With strong family bloodlines, Turlock’s Tyler Soderstrom is a top MLB Draft prospect
At the Turlock High baseball team’s first scrimmage in February, 30 major league scouts sat in the stands with great anticipation.
All eyes were on senior catcher Tyler Soderstrom, a UCLA signee whose draft stock had risen dramatically since a strong summer performance at multiple showcases.
The 6-foot-2, left-handed hitter didn’t disappoint.
The first batter the game, Soderstrom crushed the first pitch he saw, a fastball, over the right field fence and past the bordering tennis courts at the high school.
“He hit it 40 feet over the net in right field,” Turlock coach Sean Gilbert said. “Collectively, the scouts were saying ‘Holy Bleep.’ He knew everyone was there to see him and it was the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen.”
Soderstrom, who can also play in the infield and pitch, is projected to be drafted in the first round of the 2020 MLB Draft, which begins June 10.
“(Getting drafted) has always been a dream since I was little,” Soderstrom said. “It’s been super exciting for me.”
Gilbert said while Soderstrom is talented, he’s also one of the hardest workers.
“We would be done with practice and he would go hit and that was ever day,” Gilbert said.
Soderstrom said his “hard-work” mentality comes from his dad, and competitiveness comes from his brother.
A baseball family
Growing up, Tyler said his brother, Tate, motivated him to be a better all-around player. The two played on the 2017 Turlock team before Tate graduated.
Tate recently finished his junior season at the University of Arizona.
“We are close to each other and never fought growing up,” Tyler said.
The boys’ father, Steve, was a star pitcher for Turlock. He was drafted by the New York Mets in the 15th round of the 1990 Draft but elected to attend Fresno State.
Three years later, the San Francisco Giants selected him with the sixth overall pick.
“The draft wasn’t televised and everything was done over the phone,” Steve recalled about his draft experience. “We had a small group of people at the house and were just waiting to hear the news. My agent called me a few minutes before (the Giants) pick and my dad was a huge Giants fan.”
Steve said most of the advice he’s given to Tyler has to do with the mental side of professional baseball.
“The ups and downs of the season are real,” said Steve, who owns Backyard Sports Academy training facility in Turlock. “There are going to be some rough stretches and the ones I saw who put the work in and got out of those stretches are the ones that stayed consistent.”
The draft could be unique for the Soderstroms if Tyler is drafted in the first round, as they would be the 10th father/son duo to be drafted in the first round of the MLB Draft.
It happened last year when Bobby Witt Jr. was taken with the second overall pick by the Kansas City Royals. The elder Witt was drafted by the Texas Rangers with the third overall pick in the 1986 Draft and played 16 years in the major leagues.
“It would definitely be special,” Steve said. “It takes work and talent.”
None of the previous nine father/son duos were drafted by the same team and Steve said it would be “extra special” if the Giants selected his son.
The Athletic’s Keith Law had the Giants picking Soderstrom in his recent mock draft.
Steve said Tyler had a strong hand-eye coordination from a young age that separated himself from other players. But it wasn’t until eighth grade or high school where he saw “college and MLB” stuff.
“His skills were a little notch above everyone else,” he said.
As a freshman, Tyler hit .361 with 18 RBIs for the Bulldogs.
“He was already one of the best in the league,” Gilbert said. “He had a lot of talent and then kept getting bigger and stronger.”
The summer of a lifetime
Tyler said he was an “under the radar” guy heading into last summer’s showcases in Arizona and Florida.
That changed quickly.
He shined in front of scouts and started to garner national attention.
At Perfect Game Showcase events in Arizona, Soderstrom made both the Top Prospect Team and All-Tournament Team and earned grades of 9.5 (hitting) and 9.0 (fielding and power) out of 10.
His scouting report on perfectgame.org after the 2019 National Showcase focused on his strong hitting.
“Has strong and quick hands and creates bat speed,” the report said. “Swings with intent, line drive swing plane with some lift out front, ball comes off the barrel hard, high contact swing with bat speed.”
After participating in the Major League Baseball High School All-Star Game in July, Soderstrom was one of 20 players selected to represent Team USA in the 2019 WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup last August and helped the team finish with a silver medal.
He was also named to the All-World Team as a designated hitter.
“The USA team was icing on the cake,” Soderstrom said.
When he returned to Turlock, both Steve and Gilbert both said they saw a different Tyler, both physically and mentally.
“Physically, he got stronger and after the long summer, he didn’t lose a bunch of weight,” Steve said. “Coming back, he knew where he needed be to be at the next level.”
Gilbert said Tyler would come into his classroom at lunch to talk about the season.
Turlock had one of the top teams in the section and had a tough preseason schedule that was ultimately cut short after five games due to COVID-19.
“It was disappointing for the staff and seniors because we knew we had something special,” Gilbert said.
An All-Star travel team
Soderstrom played on the Sacramento Capitals travel team, one of the most talented in the country.
The 14-U team traveled to Oregon State for an 18-U tournament and won the championship, coach Nick Susac said.
In addition to Soderstrom, the team also had Jesuit senior Daniel Susac, who is projected to be an early draft pick as well.
“That was a pretty crazy team,” Susac said in an interview with the Sacramento Bee. “We had a lot of people on that team play Division l but it was full of great people. It’s crazy to think so much talent can come from the same place on the same travel team.”
Oakmont senior Carson Blatnick (University of Washington), Oakridge senior Tino Bethancourt (San Diego State), Oakmont senior TJ Nichols (University of Arizona), and Jesuit junior Tonko Susac (2021 draft prospect) also played on the team.
“One of the best teams I’ve ever played on,” Soderstrom said.
MLB Draft Training
With in-person meetings with organizations canceled, Tyler has met with teams on Zoom, sometimes with seven or eight members from each team.
“It can become a lot at times but I just sit down and realize it’s part of the process,” Tyler said.
Steve said the calls focused on baseball (training, how he has improved) but also what he likes to do off the field.
One big question heading into the draft regarding Soderstrom is what position he will play in the pros.
Gilbert said scouts are calling him everyday and said Tyler is “so big and strong” that he can stay at catcher but also play shortstop or third base.
Steve said throughout the process, he’s interacted with “10 or so” scouts who scouted him.
“They’ve been around a long time and they see talent so it’s good to talk to them,” Steve said.
Tyler, who was recently named the Gatorade state baseball player of the year, said he is getting a lot of swings in everyday and training with his trainer three times a week.
Steve said his son takes “anywhere” from 100 to 200 swings a day and while he’s done most of the soft toss and throwing, Mike Carrigg also throws to Tyler, Tate, and his son, Turlock senior and San Diego State signee Cole Carrigg.
Seeing his name as a possible first-round draftee is “awesome” to see but Tyler said the draft is just one step of his goals.
The family doesn’t know what they will do when it comes to a draft party because of large-gathering restrictions. Steve said Tyler has “two great options” with UCLA and signing with a team.
If he does sign with a team, Tyler said he hasn’t thought too much about the money.
“I might buy a new shotgun for duck hunting,” he said.
This story was originally published May 31, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
