OAKLAND ATHLETICS TOP 10 PROSPECTS
1. TYLER SODERSTROM, C
AGE: 19. B-T: L-R. HT: 6-2. WT: 205. DRAFTED: HS—Turlock, Calif., 2020 (1st round). SIGNED BY: Kevin Mello.
TRACK RECORD: Soderstrom surged into the top tier of the 2020 draft class after a blistering summer on the showcase circuit. His rise culminated with the Athletics drafting him No. 26 overall and signing him for $3.3 million to forgo a UCLA commitment. It was the second-largest bonus ever given to a prep catcher, behind only No. 1 overall pick Joe Mauer’s $5.1 million from the Twins in 2001. The A’s promptly sent the 18-year-old Soderstrom into a win-now environment at the alternate training site and watched their top pick hit nearly .500 with three home runs in his first week. He continued to dominate at instructional league, where he posted a .441 on-base percentage and earned raves as one of the top hitters in Arizona.
Soderstrom is regularly compared with Eric Chavez and Ben Grieve in terms of high school hitters to pass through Oakland’s system, and the A’s believe he has the potential to be better than both. Soderstrom already posts exit velocities as high as 108 mph and has an exceptionally advanced approach that belies his youth. He has the physicality reminiscent of a college pick, but there’s more physical projection to go and it’s easy to envision 30-home run potential with loads of walks and a high OBP. Hardly an all-or-nothing slugger, Soderstrom has a polished lefthanded swing and projects to be a plus hitter. Soderstrom is much less polished defensively behind the plate and
