Drew
Mendoza

05/29/16- Florida State recruit. Currently ranked No. 4 in the Florida 2016 class, No. 14 overall. Loose, strong, projectable build on a 6-foot-4, 200 pound frame. Displays natural actions and athleticism. Smooth, easy stroke with loose hands and a relaxed and confident approach from the left hand side of the plate. Aggressive batter but shows good awareness of the strike zone. Balanced and relaxed in the box. Bat stays in the zone and has some loft in his swing with some present power. Drove the ball deep into the gaps and launched a couple of balls over the right field wall during batting practice. Makes the plays and displays soft hands in the field. Throws from SS were strong and accurate with good carry.

3/1/16 - Florida St recruit. 6-foot-4, 195 pound infielder with a tall loose athletic projectable body. Loose easy actions with soft quick hands. Average to above average arm that throws from different slots. Very light on his feet for a big guy. Moves well but is a below average runner. Needs work on his set up and angles to balls but very athletic with a lot of upside. Will grow out of short stop and end up at third base. Loose quick bat with easy power. Plus power now with a lot more to come. Natural hitter. Patient, calm, relaxed in the box. Has good takes and doesn’t chase. Good bat path with some lift in swing. Can stay inside ball and use the whole field and can launch. Very talented athletic guy that does a lot of things on the field very easy. Laid back, relaxed. Confident approach. Could become a high 2016 draft. Drive, determination, work ethic, and mental toughness will determine his future in the big leagues. Not his ability.

3/11/15 - Florida St commit. 6-foot-4, 190 pound infielder with a tall loose lean athletic projectable body. Loose easy actions with soft hands and an avg ML arm. Has a smooth left handed swing with power. Loose quick bat with good bat speed and leverage. Has loft in swing. Easy power with a lot more to come. Went deep twice off of Brady Singer who has a good chance of pitching in the big leagues some day. Very athletic kid who is also a very good basketball player. Could become a good 2016 draft.

2/19/15 - Florida St commit. 6-foot-4, 190 pound infielder with a tall loose athletic projectable body with long loose arms and legs. Easy smooth actions with some softness in hands. Good release with a short high ¾ slot. Fluid fielder that can get a little flashy at times. Showed an avg arm but is supposed to have a plus arm on the mound. Has power in the bat with some strength now and more to come. Has a loose bat with some quickness. Has some length in swing with loft. Is aggressive with a good path. Barrel stays in the zone and uses the whole field. Was 2-3 today with a line drive up the middle and a hard hit single in the 6 hole. Came up in a big situation late in the game and turned on a fastball that he hit deep to right field that was caught. Just missed a game winning home run. Very athletic kid that just finished basketball. Looks like he could become a 2016 draft.

5/19/19: Strong and trim at 6-foot-5, 230 pounds, Mendoza looks the part of big leaguer right now. From the left side he set up deep in the box with a slightly open stance. Rocked into his backside then took a leg lift load for good rhythm. Maintains good balance and created fair separation. His bat head became a little stagnant and swing less efficient with timing issues between bat tilt and foot settling. Good bat lag, got on-plane well with longer swing, good bat strength and slider bat speed. Stays behind the ball well and gets maximum extension through it. Plus to better raw power. Profiles for power over hit ability due to the swing/miss in his game. Average arm with fringe range at the hot corner. Fringe defender who will need to work hard to stay there or risk moving across the diamond to first base. Near average runner underway, as seen during his triple to right center field during Friday's game. Once considered a potential first-rounder out of high school, Mendoza is now a likely late pick on Day One or early Day Two. (Seifert)

8/1/18: Strictly used at DH this summer, Mendoza showed flashes of his hitting potential, yet was inconsistent (.232/.365/.348) with 23 strikeouts in 85 plate appearances this summer. Despite playing half his games at home in Chatham with a short (315’) porch in right field, Mendoza has homered just twice. He did show an easy, smooth, line drive swing in batting practice with good bat speed. The ball jumped off his bat with average carry. Regardless of the uncharacteristic offensive performance, Mendoza remains a top college bat for the 2019 draft. For more on Mendoza, checkout the notes from this past spring- Scouting Trail: Week Eight. (Seifert)

4-10-2018: No. 3 ranked Drew Mendoza showed his smooth, line drive stroke and good bat speed whistling a couple liners in the series opener on Friday. More of a doubles hitters now due to his swing path, his over-the-fence power should develop as he learns to lift the ball. He struggled Saturday taking big swings, trying to pull everything and not showing much of a plan at the plate. Defensively, he displayed a plus arm and sure hands with above average range to the six-hole. Looks to be at least an average ML defender in the future. (Seifert)