Will Sanders

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #65 prospect in 2023 draft
  School: South Carolina Source: 4YR
  
  Commit/Drafted: Never Drafted
  Age At Draft: 21.3
  BA Grade:45/High
  Tools:Fastball: 50. Slider: 50. Curveball: 50. Changeup: 55. Control: 50.
  
  A projection righthander out of high school, Sanders ranked as the No. 200 prospect on the 2020 BA 500 thanks to a lanky, 6-foot-5 frame and an upper-80s fastball that scouts expected to be much firmer in just a few years. The projection proved accurate, as Sanders packed on strength to a frame now listed at 6-foot-6, 230 pounds and averaged 93 mph and has touched 98 mph with his fastball at peak velocity. Sanders has logged 50-plus innings each year at South Carolina, and in his 2023 draft year posted a 5.37 ERA over 11 starts and 60.1 innings, with a 27.9% strikeout rate and 9.4% walk rate. He works from a deliberate windup with a more compact arm action than you might expect given his long levers, and throws from a three-quarter slot with downhill angle thanks to a high release point. While he has solid velocity on his fastball, and above-average induced vertical break, the pitch has always played down a bit and been hit hard. This spring hitters managed a 1.109 OPS against the fastball, though he has generated solid whiff rates with a curveball, slider and changeup. He throws his curveball in the low 80s with good depth and 12-to-6 movement, the slider is in the mid 80s with solid tilt and his changeup has long been a solid pitch for him in the mid 80s. Sanders has allowed a high rate of home runs in his career, and could experiment more with a cutter or two-seam fastball at the next level to keep hitters off the barrel more consistently.
• Ranked #200 prospect in 2020 draft
  A projection righthander with a lanky, 6-foot-6, 195-pound frame, Sanders is a pitcher who most scouts see a lot of upside with in the future but are still waiting on him to tap into it. His stuff is mostly fringe-average at best now, but scouts love the indicators he’s shown with his athleticism and a body that should add plenty of strength and muscle in a few years. His fastball sat in the 87-90 mph range for the most part last summer, and he’s run the pitch up to 92 mph at his best. He’s also shown some feel to spin a slurvy breaking ball in the 77-79 mph range that has potential to become an above-average secondary. Sanders has also shown some promise with a 78-80 mph changeup that might wind up being his best pitch, a swing-and-miss secondary he’s shown exceptional feel for at his age. While most scouts and teams are excited to see what Sanders will be in a few years, most also would prefer to let him reach campus at South Carolina, unless he was signable somewhere in the middle of day two. If he was to sign, Sanders would be a slow-mover through a minor league system as he adds the necessary physicality to his frame.