The Red Sox have selected Christian Brothers College High School (St. Louis, Mo.) shortstop Nazzan Zanetello with their second-round pick in the 2023 MLB Draft at No. 50 overall.
Zanetello, 18, was regarded by Baseball America as the No. 110 prospect in this year’s draft class. The Missouri native is currently committed to play college baseball at Arkansas.
A right-handed hitter, Zanetello batted .413/.537/.809 with six doubles, two triples, five home runs, 16 RBIs, 25 runs scored, 11 stolen bases, 15 walks, and 12 strikeouts in 22 games (82 plate appearances) as a senior for Christian Brothers this spring, per his MaxPreps page.
Listed at 6-foot-2 and 180 pounds, Zanetello has room to add muscle to his frame. According to his Baseball America scouting report, Zanetello “has an impressive tool set to play in the middle of the field” and has “plenty of upside” on account of possessing “some of the best pure athleticism” in this year’s class.
To go along with five-tool potential, Zanetello “has shown better zone control than pure contact ability. He rarely chases out of the zone but also has shown swing-and-miss tendencies on pitches in the zone. He sets up with an even stance and gets his swing started with a small leg kick, and his bat path can get lengthy at times. He does drive the ball with authority when he connects, and his physical projection indicates exciting power upside to come.”
Elsewhere, Zanetello is “a plus runner who looks strong in center field, where he reads the ball off the bat with good range and a strong arm, and has also done a nice job at shortstop, where he’s shown an ability to make difficult, body control plays with arm strength that works on the infield as well.”
When speaking with reporters (including The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier) on Sunday night, Red Sox amateur scouting director Devin Pearson indicated that the club plans on having Zanetello play both shortstop and the outfield as he begins his professional career.
“He’s one of the best athletes in the draft, in my opinion,” Pearson said of Zanetello on a Zoom call. “He’s explosive, he’s got speed, he’s got the ability to play a really good shortstop. Athletic enough to play a really good center field. He’s just a box of tools and a great kid we’re really excited to add to the organization.”
Assuming Zanetello — who is in Seattle for the draft with his family — signs with Boston by the July 25 deadline, he will presumably head to Fort Myers and break in with the rookie-level Florida Complex League Red Sox. The slot value for the 50th overall pick in this year’s draft is $1,698,000.
Zanetello, who does not turn 19 until next May, represents the second and final selection the Red Sox will be making on Day 1 of the draft. Boston took the reigning ACC Player of the Year in Virginia catcher Kyle Teel with its first-round (14th overall) pick.
Day 2 of the draft will consist of rounds 3-10 and will get underway at 2 p.m. eastern time on Monday afternoon. The Red Sox will be making 10 selections (Nos. 83, 115, 132, 133, 151, 178, 208, 238, 268, and 298). They received the 132nd and 133rd picks in the draft as compensation for losing Xander Bogaerts (Padres) and Nathan Eovaldi (Rangers) in free agency.
(Picture of Nazzan Zanetello: Rob Tringali/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
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