Jake Brentz

Brentz offers one of the biggest risk/reward dichotomies in the draft. He's a lefthander with extraordinary arm strength, capable of hitting 97 mph and putting on jaw-dropping displays in pregame long toss. But he's new to pitching and raw in every phase of the craft. He showed fifth-round potential as a power hitter with a right-field profile but barely pitched in three high school seasons. His arm strength led to a stint on the mound at the World Wood Bat Association World Championships last fall, and his future changed when he touched 96 mph. Brentz still takes classes at Parkway South but has spent the spring pitching in a Perfect Game league in Iowa. He has a clean arm action and the ball explodes out of his hand. His athletic 6-foot-2, 195-pound frame and easy delivery lead to hope that he can develop his secondary pitches and command, though they're in the rudimentary stages. Brentz's fastball velocity drops off quickly and dips to 88 mph later in games, and he has shown more feel for his changeup than his loopy breaking ball. A team could gamble on him as early as the second round, which would likely be enough to lure him away from a Missouri commitment.