I got to meet and chat with 2021 MLB Draft prospect Brady House last year when he was with Team USA’s 17U Team last summer. Brady was the most impressive hitter among all the hitters on that team. He also compared very well at the time with some of the best hitters on the 2019 Under Armour All-America Team, and might have been the best right-handed hitter among that group had he played.
Physically he’s strong and is able to generate power, touching 96 on the mound last year. He has a strong arm but even more impressive than his arm is his power. Over the few days I watched him, he consistently had loud rounds of BP. He has plus or better raw power and it should probably rank somewhere among the best power in next year’s draft class. There’s a good case for him having the best power among all high school hitters.
Brady also showed that his power translates well into games when he hit a triple into the right field gap at at Wrigley Field and a few days later when he flew out to the warning track in a game at Miller Park.
He does an excellent job of barreling the ball and also generates good bat speed. However like most power hitters, he has shown some swing and miss and it does look like he has some length in his swing which he can probably cut down on with the ability to continue to improve as a hitter in time. These videos are from a year ago in 2019 when he would have completed his sophomore year. Since that time I’m sure he’s gotten stronger and improved as a hitter. It will be interesting to see how he performs at Area Codes and at the Perfect Game All-American Game.
There are some questions as to where he will stick defensively, as he’s tall (6’3”), and he definitely, from what I saw last year, looks comfortable at third base. I feel he has the work ethic and drive to stick at shortstop as he’s an absolute workhorse that absolutely loves the game of baseball and wants to be the best from a brief conversation I had with him. He has a great chance to be the top high school player taken in the 2021 MLB Draft next year. He has the arm to stick on the left side of the infield with the ability to hit 30+ home runs a year.
Here’s the brief conversation I had with him last year.
JW: Who was your favorite player to watch growing up?
Brady House: My favorite player when I was a kid was Jeff Francoeur. I used to watch him play all the time because I live about an hour from Atlanta, so I’d just drive over there to Atlanta to watch him play for the Braves all the time.
JW: Is there anybody that you try to model your game after?
BH: I try to model my game after Mike Trout. He’s very even keel, where no matter whether he’s playing good or bad you can’t tell how he’s playing based on his attitude. I like how he’s always trying to help his team out the best he can, even if it’s not his day at the plate, or his day in the field. He’s always just trying to helps his team.
JW: What’s your favorite thing about the game of baseball?
BH: I love just having fun. For me it’s my getaway time from everything else. I don’t think about anything else when I come out here other than baseball. It’s just fun for me to come out here. I don’t feel pressured to come out here. I do it because I love to play.
JW: What does it mean to you to play for Team USA?
BH: It means everything to wear Team USA across my chest. There’s nothing better that you could do then to represent everybody in our country. It’s bigger than representing yourself or anything else you’ve ever played for.
JW: What was it like for you to play at Wrigley Field?
BH: It was awesome. It was a great experience. I’d never played in an atmosphere like that other than the USA National Teams in Panama. Those were packed, and it’s just an awesome feeling and great experience.
JW: What’s one of the things you're working on?
BH: I’m working on attitude. That’s my main thing. Even though I maybe haven’t had the best performance out here on the field, I’m still trying to hustle. Giving people their stuff. Warming up the right fielder if I’m not in the game. Mainly my attitude off the field and what I’m doing to help the team out off the field. I want to make it about others, not myself. Because if you're ever playing for Team USA, you're not just playing for yourself, you're representing our country, so just my attitude.
JW: What motivates you to do your best?
BH: All the hard work that I’ve put in to get here, I want to keep getting better. There are things I’ve dreamed about doing my whole life that I’m working towards, I want to look back at and say I gave it my all always. I’ve played hard to get to where I am now, so I see that the hard work does pay off and it motivates me to do even more.