Kyle Teel Stats & Scouting Report

AB	325
AVG	.298
OBP	.39
SLG	.462
HR	11

Full name Kyle Henry Teel
Born 02/15/2002 in Ridgewood, NJ
Profile Ht.: 6'1" / Wt.: 190 / Bats: L / Throws: R
School Virginia
Drafted in the 1st round (14th overall) by the Boston Red Sox in 2023 (signed for $4,000,000).

View Draft Report

School: Virginia Source: 4YR

Commit/Drafted: Never Drafted
Age At Draft: 21.4
BA Grade:55/High
Tools:Hit: 55. Power: 45. Run: 50. Field: 50. Arm: 60.

Teel was a standout high school prospect who would have ranked among the top 100 players in the class had he not withdrawn from the draft at the time. Teel split time as a catcher and outfielder with Virginia in 2021, but moved into an everyday catching role in 2022 and 2023 and also served as Team USA’s catcher during the 2022 summer. Teel was named ACC player of the year in 2023 and he hit .407/.475/.655, with 13 home runs and 25 doubles. A 6-foot-1, 190-pound lefthanded hitter, Teel has plenty of bat speed and takes extremely aggressive, violent hacks with plenty of moving parts in his setup. He has a large leg kick with a significant hand hitch in his load, but has also developed a solid track record of both contact and on-base skills. Teel has homered to all fields in college, but he has more fringe-average power projections in pro ball. Teel’s standout athleticism should give him every opportunity to stick behind the plate, and he has easy plus arm strength that should be an asset at the position as well. He’s thrown out 33.3% of basestealers for his career and turns in pop times around 1.90 seconds at his best, though his footwork and accuracy could be improved. He folds up well behind the plate and is a quick lateral mover on dirt balls, and he’s improved significantly as a receiver since his freshman year. He’s a good runner for a catcher and is the consensus top college catcher in the class.

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

BA Grade/Risk: 55/High.

Track Record: Teel started at Virginia for three years and emerged as a standout All-America catcher in 2023 when he was Atlantic Coast Conference player of the year. The Red Sox drafted him 14th overall and signed for a slightly below-slot $4 million. Given his advanced feel for the game—aided by a father who caught in the minors—the Red Sox let Teel zip to Double-A in his pro debut then had him spend all of 2024 at the upper levels. He was an impressively consistent performer at Double-A Portland before seemingly wearing down at Triple-A Worcester. The White Sox acquired him in December as a headliner in the Garrett Crochet trade.

Scouting Report: Teel is a line-to-line hitter who stays back on the ball and employs a minimal stride into a firm front side before generating impact with an aggressive hip rotation while relying on his hands to catch the ball in different areas of the zone. He’s willing to shoot the ball the other way—a trait that should produce at least an average hit tool—while occasionally turning on pitches with top-end exit velocities of 110 mph, suggesting average power potential. Defensively, Teel’s start to 2024 was rough as he acclimated to a one-knee down catching setup. He struggled with his framing and blocking, and footwork issues led to a poor start in controlling the running game. But he made strides over the year and transitioned well to Triple-A, pointing to the potential to be an average receiver with above-average arm strength. His enthusiasm and motor endear him to pitchers. His speed is below-average, but better than most catchers.

The Future: Teel’s well-rounded profile gives him an unusually high floor for a catcher. Ideally, he’ll refine his defense in Triple-A for the first half of 2025.

Scouting Grades: Hit: 50 | Power: 50 | Run: 45 | Field: 50 | Arm: 55.
BA Grade: 55/High

Track Record: Teel, whose father Garett was a minor league catcher, was an impressive high school prospect with rare athleticism for a catcher--he once played every defensive position in an East Coast Pro game--but withdrew from the 2020 draft to enroll at Virginia, where he was an everyday player for three years and spent two summers with USA Baseball’s Collegiate National Team. His already-impressive all-fields offensive approach reached another level of consistency and impact as a junior, as the first-team All-American hit .407/.475/.655 with 13 homers. The Red Sox took him at No. 14 overall and signed him for $4 million, slightly below slot. He raced to Double-A in his pro debut.

Scouting Report: While Teel always displayed solid bat-to-ball skills and ability to hit for average, he added looseness to his lefthanded swing as a junior and became more comfortable taking chances in hitters’ counts, tapping into power potential that had previously been theoretical. Still, his default setting is a flat bat path used to spray liners and gappers from line to line, suggesting at least an above-average hit tool with solid on-base ability. He currently projects to post mid-teens home run totals with loads of doubles, though there’s room for strength gains that could yield more power, especially if he accepts an additional measure of swing-and-miss. That profile is already special for a catcher who shows excellent defensive traits--strong hands, twitch and fluidity--as well as an above-average arm and pop times in the range of 1.9 seconds on throws to second base. He runs well, period--not just for a catcher.

The Future: Teel’s late-season promotion to Double-A was a likely preview of his opening spot in 2024. The Red Sox won’t rush him out of Portland, given that he has just started to learn to call his own games, but Teel certainly has a chance to emerge as a frontline big league catcher by 2025.

Scouting Grades Hit: 55 | Power: 45 | Run: 50 | Field: 55 | Arm: 55

Draft Prospects

School: Virginia Source: 4YR

Commit/Drafted: Never Drafted
Age At Draft: 21.4
BA Grade:55/High
Tools:Hit: 55. Power: 45. Run: 50. Field: 50. Arm: 60.

Teel was a standout high school prospect who would have ranked among the top 100 players in the class had he not withdrawn from the draft at the time. Teel split time as a catcher and outfielder with Virginia in 2021, but moved into an everyday catching role in 2022 and 2023 and also served as Team USA’s catcher during the 2022 summer. Teel was named ACC player of the year in 2023 and he hit .407/.475/.655, with 13 home runs and 25 doubles. A 6-foot-1, 190-pound lefthanded hitter, Teel has plenty of bat speed and takes extremely aggressive, violent hacks with plenty of moving parts in his setup. He has a large leg kick with a significant hand hitch in his load, but has also developed a solid track record of both contact and on-base skills. Teel has homered to all fields in college, but he has more fringe-average power projections in pro ball. Teel’s standout athleticism should give him every opportunity to stick behind the plate, and he has easy plus arm strength that should be an asset at the position as well. He’s thrown out 33.3% of basestealers for his career and turns in pop times around 1.90 seconds at his best, though his footwork and accuracy could be improved. He folds up well behind the plate and is a quick lateral mover on dirt balls, and he’s improved significantly as a receiver since his freshman year. He’s a good runner for a catcher and is the consensus top college catcher in the class.

Top 100 Rankings

Career Transactions

C Kyle Teel changed number to 89.
Chicago White Sox invited non-roster C Kyle Teel to spring training.
C Kyle Teel assigned to Worcester Red Sox from Portland Sea Dogs.
Portland Sea Dogs activated C Kyle Teel from the temporarily inactive list.
Portland Sea Dogs placed C Kyle Teel on the temporarily inactive list.
C Kyle Teel assigned to FCL Red Sox.
Boston Red Sox signed C Kyle Teel.

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