2022 MLB draft: Tampa Bay Rays select college SS Chandler Simpson with No. 70 pick

With the No. 70 overall pick of the 2022 MLB Draft, the Rays have selected Georgia Tech SS Chandler Simpson, a player who maxes out the ratings in speed, and famously stole 55 bags in 51 games in the Northwoods League in 2021.

Simpson ranked No. 88 at Baseball America, describing a second base profile — with the “rare combination of speed and contact ability” — and No. 123 at MLB Pipeline who see slightly more promise in the throwing arm.

Scouting grades: Hit: 60 | Power: 20 | Run: 80 | Arm: 50 | Field: 50 | Overall: 45

The MLB Network broadcast joked that on the 20-80 scale, Simpson has 90 speed and 10 power with a second base projection — in other words, the Rays may have doubled down on the profile of Triple-A prospect Xavier Edwards.

Simpson boasted a .433 AVG with Georgia Tech in the ACC — the best average in the nation among qualified hitters — and a .455 AVG with the prestigious Cotuit Kettleers of the Cape Cod League. The bat to ball skill is legit.