Tyler McDonough Stats & Scouting Report

AB	296
AVG	.25
OBP	.312
SLG	.375
HR	5

Full name Tyler Scott McDonough
Born 04/02/1999 in Cincinnati, OH
Profile Ht.: 5'8" / Wt.: 180 / Bats: S / Throws: R
School North Carolina State
Drafted in the 3rd round (75th overall) by the Boston Red Sox in 2021 (signed for $828,600).

View Draft Report

McDonough rated as the No. 283 player in the 2020 class but went undrafted and headed back to North Carolina State for his third season, where for the third time he hit over .300 and continued to add more in-game power to his game. Listed at 5-foot-10, 180 pounds, McDonough doesn’t jump out at you with loud tools, but he’s become a player who scouts appreciate the more they watch him. He does everything on the field at a high level and is the sort of skilled gamer who area scouts are drawn to. McDonough controls the zone well, doesn’t swing and miss much and takes his share of walks, and this season he hit a career-high 15 homers. Scouts have said those homers have come with a longer swing and more aggressive hacks, and his 17% strikeout rate was the highest of his career, which shows a slight shift in his approach. McDonough has spread his homers all over the field and his exit velocities are impressive for a player of his size, so perhaps solid power will be part of his game at the next level as well. McDonough has spent most of his time in center field for the Wolfpack, but he has the defensive versatility to play all over the place, including second base, third base and perhaps even shortstop in a pinch. He’s a better runner underway than he is out of the box and went 30-for-36 (83%) over his career in stolen base attempts. McDonough has plenty of promising statistical indicators and he could go off the board in the second-to-fourth-round range.

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

Track Record: McDonough returned to school after getting bypassed as a draft-eligible sophomore in 2020, a decision that proved wise when he emerged as one of the more reliable bats in the 2021 draft while hitting .339/.423/.631 with 15 homers in a season where he had a 53-game on-base streak. He hit the ground running in pro ball, hitting .296/.397/.491 while splitting time between second and center in 31 games in the Florida Complex League and Low-A Salem.

Scouting Report: McDonough showed a full array of skills both in college and pro ball, emerging as the sort of versatile, switch-hitting, multi-positional player now coveted in baseball. He shows solid bat-to-ball skills, strike zone recognition and modest pop from both sides of the plate. His average speed combined with strong instincts suggests a multi-dimensional player who can contribute in center or at second with low-teens power totals and double-digit steals—the sort of utility profile that once suggested a valuable reserve but that now fits a versatile everyday depiction.

The Future: McDonough could open 2022 in High-A, where he’ll continue his development at both second and center while potentially incorporating more positions down the road. He is perhaps the most polished player drafted by the Red Sox in 2021, and his versatility could help him find a spot in the big leagues at some point in 2023.

Draft Prospects

McDonough rated as the No. 283 player in the 2020 class but went undrafted and headed back to North Carolina State for his third season, where for the third time he hit over .300 and continued to add more in-game power to his game. Listed at 5-foot-10, 180 pounds, McDonough doesn’t jump out at you with loud tools, but he’s become a player who scouts appreciate the more they watch him. He does everything on the field at a high level and is the sort of skilled gamer who area scouts are drawn to. McDonough controls the zone well, doesn’t swing and miss much and takes his share of walks, and this season he hit a career-high 15 homers. Scouts have said those homers have come with a longer swing and more aggressive hacks, and his 17% strikeout rate was the highest of his career, which shows a slight shift in his approach. McDonough has spread his homers all over the field and his exit velocities are impressive for a player of his size, so perhaps solid power will be part of his game at the next level as well. McDonough has spent most of his time in center field for the Wolfpack, but he has the defensive versatility to play all over the place, including second base, third base and perhaps even shortstop in a pinch. He’s a better runner underway than he is out of the box and went 30-for-36 (83%) over his career in stolen base attempts. McDonough has plenty of promising statistical indicators and he could go off the board in the second-to-fourth-round range.
An undersized infielder and outfielder with impressive bat-to-ball skills from both sides of the plate, McDonough made the 2019 Freshman All-American team after leading NC State and the ACC with 80 hits and posting a .320/.392/.452 line. Now a draft-eligible sophomore, scouts admire McDonough’s skillset despite the fact that he doesn’t have a plus tool in the box. Listed at 5-foot-10, 184-pounds, McDonough doesn’t have much power, but he consistently puts the fat part of the bat on the baseball and posts louder exit velocities that you might guess on the surface. Because of those numbers, scouts think he will be able to drive the ball into the gaps enough to get to 11-15 homers per season in pro ball, with plenty of extra base hits. He can play a number of positions defensively, including second and center field, with some scouts thinking third base or even catcher—where he played in high school—could be possible in the future. With Patrick Bailey entrenched behind the plate in Raleigh it could be tougher to sign McDonough as a conversion backstop as a draft-eligible sophomore, but if he could stick behind the plate that would significantly enhance his value. McDonough is an average or tick better runner who has gone 17-for-19 (89.5 percent) in stolen base attempts in 78 games with State.

Scouting Reports

BA Grade: 45/High

Track Record: McDonough returned to school after getting bypassed as a draft-eligible sophomore in 2020, a decision that proved wise when he emerged as one of the more reliable bats in the 2021 draft while hitting .339/.423/.631 with 15 homers in a season where he had a 53-game on-base streak. He hit the ground running in pro ball, hitting .296/.397/.491 while splitting time between second and center in 31 games in the Florida Complex League and Low-A Salem.

Scouting Report: McDonough showed a full array of skills both in college and pro ball, emerging as the sort of versatile, switch-hitting, multi-positional player now coveted in baseball. He shows solid bat-to-ball skills, strike zone recognition and modest pop from both sides of the plate. His average speed combined with strong instincts suggests a multi-dimensional player who can contribute in center or at second with low-teens power totals and double-digit steals—the sort of utility profile that once suggested a valuable reserve but that now fits a versatile everyday depiction.

The Future: McDonough could open 2022 in High-A, where he&#39ll continue his development at both second and center while potentially incorporating more positions down the road. He is perhaps the most polished player drafted by the Red Sox in 2021, and his versatility could help him find a spot in the big leagues at some point in 2023.
Track Record: McDonough returned to school after getting bypassed as a draft-eligible sophomore in 2020, a decision that proved wise when he emerged as one of the more reliable bats in the 2021 draft while hitting .339/.423/.631 with 15 homers in a season where he had a 53-game on-base streak. He hit the ground running in pro ball, hitting .296/.397/.491 while splitting time between second and center in 31 games in the Florida Complex League and Low-A Salem.

Scouting Report: McDonough showed a full array of skills both in college and pro ball, emerging as the sort of versatile, switch-hitting, multi-positional player now coveted in baseball. He shows solid bat-to-ball skills, strike zone recognition and modest pop from both sides of the plate. His average speed combined with strong instincts suggests a multi-dimensional player who can contribute in center or at second with low-teens power totals and double-digit steals—the sort of utility profile that once suggested a valuable reserve but that now fits a versatile everyday depiction.

The Future: McDonough could open 2022 in High-A, where he’ll continue his development at both second and center while potentially incorporating more positions down the road. He is perhaps the most polished player drafted by the Red Sox in 2021, and his versatility could help him find a spot in the big leagues at some point in 2023.