SNAFU
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“I made my first visit to Knoxville on April 29 for the juggernaut Volunteers’ game against Auburn, with a pair of potential first-round picks in Tennessee’s lineup in right fielder Jordan Beck and centerfielder Drew Gilbert. Beck has pushed himself into the first round as one of the best tools prospects in the college ranks this year, with performance that lags behind his pure ability, including a .299/.376/.562 line and more than twice as many strikeouts as walks, with a .255/.344/.500 line in the SEC. Beck is athletic and twitchy, an above-average runner (but not plus) who might be able to move to center in pro ball but who’s played right field for Tennessee because Gilbert is so good up the middle. Beck shows easy plus raw power in batting practice, not getting to it in games yet because his plate discipline isn’t where it needs to be — he can hammer a fastball but expands the zone too easily and doesn’t pick up spin well enough to have an average hit tool. There’s plenty for a player development department to work with here, but he’s not a finished product as a hitter like many college position players taken in the first round are.
Gilbert offers plus defense in center with a plus arm, running closer to average but with outstanding reads on defense that help him play above his speed. He hits with a very wide, Bagwell-ish stance, and rarely swings and misses, favoring contact over power — which he’s unlikely to get to with his wide setup and lack of a stride or much weight transfer. He’s a high-floor prospect, very likely to be at least a good fourth outfielder who plays premium defense and puts the ball in play, and would need something more, either more power or better OBP skills, to be a strong regular or better.
Tennessee right-hander Chase Burns could have been a late first-round pick last year had he been signable, but his commitment to the Vols won out and he is on his way to becoming a first-round pick in 2024 instead. Burns was 93-98 mph against Auburn with a power slider at 84-89 mph, going to that pitch whenever he was in any kind of trouble, with a scarcely used changeup. At this point, he’s his own worst enemy — hitters have a hard time hitting either of his two main pitches in or close to the zone, but his command is below-average, especially on the fastball, and he ends up going to the slider to try to get chases when he’s behind. He’s just 19, and has two years to develop before he’s draft-eligible. I could easily see him becoming a top-10 pick by then.”
Keith Law, senior writer The Athletic
Gilbert offers plus defense in center with a plus arm, running closer to average but with outstanding reads on defense that help him play above his speed. He hits with a very wide, Bagwell-ish stance, and rarely swings and misses, favoring contact over power — which he’s unlikely to get to with his wide setup and lack of a stride or much weight transfer. He’s a high-floor prospect, very likely to be at least a good fourth outfielder who plays premium defense and puts the ball in play, and would need something more, either more power or better OBP skills, to be a strong regular or better.
Tennessee right-hander Chase Burns could have been a late first-round pick last year had he been signable, but his commitment to the Vols won out and he is on his way to becoming a first-round pick in 2024 instead. Burns was 93-98 mph against Auburn with a power slider at 84-89 mph, going to that pitch whenever he was in any kind of trouble, with a scarcely used changeup. At this point, he’s his own worst enemy — hitters have a hard time hitting either of his two main pitches in or close to the zone, but his command is below-average, especially on the fastball, and he ends up going to the slider to try to get chases when he’s behind. He’s just 19, and has two years to develop before he’s draft-eligible. I could easily see him becoming a top-10 pick by then.”
Keith Law, senior writer The Athletic
