2016 Mets draft preview: Taylor Trammell

Name: Taylor Trammell
Born: Powder Springs, Georgia
Age: 18 (9/13/97)
Height/Weight: 6'2"/195 lbs
Position: OF
Bats/Throws: L/L
School: Mount Paran Christian High School (Kennesaw, Georgia)

Introduction

Taylor Trammell is a dynamic athlete, excelling in both baseball and football. On the gridiron, he was the Offensive Player of the Year at his high school, leading the state with 38 touchdowns and 2,500 rushing yards, just 650 behind Herschel Walker's state record. On the baseball diamond, Trammell hit .515 with seven doubles, four triples, and nine home runs, going 29-for-29 in stolen bases.

Taylor's favorite player currently in the game, a player after whom he tries to model his own behavior on the field, is Mets outfielder Curtis Granderson. "I like his swing," Taylor said. "I love his swing, he gets set early and just hacks. Most people don't know, but from the leadoff spot, I think he had 40 home runs one year...That's big. For me being a leadoff guy, that's huge." Taylor continued, "He's a great person on and off the field too...He just plays hard, swings the bat well, takes advantage of the situations on the base paths. He does the little things, hustling on and off the field."

The left-handed Taylor has a commitment to attend Georgia Tech. If he attends, he will dedicate his athletic career there to baseball, forgoing football. "I love football," he said. "It will always be part of me, played since the age of five. But there's just something more special when you play a game of pick-up baseball. There's nothing like it."

Stats

What The Scouts Think

Trammell is somewhat raw—even for a high school player—because he split his time between baseball and football, but he has off-the-charts potential thanks to his athleticism.

At the plate, while Trammell can improve, he is not completely lost. His stance at the plate is fairly quiet, and he utilizes a toe tap in lieu of a leg kick. He has a good feel for hitting, showing excellent bat speed and strength. With further refinement, he may be able to develop average-to-above-average power from the left side.

Like most other prep prospects, he is just beginning to learn how to recognize breaking balls. However, the process may take longer for Trammell than it does for other players because he is a tick or two further behind in his baseball maturation. That said, the learning curve might not be as steep as one might expect, as the outfielder has shown a keen eye at the high school level. Across 209 plate appearances in his sophomore and junior seasons, Trammell struck out just 22 times. In his senior year, he drew 24 unintentional walks.

When he gets on base, Trammell is a legitimate threat to steal a base. In addition to being able to read pitchers and the situation, he has blazing speed. In addition to the 29 bases he stole in as many attempts in his senior year, Trammell stole 39 bases in a combined 53 games as a sophomore and junior.

Trammell plays center field, and is unlikely to have to be taken off of the position. Not only does he already have an excellent defensive reputation, but his frame is unlikely to add much more mass, which would slow him down. The outfielder mainly relies on his plus-plus speed to run down balls, but as he gets more time and professional experience in the outfield, his routes to the ball will improve.

Coming into the year, Trammell's arm strength was the biggest weakness of his defensive profile. The left-handed thrower was aware that his arm was generally regarded as below-average, and he committed to working on it. Trammell's arm strength is now regarded as closer to fringe-average, which is generally good enough for center field at the professional level.

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