Selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 29th round as the 879th choice of the 2000 MLB draft, the Diamondbacks tried to get him again during a college shift by drafting him in the 26th round as the 788th pick of 2001.
With the Tigers, he was one of the key players to take the team to the NCAA playoffs for the first time in seven years.
The Texas Rangers picked up Kinsler in the 17th round as the 496th selection of 2003.
There are the scouts who reiterate the common wisdom that he has just average bat speed and that his hitting streak at Class A was more of a fluke than a sustained attack. Some picture him as a possible second basemen or outfielder rather than a big league shortstop.
Ian loves to confound the experts. The Rangers are doing their best to help him too. Sources tell us that Kinsler not only takes instruction well, he takes it to heart. The Rangers' batting instructors dubbed him "handsy" in his early handling of the bat.
"I worked a lot in the off-season on my swing," Kinsler tells MLN. "I learned to hit with the lower half of my body better."
He gets lift in the FAB50 ranking because of the big effort that the Rangers are putting behind his development.
"I love this organization," Kinsler says. "It moves you along when you perform."
Perform he has. When asked what he thinks the key to success is for himself, Kinsler is very clear:
"I've been hot my last 100 at-bats," Kinsler notes, "I need to keep being patient."
Personality and temperament factor well in a big league career for Ian.
"I'm a laid back guy," he says."That's huge for this sport, especially when you play every day, and there are times that you get fed up with the game."
Kinsler also has a strong support system at home. He married his high school sweetheat, Tess. One of the reasons that he went to ASU was that she was studying there to be a teacher.
His objective for the minor league season is to get a .300 or better year in with the Oklahoma RedHawks. At the time of publication, he had a bit of a way to go, although his major league time reflects his passion for achievement at work.
An All-Star at the 2005 Triple-A game in Sacramento, he was edged out by the Columbus Clippers (Yankees) Mitch Jones for top honors in the home run derby. Most of the players were there for the laughs. He and Jones were definitely trying to send a message home to their organizations. Kinsler watched intently as Jones banged dinger after dinger deep. He came close to taking the title himself, but fell just short.
We'll take the road of uncommon wisdom: Our assessment of Kinsler is that his bat speed and his eye have both matured greatly over the last season of work. He tends to still be a bit off-center with his body when swinging a bat, but it's a tendency he seems to correct for routinely. He's a good-to-great defensive short-stop who has the earmarkings of being great as along as he maintains the kind of work ethic that he's put into his career thus far, and doesn't rest on his laurels.
Kinsler is getting a taste of the big leagues, and he's not taking a lot of guff from either pitchers or runners, on the O or D. The Rangers made themselves quite a deal in obtaining Kinsler. He's the kind of player that you want to use to build a franchise without expensive Eastern imports.
We think that he's big league material for 2006, and move him up ten notches from the 2004 FAB50 to the cleanup spot on the MLN FAB50™ Baseball 2005.
See Also: MLN FAB50 Baseball 2004; 2005 AAA All-Star Home Run Derby; All-Star Photo
