Brad Corley Stats & Scouting Report

AB	1960
AVG	.267
OBP	.309
SLG	.419
HR	52

Full name William Bradley Corley
Born 12/28/1983 in Lousiville, KY
Profile Ht.: 6'2" / Wt.: 198 / Bats: R / Throws: R
School Mississippi State
Drafted in the 2nd round (59th overall) by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2005 (signed for $605,000).

View Draft Report

At the outset of the season, Corley was a candidate to be a first-round pick, but he'll be lucky to go in the first five rounds. He's as toolsy as any player in the state, with a power arm suited for right field and enough juice in his bat to profile for the spot. He hasn't shown much power after coming back from a broken thumb last summer, however. After hitting 19 homers as a sophomore, he had just three homers this spring. Scouts were concerned about the lack of a power load in his swing for the move to wood bats.

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

Corley was Kentucky's high school player of the year in 2002 and a first-team All- American as a sophomore two years later at Mississippi State. His statistics slipped as a junior while he recovered from a broken thumb, yet the Pirates took him in the second round. He has registered 193 RBIs in his two full pro seasons. Corley can pull inside pitches over the fence and has good gap power to the opposite field. He has shortened his swing since turning pro. He also has a strong arm, fitting for a guy who was used as a closer in college. He owns solid speed and right-field range. He believes his aggressiveness helps him be a run producer, but swinging at everything is going to hurt Corley as he moves up the ladder. He has drawn just 32 walks while striking out 214 times in full-season leagues. He's a sucker for high fastballs. Corley will begin 2008 in Double-A after finishing there last season. His career could stall if he doesn't exhibit some semblance of plate discipline against more advanced pitchers.
Corley set himself up as a possible first-round pick by hitting .380 with 19 homers as a Missisippi State sophomore, but he hit just five homers as a junior after breaking a thumb while trying out for Team USA the previous summer. He led both the system and the South Atlantic League with 100 RBIs in 2006, his first full pro season. Corley has good tools, including plus power and a strong arm. He struggled early in his pro debut, leading to talk the Pirates had overdrafted him in the second round, but he shortened his swing and began to hit better. Primarily a right fielder, he has enough speed to get by in center if needed. The knock on Corley in college was that he lacked plate discipline, and his 109-18 K-BB ratio as an older player in the SAL shows that he hasn't made much progress. Pitchers continually get him to chase high fastballs and breaking balls in the dirt. His tools are intriguing, especially in an organization lacking power-hitting prospects, but Corley will have to make more consistent contact to become a big league regular. He'll move up to high Class A to start 2007.
After Corley batted .380-19-55 as a sophomore at Mississippi State in 2004, there was talk he could go in the first round of the 2005 draft. But he broke a thumb while trying out for Team USA in the summer of 2004 and it bothered him last spring, when he hit just .316-5- 40 for the Bulldogs, killing his first-round aspirations. Some clubs felt the Pirates over-drafted him in the second round, and he got off to a slow start in the New York-Penn League after signing for $605,000. Once he shortened his swing, however, Corley's power returned and he came on strong at Williamsport before starring in instructional league. He has good power potential and his swing reminds some scouts of Pat Burrell's. Corley also has a strong arm that's suitable for right field. He has average range in the outfield. Pro pitchers were able to find holes in Corley's swing and make him chase pitches out of the strike zone, though he started to make adjustments in August. He'll join James Boone in low Class A this year and will move quickly if he's able to maintain his power stroke.