3B Yohandy Morales, Braddock HS [FL]
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DoB: 10/9/2001. B/T: R/R.
Commitment: Miami.
Miami landed four huge recruits from right in their backyard between Victor Mederos, Alejandro Rosario, Yohandy Morales, and Carlos Perez, all of whom attend high school within fifteen miles of campus. Morales is the top hitter in this loaded class, one whose name was trending up when the season shut down thanks to his big raw power and improving ability to get to it. With a lot of power over hit high school bats in this class, Morales even stands out a bit with some defensive value to boot.
Morales' best tool is his raw power. At 6'4", he creates plenty of natural leverage from his long arms and legs, and with a loose swing, some natural loft, there's plenty more power to project as he gets stronger. For most of his prep career, he's had significant swing and miss concerns stemming from a noisy setup and mediocre pitch recognition. There was a lot going on in his swing, and it was hard for him to get everything in order in time to catch up to velocity or react to good breaking balls. However, this spring, he reportedly came out with a much quieter, more efficient setup and swing, and early reports said he was using it to make much more consistent contact.
If Morales' adjustments were for real, then he's taken a very tangible step forward towards his lofty ceiling as a hitter. One interesting separator on his part is his defense – he's not a plus defender by any means, but he should be a solid-average third baseman, which is in contrast to many of this year's prep power hitters that figure to be limited to first base or left field. We're looking at a ceiling of a 30 home run hitter with decent on-base percentages if he can continue to improve his pitch recognition, though with the clear risk that comes with any inability to do so from a high schooler. If he's signable away from Miami, he likely ends up somewhere in rounds three through five.
Summer game footage
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