Collins Ranked Top Player in White Sox Farm System
CHICAGO — In its annual rankings of the top players in each minor league system, Baseball America rated catcher Zack Collins as the No. 1 prospect in the Chicago White Sox organization entering 2017.
After a standout three-year career with the Hurricanes, Collins was selected with the No. 10 overall pick in the 2016 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft in June. In his first professional season spanning 36 games, he batted .258 at Winston-Salem (Class A Advanced) with six home runs, seven doubles, 18 RBI and a .418 on-base percentage.
The Pembroke Pines, Fla., native, who earned first-team All-America honors from Baseball America, D1Baseball, NCBWA, Perfect Game and Rawlings his junior year at Miami, delivered a dominant final collegiate season swinging the bat and behind the plate in 2016.
“While Collins’ calling card will always be his offense, his defensive progress was exceptional in his junior year, and he particularly encouraged evaluators with his soft hands,” Baseball America wrote in its evaluation of Collins. “He shows the ability to set a low target and keep his glove hand still, and he’s shown the aptitude to understand umpires’ strike zones and adjust his framing technique in response.
“Regardless of what kind of defensive player he ends up being, Collins’ offense will play. He has a rare combination of strength and bat speed, giving him plus power…Collins has a patient approach at the plate, with elite strike-zone awareness and an uncanny idea of which pitches he can do damage with. He has a rhythmic swing, with a bat tip forward as he loads his hands.”
Collins batted .363 for the year, leading Miami with 16 home runs and 59 RBI to go along with a nation-leading total of 78 walks. He reached base at a .544 clip, the second-highest in the country, and recorded a team-high .668 slugging percentage.
He became the first ever Hurricane recipient of the Johnny Bench Award, honoring the nation’s top collegiate catcher, and was named to the All-ACC First Team for the second consecutive season.
To view Baseball America‘s rankings of the top players in the Chicago White Sox organization, click HERE.
