2028 High School Draft

Son of Derek Swafford, a former third round pick by the Pittsburgh Pirates, Theo is one of the more polished, productive hitters in Southern California. Shortstops produced out of the Golden State have long been favored by scouts, and Swafford looks to be the next in line.

While he doesn't have some of the same size that some premium Southern California shortstops before him had, Swafford's hit tool ranks up there with the best of them. A 5-foot-11-inch switch-hitting dynamo, Swafford has remarkable barrel accuracy in a swing driven by fast hands and adjustability in his upper-half. It's a swing that brings back shades of players like Eli Willits and Colt Emerson. The hands work so well, driving the production in the swing. There's some length in a stride that creates extension and stretch in Swofford's core, uncoiling to deliver what should eventually become average raw power. For now, he's more of a slasher, making waves with line drives into the gaps. Swafford simply doesn't swing and miss, and he doesn't chase outside of the zone either. He lives up the middle of the field and has proven plenty capable of catching up to velocity and getting to the pull-side. It's as polished a profile as you'll find for a pure hitter at this early stage in the amateur evaluation. An above-average to potential plus run tool projection should add a bit more value in time.

Swafford has the actions that should profile at shortstop at the next level. He's a decisive defender with soft hands and actions around the pillow. First-step quickness and lateral mobility have continued to trend in the right direction as the athleticism has ticked up. If he's forced off the '6', the traits are present for a dynamic glove at second base.

Swafford's bat really stands out to carry the overall profile. He's a gamer in the truest sense. How much impact he grows into and whether he's a true shortstop at the end of the day will be the questions most asked by scouts as 2028 approaches. In any case, this is about as steady a floor as you'll find in a high school prospect. He can play.

A well-liked outfield prospect in the Midwest, Watters bring a smattering of tools that should lend well toward a role going forward. The bat is what has scouts most bullish.

A well-built left-handed hitter, "Flip" has grown into more size and strength over the last calendar year, tightening up his swing, generating more bat speed along the way. He's become more compact and quick-trigger in the box, with hand speed that stands out in a big way. Watters rotates hard through the zone and can generate big exit velocities when he stays connected, already peaking north of 107 mph. There are some moving parts in his lower half and hands that can get things moving a little early at times. That should iron itself out over time. Watters has shown to be a reactionary hitter with most of his fly balls and line drives going to the opposite field against premium pitching. As he continues to get stronger and receives more and more reps against the elites, those fly balls and line drives should make their way up the middle of the diamond and to the pull-side with backspin and far more regularity. Importantly, he's shown very little swing and miss in his game and tends to pull the trigger on the right pitches.

Watters has seen his speed take a jump over the last year, trending toward plus once fully mature. He's got fringe-average to average arm strength in the field, normally positioned in left field in tournaments and showcases. Watters is trending toward a true centerfield prospect with the chance to impact the game in every way. His brother, "Bino" played outfield for LSU in 2027.

Vazquez checks a ton of athletic boxes scouts are looking for from a high school infield prospect. It's 6-foot-2, it's left-handed, there's arm strength for the left side of the infield, there's speed and power. Vazquez is working to polish some of the rough edges of his game. If/when he does, it's a potential first round profile in 2028.

Vazquez is reasonably filled out in his lower half, however strength continues to grow in the upper body. He's flashing above-average power potential. He'll need to continue to refine his swing to tap into his raw power, but the natural mechanisms in how he moves suggest he can get there. The hit tool is solid average with some swing and miss both inside of the zone and out of it. Vazquez's feel for the barrel is coming along. He's demonstrated impact to all part of the yard, however soft ground balls and weak pop-ups are still a common piece of his game. As he gets stronger and the reps continue to multiply, his offensive game could take a big jump.

Vazquez's athleticism will take him far. It provides a steady floor. He's a plus runner and could grow into a 70-grade run tool if he doesn't outgrow his athleticism. It's plus arm strength as well, certainly befitting of a shortstop or third baseman going forward. His hands work well on the dirt and he does a nice job carrying his momentum toward his target when fielding ground balls. His footwork and fluidity can look more like a third base prospect at times, but he's unlikely to move off the shortstop position into professional baseball given his athleticism.

It's easy to like what Vazquez brings to the field at this early stage in his amateur career. Size, strength, speed and infield tools. It's stellar clay to build upon.

A shortstop now, Hall brings the prototype slugging-power corner profile to the dish with exceptional bat speed, more physical projection along the way, and plus arm strength to comfortably profile at third base or right field as a professional.

Hall has only continued to improve every summer. His whiff rates continue to trend in the right direction, his swing decisions rarely waver, and his bat speed has never slowed along the way. Hall just keeps hittings. Even if the swing and miss ends up persisting, the power output, perhaps eventually 70-grade, is a worthwhile sacrifice. All that being said, Hall does have some components to his swing that may be to be addressed in pro ball. It's a handsy load with a tip at foot plant. He can get disconnected and is forced to throw the hands through the zone when fooled. Still, he's hardly had an issue adjusting in those instances. It's such a physical profile, he wins 1v1s with brute hand strength and raw athleticism. Hall is also a swing tinkerer. He'll vary between a toe-tap and a traditional stride depending on the count and the talent of the pitcher in front of him. He will at times rotate across a soft front side to try and get extended. Again, this is ticky tacky considering the level of production he's thus far shown. Until Hall shows his mechanics won't work, it's hard to argue with the results. Kid can hit.

Hall is already a plus runner and comfortably profiles into several players across the diamond. He's a primary shortstop now, but should fit at third base or in center or right field. There's some Brady House to the profile here in how physically advanced he is at this stage and his ability to project to multiple positions.

The tools on offense are likely too tantilizing to consider the upside on the mound, however Hall has been up to 96 on the bump with some fastball traits that could be leveraged for whiffs.

Johnson's ascent as a ballplayer is what scout is all about. He's grown considerably over the last twelve months and has worked hard to iron out the kinks that were holding back his game. He just continues to get better.

Johnson recent had a significant hitch and hinge in his swing that was deterring his results against better arms. He was working with an exaggerated load, balancing on his back leg before pushing forward. That's mostly gone. He was late against velocity and spin would give him fits from a contact-quality perspective. He seems to have dramatically erased that mechanic from his load. Johnson is looking more smooth and fluid through the zone with length and bat speed these days. Johnson is already flashing some of the better peak exit velocities for his class. He's got excellent projection as he keeps growing.

Johnson is a primary shortstop now, but many think he's destined for third base or the outfield at the next level. It's above average arm strength and a future above average run tool. Johnson could play centerfield when all is said and done.

Johnson is the son of former big league outfielder Reed Johnson.