Funny how hard / impossible scouting or prospecting is.
Brandon Valenzuela wasn't cracking a 100 wRC+ in the upper minors from ages 23-25. You would project him for an MLB wRC+ in the 70s.
He was universally described as a good defender but someone with a fringe hit tool. A backup C prospect.
But when you read the Baseball America report from before 2026, you can see the nuggets of gold:
I mean... advanced approach with close to average power, average exit velos, and good launch angles? On a catcher? This is kind of exactly where hit tool scouting fails. Nobody graded his plate approach.
They should probably have been putting a 50 on his power. His minor league MaxEVs should have supported that. I mean his MaxEV in the big leagues is like, upper third percentile
All of that being said, he