Rays draft high school SS/CF Theo Gillen at No. 18 overall in the 2024 MLB Draft

The Rays take an 18-year old pure hitter at No. 18 overall.

The Tampa Bay Rays have selected high school prospect Theo Gillen with the no. 18 overall selection in the 2024 MLB Draft, announcing their selection with a CF positional designation.

Committed to Texas, a logical destination for the short stop out of Westlake, TX is considered a pure hitter with great speed. Reports suggested he may not stick at short long term, which is validted by the Rays announcing his selection as a centerfielder, but his career looks like it should start at a premium position either way, which is as much as you can ask for with a bat-forward prospect.

You can watch Gillen celebrate at his draft watch party here:

And here is what the various draft sites have to say about the hot hitting highschooler.

MLB Pipeline - Ranked 28th - 50 FV

Scouting grades: Hit: 60 | Power: 55 | Run: 60 | Arm: 40 | Field: 50 | Overall: 50

Gillen may have the best bat of any high schooler in this Draft. He has a disciplined approach, quick hands and a sweet left-handed swing that combine to produce line drives to all fields. His hitting ability will allow him to get to most of his plus raw power, giving him a 20-homer floor, and he should develop more pop as he adds more strength to his physical 6-foot-2 frame.

Scouts get run times from solid to well-above-average on Gillen, who looks more dynamic than he did last summer now that his knee injury is further behind him. The Texas recruit has better range to his left than his right at shortstop, but his arm hasn’t bounced back from labrum surgery and will dictate a position change at the next level. He could become an offensive second baseman, his quickness makes center field a possibility and at worst he should produce enough offense to profile in left field.

CBS Sports - Ranked 17th

Some scouts consider him to be one of the best pure hitters in the class, an attribute owed to his mature approach and propensity for hitting line drives. There’s likely to be some juice here, too, as he continues to fill out his 6-foot-2 frame. The big question facing Gillen is where he plays positionally; he’s a well-above-average runner, yet he has a below-average arm after undergoing shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum. It’s possible Gillen ends up at either second base or perhaps in the outfield, where his set of wheels would allow him to cover a generous patch of land. Provided he hits the way some evaluators think he might, it won’t end up mattering too much.

FanGraphs - Ranked 8th - 45+ FV

He dealt with injuries of varying severity throughout high school, the most significant of which required labrum surgery. In addition to their toll on Gillen, the injuries made it difficult to evaluate him, as even when he was healthy he sometimes looked rusty. Now he’s getting stronger and looks more comfortable in the box the further away he gets from his injuries. He is one of the few players in the draft class who can hit, hit for power, and also projects to play an up-the-middle position.

Gillen has some of the quickest and slickest hitting hands in the draft. [...] He rotates hard while keeping his head on the baseball and makes a ton of sweet spot contact. A scout source told me they thought Gillen had a chance to be a left-handed Marcus Semien — that’s what Gillen’s hitting hands are like. It’s also the path Gillen’s body and defensive fit could follow as he fills out.

While Gillen’s lateral agility and arm strength probably aren’t a fit at shortstop (his high school position), his middle infield experience and speed give him a good shot to play second base or maybe try center field. I think the former is more likely. Especially if he continues to get stronger, his hit/power combo will profile in an everyday capacity at either spot.

Teams are scared of Gillen’s medical and worry he might slip way down the defensive spectrum, some even fear he’s a DH. That probably means I’m higher on him here than he’ll be selected, but there just aren’t many hitters in this class who might play an up-the-middle position and also hit for both contact and power, which is why this is my top high schooler in the class.