Braiden Ward Stats & Scouting Report

Full name Braiden Alan Ward
Born 01/18/1999 in Turlock, CA
Profile Ht.: 5'10" / Wt.: 160 / Bats: L / Throws: R
School Washington
Drafted in the 16th round (470th overall) by the Colorado Rockies in 2021 (signed for $125,000).

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The best athlete in the Pacific Northwest and possibly the fastest player in the entire draft class, Ward hit over .300 in each of his first two seasons at Washington in 2018 and 2019 before an impressive summer in the wood bat Cape Cod League where he hit .303/.386/.407 with three home runs and 21 RBIs. Ward didn’t hit as well this season, with a .285/.374/.378 slash line while showing an uptick in strikeouts (42) compared to just 12 walks. Ward has bat speed in his slashy bat, but he’s struggled seeing pitches this year and too often swings early in counts instead of working longer at-bats, with minimal power. Ward’s carrying tool is his 80-grade speed, and he’s an excellent basestealer—89 stolen bases in 104 attempts in his collegiate career. The speed plays well in center field, where he’s a plus defender, but he’s also played some second base this season and played shortstop in high school. Top-of-the-scale speed is hard to come by, and Ward’s defensive versatility could make him intriguing for teams.

Top Rankings

Ward might have the best claim to the “fastest player in the country” title of anyone in the 2020 class. The 5-foot-10, 155-pound outfielder is an elite runner who clocked a 6.20-second 60-yard dash time in the Cape Cod League over the summer. Speed is easily his best attribute, and it’s one of the loudest tools of any position player in the class. That blazing speed played on the bases each year at Washington, as Ward led the Pac-12 in steals in 2018 (19), 2019 (26) and in the shortened 2020 season (10). For his career, Ward went 55-for-66 in stolen base attempts—an 83-percent success rate. Ward will clock 3.8 and 3.9-second run times out of the box to first base on jailbreaks, and when he’s not running mid-swing he’s regularly posting 4.0-4.1 times down the line. All are good for 80-grade run times. Because of his speed, Ward can handle center field, though he’ll need to refine his routes to make the most of his defensive potential in the outfield. He gets away with crude routes to the ball or a slower first step because his pure speed lets him track balls down into both gaps. His arm is fringe-average but should be enough to handle center. His hit tool is the biggest question, and while he showed a bit of pop in the Cape Cod League, it’ll likely never be a big part of his game. Scouts would like to see him put the ball on the ground more than he currently does to take advantage of his wheels.