Scouting the 2020 Draft: Garrett Mitchell

Garrett Mitchell OF.  B-L, T-R.  6'3", 200 lbs.

2019(College):  .349/.418/.566, 14 2B, 12 3B, 6 HR, 18 SB, 27 BB, 41 K, 258 AB.

If you play a word association game with Garrett Mitchell's name, the first word that comes up over and over it tools.  Tools galore!  Hit! Run!  Catch! Throw! Power! He's got 'em all.  The second is diabetes.  Garrett has dealt with Type 1 Diabetes since age 9 which gives some analysts pause.  On talent and performance alone, Mitchell would be an easy top 10 draft pick, possibly top 5.  He's got all those tools and has put up big numbers for an elite program in an elite conference.  I mean, while Hunter Bishop was swinging over the top of Pac-12 breaking balls, Garrett Mitchell was batting .371 in conference play.

As for the diabetes, you can't ignore it.  Poorly managed diabetes does horrifying damage to the nerves and small arteries supplying every organ in the body.  On the other hand, athletes like RHP Bill Stoneman and Hockey All-Star Bobby Clarke have had long career with high levels of performance while living with the condition.  Technology for controlling diabetes has advanced tremendously since Bill Stoneman and Bobby Clarke played.  I am not sure if insulin pumps were even invented back in those days.  Teams thinking of drafting Garrett Mitchell will want to do their due diligence with the medical reports, but by all accounts I can find, he's on top of the condition and is using all the latest technology to control it.  If the medicals are good, I would not let it stop me from drafting a prospect who probably has a significantly higher ceiling than Spencer Torkelson, to name one.

While we are on the topic of diabetes, I read one scouting report referring to Garrett as "a diabetic".  People!  This is the 21'st century.  People are not defined by medical conditions they live with.  Garrett is a person who plays baseball and has diabetes.

Fangraphs has Garrett Mitchell as their #20 draft prospect.  MLB Pipeline has him at #6.  If he matches or exceeds his sophomore numbers, he'll likely be drafted closer to #6.

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DrB's Updated 2020 Draft Board:

1.  Austin Martin SS, College(Vanderbilt).
2.  Garrett Mitchell OF, College(UCLA).
3.  Spencer Torkelson 1B, College(Arizona St.).
4.  Emerson Hancock RHP, College(Georgia).
5.  Cole Wilcox RHP, College(Georgia).
6.  Asa Lacy LHP, College(Texas A&M).
7.  Garrett Crochet LHP, College(Tennessee).
8.  Jordan Walker 3B, HS.
9.  Zac Veen OF, HS.
10.  Patrick Bailey C, College(NC State).
11.  Nick Gonzalez 2B, College(New Mexico St.).
12.  Robert Hassell OF, HS.
13.  Pete Crow-Armstrong OF, HS.
14.  J.T. Ginn RHP, College(Mississippi St.).
15.  Jared Kelley RHP, HS.
16.  Mick Abel RHP, HS.
17.  Austin Hendrick OF, HS.