Jonathan
Vastine

In Baton Rouge I was hoping to see the Cape Cod version of Vastine – the prospect who slashed .306/.397/.430 with a 19% strikeout rate. His struggles at Vanderbilt with swing/miss is well-known where he sits with a 26% career rate and 25% this season. His whiffs come mostly on the back/forth, speed up/speed down of a fastball to offspeed. Vastine really gets out and over his front side and loses his lower half while carrying his hands. He does have twitchy strength, solid bat speed and average raw power that has produced five home runs already this season. His fifth long ball was a 100 mph bolt to right center field during game one of the LSU series. Vastine also has very good raw tools on the defensive side of the ball with a plus arm, soft hands, athletic actions and plenty of range at shortstop. He can make both the routine and spectacular play. Collectively, the lefthanded hitter has Day One tools, but his strikeout rate is hard to ignore. Because of this, he will likely fall into rounds three-to-five this summer.

Cape Cod: A standout at second base from opening weekend of the 2023 Scouting Trail at Globe Life, Vastine now looks to be one of the top shortstops in the college class of 2024. With a quick and handsy swing at the plate, the 5-foot-11 left handed hitter hangs in well against left handed breaking balls and battles at the plate. He consistently produced bolts to all fields, finishing the regular season with a .306 batting average and 10 extra base hits. He then stepped it up another notch in the playoffs, batting .382 over the eight games. Going into the summer the knock on Vastine was his strikeout rate which finished at 25% this past spring after reaching nearly 33% as a freshman ‘Dore in 2022. However, he looks to have made the adjustment with just 27 strikeouts in 150 plate appearances (18%). He also does all the little things well, including bunting (four SACs), moving runners and running the bases. A plus runner, he stole 14 bases which was good for fourth in the league. On the dirt he’s a smooth defender at shortstop with above average range and arm strength. And most importantly he looks to be able to stay there over the long term. Vastine committed just six errors for a .950 FLD% on the all grass/dirt fields the Cape has to offer. He’s a Day One follow heading into this fall season.

Positional Profile: SS/RHP, Vanderbilt
Body: 5-foot-11, 165-pounds. Has a high waisted, thin, strong, athletic frame.
Defense: Fields off center of body with a two handed gather. Showing soft hands with fluid footwork. 
Arm: RH. INF - 89 mph. Short, high 3/4 arm slot.
Hit: LHH. Starts with a slightly closed, tall balanced setup. Knee bend/heel up toe down leg load, into a short stride. Hands load back and down.  Swings a level bat path, with natural lift, staying inside baseball and swinging with intent.
Power: 92 mph exit velocity from the tee. Gap to gap, line drive/power approach, squaring up and attacking baseball.
Run: 6.84 runner in the 60. Runs with quick, choppy steps.