Zach McKinstry

Zach McKinstry - Scouting Report


Rank History
Year Team Position Team Rank OFP
2021 LAD 2B 14 45

Grades Update: Dec 2020
OFP Role Hit Power Field Arm Run
45 40 50 40 60 55 55

Dec 2020 Report

Evaluator: Joe Drake

Age: 26 yr
Height: 6-0
Weight: 180 lbs
Hits/Throws: L/R
Acquired: 2016 Draft - Round 33
RuleV: On 40-man

Physical Description: Average-sized frame, heavier than the listed 180 pounds. Proportionate. Strong, thick lower half with big thighs and butt. Upper half is less developed, but not underdeveloped. Room for a little muscle. Fairly lean, overall.

Hit: Sets up mostly upright. Torso is tall and the legs have moderate bend at the knee. Wide base, but balanced. Hands sit at the neck, arms half-extended away from the body. Very still, only a minor circle with the bat. Trigger is a modest toe-tap that comes back toward the rear foot before returning to the initial spot. Hands drop and come back behind the shoulder. Significant movement. Front shoulder dips as torso coils moderately. Bails out of the box at times. Decent swing path, consistently keeps barrel below the hands but flattens out at times. Patient hitter who battles with 2 strikes. Finds a way to get the barrel to the ball. Not overpowered by velo. Will hit the ball where it's pitched, but slaps the other way rather than drives. Grade: 50

Power: Average bat speed and unassuming frame pave the way for fringe to average raw. Hit tool and decent swing path should allow him to get to most of it but not all. Patient hitter, but approach sees him hit more line drives than hard flies. Mostly doubles power with some pull-side homers. Legs will help him leg out extra bases. Could maybe jump half a tick if he is optimized. Grade: 40

Field: Serviceable at multiple positions. Fringy reads off the bat in the OF, but has barely over 50 pro innings there. Likely would be average or better with more experience. Good instincts, very comfortable on the dirt. Hands are soft and moves well enough to get himself into good positions. Very good feel around the bag at second base. You can tell he's played SS his whole life. Plus defender up the middle who would be at least average just about everywhere else. Grade: 60

Arm: Strong arm with enough carry to reach third firmly from right. Gets himself in position to throw. Enough zip to play anywhere, but not quite ideal for premium arm spots like SS and RF. Good feel and hits his target. Grade: 55

Run: Clocked a 3.98 and 4.09 H-1st. Gets out of the box very quickly. Moves well underway, but his run times are definitely aided by his pulling out of the box. Borderline plus runner now who should settle in at above-average. Can take extra bases, but not a true stolen base threat. Needs to refine his game if he wants the Dodgers to let him run. Grade: 55

Overall: McKinstry is the quintessential utility player. He has no true carrying tool, but makes good contact, isn't a power threat, and has the athleticism and defensive chops to play almost anywhere on the field. He's the perfect bench player who can cover anyone who needs a day off, just not enough pop to profile as an everyday guy. If the MLB staff can unlock more power, he could get to below-average regular ceiling, but he would require a trade to a lesser team to see that kind of playing time.

OFP: 45
Role: 40 - Below Average Player - Bench/Utility
Risk: Low