Trey Williams entered the year with mixed reviews. Some outlets had him as a top ten prospect. Some had him as a player who rated in the late-first round. Some didn’t even have him as a first rounder. One thing is for sure about the prep third baseman: he’s rated highly in the books of opposing teams.
Williams has been pitched around a lot this year, drawing ten walks on the young season. Ten walks might not sound like a lot, but it’s a big number during the high school season. Consider that in the last three years, he’s drawn 12 walks per season every year. That led to a walk rate in the 12-16% range. His walk rate this year? 29%.
Williams has gotten on base 62.9% of the time this season. He’s also hitting for a .435 average, which would be a career best. The problem is that his power has been down and his strikeouts are up throughout the process. Perhaps that’s a side effect of getting pitched around.
The third baseman is one of the players who could be a potential top ten pick, but needs a big boost to be a consensus selection in that range. If his power picked up, along with the walks, it would go a long way toward giving him that boost.
STATS
Mark Appel – 9.0 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 7 K, 0 HR, W (3-1)
Chris Beck – 6.0 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 8 K, 0 HR, ND
Kevin Gausman – 5.0 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 5 BB, 8 K, 0 HR, ND
Kyle Zimmer – 9.0 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 9 K, 0 HR, W (2-1)
Deven Marrero – 5-for-18 (.278), 2 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 1 SB, 4 K, 1 BB
Mike Zunino – 4-for-14 (.286), 2 R, 1 2B, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 1 K, 2 BB
Trey Williams – 2-for-4 (.500), 2 R, 1 RBI, 1 K, 4 BB
NOTES
-Kyle Zimmer didn’t have the best conditions on Friday, throwing in 50 degree weather in the rain. He was throwing 91-94, and both breaking balls were working in his second straight shutout. (via Nick Faleris)
-Kevin Gausman has walked nine batters in his last two starts.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
-Mike Zunino and Florida play a Florida State on Tuesday.
-Deven Marrero and Arizona State play a two game series against Cal State Fullerton starting on Tuesday.
-Trey Williams and Valencia high school play a game on Wednesday.
Tim started Pirates Prospects in 2009 from his home in Virginia, which was 40 minutes from where Pedro Alvarez made his pro debut in Lynchburg. That year, the Lynchburg Hillcats won the Carolina League championship, and Pirates Prospects was born from Tim's reporting along the way. The site has grown over the years to include many more writers, and Tim has gone on to become a credentialed MLB reporter, producing Pirates Prospects each year, and will publish his 11th Prospect Guide this offseason. He has also served as the Pittsburgh Pirates correspondent for Baseball America since 2019. Behind the scenes, Tim is an avid music lover, and most of the money he gets paid to run this site goes to vinyl records.
Good stuff. Might want to also list Michael Wacha’s insane year and CG SO Friday night. Moving up draft boards pretty hard.
Any stats on Carlos Correa? looks to be high upside shortstop
It’s hard to find stats for most prep players. I tried looking for them, but couldn’t find them.