2019 #5 Prospect Austin Hays - CF

[Tony-OH]

https://www.orioleshangout.com/2019/11/07/orioles-5-prospect-austin-hays-cf-rf/

[weams]

I got this wrong. I guess I think of him as a major leaguer. 

[weams]

Quote

Defensively Hays made some spectacular defensive catches in center field and according to statcast had a 2% catch percentage added to go along with his one outs above average in 20 games (113.1 innings). Hays makes up for a below average reaction time (-1.3 ft) with his above average burst speed (0.5 ft) and good route taking (0.7 ft) and 85th percentile sprint speed (28.6 ft).

 

[Tony-OH]

Hays over Diaz because of him being able to play a premium position and has already shown the ability to hit at the major league levels. I also think Hays has a slightly higher ceiling.

[Philip]

So, is Hays at his best better than AJ at his best?

[Pickles]

Just now, Philip said:

So, is Hays at his best better than AJ at his best?

I'll go ahead and say "No."

[weams]

9 minutes ago, Philip said:

So, is Hays at his best better than AJ at his best?

Jones hit a lot of homeruns in the middle of the order for a lot of years. 

[canonfaz]

9 minutes ago, Philip said:

So, is Hays at his best better than AJ at his best?

Interested to hear Tony's take on this.

My gut feeling (and eye test) on this is that Adam, at his peak, was a little bit better center field (better reaction time and instincts) than Hays. But I think Hays has the tools (more speed & agility) to make more spectacular catches.

[Moose Milligan]

I was really encouraged with his performance in Baltimore this season.  He's definitely a reason to look forward to the 2020 season.  

Hoping that he can stay healthy, seems to be the big issue with him.  

[ChosenOne21]

We don't have Statcast on Jones at a younger age, but I'd be pretty surprised if Hays isn't the better defender. I think Hays's ceiling is probably Adam Jones with better defense

[MurphDogg]

Watching Hays play centerfield was one of the few bright spots last season. Hopefully a full year of defensive data will match the eye test that suggests he is an above-average defensive centerfielder. If so, he will be a MLB asset, even though I worry he doesn't walk enough. He doesn't strike out too much either, which is unusual. I am curious to see how that plays out this year, if it is a case of over-aggressiveness that MLB pitchers will be able to take advantage of, and if so how he adjusts. As long as he stays healthy, he will be one of the main reasons to watch the MLB team this year (at least for me).

[Frobby]

I think the main thing I didn’t know about Hays until his major league stint this year is that he’s pretty damned fast.    I’d thought of him as a guy who was slightly faster than average, but here he is with a 70 grade on his speed and showing up in the 85th percentile of major leaguers in sprint speed and plus burst speed.     I’m pretty sure if I went back to prior scouting reports I wouldn’t see anyone slapping a 70 grade on his speed, but there he is.    And even if he’s really 60-65, that’s plenty good enough to play a respectable CF.    
 

I’m also impressed with his ability to catch the ball on the dead run, while making dives, and when crashing into walls (cringe).     He’s got a nice pair of hands defensively.    I already knew he had a plus arm.    
 

In short, Hays’ defensive profile is way up in my estimation.   And I like the aggressive way he plays — he has fun out there and he’s fun to watch.    Like others, I do worry about whether he can stay healthy with that all-out style of play.

All that takes a bit of pressure of his bat.   But I think he’s got plenty of potential there too.    He may struggle at times as pitchers adjust to him, but he has the tools to be an above average hitter.    Not to mention an above average baserunner.    

[Frobby]

By the way, the OH scouting report for 2017 graded Hays’ speed at 50 for now and 45 in the future.    Described in the write up as “solid average speed, maybe a tick above in the outfield.”    What the heck happened to this guy?
 

Tried to go from the 2018 top 30 list to the Hays writeup, but the link misdirected me to some headline about Buck and Adam’s last game.   Same is true for the Diaz link on that list.    I don’t know about the others.    (Edit: same thing happens when I click on the link in the Hays-specific thread from last year’s discussion of the OH rankings.)

[weams]

6 minutes ago, Frobby said:

By the way, the OH scouting report for 2017 graded Hays’ speed at 50 for now and 45 in the future.    Described in the write up as “solid average speed, maybe a tick above in the outfield.”    What the heck happened to this guy?
 

Tried to go from the 2018 top 30 list to the Hays writeup, but the link misdirected me to some headline about Buck and Adam’s last game.   Same is true for the Diaz link on that list.    I don’t know about the others.    (Edit: same thing happens when I click on the link in the Hays-specific thread from last year’s discussion of the OH rankings.)

Others had mentioned the redirect. Thanks. 

[Pheasants]

I saw Hayes at Norfolk steal second with a full slide and go home when the ball went into centerfield.  He's fast.