Josh Kasevich

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Toronto Blue Jays #15 prospect in 2024
  BA Grade: 45/High
  
  Track Record: Kasevich spent three seasons at Oregon earning all-Pacific-12 Conference honors as a junior. The Blue Jays drafted Kasevich in the second round in 2022. He debuted after the draft with Low-A Dunedin, hitting .262/.344/.336 across 25 games. Kasevich was assigned to High-A Vancouver out of spring training 2023 and stayed there all season.
  
  Scouting Report: A highly skilled and polished player, Kasevich has made his bones on the strength of his plate skills. He is rarely fooled and his linear, contact-focused approach yields high rates of balls in play. He’s adept at hitting velocity and spin but rarely with impact. Kasevich shows an advanced approach and keeps a tidy zone. He has the profile to hit for a high average against more advanced pitching but likely with very little impact. Kasevich’s raw power is below-average with very little high-end power and flatter angles in his best contact. A fringe-average runner, Kasevich is a smart baserunner but not a major basestealing threat. He is a skilled infielder with strong hands, actions and instincts in the field. He saw a majority of his time at shortstop but likely lacks the range and arm strength to plate there everyday.
  
  The Future: Kasevich fits as a utility infielder with quality bat-to-ball skills, approach and the ability to handle multiple positions.
  
  Scouting Grades Hit: 60 | Power: 30 | Run: 45 | Field: 55 | Arm: 45
• 
  Ranked Toronto Blue Jays #11 prospect in 2023
  BA Grade/Risk: 45/High
  
  Track Record: After an impressive Covid-freshman campaign with Oregon, Kasevich followed it up with a standout third year for the Ducks. He hit .310/.383/.445 with seven home runs while striking out far less than he walked. He was named to the first team All Pac-12 Conference Team, as well as the Conference All-Defensive and Academic teams. The Blue Jays selected Kasevich with the 60th overall pick in the second round and signed him for a below-slot bonus of $997,500.
  
  Scouting Report: A well-rounded contributor on both sides of the ball in college, Kasevich is a sure-handed shortstop with a hit-over-power profile at the plate. Kasevich fits in with a Blue Jays system that values high-end bat-to-ball skills and advanced plate discipline. Kasevich possesses both of those characteristics in spades. With a simple righthanded swing, Kasevich shows the ability to hit anything thrown inside the zone with little effort, with loose adjustability in his hands and level bat path that generates hard line drives and hard ground balls on his best contact. Kasevich rarely strikes out and shows the ability to avoid chase swings. His game power is below average at present but his exit velocity data hints at average raw power in his lean 6-foot-2 frame. He is a fringe-average runner and not a base-stealing threat. Kasevich, while not a slick defender, is instead practical, polished and fundamentally sound. He rarely, if ever, makes mistakes in the field and shows enough arm strength to handle shortstop long term.
  
  The Future: A strong defender with above-average contact and on-base skills, but little power. Kasevich looks like an average everyday shortstop with enough offense and defensive value to play everyday.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 55. Power: 45. Run: 45. Field: 55. Arm: 55.

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #47 prospect in 2022 draft
  School: Oregon Committed/Drafted: Never Drafted
  Age At Draft: 21.5
  BA Grade: 50/High
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 50 | Power: 40 | Run: 45 | Field: 55 | Arm: 55
  Oregon has produced a handful of highly-drafted infielders in recent years, including Nick Madrigal, Cadyn Grenier and Beau Philip. Kasevich is the latest in that line and likewise has a chance to be a top-two round pick after continuing to show steady defensive ability at shortstop and solid production at the plate. A 6-foot-2, 200-pound hitter, Kasevich slashed .310/.383/.445 through his first 61 games this spring, while showing good zone control—24 walks to 16 strikeouts—and hitting seven home runs and 10 doubles. He has a flat bat path and doesn’t elevate the ball consistently, with almost half of his batted balls put on the ground. Scouts have liked his hard-hit ability in the past, so perhaps with a slight swing change he could tap into more in-game power, though contact and on-base ability are more in his wheelhouse than slugging. He’s a steady and reliable defender at shortstop who should have a chance to stick at the position at the next level. He isn’t a great runner and doesn’t have the sort of quick-twitch lower half that scouts want to see in big league shortstops, but he rarely makes mistakes with the glove and has a career fielding percentage of .974 with just 14 total errors in 130 games played.

• February, 2023 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 45/High
  
  Track Record: After an impressive Covid-freshman campaign with Oregon, Kasevich followed it up with a standout third year for the Ducks. He hit .310/.383/.445 with seven home runs while striking out far less than he walked. He was named to the first team All Pac-12 Conference Team, as well as the Conference All-Defensive and Academic teams. The Blue Jays selected Kasevich with the 60th overall pick in the second round and signed him for a below-slot bonus of $997,500.
  
  Scouting Report: A well-rounded contributor on both sides of the ball in college, Kasevich is a sure-handed shortstop with a hit-over-power profile at the plate. Kasevich fits in with a Blue Jays system that values high-end bat-to-ball skills and advanced plate discipline. Kasevich possesses both of those characteristics in spades. With a simple righthanded swing, Kasevich shows the ability to hit anything thrown inside the zone with little effort, with loose adjustability in his hands and level bat path that generates hard line drives and hard ground balls on his best contact. Kasevich rarely strikes out and shows the ability to avoid chase swings. His game power is below average at present but his exit velocity data hints at average raw power in his lean 6-foot-2 frame. He is a fringe-average runner and not a base-stealing threat. Kasevich, while not a slick defender, is instead practical, polished and fundamentally sound. He rarely, if ever, makes mistakes in the field and shows enough arm strength to handle shortstop long term.
  
  The Future: A strong defender with above-average contact and on-base skills, but little power. Kasevich looks like an average everyday shortstop with enough offense and defensive value to play everyday.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 55. Power: 45. Run: 45. Field: 55. Arm: 55.
• December, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 45/High
  
  Track Record: After an impressive Covid-freshman campaign with Oregon, Kasevich followed it up with a standout third year for the Ducks. He hit .310/.383/.445 with seven home runs while striking out far less than he walked. He was named to the first team All Pac-12 Conference Team, as well as the Conference All-Defensive and Academic teams. The Blue Jays selected Kasevich with the 60th overall pick in the second round and signed him for a below-slot bonus of $997,500.
  
  Scouting Report: A well-rounded contributor on both sides of the ball in college, Kasevich is a sure-handed shortstop with a hit-over-power profile at the plate. Kasevich fits in with a Blue Jays system that values high-end bat-to-ball skills and advanced plate discipline. Kasevich possesses both of those characteristics in spades. With a simple righthanded swing, Kasevich shows the ability to hit anything thrown inside the zone with little effort, with loose adjustability in his hands and level bat path that generates hard line drives and hard ground balls on his best contact. Kasevich rarely strikes out and shows the ability to avoid chase swings. His game power is below average at present but his exit velocity data hints at average raw power in his lean 6-foot-2 frame. He is a fringe-average runner and not a base-stealing threat. Kasevich, while not a slick defender, is instead practical, polished and fundamentally sound. He rarely, if ever, makes mistakes in the field and shows enough arm strength to handle shortstop long term.
  
  The Future: A strong defender with above-average contact and on-base skills, but little power. Kasevich looks like an average everyday shortstop with enough offense and defensive value to play everyday.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 55. Power: 45. Run: 45. Field: 55. Arm: 55.
• April, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade: 50/High
  
  August Update: Oregon has produced a handful of highly-drafted infielders in recent years, including Nick Madrigal, Cadyn Grenier and Beau Philip. Kasevich is the latest in that line and likewise has a chance to be a top-two round pick after continuing to show steady defensive ability at shortstop and solid production at the plate. A 6-foot-2, 200-pound hitter, Kasevich slashed .310/.383/.445 through his first 61 games this spring, while showing good zone control—24 walks to 16 strikeouts—and hitting seven home runs and 10 doubles. He has a flat bat path and doesn&#39t elevate the ball consistently, with almost half of his batted balls put on the ground. Scouts have liked his hard-hit ability in the past, so perhaps with a slight swing change he could tap into more in-game power, though contact and on-base ability are more in his wheelhouse than slugging. He&#39s a steady and reliable defender at shortstop who should have a chance to stick at the position at the next level. He isn&#39t a great runner and doesn&#39t have the sort of quick-twitch lower half that scouts want to see in big league shortstops, but he rarely makes mistakes with the glove and has a career fielding percentage of .974 with just 14 total errors in 130 games played.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 50. Power: 40. Run: 45. Field: 55. Arm: 55.