Earlier in the week, a rather interesting development occurred in the MLB Draft world. Steele Hall, one of the top middle infield prospects in the 2026 draft class, completed a reclassification to the 2025 ranks and signed his National Letter of Intent to Tennessee on Wednesday. Hall’s decision is a big win for Tony Vitello’s group, as there’s a chance he can get to campus a year earlier, though there’s plenty of draft intrigue with Hall. Hall was slated among the top fifty prospects in the 2026 class by many pundits before the reclass and will be featured in our updated Top 75 Prep list at a later date.

Hall is a defense-over-offense profile with excellent actions on the dirt. He’s a bouncy defender with plenty of athleticism and makes everything look smooth at shortstop, where he projects to stick professionally. He flashes stout lateral motion and range with a quick first step and defensive instincts, including a great internal clock. His arm strength grades out as average to above-average, as well. Offensively, there’s a bit of swing-and-miss to his game, but it’s a twitchy profile with solid bat speed and a clean bat path. He’s short to the ball and has a swing that’s aiming to do damage in the air. Hall’s projectable traits, especially in his lower half, point to decent power potential as he matures physically, though this is a profile that will likely be a hit-over-power bat. Hall was expected to be on the older side of the 2026 draft, as his birthday falls a week before the August 1st cutoff date for college sophomore eligibility. He will be 17.11 on draft day in 2025 and would be eligible as a junior in 2028 if he makes it to Knoxville.

The Hewitt-Trussville product will join a packed Tennessee recruiting class that has added plenty of firepower over the past month. Billy Carlson flipped from Vanderbilt in mid-October and Cameron Appenzeller, the top left-hander in the class, made his commitment to Rocky Top not long after. Ethan Baiotto, Evan Hankins, Taylor Tracey, and Ethan Moore are other top names in the class that has earned a top-five ranking from Baseball America and Perfect Game. Hall will be the first prominent reclassification since Eli Willits joined the 2025 ranks over the summer, though North Carolina commit Caden Glauber from South Carolina is another name that recently reclassified in August.