Mack's Mock v3.0 - Pick 1.3 - 2B/SS Termarr Johnson

 

Termarr Johnson  

2B/SS          5-10          175          Mays H.S.

 

2-17-22 -

https://soxmachine.com/2022/02/17/2022-mlb-draft-watch-the-sensational-seven-and-top-100-prospects/ -

 Termarr Johnson, SS/2B, Mays HS (Georgia) 

Perhaps the best overall hitting ability in this year’s draft class, Termarr Johnson has an impressive advanced approach at the plate. When watching film of his work in the batting cage and during the summer showcases, it’s hard to believe Johnson is just 17 years old and doesn’t turn 18 until June. A line-drive hitter who generates a lot of momentum with a high leg kick, Johnson is known for his contact skills but don’t sleep on the power. 

Defensively, Johnson lacks the range and arm to stick at shortstop. He needs more defensive development if a team wants to give him that opportunity to play shortstop at the next level. Moving over to second base shouldn’t be an issue. Johnson’s favorite player is Robinson Cano, and in a way, I like that player comp for him. Sans the PED usage, of course. 

 

2-11-22 - https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-draft-prospects-2022-ranking-top-50-players-in-the-class-with-termarr-johnson-at-no-1/?s=03 - 

1.  Termarr Johnson, 2B, Mays HS (GA) 

Johnson is a special offensive prospect as well as the beneficiary of a hype blizzard. One veteran scout told CBS Sports that projecting Johnson's hit tool to become an 80 (that is, the highest grade and most important aspect of a player's game) was an easy decision. Other evaluators have dared to debate how Johnson stacks up to Wander Franco when he was 17 years old, and have offered Guardians third baseman José Ramírez as a best-case scenario comparison. (Best case indeed.) Some, if not all of that could prove to be overzealous by the time draft day arrives. Still, Johnson offers a lot to like, including a mature approach and a feel for the barrel that has earned him a reputation for being able to hit any pitch in any count to any field. He came into his strength late last season, and the natural loft on his swing bodes well for his future power production. The biggest downside to his game is his future defensive position, with second base serving as the safest bet. Johnson hasn't yet committed to a college; he won't need to if his desire is to begin his pro career later this year. 

 

2-10-22 - https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/2022-mlb-mock-draft-version-10/?s=03 - 

Baseball America 2022 MLB Mock Draft Version 1.0

 2. D-Backs — Termarr Johnson, SS, Mays HS, Atlanta 

Carlos’ take: With Druw off the board in front, this is a no-brainer for me and I think it pairs nicely with the sort of hitter the D-backs have selected in recent years—guys like Corbin Carroll, Alek Thomas, Jake McCarthy, Matt McLain, Ryan Bliss—standout pure hit tool bats and often smaller players with short levers. Johnson fits that to a tee and is the best pure hitting prospect of that entire group by a fair margin. A middle infield combo of Johnson and Jordan Lawlar would be a lot of fun to see. 

Scout’s take: Advanced bat, well beyond his years. The most handsy hitter in the draft. He projects to get to plus power due to his plus-plus hit tool, regardless of his stature. In four of the last six drafts, Arizona signed a pitcher in the first round, but not in the top 10 picks. I think the D-backs go bat here, where Termarr will be an offensive performing second baseman. Lawlar/Johnson up the middle will be a good combo in the big leagues for Arizona. 

 

2-4-22 - https://www.maxpreps.com/news/AixjPJrhdE2_ZvQlE7haTQ/high-school-baseball-georgia-trio-tops-10-mlb-draft-prospects.html - 

Top 10 Draft Prospects 

1. Termarr Johnson, Mays (Atlanta), MIF 

Pegged by many scouts and recruiting services as the top high school player in the draft and potentially the top player overall. A shortstop who likely moves to second base, Johnson draws raves for his power hitting. At 5-foot-10, Johnson is not a big player, but he draws his power from extremely quick hands. Could be first prep No. 1 pick since Royce Lewis of JSerra Catholic (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.) in 2017 and the first Georgia No. 1 since Tim Beckham of Griffin in 2008.

 

1-15-22 - https://www.baseballamerica.com/rankings/2022-mlb-draft-top-100-prospects/ - 

2  Termarr Johnson 

Mays HS, Atlanta 2B/SS

Notes:

Ht: 5-8 | Wt: 194 | B-T: L-R

Commit/Drafted: Uncommitted

Age At Draft: 18.1 

Johnson has one of the most unique profiles for a top-of-the-class high school prospect in many years. He’s a 5-foot-8, 194-pound shortstop who most scouts view as a professional second baseman, but his incredible feel for hitting and lightning quick bat make him a legitimate candidate to be the No. 1 overall pick. There have only been six prep second basemen taken in the first round in the draft’s history, and if he is selected as a second baseman on draft day, Johnson has a great chance to top Delino DeShields (2010, No. 8) as the highest-ever drafted prep player at the position. Johnson has the best pure hit tool in the 2022 class, with an extensive track record of performance over the showcase circuit in 2021, as an underclassman and with USA Baseball’s national teams. He has the rare amateur combination of excellent bat-to-ball skills, an advanced approach at the plate with impressive pitch recognition and zone awareness and more power than you would expect given his frame. He can show plus power when he turns on a ball but is equally capable of slapping an outside pitch the other way for an opposite field single or double. He’s unfazed by quality velocity, he tracks breaking balls and offspeed offerings well and he can confidently spit on pitches just off the plate. His supplemental tools are more average, though he does have quick hands and instincts as a defender in the infield. He has a solid first step, but his speed is average, and he should fit best at second base, where he has the tools to be a fine defender. Scouts skeptical of Johnson will point to limited projection and supplemental tools; others point to 70-grade hit and plus power projections from a lefty bat who should stick on the dirt. Johnson is uncommitted but should be one of the first picks off the board. 

 

1-15-22 - Greg Zumach @IvyFutures 

Termarr Johnson is the biggest story entering the spring to me. He is a plus (maybe plus-plus) hitter with plus power projection, but a 2nd baseman in the pros. That’s a profile that we just haven’t seen in the draft. How will teams view Termarr? I have him ranked 2nd overall.

 

1-15-22 - Perfect Game Four Corners @PG_FourCorners 

Termarr Johnson (‘22, GA) continues to prove why he is the top ranked player in the class. Reached three times and stole two bases. Has advanced bat to ball skills w/ impressive bat speed. Uses an aggressive approach without expanding the zone @PG_Georgia MLK West 

 

1-5-21 - https://www.prospectslive.com/prospects-live/2022-mlb-mock-draft - Prospect Live Mock Draft 1.0 

3. Texas Rangers

Termarr Johnson, Second Base, Mays 

The best scouts in the world will reiterate one thing on repeat. Hit tool over everything. If a kid can really bang, don’t ask so many questions that you paralyze your judgement. That’s Johnson. A majority of evaluators in this industry really, truly believe this is an extraordinary bat with perennial all-star upside. When folks say it’s the best high school bat in two decades, they’re not being hyperbolic. While Johnson may be the odds-on favorite to go here if Jones is off the board, any number of college bats fit here too. Chase DeLauter, Robert Moore, Daniel Susac, Jace Jung, Gavin Cross, take your pick. In a perfect world, I would imagine Texas would love to find a player who can stay up the middle of the field given where they’re picking. But if Johnson continues to rake this spring like he did all summer, he’ll be a popular name at the top.

  

12-30-21 - https://www.prospectslive.com/prospects-live/2021/12/29/2022-mlb-draft-top-300-prospects - 

5. Termarr Johnson Second Base, Mays High School 

Despite his size, Johnson has some of the best bat speed in the entire class. He has a chance to be a really special hitter when all is said and done. He's a thunderous hitter with quick, explosive actions at the plate. It's comfortably plus raw power, and he's getting into it in-game already. Johnson covers the zone extremely well and uses the whole field, displaying big opposite-field juice when he lets the ball travel. He's already a muscled up, thick middle infielder, so his ultimate home on the dirt will likely be dictated by what direction his body goes as he works his way up the developmental ladder. Currently a shortstop, Johnson probably figures to end up at second base or third base long-term. This is an elite-level bat. 

 

12-21-21 - 

https://www.bucsdugout.com/2021/12/21/22846733/what-route-will-pittsburgh-pirates-take-in-2022-mlb-draft - 

Termarr Johnson 

Next on the list is a fellow Georgian high school player, 17-year-old Termarr Johnson, who is rated the top high school prospect by Baseball America. Johnson, who projects as a second baseman, is considered a potential No. 1 overall pick by MLB Pipeline largely for his hitting ability. MLB says he “might be the best pure prep hitter in decades.” MLB gives him a 70 hit tool but acknowledged that some evaluators put an 80 grade on that tool – the highest grade there is. 

Johnson, at 5-foot-10, 175 pounds, is a left-handed hitter who won’t turn 18 until mid-June. According to MLB, one scout likened him to a combination Wade Boggs (plate discipline) and Vladimir Guerrero Sr. (bat-to-ball skills).

 

12-21-21 - https://roxpile.com/2021/12/21/2022-mlb-draft-preview-prep-bats-colorado-rockies-possibility/ -

 Termarr Johnson | SS/2B | Atlanta, GA 

An early favorite to run away with the #1 overall pick, Johnson offers a lightning-fast left-handed swing that generates remarkable bat speed. Scouts have also praised his pitch recognition and knack for manipulating the barrel to make contact. 

Those offensive skills, in combination with above-average speed, make for an incredible offensive profile. Johnson has been projected for second base but he deserves an opportunity to prove himself as a shortstop in professional ball. 

97 mph max exit velo (98th percentile in 2022 class)

6.65 second 60-yard dash (93rd percentile) 

 

12-17-21 - Perfect Game Mock Draft - 

2. Arizona Diamondbacks | Termarr Johnson, SS, Mays HS (Ga.) 

Picking from this spot, the Diamondbacks will have their choice of some of the best this class has to offer and if Baltimore goes the college route, they’ll likely be making a difficult choice between a pair of high-upside prep bats. Termarr has shown extensively, on the biggest stages, that he has one of the best pure hit tools a prep prospect could offer and the combination of that good of a hit tool with plus power, a refined approach, supreme athleticism and the tools to stick on the dirt all while swinging it from the left side make him as good of a high-floor AND high-upside type prospect you could select, not to mention he’ll barely be 18 on draft day. -Tyler Russo 

 

12-15-21 - mlb - mock draft - 

1. . Orioles: Termarr Johnson, 2B, Mays HS (Atlanta) 

Considered the best pure high school hitter in decades, Johnson got compared to two Hall of Famers by one scout, who sees him as a mix of Wade Boggs' plate discipline and Vladimir Guerrero Sr.'s bat-to-ball skills. He'd be the first prep middle infielder to go No. 1 since the Twins took Royce Lewis in 2017. 

 

12-7-21 - SF Draft Talk - Top 25 - 

1. Termarr Johnson 

Position: Shortstop/Second Base 

School: Mays (GA) 

Commitment: Uncommitted 

Johnson flips the script once you put a bat in his hands because all he does is stand out at the plate. One of the first things you’ll notice is the pitch recognition and approach. You can clearly see that he’s identifying pitches early which enables him to make quality swing decisions and control the strike zone. Johnson is in control of each of his at-bats and doesn’t take any pitches off. He’s willing to swing early in at-bats if he gets a pitch he knows he can drive, but Johnson will also show patience and has no problem hitting with two strikes. Johnson makes pitchers work and he’ll spit on tough chase pitches while fouling off well-located pitches in the zone. Johnson has the makings of an OBP machine and looks to be the type of hitter that drives pitchers mad by inflating pitch counts. When he swings it’s with tremendous bat speed and rotational acceleration which allows him to make very hard contact despite his size. The swing has some violence to it, but it’s controlled, and because of how early he can ID pitches he’s able to consistently square up pitches. Call it controlled violence. His barrel feel and awareness are top-notch as is his ability to cover all areas of the strike zone. All of this is backed up by data and his performance to date. His Blast Motion and Diamond Kinetics numbers are elite and his batted ball data is solid, too. Johnson’s consistency with the bat from AB to AB, game to game, and event to event is well documented and another feather in his cap. His numbers at Perfect Game events are absolutely bonkers. On Johnson’s PG profile page, they have him batting .380 with 19 homers, 105 steals, and 132 walks in 218 career tournament games. I decided to go through Johnson’s box scores since June to check in on his swing and miss numbers. In 66 plate appearances, Johnson swung 113 times and whiffed just 20 times which comes out to a sub 18% whiff rate (total whiffs / total swings). That’s very good and it comes with in-game power and on-base ability. 

 

11-12-21 - Through The Fence Mock 2.0 - 

7. Chicago Cubs: Termarr Johnson, 2B, Mays HS (GA) 

Johnson has a strong and athletic build. He absolutely attacks the ball and sees the zone extremely well for a high-schooler. Much like Jazz Chisolm is with the Miami Marlins, Johnson has a huge personality and leadership skills on and off the field. I might be overstating this right now, but if he has a good season, Johnson could become a top-five pick.