NAME: Wes Kath
SCHOOL: Desert Mountain HS, Scottsdale, Az.
POSITION: SS
HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 6’3″, 200 lbs
B/T: L/R
D.O.B.: August 3, 2002
PREVIOUSLY DRAFTED: No
SCOUTING REPORT
Originally thought of as more of a second-round prospect, Arizona prep infielder Wes Kath has shot into the first-round discussion in this weekend’s 2021 MLB Draft on the strength of a stellar high school season and some impressive showings on the scouting circuit.
Kath hit .486 with 11 home runs, 29 RBI, and 34 runs scored to lead Desert Mountain to a state championship and 20-4 record. Kath’s sizzling senior season at Desert Mountain High School earned him the Gatorade High School Player of the Year award. Still, his impressive performances at places like the Area Code Games and the World Wood Bat Association World Championship made him the unquestioned top prospect in the state of Arizona this summer.
Kath is six-foot-three, 200 pounds pretty much anywhere you look, and his highest regarded tool is without question his arm, which garnered a 60-grade from both MLB Pipeline and Baseball America.
While the left-handed swinging Kath has been seen as a contact hitter for the time being, but his impressive summer included some additional loft and pop in his swing, enough of it for Baseball America to give the Arizona State commit a 60-grade in the power department as well. MLB Pipeline has him pegged at 55 for his power grade, still very respectable.
Here’s a video of Kath’s last high school at-bat where he deposits a bomb over the right-field wall at Tempe Diablo Stadium (spring training home of the Los Angeles Angeles) in the Arizona 5A State Championship Game. He even worked in a very Yasmani Grandal-like left-handed bat drop there.
Kath likely moves over to third base at the professional level despite playing shortstop in high school, with his lack of speed and potential range up the middle being of note in that logic. MLB Pipeline has Kath listed as a third baseman already, as does Baseball America. Despite most pundits writing off his chances to play shortstop already, Kath thinks he has a shot at sticking at shortstop at the next level. Kath is also pretty confident in his hands and arm as they pertain to the hot corner if that is indeed the way things end up shaking out.
“Most scouts see me at third base, which is fine by me,” Kath said. “I love third, so I am not going to complain about that. Personally, I believe I can play at shortstop with no issue. But my speed will have to pick up a little still to compete with the other guys. My hands and arm strength can compete with anyone, though.”
MLB Pipeline has Kath ranked No. 34 on their 2021 MLB Draft prospect rankings, while Baseball America ranked No. 54.
SCOUTING GRADES
Scouting grades courtesy of mlbpipeline.com.
HIT: 55
POWER: 45
RUN: 45
ARM: 60
FIELD: 50
OVERALL: 50
PROSPECT OVERVIEW AND FUTURE OUTLOOK
Fellow prep infielder Colson Montgomery seems to be atop the Chicago White Sox draft board at the time of this story. Still, the New York Mets have had a heavy presence at his games and events, so Montgomery might be gone at No. 10 when the Mets pick on Sunday, leaving the White Sox with other prep infielders they’ve been linked to such as Maxwell Muncy (not the one playing in Los Angeles despite the pair sharing the same name and birthday), and the aforementioned Wes Kath, if in fact, the White Sox go the route of a prep bat in round one.
Kath is already 19-years-old and isn’t at the top of the Sox’ draft board right now, but he’s a fine prospect nonetheless. His monster season saw him break into the first-round discussions and has left plenty of optimism that his power stroke can continue to develop and match his solid defensive profile at third base.
MOCK DRAFTS
Once projected as a sure-day-two guy, Kath is now considered by many a first-round talent.
Baseball America has Kath heading to Oakland at No. 25 in their most recent mock draft (5.0). Similarly, Jim Callis has him heading to the A’s at No. 25 in his June 30 mock draft at MLB.com, and Dan Zielinski at Baseball Prospect Journal shares the opinion of Carlos Collazo and Jim Callis in his most recent mock draft.
Kiley McDaniel doesn’t have Kath going in the first round in his Mock Draft 2.0 at ESPN. However, Fangraphs has Kath heading to Tampa Bay at No. 34 (competitive balance round) in their Mock Draft 2.0.
POTENTIAL FIT WITH WHITE SOX
There’s been plenty of smoke around prep shortstop Colson Montgomery and the White Sox in recent weeks. Enough to be almost certain that if he falls to Chicago at No. 22, Mike Shirley and company will end a nearly decade-long drought in which the White Sox have not taken a prep bat in the first round of the draft. But, as I mentioned earlier, there’s also (a pretty good) a shot that Montgomery is gone by the time the White Sox pick at No. 22.
If that’s the case, we may very well be seeing Wes Kath heading to Chicago.
Kath will join a White Sox farm system that features a crowded field on the left side of the infield. Bryan Ramos (Kannapolis), Yolbert Sanchez (Winston-Salem), DJ Gladney (Kannapolis), and Lenyn Sosa (Winston-Salem) are all in the lower levels of the system, playing either third base or shortstop, and ranked inside of the organizations top-30 prospects according to MLB Pipeline.
Personally, I like the idea of insulating the system with prep players that carry high ceilings with the White Sox at the onset of the competing window in the majors. But, of course, if the White Sox went pitching here, Andrew Painter — a prep right-hander and Florida Gators commit — would be at the top of my wishlist, so Kath (or Montgomery) being the choice for a bat at No. 22 is fine by me. Despite Baseball America labeling Kath as “extremely risky,” the kid can hit and he has the tools and size to play a solid third base when it comes to his future profile outlook.
Photo credit: Prospects Live YouTube still
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