Preamble
Entering SEC Tournament play, Vanderbilt outfielder Enrique Bradfield Jr. had a solid series at home against Arkansas. Bradfield Jr. went 4-for-12 with a HR and 4 RBI with three stolen bases to help the Commodores win the final regular season series. It was a nice regular season send-off for Bradfield Jr. in front of the home crowd, but not expected to be the last time he played in Nashville, with Vanderbilt worthy of hosting a Regional.
Bradfield Jr. made an immediate impact once he made it to campus as a Freshman in 2021. In 67 games, Bradfield Jr. hit .335/.450/.412 with just one home run but stole 47 bases out of 53 attempts. He was a light-hitting speed demon who was a terror on the basepaths and could play excellent defense in the center field.
Last year, Bradfield Jr. took a step forward offensively, flexing for more power by belting eight home runs with ten doubles and five triples. He finished with a slash line of .317/.415/.498 and was a fantastic 46-for-47 in stolen base attempts. The hype was high to see what Bradfield could do his Junior season when he was widely considered a Top 10 MLB Draft prospect.
Unfortunately for Bradfield Jr., he took a step back in 2023. After a rough performance during non-conference play, Bradfield Jr. picked up during SEC conference play, hitting .306/.449/.528 with five home runs against the country’s best pitching. If you only want to look at the positives, those are the numbers to look up. But Bradfield Jr.’s overall slash line before Regional play finished at .282/.419/.436 with six home runs and 37-for-44 in stolen base attempts.
Watching Bradfield Jr. at SEC Tournament
Vanderbilt's SEC Tournament journey started with a first-round game against Auburn. With the Tigers scoring a run in the top of the first inning, the Commodores were already down a run when Bradfield Jr. led things off. Facing Auburn RHP Chase Allsup, Bradfield Jr. displayed one offensive trait that is understated for him: plate discipline. During his time at Vanderbilt, Bradfield Jr. always walked more than struck out, at a consistent BB-rate of 14% to 15% all three years.
Having a leadoff hitter willing to be patient and take pitches is a positive checkmark in the notebook, and Bradfield Jr. walked on five pitches. Allsup's next two pitches demonstrated what makes Bradfield Jr. special on the baseball diamond.
Taking a considerable lead off first base, Allsup didn’t bother making a throw over to the first base to check Bradfield Jr. That non-pickoff attempt might have been a mistake because Bradfield Jr. timed Allsup incredibly well and wasted no time swiping second base. Auburn catcher Nate LaRue made an accurate throw to the bag but was a half-second late.
Now at second base, Bradfield Jr.’s lead continued to grow as Allsup looked back. But as soon as Allsup looked back to home plate, Bradfield Jr. decided to dash toward third base. It was such a great jump by Bradfield Jr. that LaRue didn’t even both making a throw to third base.
What’s impressive about these two stolen bases is that Vanderbilt didn’t play Auburn during the regular season. These jumps by Bradfield Jr. were credited to his pregame studying of Allsup’s delivery out of the stretch. From that tape, Bradfield Jr. could dissect when Allsup would make his way home. When down a run, to turn a five-pitch walk into a triple two pitches later is elite baserunning.
The next night, Vanderbilt played Florida and faced RHP Brandon Sproat. Side note: I immensely like Sproat as an option for the Chicago White Sox in the second round if he reaches them.
Bradfield Jr. had faced Sproat earlier in the season on May 12th, which was an embarrassing afternoon for Vanderbilt. They were 10-run ruled against the Gators, losing 10-0, with Sproat pitching six innings allowing five hits and three walks while striking out five on 97 pitches. In three at-bats against Sproat, Bradfield Jr. went 1-for-3 but was caught stealing second base.
In the SEC Tournament, Bradfield Jr. jumped on Sproat’s first-pitch 99 mph fastball, smashing a deep fly to left field that hit the wall. It was just a couple of feet short of going for an opposite-field home run, but Bradfield Jr. was able to turn on the jets and reached third base for a triple. He would later score on an infield single.
Vanderbilt would win the SEC Tournament Championship Game against Texas A&M, and Bradfield Jr. shined as he went 2-for-4 with both hits going for doubles with one RBI. For the tournament, Bradfield Jr. went 5-for-22 with seven runs, two doubles, a triple, and two RBI. He swiped three bases and was only caught once when he overslid the bag. Bradfield Jr. struck out four times to two walks.
Defensively, Bradfield Jr. demonstrated why he has plus skills with his immense range. Making balls hit into the gap, especially towards the right-center field, look routine and quickly covering 20 to 30 yards in the distance. On balls hit directly over his head, Bradfield Jr. did an excellent job of getting his body turned, getting to the spot, and turning the body in, making the catch with his body ready to make a throw. Often, outfielders let the deep fly carry them into the wall with their momentum. Bradfield Jr. has enough speed and good vision to get himself into a throwing position.
Assessment
Bradfield Jr. has two elite skills: speed and defense. There's no question in my mind that Bradfield Jr. can not only be a center fielder, his range makes him the type to be a project Gold Glover at the position. While his arm strength is not elite, I expect Bradfield Jr. to jump off the StatCast pages in the amount of ground he covers.
With the new rules implemented in Major League Baseball limiting the number of pickoff attempts by pitchers, Bradfield Jr. could be a nightmare on the basepaths. Hard to put a project number on a total, but if Bradfield Jr. played 150 games, he should swipe 50+ bases. Not only does he have the speed, but as mentioned before, during the game against Auburn, Bradfield Jr. can scout pitchers pregame and exploit their weaknesses by holding runners on.
My biggest concern for Bradfield Jr.: I am still determining how he will consistently reach on-base to maximize his speed.
With his hands center and slightly below his face, Bradfield Jr. sinks into his level swing, but instead of the barrel coming through the zone at his hip, it's closer to his thighs. This approach makes Bradfield Jr. a low-ball hitter, but without an upper-cut hack, it's a lot of grounders. In 2023, Bradfield Jr.'s groundball rate was 49.1%, with just a 12.6% line drive rate.
When Bradfield Jr. does hit the ball in the air, it's mostly to left field. He demonstrates from time to time in using high velocity to help generate power, like against Sproat during SEC Tournament. Still, Bradfield Jr. needs more power to consistently hit the ball over the outfielder's heads. On pull swings, I too often see Bradfield Jr. hit grounders right at the second baseman.
He is a good bunter, and I could see professional teams always keeping the third baseman in and the shortstop shaded closer to second base. That may open opportunities for Bradfield Jr. to slash grounders toward that hole in picking up more infield singles.
But this offensive profile depends on speed, which means it requires a high BABIP to succeed. The Chicago White Sox are already seeing this approach from Tim Anderson. Since his groin injury in 2022, Anderson has focused on flipping singles to right field. It has not been an ideal approach because we've seen Anderson take a drastic step backward, watching his wRC+ drop to 72 on May 29, 2023. That's 28% below the league average.
Unlike Anderson, Bradfield Jr. will be patient enough to take walks and should carry a BB-rate above 7%. He'll face challenges if opposing pitchers are fearless of him and attack in the upper part of the strike zone. In the SEC Tournament, Bradfield Jr. did not show any ability to hurt pitchers throwing high fastballs or sliders and often didn't bother swinging at those strikes. He's looking middle to low in the zone — perfect areas for opposing pitchers to generate grounders.
I've heard some players comps for Enrique Bradfield Jr. to former outfielder Kenny Lofton. That's a stretch, as Lofton had multiple seasons with 10+ homers, and I don't think Bradfield has that power ability.
Instead, the player comp I have for Bradfield Jr. is Juan Pierre. A below-league-average hitter using wRC+ but steals many bases and, thanks to elite defense, can be a consistent 2 to 3 WAR outfielder. For his career, Pierre hit .295/.343/.361, and I can imagine Bradfield Jr. putting up similar numbers in the future.
In a league that's constantly seeking power, Bradfield Jr.'s draft profile is unique. He doesn't have that skill, but the skills Bradfield Jr. has could exploit MLB's new rule changes and provide teams with an extra advantage on the bases. Whatever team drafts Bradfield Jr. will have to find a way to get him on base. As the league has learned with Billy Hamilton, you can't steal first base.
From a White Sox perspective, I doubt their ability to help Bradfield Jr. make the necessary swing adjustments to get him on base consistently. I will be okay with the pick if that's the direction Rick Hahn ultimately wants to make in the first round out of the suggestions provided by Mike Shirley. But something would have to change, like new player development personnel, to give me confidence the White Sox can help Bradfield Jr. make the offensive improvements.
Arizona at Pick 12 and Tampa Bay at Pick 19 makes the most sense for Bradfield Jr.
Grades
Speed: 80
Defense: 70
Arm: 50
Plate Discipline: 50
Contact: 40
Power: 30
