2024 MLB Draft Player Profiles: College Infielders

Starting off draft season with some of the collegiate game’s best

To kick off our annual draft coverage, we’re starting with a group of collegiate infielders who have all drawn high praise and are sure to be in the mix for Seattle at pick 15. The Mariners have historically not taken many collegiate position players in the first round (last one was Evan White in 2017), however the draft this year has some intriguing talent on the dirt that just might force their hand. Enjoy!

Seaver King

After dominating at the Division-II level for Wingate, King was a hot commodity in the transfer portal last offseason when he laid waste to opposing pitchers in the Cape Cod wood bat league. He would eventually find his way to the Demon Deacons of Wake Forest and immediately made an impact batting in the heart of their order. King has positioned himself well for July’s draft and could easily find his name called anywhere up and down the first round. He’s a difficult player to nail down.

Listed at 6’0 and 195lbs, King has a wiry frame and fast hands at the plate. It’s a flat swing that’s geared for line drives rather than homers, but his exit velocities suggest he’s got above average power in game. His swing plane certainly helps him cover much of the plate and even off the plate to some extent, however his approach certainly does not do him many favors. Sure, he’s able to hit for a high average and has some natural ability to control his barrel, but he makes a ton of weak contact because of his pitch selection and there are concerns about his elevated chase rate at the plate. His natural ability to hit is there and pop is definitely real, but whoever ends up drafting him is betting they can tone down the aggression at the plate and get him drawing more walks.

On the other side of the ball, King has bounced around a bunch during his time at Winston-Salem. King has played all around the infield throughout his college career, manning SS, 2B, 3B, as well as CF this season. Spending most of his time at the hot corner, King is a dynamic athlete that has the arm to play on the left side of the infield and runs at a plus level. I personally think his skillset is best suited for centerfield, where his pop would play up with the added positional value, but I can easily see him sticking on the dirt in his initial run in pro ball. If you love prospects with tools, there aren’t too many college players with more to offer than Seaver King. He’s not the most polished of players, but there is certainly a lot to dream on.

Christian Moore

Production, production, production. The reigning SEC triple crown winner had himself quite the year in 2024 and has subsequently seen his stock skyrocket. Moore is another player that I’ve seen go all over the first round; Some evaluators like his metrics and have him up near the early teens, others have him closer to the back of the first round. It’s been a meteoric rise for Moore this season, and it’s not quite over yet as he and his dominant Tennessee squad are steamrolling their way to Omaha and the College World Series. If you haven’t watched him play before, I’d highly recommend checking a Tennessee game out.

Offensively, there’s a lot to love with Moore. With some thunderous bat speed and exit velocities few can rival, Moore hits some of the most ridiculous homers you’ll see all year. Moore is certainly looking to do damage every time he comes to the plate, but he’s shown an ability to take a walk when it’s offered to him and has solid plate discipline. I don’t foresee him ever being a huge OBP guy and feel as though the carrying trait is certainly the power, however there’s plenty of reason to believe Moore can be a more than competent hitter at the next level. I’d wager his contact ability is a tick above average in thanks to his pitch recognition skills and the power is outstanding. He could be a 25 homer guy at the next level.

On the dirt, Moore is firmly in the second base camp for me. He moves fine for the position and even dabbled for a few games at both SS and CF, however I don’t really see those as being fits for him long term. He’s not an elite up-the-middle athlete and you’d likely be sacrificing some defensive value if you forced him to one of those positions. He should play an average second base with decent range and a fine arm for the position. His running game is somewhat up and down and he’s never been a big base stealer, but he’s a quality athlete and looks like he should be at least an average runner early in his career. It’s not every day you find an up the middle player that has the hitting prowess Moore possesses and makes him an intriguing option for Seattle’s draft class.

Tommy White

I feel as though I must write about Tommy White out of necessity. One of college baseball’s biggest stars, White burst on to the scene at NC State before transferring to LSU and winning a national championship last season. A fearsome slugger from the right side, “Tommy Tanks” was a force in the middle of the order and has some impressive abilities at the plate.

I want to make this abundantly clear: White is technically a third baseman, and I mean this in the faintest sense possible. He’s absolutely destined for a first base role as a professional. To boot, there’s not a ton of speed either. There is one reason Tommy White will be drafted, and it’s his bat.

Fortunately for White, said bat is pretty damn special. White uses a toe-tap timing mechanism and doesn’t need any leg kick to generate ridiculous exit velocities thanks to his remarkable bat speed. This helps him get to a ton of balls other hitters would have no chance at getting to and clobber some pretty silly looking homers. He’s a very aggressive hitter, rarely walks, and uses his outstanding barrel control to slug balls all over the diamond. It’s firmly an above average to plus hit tool and plus or better power. I tend to favor more patient hitters, but it’s tough to argue with a career slashline of .355/.419/.704/1.123 at the highest level of college baseball.

I truly have no idea where White will end up falling in this draft. I think I’d personally take him in the second round due to his limited value defensively and on the base paths, but several evaluators have him entrenched in the heart of the first round. With his relative fame and publicity in college baseball, it’s hard for me to imagine he would cut a deal inside the first round and subsequently leaves me out on White. I just don’t see White landing with Seattle unless he somehow slips to 55 (he won’t).

Cam Smith

I’ve saved the best for last. Cam Smith is a physical, 6’3 third baseman for the Florida State Seminoles. Armed with an absolute cannon at the hot corner, Smith came into school as a shortstop but moved over to third where he’s looked comfortable and could be an above average defender. He’s big, but still very athletic and shouldn’t be a blackhole on the basepaths. I’d say he’s somewhere around average with his legs, maybe a shade worse as he ages or adds physicality.

The bat is what gets people most excited. He demolished the Cape Cod league as a 20 year old and only improved as a sophomore this season. He’s reduced his K rate dramatically, swinging at fewer pitches outside the strikezone and drawing walks at a much higher clip. For his size and stature, I would expect more power output, though I do think there’s more there to unlock. I’d put both tools at an average grade currently with the caveat that both of those tools are trending feverishly in the right direction. It doesn’t feel as though Cam Smith has reached his full potential and he’s already one of the most feared hitters in the entire country.

The combination of athleticism, production, and rapid development at a relatively young age gives Cam Smith a remarkable ceiling for a college player. I think he’s a lock to stick at third and could be a premiere bat along the way. If you can unlock more of his physicality and have it translate to above average or better in-game power, there isn’t a clear flaw to his game. He’s a hitter that might get taken just ahead of the Seattle first rounder, but should he fall, I’d hope he would be given strong consideration.

We’ll be back next week with another breakdown of more players next Tuesday. Until then, GOMS!