Pavin Smith

Smith ranked 108 on the BA 500 out of Palm Beach Gardens High, where he was a teammate of Florida's J.J. Schwarz. An unsigned Rockies 32nd round pick, Smith attended Virginia and hit .307 as a freshman in the Cavaliers' 2015 national championship season. Smith has matured into the best pure hitter in the draft class for some scouts, making consistent hard contact with a pretty lefthanded swing and incredible ability to avoid swings and misses. As Virginia reached its exam break in May, Smith had more home runs (10) than strikeouts (seven), using an all-fields approach but still producing plus power while being a plus hitter. That ability to pair high contact with power bodes extremely well for the future, according to most teams' research. Smith moves well for his size and is a solid athlete, and most scouts consider him an above-average defender. The track record for college first baseman high in the draft is fairly mixed, but Smith has hit his way into contention