Baseball Prospectus | | Eyewitness Scouting Report


	Blake Swihart Born: 04/03/1992 (Age: 22)
	Bats: Switch	Throws: Right
	Height: 6' 0"	Weight: 185
	Primary Position: C

Medium frame, with a little bit more room to fill into; lean muscle; well-defined forearms; athletic; takes care of himself; a bit small in the legs for position; needs to continue to focus on training to limit nagging injuries; demands of position will take toll on body and athleticism.

Evaluator	Chris Mellen
Report Date	07/20/2014
Dates Seen	4/10, 5/8, 5/24, 5/26, 7/19
Affiliate	Portland Sea Dogs (AA, Red Sox)

MLB ETA	Risk Factor	OFP	Video
2015	Low	60	No

Tool	Future Grade	Report
Hit	60	Smooth, fluid swing from both sides of the plate; loose hands, especially left-handed; shows ability to adjust hands to stay inside of the ball; goes up-the-middle and the other way with authority left-handed; needs some work improving fluidity when dropping head of the bat on the ball; can yank head of the bat and roll over; more of a pull hitter from the right-side; patient and methodical in the box; willing to work counts/take strikes; solid pitch recognition - does cave some against breaking stuff away left-handed; excellent bat control; high contact potential, with chance to hit .290s in peak.
Power	55	60 raw power - more power from right side than left side; leverage in swing right-handed; knows how to lift ball and create carry as a righty; bit more flat swing as a lefty, but showed ability to muscle up over the course of looks; bat control enables hitter to take some chances; mostly pull-side power from both sides of the plate; sweet spot for plugging opposite field gap as a lefty; 35-40 doubles potential; home park will have impact on home run totals; see 15 or so home runs annually during peak.
Baserunning/Speed	40	4.42-4.58 down the line left-handed; slower out of box, but presently accelerates well; makes the turn at first fluidly; capable of stretching a hit or taking an extra base; smart on the bases -always see being a heady runner; will lose some speed into late twenties; will be area of game with least impact.
Glove	55	Firm glove when receiving; quick feet; fires quickly; above-average range behind the dish; excellent reflexes - reacts well to changes in the ball; works to smother pitches in the dirt; inconsistent staying down at times however; will get big and front the ball; next step to reach defensive potential is to further polish ball control skills; leader out on the field; handles rhythm of the game well; learning the finer points of the position - so far has shown to be up to the transition.
Arm	65	Plus-to-better arm strength; 1.86-1.97 pop times to 2B on stolen base attempts; can be a little slow with release; pounces out of crouch with very quick feet; above-average accuracy; throws on a line and down into runner for the tag; with continued work smoothing out release has potential to highly impact an opponent's running game.

Definition of a baseball player; does a bit of everything well; high chance to maximize every ounce of talent due to makeup; see a first-division regular here; can hit as high as the two-hole in a deep lineup; type of bat control and contact ability to approach .300 in the majors; see .280-.295, with 35-40 doubles and 15-17 home runs as peak season potential; add in defense at a premium position, and this is a core contributor on a contender.