Born: August 4, 1998
Macon, GA
Height: 6-0
Weight: 170
Bats: Left
Throws: Right
Drafted: 2nd round, 2017
How Acquired: Draft
High School: Westfield (GA)

Photo © Kelly O'Connor

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Scouting Report Update (7.29.2020)

Released (March 2022)

Physical Description: Very lean frame. Looks smaller than listed height and weight. Minimal remaining projection. Does not have the frame to sustain significant weight gain.

Hit: Starts open and vertical with his hands high. Utilizes a toe tap timing device. Has tinkered with swing mechanics a fair amount since signing. Used to start square with little incorporation of his lower half, and has also tried starting open with a leg kick of varying heights as well. Lacks bat speed. Struggles with velocity, lot of swing-and-miss at present. Shows a willingness to take a walk, but can be overly passive at times and work himself into bad counts. Has not shown the ability to hit the ball in the air with regularity, consistently posts groundball rates above 50 percent. Potential well below-average hit tool.

Power: No power potential. Not a part of his game. Does not hit the ball in the air enough and lacks the strength to hit the ball over the fence. Has yet to show even consistent gap power in pro ball.

Run: Slightly above-average speed. Baserunning instincts are still a work in progress and base stealing ability is limited by his inability to get on base. Pre-draft reports of 60 or even 70 speed have not really proven accurate.

Field: Potential above-average defender. Gets good reads in the outfield and has a quick first step. Uses speed to close down on balls in the gap.

Arm: Below-average arm strength.

Career Notes: Was a highly regarded prospect coming into the 2017 draft after excelling on the showcase circuit. Underwent surgery to repair a broken hamate bone in his right hand prior to senior season of high school. Had been committed to Georgia Southern. Assigned to Greenville to start the 2018 season, but was sent back to extended Spring Training after extreme struggles at the plate, posting a ground ball percentage near 70 percent and a sub-.500 OPS. Has improved groundball rate somewhat, but still has continued to struggle at the plate. Participated in the Fall Instructional League in 2018. Got some limited playing time in the Coastal Plains League, typically a collegiate summer wooden bat league, in 2020, and struggled at the plate in a small sample size.

Summation: Projects as a low minors bench outfielder. Needs to make significant progress to re-establish prospect status. Does not project to hit enough to allow speed and defensive ability to carry him. Will struggle against more advanced pitching. Needs to add strength and settle on comfortable mechanics at the plate. Does not profile to hit for any power, so needs to focus on a contact-oriented swing and using all fields.