Drew Ward, 1B
Ht/Wt: 6’4/205
B/T: L/R
High School: Leedey HS (OK)
Draft Day Age: 18.5
College Commit: Oklahoma
Background
Ward has been hyped as a potential high first round pick since his high school freshman year, but much of that was due to his advanced age. His athleticism developed early and he was judged against players over a year younger than him at an age where a year is a huge difference. Ward is slightly older than the average prospect in this class, but he would’ve been one of the oldest players had he stayed in the 2014 draft class. He may have made some noise early in his high school career and he has early round tools, but he isn’t the Bryce Harper-type impact prospect that some publications hyped him to be.
Scouts will have to work from behind on their evaluations as it was uncertain which draft class Ward would be in until recently, even though rumors have been circulating for months. All summer and fall, scouts had plenty on their plates bearing down on 2013 draft prospects and while they’re familiar with Ward, they haven’t done full evaluations. With some indication his move would be approved, Ward has been working around poor weather in the Midwest and staging private workouts for MLB clubs in Houston and Oklahoma City recently. Oklahoma is loaded with prospects this year, but Ward faces poor competition in his small hometown and is well west of where the high-level prospects are based.
Ward’s performance in the WWBA Championships last October, where he hit with a wood bat against top prep pitching, was on par with his top three round 2013 draft peers, going 4-for-11 with three doubles, two walks and two steals. I saw him in Jupiter this past October and took video of one at bat that I’ve embedded below.