INF/OF Seaver King
Age: 21
B: Right T: Right
HT: 6/0 WT: 195
Hometown: Athens, GA
2024 Stats: 60 G, 284 PA, .308/.377/.577, 59 R, 14 2B, 3 3B, 16 HR, 64 RBI, 11 SB, 25 BB, 34 SO
Seaver King has one of the coolest stories out there. Undersized and small coming out of high school, King didn’t get many offers. He ended up committing to NCAA Division II Wingate (N.C.). He didn’t let that keep him from performing. He put up a 47-game hitting streak where he slashed .411/.457/.699 with 11 home runs and 13 steals as a sophomore. Still, some questioned whether he could compete with guys at the higher level. He silenced those questions with solid appearances with the U.S. Collegiate National Team and the Cape Code League in the summer of 2023. In 71 plate appearances in the Cape, he slashed .424/.479/.542 with a 1.021 OPS while hitting four doubles, one home run, and driving in nine.
The one thing that stood out about Seaver King was that he’s an athlete and an absolute gamer. In the series I saw him, he didn’t do much at the plate, but he was trying to make things happen despite his struggles. He even laid down a bunt, using his plus speed to beat it out for a single. A lot of his struggles come primarily from his approach at the plate. He’s a bit overly aggressive, which leads to some chasing out of the zone, but he still keeps his strikeout rate low, which hovered at 12% this year. You’d like to see him develop more patience and walk more, and there is plenty of time for him to develop. His bat speed makes up for his aggressiveness, and he hits the ball far when he’s making contact. While the contact rates are low because of his aggressiveness, he generates weak contact from time to time as he doesn’t get the barrel to the ball, but that could easily correct itself over time and as he gets more experience against elite pitching.
Defensively, he looked to fit the part in centerfield, and I have no concerns about him sticking there. He had a ton of range and could easily track down balls. He gets incredible jumps. He’s also received time on the infield, primarily shortstop, and he’s played decent enough there but is likely a better outfielder. The speed is a definite plus to his game, and he will do whatever it takes to beat out a ground ball. He gets out of the box quickly. He can wreak havoc on the basepaths by stretching singles into doubles, but he’s still working to improve his jumps to increase the amount of steals he has. The power and speed, combined with his insane athleticism, will have teams calling his name in the first round of the 2024 MLB Draft.