'We believe in him': Pirates impressed by 1st-rounder Termarr Johnson's confident approach

When it was time for the fourth pick in the MLB Draft, the Pittsburgh Pirates didn’t go outside the box but rather chose the player who their scouts described as different inside it.

Termarr Johnson is being billed as the best pure hitting prospect in decades, drawing comparisons to Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez for his advanced plate approach as a prep player. Not only does he embrace the reputation as the draft’s best hitter, but he took it a step further by proclaiming himself as its best player.

“It’s certainly hyperbole and very high praise, deserving to this point with a lot of road to go,” Pirates senior director of amateur scouting Joe DelliCarri said. “Now high praise for some of the folks you’re talking about? There’s a little road to travel, but he’s at a great starting foundation point with all that. We believe in him.”

Termarr Johnson. Pittsburgh Pirate. pic.twitter.com/yYnhqhfjlb

— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) July 18, 2022

The Pirates believed the 18-year-old middle infielder from Atlanta’s Benjamin E. Mays High School “was the best player on the board at No. 4,” Pirates general manager Ben Cherington attested. For all of his bravado, the Pirates found Johnson to show humility when it came to his work ethic and willingness to credit his success to family and mentors.

“He’s a confident young man. He should be. He’s talented. He’s the fourth overall pick in the country,” Cherington said. “He should be confident. He needs to be confident to be a big leaguer. This is someone who worked really hard, too. He’s humble, wants to get better every day. So it’s a nice combination.”

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Johnson shined in showcase events two years ago, which he attended as an underclassmen playing against prospects older than him. What scouts saw was a 5-foot-10, 175-pounder with the ability to hit everything from velocity to secondary pitches with a dynamic swing, an uncanny feel with his hands and the lower-body strength to produce power.

“I don’t know if we found him so much as he was hard to miss,” Pirates area supervisor Cam Murphy said. “You just don’t find a guy like that who loves the game like he does and has that type of bat speed. He’s just different in the box.”

As the Pirates got to know Johnson, they realized what made him special was his passion and intensity for the details. DelliCarri called Johnson “a learner” who studies himself and his opponents and understands how to work counts. That’s quite the foundation to build upon.

“He likes to hit, but he knows a lot more about hitting than some other young kids,” DelliCarri said. “He’s passionate about it, and we think that’s going to continue. That’s what we like a lot about him.”

Here's a compilation of Termarr Johnson clips from last summer: pic.twitter.com/bIYsofJSvg

— Kiley McDaniel (@kileymcd) July 12, 2022

Johnson described himself as not the best hitter but the smartest, saying he couldn’t wait to get back to the batting cage after the draft so he could continue working on his craft.

“I know whatever I want to do in the box,” Johnson said, “whether it varies for every at-bat, but I kind of have a knack of what I want to do in each at-bat. I know how to adjust.”

Johnson batted .417 with eight doubles, five triples and nine home runs as a junior, but impressed scouts with his bat speed and instincts. He was rated the draft’s “best pure hitter” by Baseball America.

“Johnson is just an elite, elite bat-to-ball skill guy with tremendous hands to hit,” MLB Network analyst Dan O’Dowd said. “He hits velocity. He hits off-speed pitches. He doesn’t have a lot of holes in his swing.”

The question is where he will play on defense. Johnson was drafted as a shortstop but analysts believe he will shift to second base, as the Pirates did with 2020 first-round pick Nick Gonzales. The Pirates also have a pair of top-five prospects at shortstop in Oneil Cruz and Liover Peguero.

MLB Network analyst Harold Reynolds called second base Johnson’s fastest path to the majors. Cherington said Johnson will begin his pro career at shortstop, touting his instincts, ability to make plays on the run, body control and ability to make throws from different angles.

“We think he can play there,” Cherington said. “As you know, most of our shortstops get exposed on both sides of the bag at some point, (and that) probably will be the case for him, too. We believe in him as a defender.”

"Tears of joy."#mlbdraft #4 pick Termarr Johnson (@JohnsonTermarr) on the moment he got the call tonight, from the @Pirates: pic.twitter.com/tg9lyLMx10

— MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (@MLBNetworkRadio) July 18, 2022

Johnson made no secret of his preference, saying he models his game after the smoothness of Francisco Lindor and the range of Trea Turner. Johnson has worked with Atlanta Braves third base coach Ron Washington, a highly regarded infield instructor, and said his YouTube channel is filled with fielding videos.

Wherever he ends up playing, Johnson won’t lack for confidence.

“I know my game will speak for itself at the end of the day,” Johnson said. “I know my track record of being a great baseball player and a great person is going to speak for itself.”