Jade Smoot, 1B/OF, Taft College

April 24 — Big, strong kid; LDS (Mormon) who apparently already went on a mission, so he’s back a bit older and far more physically developed than your average freshman. Close to/already at final physical form, little upside remaining, but ideal musculature and physicality; great size and shape to be a power hitting corner guy. Very strong hands and wrists. Looks the part of a pro; ability to use leverage, and power will continue to improve as he develops … Closed stance at the plate; upper cut swing to hit the ball in the air; surprisingly advanced feel for all fields. Really showed out well in a few professional-quality at-bats in my late April look. In an early at-bat, tagged an 89 mph fastball on the outside corner for a 101 mph exit velo line drive to the opposite field through shortstop for a double; didn’t try to roll over and do too much with it, just went with the pitch and hit it—very hard—where it was pitched. In a later at-bat, saw a 91 mph fastball on the outside corner and hit it over the left-center field fence for a long, towering home run; in that case, too, didn’t try to do too much and instead just let the hands work to the opposite field; showed real power through hand/wrist strength alone. I also did see a couple roll-over ground balls and a few very, very hard hit balls pulled far foul without ability to keep his hands in enough to straighten them out, so there’s some work to be done. But he showed me full plate coverage, above-average bat speed, very strong hands and wrists, and quick enough hands that fire to the ball and give access to all fields based on where he’s pitched. Potential match up nightmare at the next level — sitting on top of the plate with quick hands, will be a tough guy for RHP to face. Enjoying power surge early in career here at Taft College; if it continues, he’s going to be a monster … Wonder about defensive future; looked OK at first base through infield/outfield drills in my limited look, but never saw him take game action there and I need to see a few games defensively before drawing a conclusion. My hunch is that he still needs to find a natural defensive home, but if he hits for power like he flashed for me, the defense will take care of itself … Jade Smoot is probably not a 2018 MLB Draft candidate, but he ought to be on the radar when he comes out of Taft College next year, or at his subsequent four-year stop; power profile and size are ideal for the pro game and continued overall development at the plate will get him over the hump.

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