Going a little different for this Sunday. Earlier this month, Baseball America posted new draft rankings and had 28 prep players in their top 50. Below you will find the latest updates on all of them, starting from the top and working our way down. The number next to their name is their placement on BA’s top 50 list. Much of this info was made easier to find by Dan Kirby from Through The Fences. You can follow him on Twitter here and check out his latest top ten prep players on the rise. Many of these players below were profiled in our prep hitters and pitchers previews, so you can find more information on them in those links.
1. Brady Aiken, LHP – Went six innings in last start, gave up one run and struck out 12. Fastball was hitting 94 MPH
2. Tyler Kolek, LHP – Kolek hit 100 MPH in his last start and struck out 16, he isn’t dropping at all
4. Alex Jackson, C – Power hitting catcher, only question is whether he will stick at the position, but play should play anywhere. Top five pick.
8. Nick Gordon, SS – Has been crushing the ball lately and plays a premium position with good athleticism. Top ten pick.
13. Touki Toussaint, RHP – Threw a one-hitter and homered in his last game. Should go top 15, but has been mentioned lower.
15. Grant Holmes, RHP – His season just ended. Holmes can touch triple digits and he homered in his last game. Slight chance he goes top ten, lesser chance he drops to Pirates.
16. Jacob Gatewood, SS – Homered yesterday. Questions about future position and ability to hit for average make his draft spot hard to pinpoint. There is no question he will hit for power. Could fall to Pirates or go at least ten spots higher.
20. Monte Harrison, OF – He reached base twice in his last game and made a loud out in another at-bat. Harrison is a gifted athlete, who could decide to go to Nebraska to play football and baseball, so he likely won’t be picked at all if he drops too far, due to the draft bonus cap. First round money could convince him to sign.
21. Sean Reid-Foley, RHP – He threw one-hit ball in a 1-0 win during his last start and struck out 11 batters. Early in the year he was piling up strikeouts and hitting 95 MPH
22. Braxton Davidson, 1B/OF – Pitched a complete game with 11 strikeouts in his last game and hit a homer and triple. Big bat, mentioned in Pirates range often.
23. Michael Chavis, 3B/2B – Hit a walk-off grand slam early this week and had a key RBI double in his last game. Chavis is another that has been mentioned often in the Pirates range.
24. Forrest Wall, 2B – Has missed some time this year, but he has hit great when he plays. Batting .575 with 12 extra base hits in 15 games. Plays shortstop, but his future is at second base, which hurts his draft stock. Not many second baseman get chosen in the first round.
26. Spencer Adams, RHP – Had 14 strikeouts over six innings in an 8-0 win this week. He has really moved up draft charts. Likely first round pick, could be a choice for Pirates.
27. Michael Gettys, OF – He has been hitting well all season, showing off big power. This week he homered one game, then walked and showed great hustle to turn a single into a double in another game. Last week, he took a no-hitter into the fifth inning in a complete game victory
29. Kodi Medeiros, LHP – Polished pitcher for a prep player. Nice fastball with a plus slider. Durable pitcher with very little projection. Threw shutout ball in his start yesterday, allowing two hits, two walks and he struck out 14 batters.
31. Jacob Bukauskas, RHP – Dominating with a fastball that reaches 100 MPH. He has 82 strikeouts in 36.2 innings. He reclassified as a senior this year so his draft stock shot up overnight.
33. Mac Marshall, LHP – Just wrapped up his season on Friday. He pitched 44.2 innings and didn’t allow a single earned run. His last start was a little shaky with five walks, giving him 17 walks, 18 hits and 62 strikeouts on the year.
36. Milton Ramos, SS – Highly rated defensive player with speed and some pop in his bat. Had a tough last game, going 0-for-3 with two errors.
37. Marcus Wilson, OF – Had an RBI triple and pitched two shutout frames in his last game. Hitting .425 through 16 games with four doubles, one triple and three homers. Raw talent, but very toolsy.
38. Derek Hill, OF – Missed a couple games early this week with leg cramps, then returned and had a triple and four RBIs in his first game back. He is hitting .558 with six doubles and five triples in 16 games.
40. Luis Ortiz, RHP – Ortiz showed slightly lower velocity in one of his last starts and blamed it on pitching for the third time in five days. He has hit 97 MPH in the past, but was topping out at 92 and said he had a little arm tightness.
41. Alex Verdugo, LHP – He is interesting in that he is a big lefty arm with high upside, but he is also a great hitter and prefers to hit. His pitching hasn’t been great this year, but as a lefty with plus stuff, he should still go high.
42. Michael Kopech, RHP – Had 14 strikeouts in his last game, 107 on the season in 52.2 innings. Hits 98 MPH
43. Scott Blewett, RHP – Coming from upstate New York, Blewett got a late start to his season and he started off slow, but his velocity was better in his last start and he should continue to improve as the weather gets warmer. This ranking seems low for him.
44. Foster Griffin, LHP – Just had a 23 inning scoreless streak snapped. Threw a complete game with ten strikeouts in his last start.
45. J.J. Schwarz, C – He had a two-run triple and an RBI single in his last game. Leads his team with seven homers. Strong defensive catcher.
47. Cam Varga, RHP – He has thrown two straight no-hitters and has 68 strikeouts in 29 innings.
48. Joseph Gatto, RHP – Earlier in the month, the New Jersey native pitched(and hit) well in front of a packed house of scouts. He hit 94 MPH early and held his velocity late.
