Mauch. “Only three players have won Triple Crowns in Puerto Rico, but that doesn’t mean he’ll hit in the majors.

“He’s a stroker, rather than a swinger. He has the same pace, the same attitude as (singles-hitting specialist) Mickey Vernon, which is to be comfortable and confident out there.”

Like Joyner, Andres Galarraga of the Montreal Expos is a polished fielder whose long ball potential has convinced manager Bob Rodgers to pencil him in as the regular first baseman despite his lack of professional experience.

Galarraga, 24, hit .269 with 25 homers and 87 RBIs for Indianapolis of the Class AAA American Assn. last year and led the Venezuelan League in home runs this winter.