MLB Draft Names to Know: High School Pitchers
In a deep class of high school arms in the MLB draft, which ones stand out?
This year’s draft has been touted as deep, but not excellent, which is true. The top of the draft isn’t exceptional, which is why you hear so much discussion this late about who will go #1 in the draft. The MLB draft this year does, however, have tremendous depth at a number of positions. I highlighted one of them when I reviewed the catchers in the draft. Today, we’ll look at probably the deepest position in the entire draft, high school pitchers.
Jason Groome, LHP, New Jersey HS
Who Is He?
Groome is widely considered the top prospect in the entire draft. He’s a lefty that can throw up to the mid-90s with three “plus” pitches and a potential of all four pitches being graded that way. He was suspended for a portion of his 2016 season due to an odd rule about transferring schools, but that has continued some red flags that teams have had about Groome’s maturity and responsibility for his actions, as teams have asked him about the incident (and other things as well).
Groome has a great body for projection, throwing in a way that certainly doesn’t make you think there will be any future issues with him, injury-wise. Groome has been rumored to want big money to keep him from going to Vanderbilt, but he’ll likely be selected in the top 5-7 selections, so he’ll get the money needed to keep him out of school.
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Riley Pint, RHP, Kansas HS
Who Is He?
While Groome being a lefty probably gets him the consensus top selection, there are multiple places out there (Baseball America being one) that have Pint ranked over Groome. Pint has dialed up his fastball to 102 in short stints during showcase season last summer, and he mixes in a repertoire that is akin to Noah Syndergaard, with a change up and slider that both get rated that high by scouts and a curve that some scouts say could be his best secondary pitch, but he’s still developing feel on that pitch.
Pint is incredibly athletic, being a basketball recruit before giving up basketball to focus on baseball later in his high school years. He has less wear and tear on his arm than most, but he also has some worries with his delivery as he has a “stiff” front side, meaning he lands more straight than bent on his landing leg, and that can create issues in the arm and obliques.
Pint should be a top-10 selection and could even go ahead of Groome to a team that likes him more, and there are a number of teams that reportedly feel that way. He’s currently committed to Louisiana State.
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Next: Bama lefty and Cali righty
Matt Manning, RHP, California HS
Who Is He?
Manning’s father was an NBA basketball player, and his brother is a college basketball player, so he comes from an athletic background, and he’s got the height to match at 6’5″. He’s probably even got a little more growing to do as his brother has added some height since graduating high school. Manning played basketball this year as well, so he’s been a multi-sport guy all the way through his high school career, which is a draw to a number of teams.
Manning has a pitch mix that has seen him close to triple digits with his fastball, sitting in the 95-97 MPH area. He repeats his delivery well, and it sounds like his slider and change have taken big steps forward. Manning has signed to play both baseball and basketball at Loyola Marymount, and he reportedly wants a big number to keep him out of that commitment.
He’ll be taken in the top 15 selections, unless his money causes him to fall to teams who have the money to work a deal with him later in the draft.
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Braxton Garrett, LHP, Alabama HS
Who Is He?
Garrett has a long history in front of major scouts, pitching on Team USA in the 18U World Cup. He may have the best curve ball in the entire draft class, college or high school, and it’s one of the better ones I’ve seen in a long time from a high school arm. He’s able to throw the pitch with command as well, which is a big thing.
Garrett sits in the low-90s with his fastball and has a very nice change up as well. His delivery is fluent and easy. He’s reportedly asked a fairly high number to get him to not go to Vanderbilt, but I would wager he goes in the top 10-12 picks, which should be enough to buy him out of that commitment.
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Next: NY Righty and a Midwest Lefty
Ian Anderson, RHP, New York HS
Who Is He?
Anderson has moved up the board consistently since last spring as he’s continued growing and adding velocity. He’s now 6’4″ and throwing in the mid-90s, with reports of him touching 97. He’s got a very good curve ball and one of the better change ups in the draft, which makes his three pitch mix very desirable.
Anderson is the third pitcher mentioned here that is committed to Vanderbilt, and he’s the first that might make campus, as he has a pretty high number that could cause him to be a later pick than his skills would suggest. I’ll wager that he’s a top 10 pick on talent, but he may be selected after the top 20.
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Joey Wentz, LHP, Kansas HS
Who Is He?
Wentz has been dropping on some lists, and I’d contend that’s due to prospect fatigue as much as anything as people have been watching Wentz since he was a 15-year-old sophomore standing 6’5″ and showing solid velocity. He’s filled out very well, and could even add more strength to a very nice frame. He’s got a fastball that runs into the mid-to-upper-90s along with a curve that is above average as well. His change needs work, but it’s solid.
Wentz has been rumored to want a decent amount of money to buy him out of his commitment to the University of Virginia, and I honestly don’t see him getting drafted high, but he’s a big time candidate to go in the 30s-40s in the draft with a deal to someone for an over-slot amount of money.
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Next: A Pair of Texas Arms
Forrest Whitley, RHP, Texas HS
Who Is He?
Whitley has a huge frame, but possibly concerningly so, as he sits 6’7″ and over 250 pounds. Whitley has worked to drop 20-30 pounds from his previous weight to get to near 250, but the weight could be an issue going forward. Whitley has worked in the mid-90s and touched 97-98 along with a very good slider and a curve and change that both need a bit of work.
Whitley has committed to Florida State, but he’ll likely be going in the top 20 picks, and he’ll get enough money from whomever selects him to keep him from being a Seminole.
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Kyle Muller, LHP, Texas HS
Who Is He?
Muller is a guy who got helium as he performed well in the showcase circuit and then carried that forward to an incredible 36 consecutive outs recorded by strikeout this season. Stop, back up, and read that again. 36 outs in a row were via strikeout. He also struck out 24 straight hitters as part of that streak, so it wasn’t like he was giving up tons of runs while getting outs by strikeouts. He was dominating.
Muller is a guy who doesn’t have major velocity, but he does sit in the lower 90s with good snap to it. He does need work on his slurvy breaking ball and his change, and if his number gets too big, he may end up honoring his commitment to the University of Texas, where he’d likely pitch and play 1B/OF as a legit power hitter at the collegiate level.
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Next: California Right-Handed Quartet
Jared Horn, Kevin Gowdy, Nolan Martinez, Reggie Lawson
Who Are They?
Horn has jumped up the California prep ranks as his fastball has reached the mid-90s, touching 97. His offspeed stuff is still inconsistent, and his delivery has some effort to it, but the California commit could likely be selected at the back of the first round and could be bought out from his commitment.
Gowdy is a UCLA commit with a lean build currently but a good shoulder frame at 6’2″ to add some good weight. He has had some velocity issues over this spring, which could scare off some teams, but when he’s on, he’s a guy who sits 91-93 and touches 95-96 with excellent pitchability on the mound and a high baseball IQ. He has great mechanics and delivery as well. I could see him being a factor starting at the back of the first round and certainly gone by the mid-second round.
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Martinez may be the guy on this list that ends up in college, primarily because he wants to hit as well as pitch at San Diego State. He’s very lean at 6’3″ and 165, but he has a frame to add another 20 pounds in a healthy way. He could be a possible third baseman prospect, but he’s really by far a better pro prospect as a pitcher with a mid-90s fastball with a huge spin rate that sinks hard on hitters.
He also throws a breaking ball described as a slider that works more like a sharp breaking curve in the upper 70s that is a very good paired pitch with that sinking fastball. He’ll go from the end of the first round to the mid-third round depending on how sure a team is that they could buy him away from SDSU.
Lawson finished his season injured, which may scare off some guys, but his huge upside and athleticism will definitely entice teams. He’s got a fastball up to 94-95 and a curve/change mix that is very solid, if needing some refinement in how he uses the pitches. Lawson is committed to Arizona State, but he’ll likely be in play as early as the end of the first round and certainly off the board by the end of the second round.
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Next: A Big Group of Big Arms
The Long List of Who Is Left
This obviously isn’t going to be an extensive list by any means, but I want to highlight a number of the arms who will also be highly sought after on draft weekend.
Alex Speas, RHP, Georgia HS – Speas may go ahead of a number of the guys profiled above, but he also seems to have more variance in opinion on scouts I’ve talked to than any other pitcher on this list. He’s athletic with a very explosive raw arm, but he can be all over the place in his delivery, and I’ve had one scout basically guarantee a TJS in his near future. He’s committed to Auburn.
Jesus Luzardo, LHP, Florida HS – Luzardo was a near sure-fire first rounder this spring and then his elbow popped. He had TJS in March, and teams will need to factor that into his selection. He’s got great pitchability, but he had added velocity before his injury, topping out at 97. He’s committed to Miami, but a selection and over-slot bonus in the second round could buy him away from the Hurricanes.
Cole Ragans, LHP, Florida HS – Ragans isn’t a guy with incredible velocity, topping out in the 93 MPH range, but he has great baseball IQ and gets good downward plane with his 6’4″ frame to generate ground balls. He’s a guy that I could see a team getting him to leave his commitment to Florida State with a second round selection.
Nicholas Hanson, RHP, Minnesota HS – Hanson is the penultimate helium/pop-up prospect. He’s a guy that comes from a cold-weather state (does it get any more cold weather than Minnesota?!), and he went from a guy with upper 80s velocity to mid-90s velocity now along with a nice curve.
He’s got a great frame already at 6’6″ and 220 pounds, and he won’t turn 18 until June 10th. He may be drafted before his 18th birthday as he very well could end up in the second round picks to pull him away from his Kentucky commitment. He’s a work in progress, but he’s the type of guy that you see a lot of teams falling all over on draft day.