Today: LAD Prospect Luis Maza
A minor league journeyman for many seasons, Luis Maza is a defensive-minded infielder now with the Los Angeles Dodgers organization. He was originally signed out of Venezuela as a teenager in 1997 by the Minnesota Twins, and spent most of his career in the Twins system before being released and subsequently adopted by the Dodgers in 2006.
In his long minor league career, the right-handed Maza has shown reasonable on-base skills and a little offensive pop (12 home runs in New Britain in 2004, 11 more at AAA Rochester the following season) but his strength has always been in his sure-handed defense.
| Yr | Tm | Age | Lvl | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | CS | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| 1999 | GCL Twins | 19 | R | 25 | 61 | 11 | 16 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 15 | .262 | .392 | .328 | .720 |
| 2000 | Elizabethtown | 20 | R | 56 | 210 | 40 | 62 | 16 | 3 | 8 | 35 | 12 | 4 | 19 | 41 | .295 | .384 | .514 | .898 |
| 2001 | Quad City | 21 | A | 116 | 429 | 74 | 120 | 24 | 1 | 9 | 46 | 12 | 4 | 30 | 66 | .280 | .357 | .403 | .760 |
| 2002 | Fort Myers | 22 | A+ | 105 | 344 | 44 | 83 | 15 | 3 | 4 | 38 | 4 | 6 | 19 | 53 | .241 | .302 | .337 | .639 |
| 2003 | Fort Myers | 23 | A+ | 111 | 410 | 70 | 119 | 18 | 6 | 5 | 61 | 1 | 1 | 34 | 79 | .290 | .368 | .400 | .768 |
| 2004 | NewBritain | 24 | AA | 126 | 492 | 84 | 153 | 26 | 8 | 12 | 66 | 5 | 6 | 28 | 70 | .311 | .365 | .470 | .835 |
| 2004 | Rochester | 24 | AAA | 9 | 35 | 6 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | .229 | .289 | .343 | .632 |
| 2005 | NewBritain | 25 | AA | 49 | 197 | 28 | 49 | 9 | 0 | 6 | 23 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 34 | .249 | .299 | .386 | .685 |
| 2005 | Rochester | 25 | AAA | 76 | 275 | 43 | 80 | 14 | 2 | 11 | 43 | 2 | 1 | 11 | 34 | .291 | .318 | .476 | .794 |
| 2006 | Rochester | 26 | AAA | 95 | 305 | 29 | 63 | 10 | 6 | 3 | 36 | 2 | 2 | 15 | 57 | .207 | .255 | .308 | .563 |
| 2007 | Jacksonvllle | 27 | AA | 26 | 97 | 14 | 23 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 14 | 17 | .237 | .336 | .371 | .707 |
| 2007 | Las Vegas | 27 | AAA | 68 | 227 | 31 | 75 | 21 | 0 | 3 | 34 | 2 | 0 | 17 | 36 | .330 | .381 | .463 | .844 |
In his minor league career, Maza has made a total of 862 starts (most of them at second base or shortstop) and compiled an overall .276 average with a .340 OBP. He's a line drive hitter with some gap power. On the bases, his speed is above-average though not game-changing, and he shows good baserunning skills and smarts.
In the field, Maza is best-suited to second base because of his size and range, but he's also capable at third base or shortstop. He's behind such shining prospects as Andy LaRoche, Chin-Lung Hu and Ivan DeJesus on the depth chart, but in a Dodger system that seems to be beaten up with new injuries every week, he could blossom as a valuable piece off the bench this year.
Update: Maza was destroying AAA Las Vegas this spring (.402/.465/.528) before being pressed into duty thanks to the decimated Dodger bench. Maza has acted as a capable replacement, hitting .226 with a home run and two stolen bases in 56 at-bats through today.
Each and every day, TodaysProspect.com looks at a new up-and-coming player somewhere in baseball, helping you learn a little more about baseball's talent pool one day at a time.
To look back through earlier prospects of the day, click the 123 date boxes on the top right corner of this page.
