Going through my notes file of all the 2013 high school players I’ve seen over the past several months, here are six players who didn’t make Baseball America’s Top 100 list, or the list of 50 players who just missed, but who are still guys that I really liked when I saw them. Some will be drafted out of high school, others may have to go prove themselves in college, but these are all guys who drew my attention for one reason or another . . .

Derek Rustich, 3b/1b, Grossmont HS, El Cajon, Calif.
I didn't see Rustich this summer, but I liked him when I saw him as a rising junior. He has good size at 6-foot-5 and 225 pounds, has strength in his lefthanded swing and already shows some feel for driving the ball the other way. Rustich is committed to Texas Tech and apparently he's also pretty good at basketball trick shots.

Austin Sexton, rhp, Sparkman HS, Harvest, Ala.
Sexton has a lean, projectable build at 6-foot-2 and 165 pounds. His fastball sat in the 87-89 mph range this summer, but there's room for more there as he continues to get stronger and fill out. He showed a clean, athletic delivery, a quick arm and good control and feel for his pitches. In addition to his fastball, he mixed in a slider and a changeup that both hovered around 80 mph. Sexton is committed to Mississippi State. Update: Sexton tore the ACL in his left knee playing basketball this winter and likely won't pitch this spring.
[...] Continue Reading »

Going through my notes file of all the 2013 high school players I’ve seen over the past several months, here are six players, listed alphabetically, who didn’t make Baseball America’s High School Top 100 ($) list, or the list of 50 players who just missed ($), but who are still guys that I really liked when I saw them. Some will be drafted out of high school, others may have to go prove themselves in college, but these are all guys who drew my attention for one reason or another.

Alec Grosser, rhp, Williams HS, Alexandria, Va.
Grosser has a athletic, projectable frame at 6-foot-4 and 190 pounds. He has long arms with a whippy, deceptive, three-quarter arm action. His fastball sits in the 89-91 mph range with good sinking life and he touched 93 mph at the Perfect Game National Showcase last summer. He got under his 74-76 mph slider there, but his build and present velocity are certainly interesting. Grosser is committed to George Mason.

Bryce Harman, lhp/1b, Byrd HS, Chesterfield, Va.
Harman draws looks with his professional build at 6-foot-6 and 205 pounds. He has extremely strong hands and power potential as a lefthanded hitter. He hits from an upright, open stance and shows simple swing mechanics, but will need to keep his head more balanced in his load for better pitch recognition. He also is intriguing as a lefthanded pitcher, where he sits in the 87-89 mph range with a mid-70s curveball. Harman is committed to East Carolina.
[...] Continue Reading »

Going through my notes file of all the 2013 high school players I’ve seen over the past several months, here are six players, listed alphabetically, who didn’t make Baseball America’s High School Top 100 ($) list, or the list of 50 players who just missed ($), but who are still guys that I really liked when I saw them. Some will be drafted out of high school, others may have to go prove themselves in college, but these are all guys who drew my attention for one reason or another.

Malik Collymore, ss, Port Credit SS, Mississauga, Ont.
Collymore has a tightly-wound, compact build at 6 feet and 190 pounds. He is a tick above average as a runner, shows nice infield actions and average arm strength, giving him a chance to stay at shortstop. Otherwise, he'll make a fine defensive second baseman. He has interesting bat speed and some sneaky power for his size. Collymore is committed to North Carolina State.

Tanner Draper, rhp, Riverton (Utah) HS
Draper has an athletic frame at 6-foot-3 and 190 pounds. His fastball has heavy life in the 87-89 mph range, but he drops into the mid-80s after a couple innings. He throws a tight curveball in the mid-to-upper 70s and an occasional changeup. Draper will need to do a better job commanding his pitches and is committed to Oregon State.
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It's a bit of a light year in the Northeast for college pitchers. One of the most exciting draft-eligible arms in the region was on display in Cary, N.C., on Opening Day, so there were about a dozen scouts taking in the 2013 Ron Fraser Classic at the USA Baseball National Training Complex.

Righthander Pat Young from Villanova took the mound against Monmouth to open the season. Young, who stands 6-foot-7 and 208 pounds, gave up three runs on nine hits with a walk and three strikeouts over 5 1/3 innings for a no-decision.

Young sat in the 92-94 mph range and topped out at 95 with some natural sinking action. His 79-81 mph breaking ball is developing right now, but showed signs of becoming an average slider. He only threw a couple changeups during his first outing.
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RALEIGH — Appalachian State senior Rob Marcello wasn't drafted out of Royal Palm Beach (Fla.) High. He wasn't drafted out of Indian River State (Fla.) JC as a teammate of Padres 2011 first-rounder Cory Spangenberg. And he wasn't drafted as the Mountaineers' Sunday starter last year, after the 6-foot-3, 245-pound lefthander went 6-5, 5.31 with 48 strikeouts and 30 walks over 83 innings.

This year, his role has changed and has boosted his draft stock. Marcello is now in the closer's role, a move that has boosted his fastball into the 91-93 mph range and getting as high as 95.
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SYRACUSE — The East Coast Professional Showcase has seen plenty of pitchers over the years who were not high picks (or went undrafted) out of high school, but went significantly higher out of college and then reached the big leagues.

Guys like Justin Verlander, David Price, Paul Maholm, Alex White, Mike Minor, Adam Warren and Eric Surkamp all fit this description.

Righthander Andy Ravel from Wilson High in West Lawn, Pa., doesn't have the strength yet to grind through a professional season—though a lot can change between now and draft day. Right now, Ravel has a thin build at 6-foot-1 and 165 pounds and he throws his fastball in the 85-87 mph range.

Growing up in Pennsylvania, Ravel is a Phillies fan, so he said it was exciting for him to put on their uniform, as they're the team sponsoring the Northeast players this year.

"You're always watching the games with your dad or brother and your family and you're like, 'I really wish I could put on that jersey and play one day.' And now I have that opportunity," Ravel said. "It's not the Phillies Phillies, but it's a step toward the Phillies and it feels pretty exciting."

Even without present strength and fastball velocity, the Kent State recruit does a lot of things that scouts like to see. He showed good athleticism and a loose, repeatable delivery. Ravel only threw one inning on Aug. 2, but threw a lot of strikes and showed feel for four pitches—his fastball, a 73-74 mph curveball, a 78-79 mph slider and a 78 mph changeup. [...] Continue Reading »

LOS ANGELES — MLB Network will televise the first and first supplemental rounds of the draft on Monday, June 7. Once the cameras have been switched off and the pundits depart, the final stages of the draft will take place on June 8 and 9.

In Southern California, playoffs are continuing for both Division-II and junior college programs. Over the past two weeks, Baseball America bird dog scout Dave Perkin has hit the road to get a peek at several talented but relatively unknown players who, if selected, will probably be chosen in the non glamour rounds: 7 through 50. Here are some reports on small-school players making some noise. Make sure to check out Baseball America's Draft Tracker on May 26 for a look at some under-the-radar high school and Division-I prospects from Southern California this year.

Josh Thompson, OF, El Camino JC
A lefthanded-hitting center fielder, Thompson has tremendous speed and is a wonderful defensive outfielder, tracking down drives from gap to gap. Thompson has swiped 28 bases this year, and his bat has shown marked signs of improvement. A late-round draft prospect, Thompson may not be ready for pro ball just yet, but his skills fit comfortably at the D-II, D-III, NAIA—and possibly D-I—levels.
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We're putting Part I of BA's Draft Preview issue to bed. We're lining up the top 200 or so players by position, with 100 or so scouting reports, before the Part II blowout later this month and before the state-by-state scouting reports start going online in about 10 days. We've also got a four-man Deluxe Podcast that goes a bit more into some of the draft's bigger issues.

In the course of gathering all that information, we've got a few tidbits to share, from all our staffers covering the proceedings:

• James Paxton has started throwing for Grand Prairie in the independent American Association in two exhibition games. While there's one report of Paxton flashing his mid-90s stuff from his peak in 2009 at Kentucky, one scout told BA that he sat 88-90 mph and had quite a bit of rust to shake off. On Sunday, he retired the first seven batters in an exhibition against Shreveport-Bossier before tiring, and didn't make it out of the third inning. The regular season begins Friday against Pensacola.

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The theme in Georgia this spring is that none of the top arms for the 2009 draft are at Georgia and Georgia Tech. That doesn’t mean those teams lack arms; Tech’s Zach Von Tersch will go in the single digit rounds despite an inconsistent season, sophomore Deck McGuire will be a first-rounder next year if he keeps it up, and burly righty Kevin Jacob has a chance to be an early round pick if he shows more mid-90s heat and more consistency next season. Georgia has Dean Weaver and Alex McRee throwing in the low 90s and pushing the first few rounds as well (signability pending).

But for ’09, the big arms are at Kennesaw State (as previously written here) with Chad Jenkins and Kyle Heckathorn. And the state’s pop-up guy for the year is sophomore-eligible Daniel Sarisky, who was at Division III Oglethorpe this spring. Oglethorpe’s season has ended (hey, it’s D-III), and scouts are sure to work out Sarisky individually to get a look at one of the state’s hardest throwers. [...] Continue Reading »

What happens in Vegas doesn’t always stay in Vegas . . .

One of the names continually popping up during my four-corners calls is Danny Reynolds, a righthander at Durango High in Las Vegas. Over his first seven games with the Trailblazers this season, Reynolds is 3-3, 2.26 with 60 strikeouts and 13 walks over 40 innings, blazing his own trail right up teams’ draft boards.
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BA staffers have started their draft calls in earnest, bearing down for our mid-May Draft Preview issue, and conversations with scouts and college coaches always reveal interesting information that need not be held until the Preview issue. So we’ll be dropping some of these short updates between now and mid-May, when our full reports really get started online and in the print edition of the magazine.

• We just posted an updated Top 50 for subscribers, and we’re already receiving plenty of feedback on it from industry types. One player it looks like we’re a little light on is Georgia prep righthander Zack Wheeler, who is likely to go much higher than our No. 32 listing. One front-office official said he didn’t think Wheeler would get out of the first 10 picks; the top 20 certainly seems reasonable.

Wheeler pumps his fastball into the 90-94 mph range, touching 96, and does everything with ease, while sporting a 6-foot-4, 170-pound frame that scouts love to project. As one source put it, 2008 High School Player of the Year Ethan Martin—a Georgia prep righty whom the Dodgers picked in the first round last year, 15th overall—had better present stuff, but Wheeler’s is comparable, with more mound savvy and control and consistent, dominant performance. [...] Continue Reading »

BA’s own bird dog, Dave Perkin, checks in from the inaugural Big 3 of the West college showcase.

LONG BEACH—The dream, rarely fulfilled, of every baseball scout and recruiter is to attend a game or showcase and discover a premium talent that almost no one has seen previously.

Such was my experience last weekend at the inaugural Big 3 of the West college showcase, which inadvertently served as an extended coming out party for Nick Cuckovich (COO-kuh-vitch), an athletic and powerfully built 6-foot-2, 190-pound infielder from Lambrick Park Secondary School in Victoria, British Columbia. He’s the rare Canadian who bats righthanded. [...] Continue Reading »

Another high-profile draft-and-follow signed Wednesday. Delgado (La.) Community College outfielder Lee Haydel didn’t match the seven-figure bonuses righthanders Matt Latos (Padres) and Jordan Walden (Angels) got on deadline day, but he did receive $624,000 from the Brewers. Milwaukee drafted him in the 19th round out of a Louisiana high school last June. [...] Continue Reading »

The rise of Devin Mesoraco was easily the most exciting story of amateur baseball in Pennsylvania this year. While Mesoraco, a senior catcher from Punxsutawney, made his move early this spring, the last month of the season saw a college prospect from the Keystone State make a push, albeit not nearly as high in draft stock as Mesoraco. [...] Continue Reading »

Neither T.J. McFarland nor Chris Province made our Top 200 Prospects list that we put together early last week, but both pitchers would make it if we were updating it today. [...] Continue Reading »

ANAHEIM–As luck would have it, the best games in Tuesday’s quarterfinal action were all held at one location, so I saved some gas money and settled in for a couple of intriguing matchups.

One of the benefits of the National Classic is seeing the different styles of play from teams from different parts of the country, and hitting has prevailed over pitching for the most part this week. [...] Continue Reading »

FULLERTON, Calif.–The first day of a busy week in Southern California is winding down. I’m at the nightcap of the first round of the Phil Nevin National Classic, where Riverside High (Greer, S.C.) and Esperanza (Calif.) High are tied at 2 after one inning at Goodwin Field on the campus of Cal State Fullerton.

The National Classic is a 16-team tournament held today through Thursday, and the Anaheim Lions Easter tournament is also being played here in Orange County this week. We’ve got 47 high school teams from California and five other states playing from sunup to well after sundown, all in a 20 mile radius. Is this heaven? [...] Continue Reading »