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Prospects on Deck: 2B Nate Mondou – A’s

After a standout college career in the highly competitive Atlantic Coast Conference, the Oakland Athletics took Nate Mondou out of Wake Forest in the thirteenth round of the 2016 June draft. A very competitive and consistent second baseman, Mondou finished his college career with a .308 average, 21 home runs, 114 RBI, and 197 hits over his three years as a Demon Deacon. His hard work would be rewarded with two First Team All-ACC selections, two ACC All-Academic team selections, and ultimately the 382nd overall pick in last year’s draft.

Mondou played the majority of his college career at second base and he profiles well there. He did play a handful of games at third in his junior season, but scouts seem to think he will stick at second throughout his pro career. There is slight concern about the glove. Mondou committed 11 errors in his 233 chances last season, giving him a .953 fielding percentage in his first go at professional baseball. However, the takeaway here should not be the errors. Mondou has openly stated that his defense is the part of the game he is working on the most. When you combine that with the praise he gets from coaches for his work ethic, it is extremely reassuring that he will be just fine with the leather.

If Mondou can get the glove to catch up with the bat, we could see him fly to the higher levels of the minors very quickly. Mondou is a professional hitter. He can hit the ball all over the field and has a knack for finding holes in the defense. In 41 games with the Beloit Snappers this season, Mondou is slashing .321/.390/.404 with two triples, nine doubles, and 25 RBI in his first year of full season ball. 2016 was an impressive year at the plate for Mondou as well. In his 61 games at rookie ball, he slashed .296/.376/.363 with 13 extra base hits.

Photo by Mathew Carper

Mondou has yet to hit a homerun in his professional career. However, I don’t think it is fair to assume that the power isn’t there at all. He did have 21 dingers over his three years at Wake Forest and while it isn’t professional baseball, the ACC is full of hurlers with a great stuff. To me, Mondou’s major league comp at the plate would be a Nick Markakis. A guy who despite not hitting the ball out of the park very often, will still have a high slugging percentage while being a doubles machine.

Mondou is a player I am very excited to watch develop in the A’s system. He has a different skill set than what we see taking over the majors by storm, and I believe players like him will be in high demand soon. The high contact guys who can burn you with a double while having outstanding situational hitting skills to move runners around the base paths will soon be a lost art. Mondou is keeping it alive and I believe he will be rewarded down the road because of it. This kid already has a very bright career ahead of him, but If he keeps working to get the glove up to speed with the bat, he will be a player that should be making some noise very soon.

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