Ryder Jones

Jones has spent plenty of time around the game with his father Billy, a longtime college assistant who got his first head coaching job at Appalachian State. Ryder has performed well no matter where he has played, whether it was in the Northwest, Oklahoma or now North Carolina. He plays shortstop in high school but will move to third base because of his lack of speed and range. He has plenty of arm strength and can be a good defender at the hot corner. He has a big frame with room to add strength at 6-foot-3, 185 pounds and projects to have at least average power. He lacks bat speed, which brings up questions about his overall hitting ability. He is committed to Stanford but may be more signable than the typical Cardinal recruit. His talent would fit in the fifth or sixth round, which would not be enough to buy him out of Stanford. Jones also has the fallback of moving to the mound, where he shows a fastball in the low 90s and sharp slider.