Joshua Baez

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked St. Louis Cardinals #13 prospect in 2023
  BA Grade/Risk: 50/Extreme
  
  Track Record: Baez looked like one of the top high school players to come out of Massachusetts in years after he dominated the summer showcase circuit, but he struggled to make consistent contact against lesser high school pitching in the spring and fell out of first-round consideration. The Cardinals believed enough in Baez's plus-plus raw power and supporting skills to draft the muscular slugger in the second round, No. 54 overall, and sign him for $2,250,000, nearly a million above slot value. Baez's contact struggles continued in the Florida Complex League in his debut and he played just 32 games in 2022 due to a wrist injury.
  
  Scouting Report: Baez stands out from his teenage peers for his extreme physicality. He has a muscular, well-proportioned build that exudes natural strength and allows him to pulverize baseballs. Baez's offensive game is centered around his plus-plus game power, showcasing exit velocities already well above the major league average. Baez makes loud contact when he connects, but he rarely gets to his power due to poor contact skills and a somewhat aggressive approach. Baez swings and misses at a high rate against both high fastballs and spin and generally shows an aversion to both pitches, limiting him to a well below-average hitter, at best. Baez is a fringe-average runner who ticks up to average underway. He is a good athlete who was a two-way player in high school and is an average defender with a plus-plus arm that allowed him to touch 97 mph on the mound.
  
  The Future: Baez's huge power is easy to dream on, but his poor contact skills will need to improve for him to be a low-average, power-hitting outfielder.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 30. Power: 70. Run: 45. Field: 50. Arm: 70.
• 
  Ranked St. Louis Cardinals #7 prospect in 2022
  Track Record: Baez impressed on the high school summer showcase circuit with an impressive array of tools and a physical, 6-foot-3, 220-pound frame. He struggled with strikeouts during his high school senior season, but the Cardinals still drafted him with the 54th overall pick and gave him an over-slot $2.25 million signing bonus to forgo a Vanderbilt commitment. Baez reported to the Florida Complex League after signing and showed off his big tools, but he also hit .158 with 28 strikeouts in 95 plate appearances.
  
  Scouting Report: Baez has impressive bat speed and plus-plus raw power, but there are questions surrounding his ability to hit. He has some stiffness in his swings and a hand drop that hurts his ability to adapt to different velocities. Baez played center field in high school, but he’s likely to slow down as he matures and will need to move to a corner, where he profiles as an above-average defender who makes good reads and takes good routes. He has a plus-plus arm and touched 98 mph on the mound as a high school senior. The Cardinals believe he will improve as a hitter as he gets more at-bats under his belt. Baez was one of the youngest players in the draft and didn’t turn 18 until the end of June.
  
  The Future: Baez is a high-risk, high-reward player. He has the strength and physicality to dream about him hitting 30-plus home runs in the major leagues, but he’ll need to make significantly more contact to get to that point. He’ll likely start the 2022 season at Low-A.
  

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #31 prospect in 2021 draft
  Baez is one of the youngest players in the class—he turns 18 at the end of June—but he's also one of the most physical and explosive players in the country. He has fast bat speed, he's strong for his age with more room to fill out and his raw power is already at least plus now with a chance to be a 70 in the near future and he could become a 35-plus home run threat. His arm is already at least a 70 tool from the outfield. He's been up to 98 mph on the mound this year and shown sporadic feel to spin a breaking ball, so pitching is a fallback option if hitting doesn't click, though he hasn't focused much on pitching and is still raw and wild. Baez has immense upside if he's able to make enough contact and draw enough walks, but swing and miss has been an issue. He performed well last summer on the showcase circuit and he started the spring by managing his at-bats well, but as the season progressed, he got more out of sync and swung through a lot of ordinary Massachusetts high school pitching. Baez isn't a free-swinger, but there's some stiffness to his stroke and he tends to get his front arm extended early, which hampers the adjustability of his swing to be able to react to and square up different pitch types and locations. In center field, Baez shined all spring. He's a solid-average runner underway who doesn't have typical burner speed or long gliding strides for the position, but he's a power runner who has good instincts, reading the ball well off the bat with good routes to both gaps. He's built like a corner outfielder and many scouts believe he will ultimately outgrow the position and head to right field, but he has enough athleticism and ball skills to start out in center.

• February, 2023 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 50/Extreme
  
  Track Record: Baez looked like one of the top high school players to come out of Massachusetts in years after he dominated the summer showcase circuit, but he struggled to make consistent contact against lesser high school pitching in the spring and fell out of first-round consideration. The Cardinals believed enough in Baez's plus-plus raw power and supporting skills to draft the muscular slugger in the second round, No. 54 overall, and sign him for $2,250,000, nearly a million above slot value. Baez's contact struggles continued in the Florida Complex League in his debut and he played just 32 games in 2022 due to a wrist injury.
  
  Scouting Report: Baez stands out from his teenage peers for his extreme physicality. He has a muscular, well-proportioned build that exudes natural strength and allows him to pulverize baseballs. Baez's offensive game is centered around his plus-plus game power, showcasing exit velocities already well above the major league average. Baez makes loud contact when he connects, but he rarely gets to his power due to poor contact skills and a somewhat aggressive approach. Baez swings and misses at a high rate against both high fastballs and spin and generally shows an aversion to both pitches, limiting him to a well below-average hitter, at best. Baez is a fringe-average runner who ticks up to average underway. He is a good athlete who was a two-way player in high school and is an average defender with a plus-plus arm that allowed him to touch 97 mph on the mound.
  
  The Future: Baez's huge power is easy to dream on, but his poor contact skills will need to improve for him to be a low-average, power-hitting outfielder.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 30. Power: 70. Run: 45. Field: 50. Arm: 70.
• December, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 50/Extreme
  
  Track Record: Baez looked like one of the top high school players to come out of Massachusetts in years after he dominated the summer showcase circuit, but he struggled to make consistent contact against lesser high school pitching in the spring and fell out of first-round consideration. The Cardinals believed enough in Baez's plus-plus raw power and supporting skills to draft the muscular slugger in the second round, No. 54 overall, and sign him for $2,250,000, nearly a million above slot value. Baez's contact struggles continued in the Florida Complex League in his debut and he played just 32 games in 2022 due to a wrist injury.
  
  Scouting Report: Baez stands out from his teenage peers for his extreme physicality. He has a muscular, well-proportioned build that exudes natural strength and allows him to pulverize baseballs. Baez's offensive game is centered around his plus-plus game power, showcasing exit velocities already well above the major league average. Baez makes loud contact when he connects, but he rarely gets to his power due to poor contact skills and a somewhat aggressive approach. Baez swings and misses at a high rate against both high fastballs and spin and generally shows an aversion to both pitches, limiting him to a well below-average hitter, at best. Baez is a fringe-average runner who ticks up to average underway. He is a good athlete who was a two-way player in high school and is an average defender with a plus-plus arm that allowed him to touch 97 mph on the mound.
  
  The Future: Baez's huge power is easy to dream on, but his poor contact skills will need to improve for him to be a low-average, power-hitting outfielder.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 30. Power: 70. Run: 45. Field: 50. Arm: 70.
• April, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade: 55/Extreme
  
  Track Record: Baez impressed on the high school summer showcase circuit with an impressive array of tools and a physical, 6-foot-3, 220-pound frame. He struggled with strikeouts during his high school senior season, but the Cardinals still drafted him with the 54th overall pick and gave him an over-slot $2.25 million signing bonus to forgo a Vanderbilt commitment. Baez reported to the Florida Complex League after signing and showed off his big tools, but he also hit .158 with 28 strikeouts in 95 plate appearances.
  
  Scouting Report: Baez has impressive bat speed and plus-plus raw power, but there are questions surrounding his ability to hit. He has some stiffness in his swings and a hand drop that hurts his ability to adapt to different velocities. Baez played center field in high school, but he&#39s likely to slow down as he matures and will need to move to a corner, where he profiles as an above-average defender who makes good reads and takes good routes. He has a plus-plus arm and touched 98 mph on the mound as a high school senior. The Cardinals believe he will improve as a hitter as he gets more at-bats under his belt. Baez was one of the youngest players in the draft and didn&#39t turn 18 until the end of June.
  
  The Future: Baez is a high-risk, high-reward player. He has the strength and physicality to dream about him hitting 30-plus home runs in the major leagues, but he&#39ll need to make significantly more contact to get to that point. He&#39ll likely start the 2022 season at Low-A.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 40. Power: 70. Speed: 40. Fielding: 55. Arm: 70.
• December, 2021 Scouting Report
  Track Record: Baez impressed on the high school summer showcase circuit with an impressive array of tools and a physical, 6-foot-3, 220-pound frame. He struggled with strikeouts during his high school senior season, but the Cardinals still drafted him with the 54th overall pick and gave him an over-slot $2.25 million signing bonus to forgo a Vanderbilt commitment. Baez reported to the Florida Complex League after signing and showed off his big tools, but he also hit .158 with 28 strikeouts in 95 plate appearances.
  
  Scouting Report: Baez has impressive bat speed and plus-plus raw power, but there are questions surrounding his ability to hit. He has some stiffness in his swings and a hand drop that hurts his ability to adapt to different velocities. Baez played center field in high school, but he’s likely to slow down as he matures and will need to move to a corner, where he profiles as an above-average defender who makes good reads and takes good routes. He has a plus-plus arm and touched 98 mph on the mound as a high school senior. The Cardinals believe he will improve as a hitter as he gets more at-bats under his belt. Baez was one of the youngest players in the draft and didn’t turn 18 until the end of June.
  
  The Future: Baez is a high-risk, high-reward player. He has the strength and physicality to dream about him hitting 30-plus home runs in the major leagues, but he’ll need to make significantly more contact to get to that point. He’ll likely start the 2022 season at Low-A.