Jake Bird

A shoulder injury sank Bird's draft hopes last year, but he returned to UCLA as a senior and became the Bruins' top starter. He went 7-4, 1.99 in a team-high 15 starts during the regular season, carrying the load as expected top starters Kyle Molnar, Justin Hooper and Jon Olsen all went down with elbow injuries. Bird is physically well put together at 6-foot-4, 210 pounds, but he doesn't have blow-away stuff. He pitches to contact with a sinking, 89-93 mph fastball and an above-average, mid-80s slider, inducing a lot of ground balls and letting his defense work. His max-effort, high three-quarters delivery creates some deception but also limits his command. Bird projects as a two-pitch reliever at the next level, with a groundball specialist becoming his most likely outcome. His talent is that of a seventh- to 10th-round pick and he is expected to go in that range as a senior sign.