Veen on Rockies' radar for potential '23 debut

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- For most players drafted out of high school, the first time in Major League camp is an orientation -- a short rubbing of shoulders with veterans, then a trip to Minor League camp, not to be seen for years.

Most players aren’t Rockies outfielder Zac Veen, the No. 27 prospect in the Majors according to MLB Pipeline.

Manager Bud Black said Veen, 21, taken out of Spruce Creek High School (Port Orange, Fla.) as the ninth overall pick in the 2020 MLB Draft, made improvements with his swing and his body both during the Arizona Fall League and the offseason, which placed him squarely on Colorado's radar. He is ticketed for Double-A Hartford, where he finished last season, but that’s close enough to think a Major League debut during the second half of the upcoming season could happen.

Fans had a chance to hear from Veen in his Prospect Q&A earlier this week.

But Black will spend Spring Training leading Veen on a deeper on-the-field level. Let’s assess what Black knows so far, and what he hopes to learn.

Veen is a good-looking player, literally
“He runs the bases hard, plays a good, solid outfield. And just the [physical nature] of him now -- he’s got a presence with his look,” Black said. “He’s got the hair out of the helmet. He’s got the headband. For a lot of people, a lot of fans, it might be a good look -- because it looks right.”

He’s looking better than before, thanks to his offseason program
“I saw [him] in the Fall League and I saw him here for the first time 10 days ago or so, and I go, ‘Damn,’” Black said. “He goes, ‘Yeah, I put on 25 [pounds].’ I go, ‘From Thanksgiving until now?’ ‘Yeah.’

“But it’s good weight. He can handle it -- tall kid and his shoulders are broad.”

He shows signs of adjusting quickly
Veen starred at High-A Spokane (.807 OPS, 11 homers among his 33 extra-base hits, and 50-for-54 on stolen-base attempts in 92 games) but struggled at Hartford (.177 batting average in 34 games). The way he turned things around against top prospects in the Arizona Fall League (.333/.444/.444 slash line, one homer and 16-for-18 on steals in 21 games) spoke volumes.

Still, Black saw a player needing to use the information from the poor Hartford performance to improve his swing. In Florida during the offseason, Veen worked out with Rockies second baseman Brendan Rodgers and did swing work with Colorado assistant hitting coach P.J. Pilittiere.

“[In the AFL] he put the bat on the ball a little bit more consistently than he did in Double-A, to the barrel,” Black said. “It was probably a little bit of that learning experience in Double-A and maybe a quicker adjustment to the Fall League, like, ‘Maybe I’ve got to do some things in the Fall League to rectify the statistical numbers in Double-A.' He did that in pretty quick order.”

The Rockies see Veen as a corner outfielder, but they’re not going to typecast him
“We’ll move him around, like we have in the past, with all our guys,” Black said.

There’s no set timetable, since performance and need will determine when Veen is ready, but everything he’s doing now is being watched
“When you’re a first pick, you’re like, ‘Ooh, what have we got with this kid?’” Black said. “That heightened sense of being near and us being able to put our eyes on him every day, watching him play, our assessments, our evaluation, that’s when, for us, it becomes clear that maybe he can get to us.

“Performance will dictate, ‘Is there a time for him to come?’”

There are things that look even better than stylish hair, hustle on and off the field and classic muscle
“People want to see a player,” Black said. “They want to see a play on defense. They want to see a base hit. They want to see a ball in the gap. And we’ll see.

“But I think it’s in there, from what I’ve seen. I think he’s going to be a good player. But there are some adjustments he’s going to have to make, and he’s making them.”