What baseball scouts look for: Advice from Orioles Scout
What baseball scouts look for in amateur baseball players – what makes a player become a prospect? If you want to know how to get drafted, it is important to know what the baseball scouts are looking for. The answer may surprise you.
Orioles scout Jim Thrift is a 28 year veteran of professional baseball, with experience in coaching, managing, and player development (Pirates, Mets and Reds) as well. Currently he’s in his 4th year of scouting full time for the Baltimore Orioles, and he was kind enough to let me interview him over the phone.
I learned a lot from Orioles scout Jim during our chat, but here’s what really stuck with me – Players who scouts consider to be “the whole package” are not necessarily the same guys who are playing in 8 travel baseball games every weekend.
“Why is that?” You might ask. “Those guys are committed to baseball and they have the stats to prove it.”
Perhaps.
Or maybe that guy is just really good at hitting high school pitching, but his swing doesn’t work on a breaking ball, he doesn’t know how to take a secondary lead, and he’s only playing baseball because his parents paid a lot of money for private lessons. Or maybe he’s very talented, but also very lazy.
Just sayin… there are aspects to the game that scouts notice and often value higher than hitting statistics and pretty swing mechanics.
Image by Joe Territo, Sports photographer
1. Overall Athleticism. When I asked Jim to rank what he looks for in an amateur draft prospect, he immediately answered “Athleticism.” The more we talked, I understood this to mean speed, power, size… the things that are God-given and can’t be bought or taught.
What can we do about it?
We’re NOT saying you can’t get stronger or faster through training. There’s a lot of competition out there, and small advantages can have a big impact on your baseball career.
(And see below for some more actionable tips)
2. Passion to play. Major League baseball life might be glamourous, but the road to the Major Leagues is not. Can you handle getting only 1 of 30 days off? Spending 10 hours a day at the field, 7 days a week? Can you handle a 4 am wakeup, long hours of travel, and then starting your day on the field? Can you handle long slumps? Angry fans? Zero privacy (hope you like sharing a hotel room with another dude)? And all for an itty, bitty salary (until you become a free agent, make the 40 man roster, or make it to the show)?
Even in the big leagues, it’s not all girls and glam. It takes heart to show up at the baseball field 7 days a week and play hard. It is mentally and physically exhausting at times.
But for those who LOVE PLAYING BASEBALL, it is all worth it. Is that you?
These next two are not necessarily in order of importance. According to Baltimore Orioles scout Jim, points 3 and 4 are both very important.
Baseball Hitting Drills book, plus 20 FREE videos – A project to support the 100’s of pages of free baseball instruction on this website.3. Know the Game. Do you know how to battle a pitcher strategically? Can you take a secondary lead? Do you know where to go in a double cut-off situation? Succeeding in baseball takes a brain as well as athleticism. If you don’t understand the strategy and proper way to play, you may get passed over for someone who does.
Ha… Lucky for you, this website can provide lots of insight and help in this area! Signing up to get our best free instruction from the pros delivered to your email inboxis a good start.
4. The 5 tools. I don’t want to give the impression that hitting, fielding and velocity don’t matter. THEY MATTER.
Have you ever heard “He’s a 3 tool player” or “he’s a 5 tool player” ?
These are the 5 tools (Click to read about how scouts evaluate that tool):
- Running Speed
- Throwing strength
- Defensive skills
- Hitting for Average
- Hitting for Power
Whether you’re at a tryout, exhibition game, or scouted on your home turf, doing these things well are an important part of making a good impression.
Jim’s Tips for aspiring ball players
Now you know what baseball scouts look for, so what should you do about it?
- Don’t spend ALL your time fine tuning a swing (that will probably change a hundred more times anyways), and neglect to learn the other aspects of the game.
- Really evaluate the pros and cons of specializing in baseball vs playing multiple sports, as this directly relates to point #1 above.
- If you’re not a pitcher, then you need to know BOTH offense and defense. Don’t spend all your time hitting and neglect fielding – and visa versa.
- Make an honest evaluation of what playing travel ball is really going to accomplish for you. Some teams and coaches focus on the wrong stuff, and it will hurt your chances in the end.
- Playing summer leagues in college is a good thing. Play against better competition, use a wood bat, and get in front of more scouts.
- Be aware of how things will change from amateur to pro baseball, and be prepared. For example – In college, the catchers don’t call the games. If you are a catcher, you may want to look for a travel or summer team that does things like they do in pro ball.
Scouting a future Major League star is often an art as much as it is a science. Recognizing the intangible qualities is more difficult, but that doesn’t mean scouts aren’t looking for them. According to Orioles scout Jim Thrift, those qualities are a very important part of what baseball scouts look for.
By becoming a well-rounded athlete and a knowledgeable baseball player, you’ll give yourself the best chance to succeed in becoming a professional baseball player.
Source: Jim Thrift, Baltimore Orioles baseball scout
Special thanks to Jim Thrift, who took the time to answer my questions about the scouting process and provided the information in this post. Jim has acquired a lot of knowledge about what baseball scouts look for in his 28 year career in professional baseball.
During his years as a scout for the Baltimore Orioles, he has scouted in the amateur, pro and international divisions. Before scouting with the Orioles , Jim spent 15 years with the Cincinatti Reds as a Major League scout, amateur scout and National Cross Checker, triple A hitting coach, and a long list of other impressive positions.
Before that, Jim coached with the New York Mets and the Pittspurgh Pirates organizations. I could keep going, but we’d be here all day. The bottom line is, Jim knows baseball and scouting, and we are grateful for his contribution to PBI. Thanks, Jim!
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