2023 Countdown to Spring Training: Marcelo Mayer

Physical Description: Tall, athletic frame. Loose and projectable with room to add strength as he physically matures. Likely to add good weight upon being introduced to a professional strength and conditioning program. Looks the part.

Hit: Starts open and vertical with his hands high. Quiet load with a very short leg lift. Fluid swing with strong feel for hit. Quick hands. Plus bat speed. Very impressive bat control. Ball jumps off his bat and has already shown the ability to turn on velocity. Knows the strike zone and has strong bat-to-ball skills. Advanced approach for a high school hitter. Will use all fields and does not try to do too much at the plate. Potential plus hit tool.

Power: Above-average raw power. Strong for his frame with good extension in his swing. Has already shown the ability to drive the ball in the air to all fields. Needs to add some strength, and if he does, will turn doubles in the gap into home runs. Potential for above-average to plus game power at his peak.

Run: Fringe-average speed. Good instincts, but not a burner. Will play faster than his foot speed because of how he reads the game.

Field: Instinctual defender with very fluid actions. Looks like he is gliding on the field. Soft hands and solid footwork. Moves well and has plenty of range for shortstop. Confident defender; will take a flashy infield. Potential plus defender at short.

Arm: Plus arm, plenty for shortstop. Able to make all the throws with plenty of zip.

Career Notes: Was seen as the consensus top prospect in the 2021 MLB Draft despite falling to the Red Sox with the fourth pick. First caught attention of scouts while playing with Twins 2019 first-round pick Keoni Cavaco. Switch-hit when he was young but decided to focus on hitting left-handed after the eighth grade. Was committed to USC when drafted. Participated in the 2021 Fall Performance Program. Entered 2022 season as a consensus top 20 prospect. Missed most of a period of about a month in April/May 2022 due to a wrist sprain. Was set to participate in the 2022 Fall Performance Program that was cancelled due to Hurricane Ian. Entered 2023 as a consensus top 10 prospect.

Summation: Potential above-average regular. Ceiling of a regular all-star. Has all the tools you look for in future everyday shortstop and the offensive upside to hit at the top of a contending team's lineup. Game comes easy to him. Potential for four above-average-or-better tools. Should be able to stick at shortstop and hit for a high average with power. Hit-over-power at the plate at this point, but both tools project as at least above-average. One of the best, if not the best, defenders in the 2021 draft. Complete profile on both sides of the ball gives him an all-star ceiling.