Marcus Semien Addresses His 2013 Baseball America Scouting Report

Marcus Semien was a promising prospect heading into the 2013 season, but he was far from a high-profile player. When that year’s Baseball America Prospect Handbook was published, the 2011 sixth-round pick out of the University of California-Berkeley was ranked just 14th in a light Chicago White Sox system. (At the time, in-depth scouting reports were still in their nascent stages here at FanGraphs.)

In the 12 years since then, the 34-year-old Semien has gone on to exceed those modest expectations. He reached the big leagues with the White Sox in September 2013, then established himself as an everyday player after they traded him to the Athletics before the 2015 season. Now in his fourth year with the Rangers after six seasons in Oakland and one in Toronto, the Bay Area native has three All-Star selections, two Silver Sluggers, and a Gold Glove on his résumé. Scuffling in the current campaign — Semien has a 47 wRC+ over 176 plate appearances — he nonetheless has 1,533 hits, including 241 home runs, to go with a 108 wRC+ and 36.1 WAR over his major league career.

What did Semien’s Baseball America scouting report look like in the spring of 2013? Moreover, what does he think about it all these years later? Wanting to find out, I shared some of what then-BA contributing writer Phil Rogers wrote, and asked Semien to respond to it.

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“The son of former California wide receiver [Damien] Semien, Marcus was a three-sport standout in high school who followed his father’s footsteps to Berkeley, where he focused on baseball.”

“I actually just played basketball and baseball in high school,” Semien replied. “I was part of a state championship runner-up in my senior year, so I missed probably the first three weeks of my [baseball] season. Once I graduated high school, I knew that baseball was all that I was going to play in college.”

“The White Sox drafted him in the 34th round out of high school but didn’t land him until 2011, when they took him in the sixth round and gave him a $130,000 bonus.”

“Out of high school I was offered about $50,000,” Semien recalled. “I had the scholarship with Cal, both of my parents went there, and it was 10 minutes from my house. I figured it was smart to stay home, get a good education, and play in the Pac-10 against some pretty strong competition.

“I was happy with the jump from the 34th round to the sixth round,” the erstwhile Golden Bear added. “I had a slow start my junior year. I was hoping I’d go a little higher going into that season — I had a good summer with the wood bat — but started off slow. It was the first year of the BBCOR bats, and power was down across the whole nation. Once we got into the playoffs I got hotter, and landed in the sixth round.”

“He was more highly regarded as a fielder than a hitter in college, but Chicago projected he would make major strides at the plate as a pro — and he did in his first full season.”

“First full season I had a couple of injuries, but I definitely got better with my plate discipline,” Semien said. “I also hit for some power in Winston-Salem, which was a good ballpark to hit in.”

“He opened his stance slightly last year, allowing him to barrel more pitches.”

“Ooh, maybe,” Semien said. “I don’t remember necessarily thinking about it, but when you’re that young, sometimes you make some adjustments. But like I said, I started to walk a little bit more and hit for power; the extra-base hits were there. I was on a really good team that year. We scored a lot of runs.”

“Some scouts are still skeptical about his bat, questioning his strength and whether he’ll get on base enough to bat anywhere but the bottom of a lineup.”

“Well, once I got to traded to Oakland, I was at the bottom of the order,” Semien pointed out. “I kind of worked my way up as I got older. I grew into my power a little more. I had some decent power numbers in the minor leagues — I think I hit 21 home runs combined [minors and majors] in 2013, and in 2014, I think it was 21 combined again. So the power was getting there.

“I switched to a 34-inch bat and started hitting for a little more power. Once I got to 2019, I went back to a 33 1/2. Balls were flying better that year. That was my big power year.”

“He has solid arm strength and reliable hands, though his range is average and may push him to second base down the road.”

“They knew that,” Semien responded. “I’m at second base right now. I felt confident in my ability at short. I had a rough start in Oakland. I stuck it out there for six years at shortstop, then ended up at second in Toronto.”

“How Semien performs in Double-A in 2013 will shed light as to whether he eventually can become a big league regular or will top out as a utility type.”

“That was my best year in the minors,” Semien said. “I won MVP in the Southern League and got called up to the big leagues the next year. I guess I answered the call.”

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Previous “Old Scouting Reports Revisited” interviews can be found through these links: Cody Bellinger, Matthew Boyd, Dylan Cease, Matt Chapman, Erick Fedde, Kyle Freeland, Lucas Giolito, Randal Grichuk, Ian Happ, Jeff Hoffman, Matthew Liberatore, Sean Newcomb, Bailey Ober, Max Scherzer