Yesterday, we took a look at some of the college hitters mentioned below, along with new rankings and a new mock draft. Today we have a big pitching match-up, plus a wrap of the weekend action in college. You can find the draft slot values for each pick here, covering all 11 picks the Pirates have in the first ten rounds. After the tenth round, teams have $100,000 to spend on each player and anything over that counts against their bonus pool. The draft begins on June 8th and the Pittsburgh Pirates have the 19th and 32nd overall picks. The Pirates will have the 11th highest draft bonus pool.
Sunday had a big pitching match-up between Walker Buehler of Vanderbilt(pictured above courtesy of Vanderbilt University) and Kyle Cody of Kentucky. Buehler will likely go within the top 15 picks, while Cody is looking like a second round pick now, after getting rated a little higher earlier in the season. The two pitchers didn’t disappoint the scouts in attendance, with both looking good despite average results. Buehler went six innings, allowing three runs on seven hits and two walks, with five strikeouts. He was sitting 93-94 MPH early. Cody went 5.2 innings, allowing three runs on six hits and three walks, with eight strikeouts. He ran his pitch count up early, finishing with 107 pitches. Cody was sitting 90-92, touching 94 MPH.
Illinois lefty Tyler Jay pitched on Sunday, retiring all three batters he faced in order in the ninth inning against Ohio State. That outing followed the 2.1 scoreless innings he threw on Saturday. He was hitting 97 MPH during Saturday’s outing, with a slider that was referred to as both “filthy” and “nasty” by two different people covering the game. Jay has an 0.73 ERA in 49.1 innings, with 54 strikeouts(just four walks) and a .159 BAA. He is rated right now in the 15-25 range, with some down on him due to the fact he is likely to relieve in the pros.
UCLA’s James Kaprielian pitched earlier in the weekend and looked great. He recently went to the Pirates in a mock draft, so this is the type of outing that could keep him ranked that high. He threw 7.2 scoreless innings against Gonzaga, allowing four hits and two walks. He had six strikeouts and 11 ground ball outs.
Some quick updates for some college hitters from Saturday/Sunday:
Florida State’s D.J. Stewart went 0-for-1 with three walks and two stolen bases on Sunday. As mentioned yesterday, he now has ten steals, but he is a below average runner. His stolen base success likely shows he is a smart runner, rather than new found foot speed.
Florida shortstop Richie Martin went 1-for-3, with a walk and HBP on Sunday. He is hitting .315/.416/.459 in 48 games, with 16 stolen bases.
Arkansas outfielder Andrew Benintendi hit his 15th homer on Saturday. He is hitting .386/.488/.729 and also has 20 steals. He is getting first round mention now.
Cincinnati outfielder Ian Happ went 2-for-4 on Sunday, hitting his 13th homer. He has a .373 average and a 1.191 OPS. He was getting top ten mentions about two weeks ago, but has slipped back a little.
Arizona’s double play combo had a rough Sunday, though their team won 2-0 over Washington State. Scott Kingery went 1-for-5, while shortstop Kevin Newman went 0-for-4 with a HBP. Kingery is hitting .416 with a 1.067 OPS. Newman is batting .362 and has an .888 OPS, with 17 steals. Both could go in the first round, with Newman ranked about 10-20 spots higher depending on the source.
On Saturday we mentioned the incredibly quick return of Boston College outfielder Chris Shaw, who had hamate surgery just 18 days earlier. He singled as a pinch-hitter on Friday. He pinch-hit again on Saturday, then stayed in the game in left field. He had a single and a walk in his two plate appearances. Shaw did not play in Sunday’s loss to Virginia Tech.
