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2007 Stepping in for Mathis in May, Napoli proved both his defenders and critics correct. He surprised the league at first, hitting .286/.412/.579 between his May callup and the All-Star break, then pitchers caught up to him and held him to .164/.303/.320 in the second half, inducing a 4-for-54 homerless slump (with 13 walks) from mid-July to mid-August. Hence PECOTA`s strange spread of optimism and fear--players whose skills are entirely tied up in secondary offensive attributes such as power and patience can disappear almost as quickly as they arrive. As long as Napoli`s hidden from guys with overpowering heat, his all-or-nothing approach should serve against the nibblers as he works counts for a cookie. Whereas he was once seen as a relatively iffy defender, hard work has helped him improve against the running game; he threw out 31 percent of would-be thieves as an Angel last year. He`ll never be a star, but he contributes in all phases of the game. 2005 Prior to the season, Napoli was regarded as the fifth-best backstop in the Angels organization, maybe worse. Then he found some tremendous power, and with it came the added respect from pitchers that allows a player with a 60-walk eye to have an 88-walk season. Negatives include 166 strikeouts, which cast doubt on his ability to sustain his batting average at higher levels, doubly so after accounting for Cal League inflation. At 6'5" and 205 pounds., he'll likely shift to first base at some point, so his hitting needs to keep making big strides. Double-A will provide a good test.
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