If you have followed baseball prospect coverage for even a short while, odds are you have heard the phrase “Don’t scout the stat line” repeated more than once. In most cases, it makes sense; without seeing games live, knowing what aspects of his game a player may be working on, or any other context to the situation, stats alone can be misleading. Even watching games on TV doesn’t always give you the big picture.
But sometimes, the stat line can tell you just enough. That is certainly the case for Vanderbilt outfielder J.J. Bleday, whose strong performance for the Commodores in 2019 has vaulted him up draft boards this spring.