Luke Waddell

Waddell has been draft-eligible for each of the past three seasons, and is now one of the older players in the 2021 draft class. Given the amount of time scouts have seen Waddell with the Yellow Jackets they have a pretty good idea of the player he is: someone who does a lot of things on the field well, with solid defensive ability all over the infield and impressive bat-to-ball skills, but with a filled-out frame that lacks projection and limited tools. Waddell worked on hitting for more impact over this past offseason, and that did translate into a career-high eight home runs, but he still doesn’t project as a power hitter and some scouts don’t like the length that he added to his swing with his new approach. Even with that shifted offensive mindset, Waddell continued to be extremely difficult to strikeout, with a 5.7% strikeout rate that rates near the top of the country. That zone control and bat-to-ball ability gives him a reasonable offensive floor and his ultimate upside is a top-of-the-order table-setting type who has good running ability, but most scouts view him as a super-utility type more than an everyday regular. There are sure to be teams that penalize Waddell aggressively given his age, but in a draft class with plenty of volatility and uncertainty, Waddell is a well-known commodity with plenty of track record, including a 2019 summer with the Collegiate National Team where Waddell was third on the team in hitting.