Sterlin Thompson

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Colorado Rockies #5 prospect in 2024
  BA Grade: 50/High
  
  Track Record: An advanced hitter dating back to his days on the prep circuit, Thompson went unselected in the five-round 2020 draft. He starred at Florida for two seasons before the Rockies drafted him 31st overall in 2022 and signed him for slot value of $2.41 million. Thompson hit .463/.513/.746 through 18 games at High-A Spokane in 2023 but then missed a month with a left elbow injury suffered on May 1. He returned on June 2 and played another 42 games for Spokane before he was promoted to Double-A Hartford on Aug. 7. Thompson finished the season in the Arizona Fall League.
  
  Scouting Report: Thompson is a tall, physical player with average athleticism and a hit-over-power profile at the plate. He’s an advanced contact hitter who rarely misses in-zone. Thompson likes to use the whole field, and a majority of his hardest contact is to the opposite field. He does a good job of staying in the zone and limiting chase swings, though he’s adept at getting extended on pitches on the outside part of the plate. His power is limited by his contact-first approach and his opposite-field contact. He shows average power in games and has the skills to rack up a lot of doubles with 16-20 home runs per season. He’s an average runner now who will likely slow down a little with age. He has shown versatility as a pro by playing third base, second base and both corner outfield spots. His best defensive position in the infield is second, where he can develop into a fringe-average defender. He’ll likely split time between second base and left field going forward. He is likely done with third base, his primary position in 2023. Thompson has a plus arm and fringe-average instincts and actions.
  
  The Future: Thompson is a bat-first player who will likely provide quality at-bats, batting average and versatility over a long major league career.
  
  Scouting Grades Hit: 55 | Power: 50 | Run: 45 | Field: 45 | Arm: 60
• 
  Ranked Colorado Rockies #8 prospect in 2023
  BA Grade/Risk: 50/High
  
  Track Record: A highly rated draft prospect as a prep, Thompson made it to campus at Florida and showed the advanced hitting skills he had been known for in high school. He hit .301/.396/.470 as a freshman and followed that up with a .351/.444/.559 line as draft-eligible sophomore in 2022. The Rockies selected Thompson with the 31st overall pick and signed him for the slot value of $2.41 million. He debuted in the Arizona Complex League in early August before a promotion to Low-A Fresno after 15 games.
  
  Scouting Report: One of the best pure hitters in the 2022 college class, Thompson is a 6-foot-4, physical player who projects to add strength. At the plate, his game is heavily based around his well above-average bat-to-ball skills and balance of aggression and patience within his approach. His lefthanded swing is heavily geared toward opposite-field contact. It's a simple, hands-driven swing with a flatter bat path, making it most conducive to producing line-drive contact. While Thompson's raw power flashes above-average based on early exit velocity data in pro ball, his swing will be a hindrance in the pursuit of power development. For now, he projects to have average power without a concerted effort to hit more balls out in front. Defensively, Thompson has split time between third base and the corner outfield positions. He is unlikely to stick at third base due to subpar actions and footwork. His plus arm will allow him to make up for below-average speed in an outfield corner. His long-term home is likely left field, where his powerful arm will keep baserunners honest.
  
  The Future: Thompson offers a hit-over-power corner outfield profile, but he has enough power projection to dream on.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hitting: 55. Power: 50. Running: 45. Fielding: 45. Arm: 55

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #29 prospect in 2022 draft
  School: Florida Committed/Drafted: Never Drafted
  Age At Draft: 21.1
  BA Grade: 50/High
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 55 | Power: 50 | Run: 45 | Field: 45 | Arm: 55
  A top-200 prospect out of high school thanks to impressive pure hitting ability, Thompson is now a draft-eligible sophomore after just two seasons with Florida. In both 2021 and 2022, Thompson continued to show his advanced hitting ability, slashing .301/.396/.470 with five home runs and 10 doubles as a freshman and then topping that as a sophomore, with a .351/.444/.559 slash line and 11 home runs through 64 games. Thompson is a pure hitter first who shows a solid, line drive approach in games with a clean, professional looking swing from the left side. He makes sound swing decisions at the plate and rarely expands the strike zone, though he has shown swing-and-miss tendencies on breaking balls and offspeed offerings. Thompson won’t miss a heater, and he has dominated 93-plus mph fastball velocity this spring with a solid sample of at-bats against that premium velocity in the SEC. While Thompson tapped into more in-game power this spring, he has just solid-average raw power in batting practice and most of his homers went to the pull side. He split time at second base and right field with Florida this spring and has played third base in the past as well, but his feet and hands are probably too light to stick on the dirt and he profiles better as a corner outfielder, with fringy speed, but an above-average throwing arm. Thompson has a lean, 6-foot-4, 200-pound frame and could add more strength and power in the future, with hitting ability that fits among the top two rounds.
• Ranked #196 prospect in 2020 draft
  Thompson didn’t attend many of the high-profile summer showcase events, but he hit enough during the fall and early in the spring that scouts took note and they are intrigued with his hit tool potential. A 6-foot-3, 185-pound Florida commit, Thompson plays shortstop now, but scouts think a corner outfield spot will be a better fit for him in the future thanks to below-average running ability. While he’s got below-average power now, scouts believe Thompson will grow into more strength as he fills out his frame and get to above-average raw power in the future, to go along with a potentially average bat. Without a true defensive home, a team would have to be convinced Thompson’s lefthanded bat was legit to take him in the 4-6 round range, but it sounds like most teams are bought into it. If Thompson isn’t inclined to sign in that range, he is committed to Florida where he could go and tap into more power and potentially play his way into a day one prospect in 2022, when he’ll be a draft-eligible sophomore.

• February, 2023 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 50/High
  
  Track Record: A highly rated draft prospect as a prep, Thompson made it to campus at Florida and showed the advanced hitting skills he had been known for in high school. He hit .301/.396/.470 as a freshman and followed that up with a .351/.444/.559 line as draft-eligible sophomore in 2022. The Rockies selected Thompson with the 31st overall pick and signed him for the slot value of $2.41 million. He debuted in the Arizona Complex League in early August before a promotion to Low-A Fresno after 15 games.
  
  Scouting Report: One of the best pure hitters in the 2022 college class, Thompson is a 6-foot-4, physical player who projects to add strength. At the plate, his game is heavily based around his well above-average bat-to-ball skills and balance of aggression and patience within his approach. His lefthanded swing is heavily geared toward opposite-field contact. It's a simple, hands-driven swing with a flatter bat path, making it most conducive to producing line-drive contact. While Thompson's raw power flashes above-average based on early exit velocity data in pro ball, his swing will be a hindrance in the pursuit of power development. For now, he projects to have average power without a concerted effort to hit more balls out in front. Defensively, Thompson has split time between third base and the corner outfield positions. He is unlikely to stick at third base due to subpar actions and footwork. His plus arm will allow him to make up for below-average speed in an outfield corner. His long-term home is likely left field, where his powerful arm will keep baserunners honest.
  
  The Future: Thompson offers a hit-over-power corner outfield profile, but he has enough power projection to dream on.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hitting: 55. Power: 50. Running: 45. Fielding: 45. Arm: 55
• December, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 50/High
  
  Track Record: A highly rated draft prospect as a prep, Thompson made it to campus at Florida and showed the advanced hitting skills he had been known for in high school. He hit .301/.396/.470 as a freshman and followed that up with a .351/.444/.559 line as draft-eligible sophomore in 2022. The Rockies selected Thompson with the 31st overall pick and signed him for the slot value of $2.41 million. He debuted in the Arizona Complex League in early August before a promotion to Low-A Fresno after 15 games.
  
  Scouting Report: One of the best pure hitters in the 2022 college class, Thompson is a 6-foot-4, physical player who projects to add strength. At the plate, his game is heavily based around his well above-average bat-to-ball skills and balance of aggression and patience within his approach. His lefthanded swing is heavily geared toward opposite-field contact. It's a simple, hands-driven swing with a flatter bat path, making it most conducive to producing line-drive contact. While Thompson's raw power flashes above-average based on early exit velocity data in pro ball, his swing will be a hindrance in the pursuit of power development. For now, he projects to have average power without a concerted effort to hit more balls out in front. Defensively, Thompson has split time between third base and the corner outfield positions. He is unlikely to stick at third base due to subpar actions and footwork. His plus arm will allow him to make up for below-average speed in an outfield corner. His long-term home is likely left field, where his powerful arm will keep baserunners honest.
  
  The Future: Thompson offers a hit-over-power corner outfield profile, but he has enough power projection to dream on.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hitting: 55. Power: 50. Running: 45. Fielding: 45. Arm: 55
• April, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade: 50/High
  
  August Update: A top-200 prospect out of high school thanks to impressive pure hitting ability, Thompson is now a draft-eligible sophomore after just two seasons with Florida. In both 2021 and 2022, Thompson continued to show his advanced hitting ability, slashing .301/.396/.470 with five home runs and 10 doubles as a freshman and then topping that as a sophomore, with a .351/.444/.559 slash line and 11 home runs through 64 games. Thompson is a pure hitter first who shows a solid, line drive approach in games with a clean, professional looking swing from the left side. He makes sound swing decisions at the plate and rarely expands the strike zone, though he has shown swing-and-miss tendencies on breaking balls and offspeed offerings. Thompson won&#39t miss a heater, and he has dominated 93-plus mph fastball velocity this spring with a solid sample of at-bats against that premium velocity in the SEC. While Thompson tapped into more in-game power this spring, he has just solid-average raw power in batting practice and most of his homers went to the pull side. He split time at second base and right field with Florida this spring and has played third base in the past as well, but his feet and hands are probably too light to stick on the dirt and he profiles better as a corner outfielder, with fringy speed, but an above-average throwing arm. Thompson has a lean, 6-foot-4, 200-pound frame and could add more strength and power in the future, with hitting ability. He signed with the Rockies for $2,430,500 with the 31st overall pick.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 55. Power: 50. Run: 45. Field: 45. Arm: 55.