Nats prospect watch: Chris Bostick

Last December, second baseman Chris Bostick arrived alongside right-hander Abel De Los Santos from the Texas Rangers for left-hander Ross Detwiler. It ended a whirlwind few years for the highly-thought-of infielder in which he has played for three teams since 2013.

"It's got to be a little bit tough for him because he has been with three organizations in three years," said Nationals hitting coordinator Troy Gingrich. "He's never really had a chance to settle down. I think at each organization they've wanted him to become (different). With Oakland, they wanted him to just be an on-base guy, kind of put the ball in play.

"Then he went to Texas, and I know they worked with him on trying to drive the ball, maybe hit home runs, and then with us, we just want him to be what he wanted to be and not try to force him to be something they thought. I think him trying to get a little bit more comfortable, know who he is, get to know everybody, his teammates, all that stuff."

Bostick, who can play second base and shortstop, really came on strong at the end of the season while playing for Double-A Harrisburg. In seven games in September, he hit .370/.393/.741. The club didn't have room for him at that moment to send him to Arizona Fall League, so they got him to Florida for instructional league work. There Gingrich focused on his batting positioning.

"At instructs, he was kind of disappointed because he wasn't going to Fall League," Gingrich said. "And then we talked to him in the beginning on instructs about how we wanted to keep him continuing on. He finally learned how to get to position. He flirted around with a couple of things on how he did that. He finally found one that he likes and is a little bit more consistent for him."

Then came word that Trea Turner and Wilmer Difo couldn't go to Arizona, so Bostick got the chance to go.

"He was really excited to do that. He (did) well over there," Gingrich said.

While with the Salt River Rafters, Bostick again flourished, finishing at .268/.333/.549 with 19 hits, four doubles, two triples, six stolen bases, four homers and 12 RBIs.

"He's got some sneaky pop," Gingrich said. "The guy hits extra bases. He had 51 extra-base hits two years ago, he had 42 this year with us. When he gets to the barrel of the ball, it's usually loud and he gets extra-base hits. Plus, he's so athletic and he can run well, so that is very good for him.

Gingrich said the main focus with Bostick is to cut down his strikeouts.

"He worries a lot about striking out," Gingrich said. "Most time he struck out because he swung and got pitches out of the zone. So when he shrinks his strike zone a little bit, his strikeouts will go down and his rate of contact will go up a lot higher. I think that's the biggest thing.

"He's just got to recognize he tries to protect too much with two strikes. A lot of that stuff is he chases stuff down out of the zone, and the more that he elevates the ball with two strikes, the better his contact ratio goes up. He's learning that."

Gingrich said they focused on his balance and his feet position at point of impact with the ball.

"When he gets down and his front foot lands, his hitting position, a lot of times he would get too far forward," Gingrich said of Bostick. "We're just trying to get him to when he lands, he is 50-50 but feels some strength there in his back side to help him stay."

Gingrich said the 22-year-old all-around player drinks in the advice and makes the necessary adjustments to excel. He proved that he can play at high Single-A, Double-A and Arizona Fall League this season with the Nationals.

He was so good and impressed the club so much the Nationals placed him on their 40-man roster November 19.

"He really, really wants to be a big leaguer and he's going to work his tail off to do that," Gingrich said.