Keith Law of The Athletic puts 3 Mariners prospects in his top 100 ranking for 2024

#61 - Harry Ford, C, 5th ranked C

Without reading through each and every profile on Law's top-100, you glean from reading about Ford that he is likely one of the most confounding prospects to Law. Most of that is the same type of... concern may not be the right word, but it's the conversation around where Ford best fits in.

Is he a catcher? Law isn't sure because of the below-average receiving and blocking, but the bat would immediately play as a catcher.

Is he an infielder? You'd like to see a bit more power if that's the case.

Is he an outfielder? He's athletic enough, has the speed and arm, but again, you need to see more power.

"He might be better off sacrificing some contact for more power, as he’s strong enough to at least be a 40 doubles/15 homers guy, but his swing is incredibly short to the ball and right now it’s below-average game power as a result."

Keith Law, The Athletic

It does sound like the power is there, but he's working on keeping his hands inside, but does it too often leading to a lack of power on pitches where it doesn't apply. Don't be fooled by the concerns listed so far, though, as Ford has an exceptional eye and control at the plate.

"He may also hit his way off the position, as he shows elite strike zone judgment, ranking third in the minors in walks last year with 103 and striking out less than 20 percent of the time."

Keith Law, The Athletic

Ford still put together quite the impressive line at High-A last season, hitting .257/.410/.430, with 15 HR, 24 2B, and 24 SB, and he did that with a K rate of just 19.3%.

It seems like Ford would jump up a bit on Law's rankings if there was a more concrete answer for the type of player he was going to be, and where he was going to play. It's almost like he's the uber-athlete who is trying to figure it all out and just ended up at a position.

The Mariners are in a good position right now with their farm system, and it starts with these three players. We won't see any of them in 2024, but where they are at heading into next season will give us a better idea of who might be the first (Ford?) to make it to the big league level.