Milwaukee Brewers select C Zavier Warren in third round of 2020 MLB Draft

With the 92nd pick in the 2020 MLB Draft, the Milwaukee Brewers selected C/SS Zavier Warren out of Central Michigan.

Warren was drafted as a catcher, which surprised a few analysts. He’s played there a little in the spring and in high school, but played mostly shortstop in 2019.

He’s shown good control of his bat and the zone, but doesn’t have a standout tool. The switch hitter can swing for contact and produces doubles power to the gap. If he can develop as a catcher, high contact and extra-base power with a lot of walks profiles well offensively there.

At the Cape Cod League, Warren actually established himself as one of the better hitters in the league. During his summer there, he slashed .315/.396/.443 while manning third base. That offensive performance against solid competition helped push him up some draft boards.

Otherwise, Warren is a good utility selection. He doesn’t shine defensively, but he has played third base, first base, shortstop and catcher in college. The offense definitely doesn’t look good at the corners and his arm might not be strong enough for shortstop.

Warren was ranked around 100 at Pipeline (106), Baseball Ameirca (122), FanGraphs (114), but had his highest grade at The Athletic, coming in at 86th on Keith Law’s board.

MLB Pipeline Tools:
Hit: 55 | Power: 40 | Run: 45 | Arm: 55 | Field: 45 | Overall: 45

The grades given on Pipeline seem focused on Warren as a shortstop. Scouts do agree that he has the athleticism and has shown some traits that could allow him to stick at catcher.

The Brewers have $637,600 slotted for this pick.