Black MiLB Players #17: C Harry Ford, Seattle Mariners
Drafted with the 12th overall pick of the 2021 MLB Draft directly out of high school, Harry Ford has the skills and tools to be categorized in the rarest archetype for the catcher position.
Introduction + Path to Professional Baseball
Harry Ford is a 20-year-old catcher in the Seattle Mariners farm system from Kennesaw, Georgia. Seattle drafted him with the 12th overall pick of the 2021 MLB Draft directly out of North Cobb High School and forewent a full scholarship to Georgia Tech’s baseball team to begin his professional career. He was the consensus number one high school catcher and one of the top high school position player prospects in a draft class that included Jordan Lawlar and Marcelo Mayer.
His professional career began during the 2021 MiLB season in the Arizona Complex League, going .291/.400/.582 in 65 plate appearances across 19 games played. 19-year-old Ford played with Seattle’s Low-A affiliate in the California League during the 2022 MiLB season, appearing in 104 games. He went .274/.425/.439 with 23 doubles, 11 home runs, and 23 steals during his first full MiLB season while being two years younger than the average player.
The 20-year-old backstop appeared in 118 games with Seattle’s High-A affiliate in the Northwest League during the 2023 MiLB season. He went .257/.410/.430 with 24 doubles, 15 home runs, and 24 steals. He was first in total hits, walks drawn, runs scored, and stolen bases out of 65 qualified catchers with at least 150 plate appearances in High-A.
International Career
As the son of parents who grew up in England, Ford was a part of Great Britain’s team during the 2023 World Baseball Classic. He helped Great Britain get their first World Baseball Classic victory in tournament play, securing a qualification spot in the 2026 WBC. He went .308/.400/.846 across 15 plate appearances with one double and two home runs.
Player Profile
Harry Ford is 5’10’’ and weighs around 200 pounds. He is lean for a catcher but has shown the fortitude to handle the position up to this point. The 20-year-old has been described as “a unicorn” because of his athleticism. Many scouts thought that if Ford didn’t show the aptitude to stick behind the plate he could seamlessly transition to center field full-time.
Hitting
Ford bats right-handed, standing in the batter’s box with an open stance and a slight crouch. He holds the bat perpendicular to his chin with a slight rock as he waits for the pitch. He employs a toe tap as his timing mechanism, showing a feel for adjusting to pitchers by varying the toe tap in certain counts and even scrapping it to take quick defensive hacks. He possesses a diagonal bat path that produces an average amount of contact. His 10.1% swinging strike rate was 90th and his 19.4% strikeout rate was 70th out of 329 qualified batters with 200 plate appearances in all three High-A leagues during 2023.
He frequently makes hard contact, regularly producing balls put in play over 90 miles per hour. Despite a majority of the balls he puts in play going to his pull side, he shows a knack for scooping pitches in the lower third of the zone up the middle and to the opposite field for extra-base hits. He has the strength to muscle pitches to all the fields for singles and has no qualms conceding for a single or a ball put in play to move a runner over. His swing produces a ratio of groundballs and flyballs that is almost even, which allows him to accrue extra-base hits at an above-average rate.
Ford has a strong track record of getting on base, posting an on-base percentage above .400 and a walk rate above 13% at every level he has played in MiLB. During the 2023 season, his 0.94 BB/K ratio and 18.3% walk rate both ranked ninth out of 329 qualified position players with at least 200 plate appearances. He swings at a meager rate of pitches inside and outside the strike zone. He navigates through plate appearances with a plan and is confident in his ability to discern close pitches. The caveat is that sometimes his approach can get very close to the thin line that separates selective and passive.
Fielding
Ford is a slightly below-average defender as a catcher, showing pedestrian qualities as a pitch blocker and game-caller while also being a crude pitch framer. He has a strong throwing arm but combines it with a mediocre pop time and an exchange that could use improvement. His athleticism doesn’t elevate the major facets of his defensive profile although there is plenty of time for him to learn how to harness it. Even with his flaws, Ford is on the trajectory to be at least tolerable behind the plate.
Baserunning
Ford isn’t just an above-average baserunner for a catcher but a productive baserunner when compared to his peers regardless of their placement on the defensive spectrum. Swiping 20 bags in back-to-back seasons is a huge green flag although it will be interesting to see if he can sustain this pace in the upper minors. He also uses his athleticism to leg out infield hits, stretch singles into doubles, and seize opportunities to reach third on balls hit into the gap.
Conclusion
Harry Ford has a unique combination of speed, power, and on-base skills that makes him comparable to only a few catchers in MLB history. With the red flags about his ability to play defense and Cal Raleigh having already established himself as the Mariners’ primary backstop, Ford’s athleticism makes him a viable option for a super-utility role. Regardless of what position he is playing, the 20-year-old has a feasible chance to be a successful major leaguer and it will be interesting to see how his abilities are utilized on the Seattle Mariners 25-man roster in the near future.