Connor Burns Stats & Scouting Report

AB	75
AVG	.120
OBP	.275
SLG	.227
HR	2

Full name Connor Patrick Burns
Born 12/25/2001 in Upland, CA
Profile Ht.: 6'1" / Wt.: 185 / Bats: R / Throws: R
School Long Beach State
Drafted in the 5th round (141st overall) by the Cincinnati Reds in 2023 (signed for $448,600).

View Draft Report

School: Long Beach State Source: 4YR

Commit/Drafted: Never Drafted
Age At Draft: 21.6
BA Grade:45/Extreme
Tools:Hit: 30. Power: 45. Run: 40. Field: 60. Arm: 70.

Burns earned loud praise for his defense behind the plate at Don Lugo (Chino, Calif.) High and only garnered more as Long Beach State’s starting catcher the last three years. He won the Big West Conference Defensive Player of the Year award in 2022 and 2023 and set himself apart as not only the best defensive catcher in the draft class, but one of the best defensive catchers to come through in years. Burns is a plus-plus defender behind the plate who has a chance to win Gold Gloves. He is an excellent athlete who moves well laterally, is an elite pitch-framer with superb hands, blocks tough pitches in the dirt and makes highlight-reel catches on popped up bunts. He shuts down run games with plus-plus arm strength and elite accuracy and has the ability to throw from odd angles and his knees with quickness and precision. Burns’ defense is unimpeachable, but he’s a well below-average hitter who struggles to make contact against premium velocity. He has average raw power and has shown the ability to drive the ball the other way, raising hope he can provide just enough impact to get meaningful playing time with his defense. Burns earns comparisons to elite defensive catchers with light bats like Martin Maldonado and Jacob Stallings. He projects to be drafted on the middle of the draft’s second day.

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

BA Grade/Risk: 40/Medium.

Track Record: When Burns was at Long Beach State, he kept getting the kind of grades on his defense that caused crosscheckers, scouting directors and analysts to check to make sure they weren’t typos. His junior year he threw out more than 50% of basestealers and hit .289 with 14 home runs after hitting under .200 with just four combined home runs in his first two college seasons.

Scouting Report: Burns’ defense draws the kind of praise that is almost never said about a Class A catcher. The Reds brought him to MLB spring training and quickly found that big league pitchers asked to throw to him. His defense is MLB-ready right now thanks to exceptional hands, excellent pitch framing and a plus-plus arm. But Burns has one flaw that could stand in the way of a lengthy MLB career—he hasn’t shown he can hit. After an inconsistent offensive career in college his first full pro season in 2024 raised more concerns. He has average raw power, but struggles to catch up to velocity and is beaten by breaking balls and struck out 34% of the time. With his well below-average speed, that makes it hard to hit better than .200. Getting to fringe-average power would make him a more plausible MLB backup.

The Future: If the Reds had an emergency need for a big league catcher, Burns is better defensively than any other minor league option the Reds have. But for him to be more than a Triple-A on-call lifer, he’s going to have to make major strides at the plate.

Scouting Grades: Hit: 20 | Power: 40 | Run: 30 | Field: 70 | Arm: 70.

Draft Prospects

School: Long Beach State Source: 4YR

Commit/Drafted: Never Drafted
Age At Draft: 21.6
BA Grade:45/Extreme
Tools:Hit: 30. Power: 45. Run: 40. Field: 60. Arm: 70.

Burns earned loud praise for his defense behind the plate at Don Lugo (Chino, Calif.) High and only garnered more as Long Beach State’s starting catcher the last three years. He won the Big West Conference Defensive Player of the Year award in 2022 and 2023 and set himself apart as not only the best defensive catcher in the draft class, but one of the best defensive catchers to come through in years. Burns is a plus-plus defender behind the plate who has a chance to win Gold Gloves. He is an excellent athlete who moves well laterally, is an elite pitch-framer with superb hands, blocks tough pitches in the dirt and makes highlight-reel catches on popped up bunts. He shuts down run games with plus-plus arm strength and elite accuracy and has the ability to throw from odd angles and his knees with quickness and precision. Burns’ defense is unimpeachable, but he’s a well below-average hitter who struggles to make contact against premium velocity. He has average raw power and has shown the ability to drive the ball the other way, raising hope he can provide just enough impact to get meaningful playing time with his defense. Burns earns comparisons to elite defensive catchers with light bats like Martin Maldonado and Jacob Stallings. He projects to be drafted on the middle of the draft’s second day.
Burns is one of the better defensive catchers in the 2020 high school class. He is a plus receiver with good footwork behind the plate and has a plus, accurate arm. He is a good athlete who has a quick release, gets down quickly on blocks and is generally quick in all aspects of catching. Burns hit for a high average in high school and shows flashes of power, but he still has a lot of development left as a hitter. It’s unlikely a team will take a flyer on him in a shortened draft. He is committed to Long Beach State.