OAKLAND ATHLETICS TOP 10 PROSPECTS
1. TYLER SODERSTROM, C/1B
AGE: 20. B-T: L-R. HT: 6-2. WT: 200. DRAFTED: HS—Turlock, Calif., 2020 (1st round). SIGNED BY: Kevin Mello.
TRACK RECORD: The Athletics closed the 2010s with multiple misfires at the top of the draft, but going over slot to draft Soderstrom No. 26 overall in 2020 looks like a reversal of fortune. Soderstrom grew up less than two hours from Oakland and played for the Athletics’ Area Code team. It didn’t take him long to impress Oakland once he turned pro, either. He was one of the most impressive hitters at the club’s alternate training site in 2020 despite being just 18 years old. He carried that momentum into 2021, crushing Low-A West pitchers. His 145 wRC+ with Stockton was tied for fifth-best in the league for hitters who batted at least 200 times. An oblique injury ended Soderstrom’s season in late July, and a flareup of that injury kept him from participating in the Arizona Fall League.
The chorus of praise surrounding Soderstrom only grew louder in 2021. He posted some of the best average exit velocities of any hitter in Oakland’s system, consistently beating Low-A pitchers with a swing and approach some scouts believe could work in MLB right now. Soderstrom’s lefty swing stays in the strike zone for a long time and he’s adept at back spinning the baseball, showing plus raw power to all fields. Soderstrom doesn’t fear long at-bats and shows advanced strike-zone recognition, especially with breaking balls, for his age. Which position Soderstrom ultimately plays when he arrives in the majors
