10 Risers, Popups & Helium Players To Know In The 2024 MLB Draft Class
Image credit: William Schmidt (Photo by Eddie Kelly / ProLook Photos)
Today we’re looking into 10 prospects who have had significant helium early in the 2024 amateur season. Some of the players below were solidly on the radar entering the year and have simply elevated their draft stock, while others are more off-the-radar names who fit the classic “pop-up player” moniker.
Players are listed below with their current draft rankings where applicable and are ordered roughly by their expected future ranks with their current draft stock outlined.
William Schmidt, RHP, Catholic HS, Baton Rouge, La.
Current Rank: 43
Future Rank: 15-30 range
Schmidt entered the year ranked as the No. 43 prospect in the class and the third high school pitcher on the board. At this point, many scouts believe he’s the top prep arm in the class, thanks to his tremendous feel to spin the ball and improved velocity. After topping out around 95 mph last summer, Schmidt has reached back and gotten to 98 this spring, which amplifies an already impressive starter kick.
There was a significant amount of scouting heat in to see Schmidt at Perfect Game’s high school showdown in Alabama in late February, and in that outing he sat 92-95, touched 96 and showed advanced feel to locate one of the best breaking balls in the class. Schmidt throws an old school spike curveball with top-down, 12-to-6 action and massive spin rates. The pitch features plenty of depth and biting action that powers it down below the zone and below the barrels of hitters.
Most pitchers struggle to land pitches of that profile in the zone with any consistency—especially long-limbed preps—but Schmidt keeps it around the zone consistently and uses it as a strike pitch and a chase offering against both righties and lefties. While Schmidt looks a bit stronger this spring, there’s still plenty of room to add strength to his 6-foot-4, 190-pound frame. His velocity, feel for spin, physical projection and feel for pitching should have him in a position to go somewhere in the back half of the first round at this point, and it wouldn’t be surprising at all if he was the first high school arm off the board.
Trey Yesavage, RHP, ECU
Current Rank: 48
Future Rank: Back of the first round (15-30)
Yesavage has been a consistent Friday night starter for ECU so far this spring, and after four starts and 24 innings has posted a 1.12 ERA with a 42.9% strikeout rate and 7.7% walk rate. That strikeout rate represents a sizable jump from 2023 (33.9%), while the walk rate is roughly in the same range (7.7%) and better than his career rate.
His best outing was an 11-strikeout, eight-inning shutout against Purdue, but Yesavage also matched up with North Carolina in week two and held the Tar Heels to just a single run in six innings and also struck out 11.
He’s done an excellent job establishing a 93-96 mph fastball in the zone for strikes and then going to a strong duo of secondaries that features an arguably plus split-changeup in the mid 80s and a hard slider in the mid to upper 80s. That three-pitch mix should allow him to handle both lefties and righties as well as attack the top of the zone (fastball), glove side (slider) and arm side (changeup) with confidence, and he can also flip in an upper-70s curveball as a change-of-pace offering. He’s in the mix with several high-performing college arms that now look like back-of-the-first-round talents.
Billy Amick, 3B, Tennessee
Current Rank: 63
Future Rank: First round fringe (20-40)
Amick has been on a heater to start the 2024 season. Well, the entire Tennessee lineup has been hitting well, but Amick has the best slugging percentage (.877) on a team that is third in the country in that statistic. In total, he’s hitting .369/.440/.877 with nine home runs and four doubles, while playing a respectable third base.
That combination of offensive firepower—led by his strength and bat speed—and a better-than-expected defensive profile has some whispering about a late–first round draft stock. As with all SEC hitters, continuing this production against conference competition will be key, but Amick has already impressed against a solid slate in front of plenty of evaluators who love his righthanded swing and impact potential.
Braylon Doughty, RHP, Chaparral HS, Temecula, Calif.
Current Rank: 123
Future Rank: Day one (Top 75)
At the 2023 Area Code Games, Doughty flashed one of the best breaking balls at the event, and so far in 2024, he’s been one of the most impressive prospects on the West Coast according to scouts out there.
He’s pushing day one consideration despite a shorter, 6-foot-1, 196-pound frame, thanks to a 92-95 mph fastball that has maintained velocity deeper into his starts and a deeper pitch mix that remains headlined by his feel to spin the baseball. After throwing just his fastball and slider at the Area Code Games, Doughty has shown two distinct breaking balls with Chaparral High with a hard slider in the mid 80s, a curveball with more depth about six mph slower and a mid-80s changeup.
The fastball/slider combination is likely still Doughty’s bread-and-butter moving forward, but scouts have really been impressed with his fastball command and athleticism. He can spot the fastball nicely and finishes his delivery with a steady and balanced landing. Doughty is committed to Oklahoma State, but might be pitching his way straight to pro ball.
Wyatt Sanford, SS, Independence HS, Frisco, Texas
Current Rank: 158
Future Rank: Top three rounds (40-100)
In a class that’s lacking in shortstops at the top of the draft, Sanford has a nice blend of defensive ability at shortstop, lefthanded contact and burgeoning power. He has been an up-arrow prospect early this spring and is now being lumped into day one consideration.
It seems to be the classic example of a well-rounded hitting profile becoming more amplified after a good offseason where strength gains have amplified his offensive upside and overall toolset. Sanford entered the spring as a slick-fielding defender at shortstop who was an easy projection to stick at the position and be an above-average defender. Now he has that profile, while showing more power from the left side of the plate.
Kellon Lindsey, SS/OF, Hardee HS, Wauchula, Fla.
Current Rank: NR
Future Rank: Top three rounds (40-100 range)
Lindsey has been one of the buzziest players in the country, from my perspective, over the last few weeks. A lean righthanded hitter with a 6-foot, 175-pound frame, Lindsey is a two-sport athlete who is also a talented quarterback and just came off a 1,200+ yard, 13-touchdown season with Hardee High in Wauchula, Fla.
On the baseball field, scouts have been blown away by his progress early this spring. He’s an 80-grade runner who could easily move to the outfield and cover plenty of ground as a center fielder, but scouts have been impressed with his defensive ability at shortstop, and more evaluators today believe he can stick at the position than was perhaps the case six months ago.
Upper-level decision makers have been running in to get looks at him, and it sounds like there are scouts who have first-round grades on him because of his speed and athleticism. Lindsey doesn’t offer much impact as a righthanded hitter presently, but he has quick hands and bat-to-ball skills that could allow him to develop into a hitter with a top-of-the-order profile. He’s committed to Florida, but there’s serious interest from MLB teams.
Dmarion Terrell, OF, Thompson HS, Alabaster, Ala.
Current Rank: 156
Future Rank: Top three rounds (40-100 range)
Terrell also played at the same high school showdown that Schmidt pitched in, and he got a bit of a halo effect by playing in a game just before Schmidt toed the rubber and in a solid matchup against IMG Academy lefthander Blake Larson. This meant plenty of decision makers saw the tooled-up outfielder who has some of the most shockingly impressive bat speed in the class.
Terrell was a sleeper pick for some scouts entering the season, but he wasn’t a consistent face on the showcase circuit last summer, and because of that, there will be some clubs who simply don’t put themselves in a position to draft him. Other teams who are more willing to draft a prep hitter off of tools and scouting reports alone might be intrigued by his natural athleticism, physical and power potential.
He has hit several monstrous home runs this spring and also went the other way and singled against a Larson 93-mph fastball in Hoover. Scouts think Terrell can play all three outfield positions and first base—where he’s a potentially plus defender—but he has the sort of power/speed combination that could make an ideal right field profile. Terrell is committed to Northwest Florida State junior college, but some scouts like him in the two-three-round range.
Aidan Major, RHP, West Virginia
Current Rank: NR
Future Rank: Top five rounds (Top 170)
Major is West Virginia’s Friday night starter, and he’s started the 2024 season excellently. Through four starts and 26 innings, he has posted a 3.12 ERA with a 27.5% strikeout rate and 5.8% walk rate. He’s pitched to those stats by showing solid feel to throw strikes with a quality four-pitch mix.
Major starts with a fastball that sits in the 92-94 mph range and has been up to 96, and backs it up with a mid-80s changeup that is his go-to secondary offering and a pitch with impressive arm-side fade and tumbling life. It’s been his most consistent swing-and-miss offering so far this season, though he will also mix in a low-80s slider and an upper-80s cutter that are both solid pitches as well.
While Major has a nearly–maxed out frame at 5-foot-11, 200 pounds, he has plenty of present stuff and seems to be slotting into a solid top-five round range at this stage.
Jaxon Jelkin, RHP, Houston
Current Rank: NR
Future Rank: Top five rounds (Top 170)
Jelkin pitched at South Mountain (Ariz.) JC in 2023 after a brief college stint with Nebraska. He showed a lanky frame, a quick arm, low-90s fastball and flashed an above-average slider at times. The Dodgers drafted him in the 14th round, but he opted to not sign and head to Houston, where he has struck out 25 batters and walked five over his first four starts and 18 innings.
Not signing is looking like a great decision for Jelkin, who is pushing up draft boards, throwing harder and still offering plenty of physical projection in the future with a lean frame now listed at 6-foot-5, 190 pounds. He has averaged 93 mph and touched 96 so far in 2024, while going to his low-80s slider as much as the fastball. The slider has solid two-plane break and nice finish to his glove side, and he has also mixed in a curveball in the upper 70s that has solid depth and spin plus an infrequently used upper-80s changeup.
Altogether, it’s solid present stuff with a body to dream on and a developing track record against college bats.
Dylan Volantis, LHP, Westlake HS, Thousand Oaks, Calif.
Current Rank: NR
Future Rank: Top five rounds (Top 170)
Volantis hasn’t been quite as explosive as Doughty this spring, but he’s certainly an up-arrow pitching prospect with some standout qualities, led by his feel to spin a breaking ball. A 6-foot-6, 200-pound lefthander, Volantis has a great pitching frame and is still coming into his strength.
He didn’t pitch in many high-profile events during the 2023 showcase circuit, and at the time he was mostly pitching in the mid-to-upper 80s with his fastball. That velocity has made strides early this spring and he’s now in the 87-91 mph range and touching 92-93, though scouts still need to project on the pitch to get to an above-average grade.
The calling card for Volantis is his tremendous curveball. It’s a spike-grip downer breaking ball with easy plus potential that he’s shown a knack for commanding. At this stage, his breaking-ball feel is more advanced than his fastball, which can be scattered at times, but he’s used the pitch to rack up 28 strikeouts to just two walks in his first 17 innings with Westlake High this spring.
Volantis is a projection lefthander committed to Southern California, but scouts are excited enough about his frame and pitching traits to put him in the top-five round bucket.
