After completing my most recent review on Daniel Jackson, I started thinking “What if the Phillies drafted for need?” The “need” being a right handed power bat, preferably a corner OF. I would also prefer if the prospect not be a reach or a guy that almost certainly will go 20 spots higher. Turns out there’s a guy ranked in the Phillies range at #29, that could easily fall to the 36th pick. As luck would have it he’s a former power hitting Catcher who had to convert to Right Field because of defensive concerns (promise I did not plan all these little parallels).
Rose is a 6’1”, 210 lbs Right Fielder who just turned 21 at the end of May. He was ranked ~200 in the 2023 draft, but since he told teams he would honor his commitment to Louisville, he went undrafted. He’s an above-average runner (though he’s a stocky guy, so I expect that to not be a big long term strength) and currently an above-average hitter for power with a potential to tap into more (on to that later). He has a borderline plus arm, which is enough to play in Right Field, where he reportedly gets good reads and has the speed and arm to be, at least, as average defender out there. Jackson has fringe 5-tool skills, but Zion is almost entirely about the Power as his lone carrying tool, though nothing else looks below average.
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As a hitter, Zion is also very different from Jackson’s relatively clean swing. Zion has similar bat speed and strength, but with a big leg kick and a lot of bat wiggle before he starts his swing. Higher level Pitchers may be able to exploit all that movement by rushing him and throwing his timing off. So he’ll need some adjustments made with a pro hitting coach to try to quiet those parts down some. Also similar to Jackson, Zion had a bit of a reputation as a free swinger, but unlike Jackson he has a history of very good bat control that allowed him to make consistent contact with a very respectable 14% K rate in 2025 and a 10% K rate in 2026 and consistently ran excellent walk rates the last 2 years. Zion’s Home Runs were down this year, but his doubles were up (both in terms of rate, as he played way less games this year thanks to Louisville having a very down year and not making the postseason), so his Slugging is actually higher. Still draft year is a bad time for bad Home Run luck, especially if it’s a big part of your profile. I think a swing change to silence some of the bat waggle and improve his timing, as he sometimes strides, then rotates and it would be best to be into your rotation a little earlier, can further aid in his ability to get to an above average or better hit profile. It’s a small change, but could unlock additional home run power too.
I’ll embed two videos here. The first is from a showcase during his High School years, so you can see his swing then (also, some teams still are reportedly high on his potential behind the dish, so you get some throws from the position to start off here). The second is of highlights from this season. No side views, but the swing, while nosier, does seem to have more of an upstroke for launch angle.
The reason I think Zion is ranked a little ahead of Jackson is because of greater positional certainty. He’s already shown he can be an average or better player full time at positions other than Catcher along with a better hitting track record. I’d be shocked to see any team put him back at Catcher and set his development timeline back by likely years. I’d expect he stays in the OF, maybe even Center early on until he proves he needs to move to Right or Left.
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