Follow the Prospects: Seaver King, 3B/OF

[imref]

Seaver King
DOB: 4/25/2003
6'0, 195
B/T: R/R

Drafted by the Nationals in the first round (#10) in 2024 out of Wake Forrest University

MLB.com Scouting Report:

Scouting grades: Hit: 55 | Power: 45 | Run: 65 | Arm: 55 | Field: 55 | Overall: 55

King starred for two seasons at NCAA Division II Wingate (N.C.), fashioning a 47-game hitting streak in 2022-23 and slashing .411/.457/.699 with 11 homers and 13 steals as a sophomore. He has proven himself with wood bats, winning MVP accolades in the Valley League in 2022 and distinguishing himself with the U.S. collegiate national team and in the Cape Cod League last summer. He has started games at four positions this spring after transferring to Wake Forest and is one of three Demon Deacons projected to go in the first round. 

King excels at putting the ball in play with a compact right-handed stroke geared for hitting line drives to all fields. He needs to improve his plate discipline, however, because he swings and chases too much, making a lot of weak contact and cutting into his walk totals. While he has added 20 pounds since arriving in college and has impressive bat speed, his approach and flat stroke may not be conducive to more than 12-15 homers per year.

With well above-average speed and solid arm strength, King is a versatile defender. He opened this season as a center fielder before settling in at third base, also seeing action at shortstop and second base. He'd have the most pro value at shortstop, though he's merely average there and would need to polish up his actions and throwing accuracy. He's solid at the other spots and may fit best in the outfield because his hands are just OK.

[imref]

MLB has him listed as a 3B/OF so i'll go with that until we see where he actually plays.

[OfftheBat]

Did we sign him yet? I'm not really familiar with the contract signing timeline after players are drafted.

[nobleisthyname]

Eric Longenhagen's writeup on Fangraphs:

King transferred to Wake from Division-II Wingate but had experience against top competition before he arrived on campus. He raked on Cape Cod (17 games, .424/.479/.542 line) and was among the most impressive athletes on last summer's Collegiate Team USA roster. His lone season at Wake went well (.308/.377/.577, 33 extra-base hits) while King played multiple positions (in order of frequency: third base, center field, short stop, second base). Defensive versatility will probably be a big part of King's big league utility. He has the athleticism and arm strength to play anywhere on the diamond, but lacks polish at each of the positions he's played and often looks tentative catching popups and fly balls. King seemed most comfortable at third base, where he played most toward the end of the 2023 college season. Incredible lower body athleticism and agility helped him handle hot shots on the carpet at Wake. He has a plus arm that he doesn't always look comfortable airing out, but that should come with reps. Shortstop should be a more prominent part of his developmental pro mix, as this is a pretty special athlete without a ton of high-level experience who might yet develop better feel for defense.

On offense, King has impressive oppo power for his size. He requires whole-body effort to swing hard, which can make the entire operation tough for him to time. He's more likely to slug versus breaking stuff than fastballs, which he's often a little too late on to damage. King is a candidate for swing simplification if he gets stronger and is able to swing hard with less noise. Until then, it's going to be fun to see if his elaborate current style of hitting can reproduce his college contact rates (79% overall, 87% in-zone) against pro stuff. He also brings big energy and on-field bravado to the party, and will gas up his teammates.

King's skill set is tailored like a skinnier Ezequiel Duran or Christopher Morel. He's relatively raw for a college prospect, but he's performed well anyway and has some late-bloomer characteristics (college transfer, no set position to this point, big time athlete, motor). If he gets stronger and more comfortable at shortstop, he could be an everyday player there. More likely, he's going to be a dynamic multi-positional role player.

Seems to be a bit higher on him than the general consensus. Had him ranked 11th overall on Fangraphs' board. Comps King to Ezequiel Duran and Christopher Morel.

[imref]

Did we sign him yet? I'm not really familiar with the contract signing timeline after players are drafted.

he's being officially introduced tomorrow at Nats park, so the official signing will happen at some point before that. There isn't much drama anymore with signing top picks due to the slotting system.

[imref]

Eric Longenhagen's writeup on Fangraphs:

Seems to be a bit higher on him than the general consensus. Had him ranked 11th overall on Fangraphs' board. Comps King to Ezequiel Duran and Christopher Morel.

would be interesting to compare his scouting report with Lipscomb.

[imref]

Rizzo says they see King as a shortstop.

https://www.audacy.com/theteam980/sports/nationals/mike-rizzo-talks-nationals-top-mlb-draft-pick-seaver-king

[OfftheBat]

he's being officially introduced tomorrow at Nats park, so the official signing will happen at some point before that. There isn't much drama anymore with signing top picks due to the slotting system.

Gotcha! Thanks

[nobleisthyname]

would be interesting to compare his scouting report with Lipscomb.

Not sure about when he was drafted but he has Lipscomb as a 35+ prospect this season and King as 45+.

[Senatorswin]

"More likely, he's going to be a dynamic multi-positional role player."

When you pick 10th in the first round it seems you should be looking for more than hoping the guy becomes a multi-positional role player.

[imref]

Kind of a weak draft though.

[Slateman]

"More likely, he's going to be a dynamic multi-positional role player."

When you pick 10th in the first round it seems you should be looking for more than hoping the guy becomes a multi-positional role player.

Uh ... to be honest, you should just be trying to get someone who will contribute at the major league level.

[Senatorswin]

Uh ... to be honest, you should just be trying to get someone who will contribute at the major league level.

More than any other major sport the MLB draft is a crapshoot. It seems like the expectations are low for this number 1 pick but as was pointed out it wasn't a great draft and maybe they expect him to contribute more than I know.

Here is the history of the Nats number 1 picks:

2024 - Seaver King
2023 - Dylan Crews
2022 - Elijah Green
2021 - Brady House
2020 - Cade Cavalli
2019 - Jackson Rutledge
2018 - Mason Denaburg
2017 - Seth Romero
2016 - Cater Kieboom
2015 - Andrew Stevenson
2014 - Erick Fedde
2013 - Jake Johanson
2012 - Lucas Giolito
2011 - Anthony Rendon
2010 - Bryce Harper
2009 - Stephan Strasburg
2008 - Aaron Crow
2007 - Ross Detwiler
2006 - Chris Marrero
2005 - Ryan Zimmerman

Successes - Zimmerman, Strasburg, Harper, Rendon

Contributor - Detwiler, Giolito (Got us Adan Eaton; Had a couple of season with the White Sox), Fedde (this season so far for someone else)

Busts - Marrero, Crow, Johanson (who), Stevenson, Kieboom, Romero, Denaburg,

Jury is Out - Rutledge, Cavalli, House, Green, Crews, King

[JCA-CrystalCity]

Ghost Mears at Talk Nats has some pretty good internal Nats sources. It looks like he's buying the line that this was a great pick.
https://www.talknats.com/2024/07/18/the-draft-room-erupted-into-applause/
Seems very psyched about the top 4 picks.

The Bazzell pick has drawn a lot of praise. The Dickerson pick is the one where the Nats "draft room erupted with applause" as they had played a game letting him slide to #44 and grabbing Lomavita at #39. King and Lomavita were rated #17 and #18 by Baseball America, so if we are knocking King as a bit of a reach, then we should probably be praising grabbing him at #39. If the Nats are right about King, then the next few picks make this look like a terrific draft for positional players. Between Lomavita and Bazzell, we have a good shot at getting a catcher who can step up over Ruiz, and between King and Dickerson, there should be a decent MI.

[imref]

Per Callis: signed for $5,150,000 (slot was $5,593,800).

[zimm_da_kid]

Per Callis: signed for $5,150,000 (slot was $5,593,800).

Seems a little high, but whatever

[imref]

Starting with Fredricksburg tomorrow.

[DCsOwn]

https://x.com/mlbpipeline/status/1823524480859435063?s=46&t=Q_qc3R_qyMHAAFvlywNqzQ

First professional hit. The bat speed is electric.

[imref]

https://x.com/mlbpipeline/status/1823524480859435063?s=46&t=Q_qc3R_qyMHAAFvlywNqzQ

First professional hit. The bat speed is electric.

Going to be fun to watch him next year and speculate about where he plays in 2026.

[imref]

4-9 in his first two games with a triple. Time to promote him.

[Natsinpwc]

4-9 in his first two games with a triple. Time to promote him.

Patience grasshopper.

[IanRubbish]

5 for 17 with a triple and no walks in Fredericksburg so far

[JCA-CrystalCity]

1 for his last 8.

[IanRubbish]

He's a bad ball hitter Keibert and Darnell Coles-style, and while it's way too early to say what his trajectory looks like, not surprising that he's still looking for his professional walk.

[Slateman]

https://x.com/FXBGNats/status/1826400550675718240

Oh my