In the last two days, third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes has been mentioned twice as a potential breakout player, who just missed top 100 prospect lists. Jim Callis named him as the best third baseman, among players who missed the top 100 for MLB Pipeline. Callis based his list on the players who could see the most growth in 2016. The link includes a scouting video of Hayes from his senior year in high school last year.
Today, Keith Law followed up his top 100 list with the ten players who just missed his list(subscription required). Hayes was the main player mentioned in the article, getting the title and photo. He calls Hayes an elite defensive third baseman, who hits for average and makes hard contact, which should result in 30-40 doubles per season. He isn’t projected to hit for much power, probably 10-15 homers a season, but he should get his share of extra base hits.
While I personally like the potential of Hayes, it might be a little unrealistic for him to breakout this upcoming season, because it’s likely the Pirates give him an aggressive push to West Virginia. He would be one of the youngest players in the league and obviously going through a full season for the first time in his career. I expect him to hold his own in the league due to his defensive ability and strong plate approach, but I don’t expect him putting up a slash similar to the .308/.408/.346 line he had in his first season of pro ball last year. If he did put up a line similar to that though, then that could get him top 50 consideration for prospect lists around this time next year.
Just a reminder that Baseball America will post their top 100 list tonight, with the top 50 being announced on MLB Network at 9pm. We will have an article up shortly before that show starts if you want to follow along.
