Austin Hays Is A High-Flying Bird

Outfielder Austin Hays fell to the third round of the 2016 draft before the Orioles nabbed him. Organization coaches immediately helped Hays improve his swing, and he began driving the ball with power straightaway and to the opposite field, resulting in a surprising 31-homer season in 2017. (Photo by Rodger Wood)

For Orioles outfield prospect Austin Hays, a small adjustment helped produce big results.

The righthanded batter had a breakout season. It began with high Class A Frederick and continued after his June 22 promotion to Double-A Bowie.

Hays ranked among the top players in the minors in several categories during his .329/.365/.593 season, finishing tied for second with 32 home runs. His slugging percentage (fourth in the minors) rose from his pro debut in 2016 at short-season Aberdeen to Frederick and then Bowie in 2017.

The Orioles drafted Hays in the third round in 2016 out of Jacksonville. Not long after that, several O’s hitting coaches noticed Hays wasn’t properly tapping into his power potential.

“The biggest thing is having good separation with my hands,” Hays said. “In college, I would jump at the ball and allow my hands to drift forward with my body. This season, I’ve done a really good job of keeping my hands back, so I get those extra couple of inches of momentum and force and power into my swing. And I’m doing that more consistently now than ever.

“I started to understand that these couple of inches are making a big difference in being able to use center field and right-center, instead of just yanking everything to left. This gave me a lot more power than I had before. In baseball, the tiniest thing can mean everything.”

Hays said the adjustment in keeping his hands back to provide more power started to take effect during his 2016 debut. During a year where he missed time with a wrist injury, he homered only once his first 30 games but then hit three in his last eight.

Hays also cited the improtance of his pregame routine during his big season. Before batting practice each day, he hits off a tee and begins and ends that session hitting the ball to right and right-center. Then he takes some soft toss before he hits the field.

“Just trying to get my body and my mind to the same place every single day before the game starts,” he said. “It is that feel you look to have every day. It is more of a routine than I had in high school or college.”

Orioles farm director Brian Graham has watched what he calls a high-energy player this year—one who minimized any slumps or low points.

“What is special about Hays is the fact that he not only is producing on offense—hitting for average, having good at-bats—but he is also a plus defender,” Graham said. “You don’t often find a guy who has plus tools as a runner, as a thrower, a defender and as a hitter with power.”

With Bowie, Hays joined an outfield that included 2014 first-rounder D.J. Stewart and Cedric Mullins. The Orioles had Bowie manager Gary Kendall use Hays and Mullins in both center and right field after Hays played exclusively center at Frederick.

“From what he has shown here, there is no difference,” Kendall said of Hays’ defensive ability at either outfield spot. “He’s very sure-handed and has good lateral range. His arm is above-average in center and right. He plays with intelligence and aggression in the outfield, and his throws have been strong and accurate.”

One potential red flag moving forward is Hays’ walk rate. He drew a free pass just 4.2 percent of the time this season. He’s aggressive at bat, but Orioles minor league hitting coordinator Jeff Manto said he is fine with that approach right now, because, for a power hitter, Hays rarely strikes out (15 percent).

“I want him to keep swinging; I don’t want him to start thinking too much,” Manto said. “This kid came in with plenty of talent. He has hand speed and bat speed. He has a knowledge of the strike zone.”

Heading into the 2016 draft, Hays ranked No. 47 on the BA500 pre-draft rankings, but he fell to Baltimore at pick No. 91. The Orioles liked Hays heading into the draft and had him ranked about No. 60. But as much as they liked Hays, the Orioles took three college pitchers ahead him, selecting Cody Sedlock in the first round and Keegan Akin and Matthias Dietz in the second.

“We liked him with either of our second-round picks but were targeting available pitching with hopes (Hays) would fly under the radar a bit,” Orioles scouting director Gary Rajsich said. “But we were thrilled to get him at 91. Some of our scouts thought he was the best player in Florida.”

Hays was not unhappy at all to be a third-round selection.

“People always ask me, ‘Were you disappointed?’ Disappointed? I went top 100. There was no disappointment at all,” said Hays, who signed for $665,800. “I went to a junior college and then a mid-major school. I never would have thought it was possible to be top 100 out of a mid-major school.”

Hays’ big year means he will figure prominently in the Top 100 Prospects and, more importantly, the Orioles’ plans for 2018.

— Steve Melewski covers the Orioles and their farm system for MASNSports.com