Casey Martin

Martin is perhaps the most tooled up college infielder in the 2020 class, with plus speed, plus arm strength, plus raw power and a chance for plus defense at shortstop as well. Typically, a college shortstop with those tools goes among the top 10 picks. What holds Martin back is his ability to make the most of those tools, with an overly aggressive approach at the plate and less consistency than teams would like in the field. After a loud freshman campaign in which he hit .345/.418/.556 with 13 home runs, Martin regressed at the plate as a sophomore and was off to a slow start as a junior before the 2020 season shut down. Martin has the physical ingredients to hit, but he has an alarming tendency to swing and miss both in the strike zone and outside of the zone. He had a career 22 percent strikeout rate at Arkansas and often put himself in unfavorable counts with his approach. He gets to his power when he connects, but scouts have significant concerns he'll ever make enough contact to be successful in pro ball. Defensively, Martin has a penchant for making highlight-reel plays at shortstop, but he lacks the polish needed for an everyday player at the position. Some scouts believe he would be a better fit in center field or at second base, while others think his frequent mistakes can be fixed with more experience. Martin could have significantly changed his draft stock—in either direction, depending on how he hit in conference play—with a full season. Now teams will have to decide if they want to buy into his high-upside tools or avoid the risk he presents.