Rank History
| Year | Team | Position | Team Rank | OFP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | LAA | OF | 11 | 45 |
Grades Update: Jan 2021
| OFP | Role | Hit | Power | Field | Arm | Run |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 45 | 40 | 45 | 45 | 55 | 60 | 60 |
Jan 2021 Report
Evaluator: Jake Kerns
Age: 20 yr
Height: 6-0
Weight: 165 lbs
Hits/Throws: S/R
Acquired: 2017 IFA
RuleV: 2021
Physical Description: Signed as a slender kid with plenty of projection. Beginning to fill out and add muscle. Long levers. Twitchy. Plays with a smile on his face.
Hit: Slightly crouched and open stance from the left side. Keeps the bat out in front prior to loading. Some pre-pitch bat movement. Moderate leg kick as he closes and steps into the pitch. Appears to be still seeking a comfortable swing from the left side and has gone through several iterations. More traditional, balanced swing from the right side. Slightly crouched and open stance. Keeps his hands high and behind his head. Some pre-pitch hand and bat movement as he tries to find his rhythm in the box. Mostly linear swing from both sides, but inconsistently so from the left side. Above-average bat speed from both sides. Balls jumps off the bat with good contact, but puts too many balls on the ground. Can beat out grounders to the left side. Often overly aggressive; takes big cuts and swings too often, which leads to too many strikeouts. Struggles with velocity up and away and is too often behind the pitch. Shows an understanding of the zone and takes his fair share of walks. Has good enough bat-to-ball skills to foul off a lot of pitches. Needs to find a comfortable, repeatable stance from the left side and cut down on his aggressiveness. Possesses some of the underlying abilities to see growth with the tool, but it will require additional patience as he moves up the ladder. Grade: 45
Power: Average raw power with room to grow as he continues to add strength and find his swing. Mostly a present gap hitter, but has flashed over-the-fence power in his two years in the minors. His home runs have exclusively come from the left-side and have been to all fields. Has a quick bat and already creates good leverage. Show some natural lift off the bat. Grade: 45
Field: Quick out of his breaks. Can improve with his routes, but is fast enough to overcome it. Willing to lay out for the ball. Overall shows above-average range in the grass. Makes some difficult plays. Plays with some flair. Can be an above-average or better fielder in CF or RF. Grade: 55
Arm: Strong arm with significant carry. High release point. Throws were on a rope and on target in limited looks. Plays in RF. Grade: 60
Run: A plus runner out of the box that is capable of turning a double into a triple. Fast enough to keep the pitcher honest once on, but has yet to become a base stealer in his short career. Shows some awareness on the basepaths. Grade: 60
Overall: Knowles is a tool shed and is already showing three above-average or better tools. He won't be a quick mover, but he's a high aptitude kid and has so far shown enough of an understanding of the zone and flashed the bat-to-ball skills to suggest he can develop with time. It's an enticing package, one that could eventually impact a lineup, but his bat is what will need to get him there. Without that, he's a likely defensive replacement/depth piece.
OFP: 45
Role: 40 - Below-Average Player: Bench or Platoon
Risk: High
