Derek Fisher

Organization Prospect Rankings

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  Ranked Houston Astros #9 prospect in 2017
  Scouts have been dreaming on Fisher's combination of speed and power for years. Out of high school he fell to the sixth round after a poor senior season where he struggled at the plate. He largely continued to struggle in three years at Virginia. The Astros have seen him blossom as a pro after making him a 2014 sandwich pick. Fisher is the only minor league player to hit 20 homers and steal 20 bases in both 2015 and 2016. Fisher's impressive athleticism helps him maximize his tools. He has plus-plus raw power and has developed the ability to draw walks and get on base at a high rate. His swing is smooth, and he has plenty of bat speed, but he unleashes it with a significant load that emphasizes power over contact. He's always going to swing and miss a lot, making him more of a .240-type hitter, but his above-average power will produce plenty of extra-base hits. Defensively, Fisher has improved to the point where he's a fringe-average left fielder and a below-average center fielder with a below-average arm. His power, speed and on-base ability make him a potentially valuable regular even with a below-average hit tool. The Astros' lineup leans heavily toward the right side, which opens an opportunity for the lefthanded-hitting Fisher. He heads back to Triple-A Fresno in 2017.
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  Ranked Houston Astros #10 prospect in 2016
  Dating back to his prep days in Pennsylvania, when he was an unsigned sixthrounder by the Rangers, Fisher has teased scouts with his body and lively tools. He's an excellent athlete and runner, but he played left field at Virginia. He shows a sweet swing at times, but he never hit .300 as a Cavalier, and a hamate injury as a junior caused him to fall into the supplemental first round. If Fisher could play center field, he would be a nearly perfect profile prospect. But he's never shown any aptitude for the position. He's a plus runner, has a great, athletic frame and will show plus-plus raw power in batting practice. Fisher's power doesn't show up in games as often as one would expect. His swing generates raves from some scouts with his bat speed, fluidity and a good all-field approach. At times he's demonstrated a tenacious two-strike approach, but his pitch recognition needs work. Fisher has always struggled with reads and routes. While he has played some center field for the Astros, he looks more comfortable in left where his below-average arm plays better. Fisher runs the bases well and has 20-20 potential if he does a better job of tapping into his power. But he's still a very high variance prospect who has a chance to be a star along the lines of Jason Bay, and a chance to struggle to have a big league career. He'll take on Double-A in 2016.
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  Ranked Houston Astros #13 prospect in 2015
  Fisher was a sixth-round pick out of a Pennsylvania high school but turned down the Rangers for a three-year career at Virginia, which he helped lead to the College World Series finals in 2014. He had a down junior season due in part to a broken right hamate but still went 37th overall in the draft, signing for $1,534,100. Fisher had a strong pro debut at short-season Tri-City and has first-round offensive tools. He's an above-average runner who matched his three-year college stolen-base total (17) in his pro debut. Fisher's swing has changed from high school to college and he is able to barrel the ball more often now. He has strength and exceptional bat speed that give him plus-plus raw power, and he made more contact as his college career evolved. Still, he's never tapped into that power consistently, and the Astros will be satisfied if he hits 15-20 homers annually. Defensively, he remains below-average as a route runner and fielder with a below-average arm, but he's athletic enough to be an average defender in left field. If he ever taps into his power, Fisher will profile as a big league regular.

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #31 prospect in 2014 draft
  A sixth-round pick out of a Pennsylvania high school, Fisher spurned the Rangers to attend Virginia and was voted a preseason first-team All-American by scouting directors. They've been waiting for Fisher to translate his strength and athletic ability into consistent production, because he profiles as a left fielder who will need to hit and hit for power to be a big league regular. At 6-foot-3, 205 pounds, Fisher looks the part and he's an average runner when he decides to go hard, which hasn't been often enough for scouts' tastes. He'll need the reps that pro ball can deliver to improve his raw route-running and defensive consistency, as he's a below-average defender presently with a below-average arm. Scouts give Fisher 70 raw power; he sticks to the gaps and staying inside the ball in games, as was the case in the Cape Cod League, where he hit .333 but with just six extra-base hits (all doubles) last summer. A broken right hamate interrupted Fisher's junior season, though he hit his first two home runs of the season in the first week after returning to the field. He has a sound lefthanded swing and has shown the ability to hang in well against college lefthanders. His finish, particularly in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in front of a lot of decision makers, could push him up the thin list of college hitters.

Minor League Top Prospects

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  Ranked Pacific Coast League #3 prospect in 2017
  Fisher finally put all the pieces of his offensive identity together this season. He hit more than 20 home runs for the third straight season and cut his strikeout rate back below 20 percent before the Astros called him up in July. "He tried to use his (above-average) speed early in his career by putting the ball on the ground and running," Fresno manager Tony DeFrancesco said. "Now he's got his swing path probably elevated a little bit. He has exceptional exit velocity . . . He's being more selective at the plate. He's really focused on his swing decisions." Fisher's altered batting approach didn't cost him in other departments. He stole 16 bases in 84 games in the PCL. DeFrancesco said he expects Fisher to stay at left field in the majors, though he has the versatility for center and right.
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  Ranked Texas League #18 prospect in 2016
  Fisher has the tools to one day be the best outfielder to come out of the TL in 2016. He will show plus raw power and plus-plus speed, while his defense has made significant strides since his time at Virginia. Fisher focused on pitch selectivity, which paid off with a vastly enhanced walk rate and a higher on-base percentage, though it came at the cost of passivity at times. He could aim to be either a top-of-the-order bat or more of a middle-of-the-order masher with a higher strikeout rate. He's shown a facility for either batting profile, but he can't seem to combine the attributes. Fisher's biggest weakness defensively is a below-average arm that limits him to left field or center. His routes have improved to where he is an average center fielder.
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  Ranked New York-Penn League #8 prospect in 2014
  A broken hamate bone hampered Fisher's junior year at Virginia and pushed him down to the sandwich round, but in his pro debut he showed why scouts regarded him as one of the best bats in the 2014 draft class heading into the spring. "I saw his first two at-bats against us, and I thought, ?Oh, my God, this guy can really rake,'" Brooklyn manager Tom Gamboa said. "It's just a beautiful, beautiful swing. And he can run." The Astros let Fisher use his plus speed on the basepaths more than Virginia did, and he showed good basestealing instincts. Despite his speed, he'll be tied to left field moving forward, for he had a reputation as a below-average defender with a below-average arm in college. NYPL managers generally thought he handled the position fine. Fisher has a fluid lefthanded swing that regularly produces hard, line-drive contact, giving him a chance to be a plus hitter with plus raw power as he matures.

• December, 2016 Scouting Report
  Background: Scouts have been dreaming on Fisher's combination of speed and power for years. Out of high school he fell to the sixth round after a poor senior season where he struggled at the plate. He largely continued to struggle in three years at Virginia. The Astros have seen him blossom as a pro after making him a 2014 sandwich pick. Fisher is the only minor league player to hit 20 homers and steal 20 bases in both 2015 and 2016. Scouting Report: Fisher's impressive athleticism helps him maximize his tools. He has plus-plus raw power and has developed the ability to draw walks and get on base at a high rate. His swing is smooth, and he has plenty of bat speed, but he unleashes it with a significant load that emphasizes power over contact. He's always going to swing and miss a lot, making him more of a .240-type hitter, but his above-average power will produce plenty of extra-base hits. Defensively, Fisher has improved to the point where he's a fringe-average left fielder and a below-average center fielder with a below-average arm. His power, speed and on-base ability make him a potentially valuable regular even with a below-average hit tool.
  
  The Future: The Astros' lineup leans heavily toward the right side, which opens an opportunity for the lefthanded-hitting Fisher. He heads back to Triple-A Fresno in 2017.