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Physical Description: Thick,
physically mature frame. Minimal remaining projection. Will have
to watch his body as he gets older. Lost weight and did a much
better job maintaining his conditioning as he got older in high
school.
Hit: Starts square and utilizes
a quick leg kick timing device. Mature approach for his age. Has
bat speed. Takes a second to get going, but has quick hands and
really whips his hips through during his swing. Natural feel for
hit and will make pitchers pay when they make a mistake.
Approach is a work in progress. Chases too often, especially
against changeups. Has had trouble making contact against better
pitching and against velocity, especially when up in the zone.
Will always have swing-and-miss in his game. Has struggled with
velocity in the mid-90s and higher as far back as the 2020 Fall
Instructional League, but showed some improvement against
velocity after 2022 promotion to Greenville. Potential average
hit tool.
Power: Above-average in-game
power potential. Natural loft in swing. Produces solid max exit
velocities. Drives the ball with backspin. Has shown all-fields
power and the ability to drive the ball well out of the
ballpark. Plus-to-better raw power. Raw power does not have much
projection, as he is already maxed out physically.
Run: Well below-average speed. Projects to get
slower as he matures.
Field: Has split
time defensively between third base and first base, and likely
will end up at first. Showed improved agility and mobility when
he lost weight. Not a natural defender at third. Lacks fluidity
in the field, footwork needs work. Below-average range. Hands
work much better at first base than third. Showed confidence
picking balls in the dirt there and lack of range was not as
much of an issue. Potential above-average defender at first base
and fringe-average defender at best at third. |
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Arm: Above-average arm strength. Has the arm
strength needed for third base. Hit 92 mph on the mound in high
school.
Career Notes: Was well-known
from a young age thanks to viral YouTube videos showing his
power, such as one with nearly 1.5 million views in which he hit
an alleged 500-foot home run at Globe Life Park in Arlington,
Texas at age 13. As a result, is still fairly well-known
nationally and gets a number of endorsement deals. Won the High
School Home Run Derby at the 2019 MLB All-Star Game. Recorded
the highest exit velocity of any player at the 2019 World Wood
Bat Championships (106.9 mph). Attended the same high school as
Atlanta Braves third baseman Austin Riley. Was very young for
his draft class after reclassifying in May 2019 from the 2021
class to the 2020 class. Committed to Mississippi State.
Participated in the 2020 Fall Instructional League. Participated
in the 2021 Fall Performance Program. Participated in the 2022
Winter Warm-Up. Was set to participate in the 2022 Fall
Performance Program that was cancelled due to Hurricane Ian.
Summation: Potential up-and-down bench bat.
Ceiling of a bat-first regular, likely at first base. Really has
to hit, as he is maxed out and has a tough potential profile as
a right-right first baseman. A favorite of predictive models due
to his age compared to his draft class, elite exit velocities,
and bat speed. Needs to show he can hit advanced pitching in
order to tap into his raw power, which is his best tool. Will
have to watch conditioning. Ultimate defensive position is
likely first base, but has a better chance to be able to play at
least part time at third base now than when he signed.
Links
Red Sox select Blaze Jordan with third-round pick (6.11.2020)
Scout Chatter (11.24.2020)
Scout Chatter (8.26.2021) |
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