The seventh weekend of college baseball started a day earlier this week, with many teams taking off today due to Easter. As you will see below, a pitcher we have briefly mentioned here a few times in the past, has worked his way into top ten consideration. Check out the draft preview posted here and the recap of the sixth week’s action here. Just a reminder, the Pirates pick #9 and #14 in this year’s June amateur draft, so for the duration of the college season, leading up to draft day, we are following the players closely that are ranked in that range. This year’s draft will be held June 6-8. 
Colin Moran and North Carolina were one of the handful of teams playing today, but they were unable to get a full game in before weather postponed the game. Moran had a single and a fly out to center field before the game was called in the top of the third inning. North Carolina and Clemson will wrap up their series tomorrow, finishing today’s game, then playing their regularly scheduled game afterwards.
We haven’t followed Trevor Williams of Arizona State that closely, mentioning him a few times in the past, but he could be considered when the Pirates pick. Williams pitched Thursday night this week against UCLA and went 7.2 innings, allowing one run on eight hits, one walk and he struck out six batters. He picked up the win, improving his record to 4-2, 2.54 in seven starts, with 42 strikeouts in 49.2 innings. A quick scouting report, along with a video of Williams, can be found here.
Keith Law attended a match-up mentioned here between Aaron Judge, the high profile outfielder from Fresno State, and Bradon Shipley, the highly touted pitcher from Nevada. As alluded to above in the intro, Law was so high on Shipley that he mentioned he could go in the top ten picks this year and for good reason. Shipley has hit 99 MPH this season, with an above average change-up and a curveball that would rate out as average. Shipley is 4-0, 2.31 in seven starts, with 52 strikeouts in 50.2 innings. The full report can be viewed here by subscribers.
Updates On Pirates Draft Picks
Catching up on a handful of former draft picks of the Pirates that decided to go to school, some of which are draft eligible again this year. I’ve included the year they were drafted in parenthesis.
Jason Hursh(2010) is at Oklahoma State, where he has a 3-1, 2.12 record in seven starts, with 40 strikeouts and a .223 BAA in 51 innings. This week against Texas, he allowed eight runs on 13 hits and one walk in seven innings, striking out four batters.
Austin Kubitza(2010) allowed one run over six innings in Rice’s 4-2 win over Tulane this week. Kubitza could be drafted in the first round this year, thanks in part to his 4-1, 1.42 record in seven starts, with 62 strikeouts in 44.1 innings. He has held batters to a .206 BAA, but has also allowed 26 walks.
Zack Weiss(2010) has been used often for UCLA this year in relief, but he has amassed just 14.1 innings in 14 appearances. He has a 3.14 ERA, with 11 strikeouts and a .317 BAA. Prior to this season, a majority of his appearances during his first two years came as a starter.
Dace Kime(2010) is pitching in relief for Louisville. On Saturday, he struck out three of the four batters he faced. On the year, he has a 4.44 ERA. While he has allowed 27 hits in 24.1 innings, he has walked just four, while striking out 24 batters.
Aaron Brown(2011) was drafted as an outfielder by the Pirates, but he has been on the mound this season. Brown got the win yesterday over BYU despite allowing six runs on ten hits in 7.2 innings. He recorded a career-high nine strikeouts. He is 2-1, 6.23 on the year, with 47 runners allowed and 21 strikeouts in 26 innings
Zech Lemond(2011) picked up his seventh save of the season in Kubitza’s win this week. Lemond has made 13 appearances, posting a .190 BAA and 26 strikeouts in 29 innings. Kendall Rogers has a quick scouting report on him that sounds impressive, including a 95 MPH fastball.
Trea Turner(2011) is tearing the cover off the ball for NC State this year. He has a .472 average and .819 slugging percentage, which is more than double any of his teammates. He missed ten games with a sprained ankle, but is currently back and he picked up right where he left off.
Brandon Thomas(2012) was the 4th round pick of the Pirates last year, but decided to go back for his senior year. The move looked to be a good one up until this week. Through 23 games, Thomas had a .441 average and 1.100 OPS, but the outfielder now has mono and will miss a good portion of what’s left of this college season.
Walker Buehler(2012) has been starting for Vanderbilt and pitching well. Many Pirates fans were hopeful that the Pirates would be able to sign Buehler when they weren’t able to sign Mark Appel. In five starts and one relief appearance, the freshman hurler is 2-1, 3.14, with 31 strikeouts in 28.1 innings. He has had some control issues, walking 18 batters, but has limited the damage due to a .250 BAA and just one homer allowed.
Jackson McClelland(2012) went 2.1 innings in relief during his last outing for Pepperdine. He began the year in the rotation, but has been moved to relief recently. On the year, he has a 1.71 ERA in ten appearances, spanning 26.1 innings. He has allowed 30 hits, eight walks and he has struck out ten.
