Ryan Bliss

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Seattle Mariners #14 prospect in 2024
  BA Grade: 45/Medium
  
  Track Record: A three-year starter at Auburn, Bliss hit .365 with a career-high 15 home runs as a junior and was drafted by the Diamondbacks in the second round. He struggled in his first full pro season as he started chasing power, but he returned to a contact-oriented approach in 2023 and had a standout year. He finished third in the minors in runs (110) and total bases (284) and tied for fourth in hits (164) as he climbed from Double-A to Triple-A. The Mariners acquired him as one of three players for closer Paul Sewald at the trade deadline.
  
  Scouting Report: Bliss is one of the smallest players in professional baseball at 5-foot-6, 165 pounds. He uses his size to his advantage with a quick, compact righthanded swing and drives the ball to all fields. He catches up to fastballs at any velocity, crushes breaking stuff and has the strength to run into double-digit home runs despite his size. Bliss is aggressive at the plate and gets pull-happy, but he shows the ability to be an average hitter when he’s locked into the right-center gap. He’s a plus runner with excellent basestealing instincts. Bliss has split time at shortstop and second base and is a good athlete with natural actions and reliable hands at both positions. His fringe-average arm strength plays better at second base.
  
  The Future: Bliss projects to be a second-division starter or utilityman similar to Tony Kemp, albeit righthanded. His major league debut should come in 2024.
  
  Scouting Grades Hit: 50 | Power: 40 | Run: 60 | Field: 50 | Arm: 45
• 
  Ranked Arizona Diamondbacks #14 prospect in 2022
  Track Record: An undersized infielder without especially loud tools, Bliss raised his stock with an impressive junior year at Auburn, connecting for 15 homers while maintaining the bat-to-ball skills for which he always has been known. The D-backs’ scouting department was won over by his consistency, his feel for the game, his ability to hit and his makeup.
  
  Scouting Report: Bliss set out to hit for more power last year, doing so by using a more refined approach to pull certain pitches with authority. He has an aggressive mentality at the plate, a feel for finding the barrel and the ability to shoot line drives to all fields. He answered questions about how his newfound power would translate from aluminum to wood bat by slugging a solid .443 in Low-A. Defensively, he has good hands, range and footwork, making up for a fringe-average arm with a good game clock. He opened eyes with his play at shortstop but some still think the arm could force a move to second.
  
  The Future: The D-backs see a player able to get more out of his ability than meets the eye, and they hope the power continues to play as he advances. If it does, they could have an above-average regular up the middle. If not, he could profile best in a utility role.
  

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #95 prospect in 2021 draft
  An undersized, 5-foot-9, 165-pound middle infielder, Bliss stood out as a high schooler for his fantastic hands, footwork and bat-to-ball skills. Teams opted to let him get to school in part because of concerns with his offensive upside, but he was the sole Auburn player to start every game in 2019 and managed a .281/.367/.369 batting line to go with 11 doubles and 11 stolen bases. Bliss was off to an even better start in 2020, hitting .377/.412/.597 with more extra-base pop and as many walks (five) as strikeouts (five). After playing second base as a freshman, Bliss shifted to shortstop, and he certainly has the athleticism, hands and actions for the position, but fringy arm strength could make him a better fit for second base at the next level—where he’s still adept at turning the double play. Bliss has solid bat-to-ball skills and doesn’t strike out often—around 13% for his career—with bat speed and an approach that was best described as contact-oriented before he hit a career-best 15 home runs this spring through 50 games. All of those home runs went to left field and scouts still think he’ll be a below-average power hitter with wood, but for teams who want to buy into his power output this season, his combination of 15 or more homers and a 12-13% strikeout rate puts him in company that includes hitters like Henry Davis, Connor Norby and Colton Cowser—none of whom put up their numbers in the SEC.
• Ranked #450 prospect in 2018 draft
  A small, righthanded hitting shortstop, Bliss has terrific hands and impressive footwork that gives him a chance to be an above-average up-the-middle defender, though his arm strength might be best suited for second base at the next level. He's also an above-average runner. At the plate, Bliss has a simple and compact swing and shows good natural rhythm and timing, though his size might prevent him from having significant impact or power potential. Committed to Auburn, Bliss could follow in the path of many other small college players who improved their draft stock significantly by performing on both sides of the ball in a Power 5 conference.

• April, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade: 40/High
  
  Track Record: An undersized infielder without especially loud tools, Bliss raised his stock with an impressive junior year at Auburn, connecting for 15 homers while maintaining the bat-to-ball skills for which he always has been known. The D-backs&#39 scouting department was won over by his consistency, his feel for the game, his ability to hit and his makeup.
  
  Scouting Report: Bliss set out to hit for more power last year, doing so by using a more refined approach to pull certain pitches with authority. He has an aggressive mentality at the plate, a feel for finding the barrel and the ability to shoot line drives to all fields. He answered questions about how his newfound power would translate from aluminum to wood bat by slugging a solid .443 in Low-A. Defensively, he has good hands, range and footwork, making up for a fringe-average arm with a good game clock. He opened eyes with his play at shortstop but some still think the arm could force a move to second.
  
  The Future: The D-backs see a player able to get more out of his ability than meets the eye, and they hope the power continues to play as he advances. If it does, they could have an above-average regular up the middle. If not, he could profile best in a utility role.
• December, 2021 Scouting Report
  Track Record: An undersized infielder without especially loud tools, Bliss raised his stock with an impressive junior year at Auburn, connecting for 15 homers while maintaining the bat-to-ball skills for which he always has been known. The D-backs’ scouting department was won over by his consistency, his feel for the game, his ability to hit and his makeup.
  
  Scouting Report: Bliss set out to hit for more power last year, doing so by using a more refined approach to pull certain pitches with authority. He has an aggressive mentality at the plate, a feel for finding the barrel and the ability to shoot line drives to all fields. He answered questions about how his newfound power would translate from aluminum to wood bat by slugging a solid .443 in Low-A. Defensively, he has good hands, range and footwork, making up for a fringe-average arm with a good game clock. He opened eyes with his play at shortstop but some still think the arm could force a move to second.
  
  The Future: The D-backs see a player able to get more out of his ability than meets the eye, and they hope the power continues to play as he advances. If it does, they could have an above-average regular up the middle. If not, he could profile best in a utility role.
  
• July, 2021 Scouting Report
  An undersized, 5-foot-9, 165-pound middle infielder, Bliss stood out as a high schooler for his fantastic hands, footwork and bat-to-ball skills. Teams opted to let him get to school in part because of concerns with his offensive upside, but he was the sole Auburn player to start every game in 2019 and managed a .281/.367/.369 batting line to go with 11 doubles and 11 stolen bases. Bliss was off to an even better start in 2020, hitting .377/.412/.597 with more extra-base pop and as many walks (five) as strikeouts (five). After playing second base as a freshman, Bliss shifted to shortstop, and he certainly has the athleticism, hands and actions for the position, but fringy arm strength could make him a better fit for second base at the next level—where he's still adept at turning the double play. Bliss has solid bat-to-ball skills and doesn't strike out often—around 13% for his career—with bat speed and an approach that was best described as contact-oriented before he hit a career-best 15 home runs this spring through 50 games. All of those home runs went to left field and scouts still think he'll be a below-average power hitter with wood, but for teams who want to buy into his power output this season, his combination of 15 or more homers and a 12-13% strikeout rate puts him in company that includes hitters like Henry Davis, Connor Norby and Colton Cowser—none of whom put up their numbers in the SEC.