NAME: Garrett Mitchell
SCHOOL: UCLA
POSITION: OF
HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 6’3″, 204 lbs
B/T: L/R
D.O.B.: September 4, 1998
PREVIOUSLY DRAFTED: 411th overall (2017, 14th round) by the Oakland Athletics
Scouting Report
Garrett Mitchell attended Orange Lutheran in Orange, California before staying in state and playing for the UCLA Bruins. At Orange Lutheran, Mitchell made a name for himself as a draft prospect, placing himself as the 54th best prospect in the 2017 class, according to MLB Pipeline. Teams shied away from Mitchell in the 2017 draft due to his college commitment, concerns over tapping into his tools frequently, and because of his Type 1 diabetes, which caused him to fall to the 14th round.
Upon arriving to campus at UCLA, Mitchell immediately saw playing time as a freshman. In 2018, he slashed .280/.337/.331 with four doubles, two triples, five stolen bases, 31 RBI, 11 walks, and 40 strikeouts in 44 games.
Mitchell continued to build off his successful freshman year and put together a very strong sophomore campaign with the Bruins. In 62 games in 2019, Mitchell slashed .349/.418/.566 with 14 doubles, 12 triples, six home runs, 18 stolen bases, 41 RBI, 27 walks, and 41 strikeouts. His 12 triples led the country and was a new UCLA single-season record. Additionally, his performance that season gave him the honor of being named to the Pac-12 All Conference Team.
Despite the 2020 season coming to an early end, Garrett Mitchell once again was setting himself up to have a better year. In 15 games in 2020, he slashed .355/.425/.484 with 22 hits, six doubles, one triple, nine RBI, three stolen bases, six walks, and five strikeouts. He came to UCLA as a highly thought of draft prospect and left campus the same way with improved tools.
In addition to the strong college career, Mitchell has also shown the ability to hit with a wood bat. Playing in the Northwoods League in the summer of 2018, Mitchell slashed .309/.404/.382 with 38 hits, three doubles, two home runs, 20 RBI, 20 walks, and 18 strikeouts in 34 games. In the summer of 2019, he played for the United States Collegiate National Team where he picked up five hits in four games, but was removed from the team due to injury.
Scouting Grades
These scouting grades are from MLB Pipeline. Mitchell’s grades probably fluctuate across other publications.
HIT: 60
POWER: 50
RUN: 70
ARM: 60
FIELD: 50
OVERALL: 55
Prospect Overview and Future Outlook
When taking a look at Mitchell’s tools, the speed clearly jumps out as 70-grade. For being 6’3″, 204 lbs, Mitchell can fly out of the batter’s box and down the line. To give you a look at his speed, here’s a video where Mitchell sends one in the gap for a triple. He’s halfway to third base by the time the ball reaches the cutoff man.
Mitchell uses his athleticism and speed to cover a lot of ground in center field, which is a position that MLB Pipelines believes he will be able to stick at, and will be considered an above-average defender or better down the road. He also utilizes his speed to steal a lot of bases, which is something he should have no trouble carrying over into professional baseball.
In addition to the speed, Mitchell’s tools all grade out as average or above average, with his hit tool and arm considered his second best. Scouts were concerned with his ability to hit consistently, but he showed he was able to do that as a sophomore at UCLA and was showing it again before his junior season came to a close.
Mitchell has tweaked his swing a bit over the years. As a freshman, he rested the bat on his back shoulder which made him have to move the bat off his shoulders and move his hands back during the loading phase. This caused his swing to look longer. Now, he places the bat off his back shoulder and his hands higher up in a spot where they don’t have to move much when he loads, giving him a smoother, more compact swing.
Mock Draft Outcomes
According to MLB Pipeline, Garrett Mitchell is currently ranked as the 6th best prospect in the 2020 draft class. However, it seems like teams might be shying away from him again as he has been mocked all over the place leading up to the draft.
In the most recent mock draft from Jim Callis, he has Mitchell going to the Phillies at 15 and calls Mitchell a “huge wild card” because of the tool potential he has, the Type 1 diabetes, and small showing of in game power at UCLA. In Jonathan Mayo’s most recent mock draft, he has Mitchell landing in the top 10 with the Angels selecting him at that spot. Mayo mentions that even though the Angels need pitching, Mitchell has the best set of tools in the class and that’s why he mocked him there.
Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs has the White Sox taking Mitchell at 11 in his most recent mock draft. Longenhagen states that since Mike Shirley was an internal hire, he expects the White Sox to continue the trend of taking a college player in the first round. Because of this thought process, he believes that Patrick Bailey and Heston Kjerstad are also in play here. However, both players were taken before 11 in his mock draft, so that leaves the White Sox with Mitchell.
Potential Fit with the White Sox
With the set of tools Garrett Mitchell has, he would be an obvious fit with the White Sox. He has two-way potential that would provide a boost to the outfield group in the farm system. Scouts say Mitchell can stick in center field, but with Luis Robert set to roam around there for many years, Mitchell could shift to right field where his arm and glove would be a good fit.
It’s not a secret that outfielders towards the top of the White Sox farm system have been struggling as of late, so Mitchell could bring a fresh bat and set of tools to the mix. Also, with him being a left-handed hitter, he can eventually bring balance to the big league lineup and would give the White Sox another threat on the basepaths.
Photo Credit: Scott Chandler/UCLA
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