Part of the Angels' Draft strategy in recent years has been to bring in high-end high school talent after the 10th round, using leftover bonus pool money to sign them to over-slot deals. It's largely been pitching they've hunted in this manner, and they went this route early and often in 2025, taking a trio of prep pitchers and paying them well in Rounds 11-13. But they weren't done, and this time they found an intriguing bat in the 14th round in Ford, a Georgia high schooler they signed for an over-slot $272,500, so rather than spend the year as a freshman at Alabama-Birmingham, he prepared for what has been a very good debut in the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League this season.
Ford is an undersized 5-foot-9 switch-hitter who has the chance to be a table-setting catalyst. He employs a similar swing from both sides of the plate with excellent contact skills. His plate discipline has improved, with a growing understanding that his job will be to get on base. That's not to say he is completely devoid of impact. It's mostly gap-to-gap juice so far, but his exit velocities are tending up and he's shown in the past that he can get to some impressive raw power, particularly for someone his size, in BP settings. His father had a power lifting background, which has helped Ford know how to add strength.
Regardless of how much thump he develops, his true calling card will always be his 70-grade speed. He's a premium athlete who knows how to steal a base. That also helps him cover a ton of ground in center field, and he's showing some defensive versatility by getting reps on the dirt at second base as well.
