Cooper Kinney

Kinney is an offensive-oriented prep infielder with a strong, 6-foot-2, 195-pound frame and a lefthanded swing that scouts love. The hit tool and power projection are what evaluators are buying with Kinney, and he has a chance to be an above-average hitter with above-average power. However, he’s likely to be a bit of a split-camp player with a wider range of opinions given his lack of supplemental tools and the fact that he’s probably a better fit for second or third base in the long run. A team that drafts the South Carolina commit in a signable range will be one that is heavily convicted in his hit tool—and those teams are certainly out there. Kinney is more hit over power at the moment, with solid bat-to-ball skills and a fairly clean and fluid bat path out of a slightly crouched setup. He has shown the power to drive balls out to left-center field, and the scouts who really like him think he’ll be able to grow into plus power when he’s more physically mature. Kinney is a below-average runner and fringy defender, so there’s going to be plenty of pressure on his bat to perform and because of that some teams would prefer he proves it against SEC pitching, but others see him as a top-50 player in the class and want to get his bat into pro ball right away. Kinney’s father, Mike, is the head baseball coach at his high school.