Mariners Draft Profile: Campbell SS Zach Neto
The Mariners' farm system is lacking in quality up-the-middle prospects close to the major leagues. Including Edwin Arroyo, there are no impact shortstop or second base options within Seattle's top-30 prospects projected to debut within the next three seasons (Sorry, Noelvi Marte, but you are a third baseman).
While teams never want to draft based on need, the stars are aligning for Seattle to select not just a position of need, but a player reportedly near the top of their board in Zach Neto. ESPN MLB insider Kiley McDaniel recently mocked Neto to the Mariners at pick No. 21, though he also mentioned that he could see Neto getting selected as high as pick No. 7 to the Cubs and as late as pick No. 23 to the Blue Jays.
Neto checks a lot of boxes for what the Mariners like. He is a great athlete, can run (was 19 out of 20 in stolen bases this year), showed elite plate discipline with 39 walks and 19 strikeouts and still managed to slash .407/.514/.769 with 15 HRs. Some might discount Neto's performance playing at Campbell in the Big South conference, but he was also one of the top performers in the Cape Cod League, which is a summer wooden bat league the Mariners put a lot of stock in.
In the Cape, Neto hit .304/.439/.587 against some of the best pitching in the country. So while he did not perform as well as he did at Campbell, he still impressed a lot given the quality of competition while using a wooden bat.
There are some concerns with Neto. His swing is very unorthodox, and there are questions among scouts about how well it will translate to success against professional pitching. He has a very high leg kick and there is a lot of unnecessary motion pre-pitch.
That being said, Neto has made it work, even against elite competition in the Cape. He has good barrel control and it translates to making quality contact with the baseball, which helps explain his plus exit velocities and great batted ball data. Neto also has a very optimal swing path that is conducive to hitting the ball at optimal launch angles.
He also might not be able to stick at shortstop as he develops; he doesn't have elite arm strength, but he most certainly projects to stick up the middle of the field, whether at shortstop or second base.
My read on Neto is that he is a very well-rounded player with no major weaknesses and no major tools outside of his bat-to-ball skills. He is a great athlete who should stick up the middle and move quickly through the system. He would likely cost slot value considering he is a college player, meaning that the Mariners could take some higher-upside prep players later in the draft.
In the end, he probably won't be available for the Mariners at No. 21, but if he were, I would bet money that he would be their selection. Neto is regarded as one of the safer players in this year's draft class, and outside of last year's draft when their first three picks were Harry Ford, Arroyo and Michael Morales, they have typically been risk-averse when it comes to the MLB Draft.
