The Rockies took a college first baseman with their first round pick on Monday. They took switch-hitter Michael Toglia, a first baseman out of UCLA, with the 23rd overall pick.
With the 23rd pick of the 2019 #MLBDraft, the @Rockies select @UCLABaseball 1B Mike Toglia: https://t.co/OHooNdL3XW pic.twitter.com/3eznfEESIx
— MLB Draft (@MLBDraft) June 4, 2019
MLB Network compared Toglia to Mike Moustakas after the selection. Toglia’s listed at 6-foot-5 and 226 pounds, and it sounds like he’s regarded as a pretty good defensive first baseman. It sounds like he’s less of a power hitting first baseman and more of a doubles hitter. Toglia’s also capable of playing the outfield, so it’ll be interesting to see where the Rockies put him in the field for his first assignment.
It’s also notable that FanGraphs predicted that the Rockies would take Toglia with their second round pick, 62nd overall. They might have taken him early because he’s a junior, and they may have been worried about their ability to sign him out of the 62nd slot. The first round money should convince him.
MLB.com has some video of Toglia in action: