Scouting Report

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Scouting grades: Hit: 40 | Power: 55 | Run: 60 | Arm: 60 | Field: 45 | Overall: 45 

Horvath long has intrigued scouts with his physical tools but that development came with inconsistency at the plate. That's why no club was willing to meet his asking price when he was a high school senior in 2020 or a Draft-eligible sophomore at North Carolina last year, leaving him undrafted both times. He offers one of the best power/speed combinations in college baseball, so he'll likely go in the top two or three rounds this July despite persistent questions about his hitting ability. 

Horvath generates at least plus raw power with a combination of bat speed and strength, and his pop played with wood bats in the Cape Cod League last summer. But his uphill right-handed stroke and pull-heavy approach work against him at the plate, and he particularly struggles with quality fastballs, especially up in the zone. Though he shows a willingness to draw walks when pitchers try to work around him, he needs to make more regular contact. 

His speed and arm also grade as plus tools, and Horvath can use his quickness to steal bases. While he has the range for third base, he's an erratic defender who has struggled with his throwing accuracy in 2023. He may be better suited for right field, where he also has seen action this spring, and could be able to handle center, where he played in the Cape. 

Scouting grades: Hit: 40 | Power: 55 | Run: 60 | Arm: 60 | Field: 45 | Overall: 45

That Horvath went undrafted as a high school senior and as a Draft-eligible sophomore at North Carolina had more to do with his asking price than his toolsy combination of power and speed, which has long intrigued scouts. It also had something to do with his inconsistency at the plate, though Horvath dispelled enough of those questions with a strong junior year in Chapel Hill for the Orioles to select him in the second round of the 2023 Draft and sign him for a slightly under slot $1.4 million. Horvath opened his first full season at High-A Aberdeen, where he didn’t hit for average but performed in other ways, and was traded to the Rays in late July as part of a deal that sent Zach Eflin the other way.

Horvath uses bat speed and strength to generate at least plus raw power, and he’s especially adept at trusting his quick, powerful hands to turn on inside pitches and hammer mistakes in the zone. The result is an uphill right-handed stroke and extremely pull-heavy batted-ball profile, which helps him to drive the ball out of the park but also works against him with catchable pop flies. He tends not to chase breaking balls out of the zone all that often but is more vulnerable against quality fastballs up in the zone, leading to some significant swing-and-miss. He does know how to see pitches and walked at a higher clip in his debut than he did in college. That on-base ability jives with above-average speed that enabled him to steal 14 bases in 15 attempts last summer. 

Horvath was drafted as a third baseman and possesses plus arm strength, but struggled with accuracy so much that at this point he doesn’t really have a true position. He moved between third, second and right to begin 2024, and even saw a few games in center. If he can develop defensively, Horvath’s power and speed would be more valuable at an infield spot, though added versatility could also work to his advantage, especially with Tampa Bay.

Transactions

Team	Date	Transaction
	07/30/2024	Bowling Green Hot Rods activated OF Mac Horvath.
	07/26/2024	Tampa Bay Rays traded RHP Zach Eflin to Baltimore Orioles for RHP Jackson Baumeister, OF Matthew Etzel and OF Mac Horvath.
	07/26/2024	OF Mac Horvath assigned to Bowling Green Hot Rods.
	06/30/2024	OF Mac Horvath assigned to Bowling Green Hot Rods.
	09/05/2023	OF Mac Horvath assigned to Aberdeen IronBirds from Delmarva Shorebirds.
	09/05/2023	Aberdeen IronBirds activated OF Mac Horvath.
	08/08/2023	OF Mac Horvath assigned to Delmarva Shorebirds from FCL Orioles.
	08/03/2023	OF Mac Horvath assigned to FCL Orioles.
	07/17/2023	Baltimore Orioles signed OF Mac Horvath.
	05/26/2023	College Workout activated 3B Mac Horvath.
	05/26/2023	College Workout activated 3B Mac Horvath.
	05/24/2023	College Workout activated 3B Mac Horvath.
	03/27/2023	3B Mac Horvath assigned to North Carolina Tar Heels.
	03/27/2023	North Carolina Tar Heels activated OF Mac Horvath.
	03/25/2022	North Carolina Tar Heels activated SS Mac Horvath.
	03/25/2022	North Carolina Tar Heels activated 3B Mac Horvath.
	03/25/2022	SS Mac Horvath assigned to North Carolina Tar Heels.