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2015 MLB Draft – Top 100 D1 College Third Base Prospects
1. Miami JR 3B/1B David Thompson: above-average or better raw power, especially the other way; quick bat; great athlete; strong; once strong arm, hasn’t been the same due to injuries; good defender at 1B; below-average speed; might be wishful thinking to believe in him as a future 3B, but the backup plan of him playing LF is a solid fallback option; 6-2, 210 pounds (
2013: .291/.376/.467 – 21 BB/28 K – 3/5 SB – 182 AB
2014: .278/.368/.352 – 14 BB/17 K – 0/1 SB – 108 AB
2015: .335/.447/.683 – 41 BB/24 K – 1/3 SB – 221 AB
2. Florida International JR 3B/2B Edwin Rios: above-average raw power; average or better arm; steady defender; could work in corner OF; strong; slow; consistently productive hitter who remains overlooked as a prospect; 6-3, 200 pounds
2013: .341/.422/.558 – 27 BB/51 K – 2/4 SB – 217 AB
2014: .296/.341/.400 – 17 BB/34 K – 3/3 SB – 230 AB
2015: .314/.427/.610 – 39 BB/37 K – 3/5 SB – 210 AB
3. Santa Clara JR 3B/OF Jose Vizcaino: shows all five tools; quick bat; good athlete; can also play a passable SS when needed or could wind up an above-average defensive OF; average or better power; 6-2, 215 pounds
2013: .222/.314/.267 – 5 BB/17 K – 1/1 SB – 45 AB
2014: .323/.360/.423 – 9 BB/33 K – 11/18 SB – 201 AB
2015: .335/.406/.588 – 23 BB/39 K – 10/17 SB – 335 AB
4. Georgia State JR 3B/RHP Matt Rose: above-average to plus raw power; really good glove; good arm; below-average speed; good approach; has experience at 1B; young for class; 90-94 FB; good CU; SL with upside; 6-4, 200 pounds
2013: .277/.360/.398 – 18 BB/33 K – 2/3 SB – 166 AB
2014: .312/.358/.535 – 13 BB/37 K – 4/5 SB – 202 AB
2015: .289/.391/.613 – 31 BB/43 K – 4/5 SB – 204 AB
2013: 7.39 K/9 | 4.33 BB/9 | 3.37 FIP | 35.1 IP
2014: 8.57 K/9 – 3.00 BB/9 – 3.86 ERA – 20 IP
5. Arkansas State rJR 3B Zach George: has recovered from two ACL tears; great approach; quick bat; capable defender; FAVORITE; 6-2, 200 pounds
2011: .306/.429/.363 – 35 BB/27 K – 160 AB
2012: .285/.397/.450 – 36 BB/20 K – 3/5 SB – 200 AB
2013: .364/.543/.576 – 11 BB/3 K – 1/2 SB – 33 AB
2014: .382/.532/.500 – 10 BB/5 K – 3/3 SB – 34 AB
2015: .399/.548/.562 – 52 BB/28 K – 9/13 SB – 203 AB
6. Miami JR 3B/OF George Iskenderian: good athlete; impressive raw power; quick bat; good speed; could be good at 2B in time; old Jason Esposito comp; South Carolina transfer; good enough glove that his floor (utility player) is higher than most players on this list; 6-1, 190 pounds
2013: .250/.308/.278 – 3 BB/9 K – 1/1 SB – 36 AB
2015: .379/.471/.489 – 34 BB/37 K – 23/25 SB – 219 AB
7. Michigan JR 3B/SS Travis Maezes: really strong hit tool; average or better power upside; good athlete; above-average to plus arm; average speed; might be best at 2B; could be tried at C; pretty swing; I’m a bigger fan of his bat than most; FAVORITE; 6-0, 190 pounds
2013: .327/.407/.447 – 21 BB/30 K – 16/22 SB – 217 AB
2014: .302/.413/.459 – 33 BB/34 K – 19/24 SB – 222 AB
2015: .293/.390/.380 – 20 BB/24 K – 4/6 SB – 150 AB
8. Florida SR 3B/2B Josh Tobias: above-average speed; good pop; really good glove; can also play OF; tough to quantify or explain, but watching him gives the feeling that you’re watching a future big league bench guy; 5-10, 200 pounds
2012: .281/.351/.348 – 8 BB/24 K – 3/5 SB – 135 AB
2013: .273/.356/.364 – 10 BB/22 K – 6/9 SB – 154 AB
2014: .305/.376/.448 – 9 BB/21 K – 2/3 SB – 105 AB
2015: .373/.441/.565 – 18 BB/28 K – 10/12 SB – 193 AB
9. Maryland JR 3B Jose Cuas: good athlete; good defender, chance to be plus; plus raw power; above-average arm; big league regular physical tools, so it’ll come down to whether or not he makes enough contact to play every day; 6-2, 190 pounds
2013: .190/.291/.264 – 15 BB/16 K – 2/2 SB – 121 AB
2014: .279/.333/.417 – 14 BB/49 K – 3/5 SB – 204 AB
2015: .246/.337/.458 – 26 BB/47 K – 10/13 SB – 236 AB
10. Oregon JR 3B/1B Mitchell Tolman: plus arm; average speed; steady glove; great approach; can also play 2B; 6-0, 190 pounds
2013: .345/.421/.436 – 19 BB/24 K – 2/7 SB – 165 AB
2014: .315/.438/.470 – 31 BB/54 K – 5/8 SB – 219 AB
2015: .329/.462/.475 – 42 BB/39 K – 10/16 SB – 219 AB
11. Gonzaga SR 3B Mitchell Gunsolus: love his approach; short to ball; may wind up in LF, but I think you can start at least him at third; old Matt Carpenter comp too generous, but I like him; 6-0, 200 pounds (2012: .186/.300/.209 – 5 BB/11 K – 0/0 SB – 43 AB) (2013: .278/.386/.368 – 33 BB/32 K – 5/6 SB – 212 AB) (2014: .287/.406/.366 – 43 BB/42 K – 4/11 SB – 202 AB) (2015: .353/.449/.556 – 33 BB/32 K – 4/7 SB – 207 AB)
12. Vanderbilt SO 3B Xavier Turner: great athlete; quick bat; power upside; good speed; good arm; would take a leap of faith after his yearlong suspension and time away from diamond, but top five player at his position in terms of raw talent; 6-2, 220 pounds (2013: .315/.382/.356 – 20 BB/21 K – 23/28 SB – 219 AB) (2014: .284/.355/.368 – 16 BB/32 K – 18/25 SB – 250 AB)
13. Saint Louis JR 3B Braxton Martinez: quick bat; intriguing power upside; average speed; above-average defensive tools; strong arm; FAVORITE; 6-3, 220 pounds (2013: .322/.392/.459 – 27 BB/32 K – 1/2 SB – 242 AB) (2014: .291/.374/.424 – 24 BB/28 K – 2/2 SB – 203 AB) (2015: .314/.391/.469 – 26 BB/29 K – 1/3 SB – 207 AB)
14. Eastern Illinois SR 3B Brant Valach: power upside; lots of contact; 6-2, 200 pounds (2012: .314/.351/.377 – 6 BB/21 K – 1/2 SB – 207 AB) (2013: .337/.406/.503 – 16 BB/21 K – 0/2 SB – 193 AB) (2014: .333/.401/.503 – 10 BB/12 K – 0/1 SB – 147 AB) (2015: .328/.386/.503 – 12 BB/18 K – 0/1 SB – 177 AB)
15. San Diego State JR 3B Ty France: intriguing power; 6-0, 205 pounds (2013: .317/.419/.450 – 26 BB/36 K – 1/6 SB – 218 AB) (2014: .356/.450/.498 – 28 BB/25 K – 3/4 SB – 233 AB) (2015: .346/.435/.481 – 23 BB/36 K – 6/9 SB – 237 AB)
16. Valparaiso SR 3B/SS Spencer Mahoney: good defensive tools; gap power at present, good raw power; strong hit tool; good athlete; FAVORITE; 6-4, 200 pounds (2012: .339/.457/.429 – 22 BB/21 K – 1/3 SB – 112 AB) (2013: .255/.365/.333 – 30 BB/36 K – 7/7 SB – 192 AB) (2014: .256/.381/.310 – 40 BB/35 K – 5/7 SB – 203 AB) (2015: .326/.441/.442 – 44 BB/41 K – 9/14 SB – 224 AB)
17. Jackson State SR 3B Melvin Rodriguez: power upside; strong; quick bat; 5-10, 200 pounds (2014: .307/.430/.427 – 41 BB/26 K – 5/7 SB – 199 AB) (2015: .422/.480/.635 – 32 BB/14 K – 13/15 SB – 230 AB)
18. College of Charleston JR 3B/1B Carl Wise: power upside; strong; too aggressive; below-average speed; best served giving it another shot behind plate in pros; 6-2, 220 pounds (2013: .336/.465/.620 – 23 BB/25 K – 3/3 SB – 137 AB) (2014: .295/.395/.419 – 32 BB/37 K – 2/6 SB – 227 AB) (2015: .316/.386/.560 – 27 BB/37 K – 3/3 SB – 234 AB)
19. LSU SR 3B/1B Conner Hale: steady glove; average speed; average or better raw power; good athlete; can also play 2B; 6-2, 190 pounds (2014: .306/.335/.426 – 10 BB/17 K – 0/0 SB – 209 AB) (2015: .349/.392/.493 – 15 BB/30 K – 0/0 SB – 229 AB)
20. Penn SR 3B/SS Mitch Montaldo: good athlete; long and lean build; power to all fields; 6-4, 200 pounds (2014: .211/.316/.376 – 17 BB/34 K – 3/3 SB – 133 AB) (2015: .288/.377/.621 – 14 BB/30 K – 0/0 SB – 132 AB)
21. Arizona State JR 3B/OF Dalton DiNatale: 6-4, 200 pounds (2013: .294/.395/.389 – 19 BB/29 K – 3/5 SB – 126 AB) (2014: .294/.367/.411 – 22 BB/22 K – 7/11 SB – 197 AB) (2015: .274/.318/.419 – 4 BB/3 K – 1/2 SB – 62 AB)
22. Coastal Carolina JR 3B Zach Remillard: good power; good defensive tools; good approach; too aggressive for his own good; strong arm; may not be athletic enough for 3B, but has improved a good bit; good speed; could be tried at 2B; old BA comp: Gordon Beckham; 6-2, 200 pounds (2013: .226/.270/.318 – 12 BB/42 K – 3/3 SB – 195 AB) (2014: .259/.318/.368 – 16 BB/39 K – 3/4 SB – 193 AB) (2015: .270/.339/.419 – 18 BB/38 K – 7/11 SB – 215 AB)
23. Louisiana Tech SR 3B/1B Bre’shon Kimbell: quick bat; interesting defensive tools at third; strong; power upside; strong arm; good agility; could also play OF and has played C; 6-2, 225 pounds (2012: .268/.360/.413 – 21 BB/38 K – 4/7 SB – 179 AB) (2013: .253/.342/.365 – 16 BB/38 K – 4/7 SB – 170 AB) (2014: .234/.307/.342 – 18 BB/25 K – 8/11 SB – 158 AB) (2015: .286/.385/.449 – 19 BB/31 K – 8/9 SB – 147 AB)
24. North Carolina JR 3B/2B Landon Lassiter: above-average to plus speed; average glove; can also play SS; 6-1, 180 pounds (2013: .362/.498/.451 – 56 BB/42 K – 8/12 SB – 257 AB) (2014: .305/.415/.359 – 33 BB/38 K – 3/6 SB – 223 AB) (2015: .300/.420/.399 – 36 BB/38 K – 6/9 SB – 203 AB)
25. Georgia Tech JR 3B/SS Matt Gonzalez: quick bat; average arm; above-average speed; average power; good hands; like his defense more than most; 5-11, 200 pounds (2013: .295/.331/.392 – 12 BB/45 K – 11/15 SB – 227 AB) (2014: .314/.358/.416 – 20 BB/55 K – 9/17 SB – 255 AB) (2015: .285/.317/.412 – 13 BB/52 K – 10/14 SB – 221 AB)
26. Illinois State JR 3B/RHP Ryan Koziol: bat with upside; room to grow; 6-3, 185 pounds (2015: 8.10 K/9 – 4.95 BB/9 – 20 IP – 6.75 ERA) (2015: .298/.417/.419 – 42 BB/24 K – 1/2 SB – 191 AB)
27. Arkansas JR 3B Bobby Wernes: good defender; strong arm; 6-3, 200 pounds (2014: .217/.317/.223 – 20 BB/36 K – 1/4 SB – 175 AB) (2015: .291/.393/.462 – 27 BB/31 K – 3/4 SB – 199 AB)
28. Virginia SR 3B Kenny Towns: good glove; strong arm; have heard teams consider him a potential catcher conversion; 5-11, 185 pounds (2012: .333/.424/.431 – 5 BB/10 K – 51 AB – 1/1 SB) (2013: .317/.398/.548 – 19 BB/27 K – 5/6 SB – 186 AB) (2014: .278/.374/.396 – 18 BB/29 K – 6/6 SB – 187 AB) (2015: .308/.376/.475 – 24 BB/29 K – 2/4 SB – 221 AB)
29. Canisius SR 3B Jesse Puscheck: good enough glove; strong; power upside; 6-2, 200 pounds (2013: .280/.373/.441 – 12 BB/21 K – 4/4 SB – 93 AB) (2014: .295/.398/.435 – 27 BB/26 K – 3/4 SB – 193 AB) (2015: .288/.404/.424 – 37 BB/29 K – 11/14 SB – 236 AB)
30. UNC Wilmington JR 3B/SS Terence Connelly: no big tool, but solid; 6-1, 205 pounds (2013: .306/.469/.344 – 38 BB/23 K – 3/5 SB – 186 AB) (2014: .246/.386/.283 – 26 BB/20 K – 0/1 SB – 187 AB) (2015: .354/.492/.431 – 41 BB/30 K – 6/9 SB – 181 AB)
31. TCU SR 3B/2B Derek Odell: strong arm; good power upside; average at best speed; old Taylor Featherston comp; good athlete; might be good enough to stick at SS, steady at 2B and 3B; 6-1, 185 pounds (2012: .322/.383/.471 – 17 BB/25 K – 6/8 SB – 174 AB) (2013: .280/.333/.324 – 15 BB/24 K – 1/1 SB – 182 AB) (2014: .265/.347/.324 – 30 BB/32 K – 8/10 SB – 253 AB) (2015: .280/.356/.365 – 23 BB/38 K – 7/10 SB – 189 AB)
32. Western Kentucky JR 3B Danny Hudzina: 5-11 (2015: .327/.369/.515 – 14 BB/16 K – 3/5 SB – 202 AB)
33. Columbia SR 3B David Vandercook: power upside; 6-1, 190 pounds (2014: .252/.346/.440 – 15 BB/45 K – 2/3 SB – 159 AB) (2015: .313/.421/.552 – 25 BB/34 K – 2/2 SB – 163 AB)
34. Louisiana-Monroe SR 3B/1B Keelin Rasch: good arm; power upside; 5-11, 200 pounds (2014: .289/.353/.430 – 17 BB/34 K – 0/1 SB – 242 AB) (2015: .359/.395/.571 – 9 BB/17 K – 4/4 SB – 217 AB)
35. UNC Asheville SR 3B/1B Hunter Bryant: power upside; good glove at 1B; 6-4, 230 pounds (2012: .291/.354/.352 – 15 BB/36 K – 1/1 SB – 165 AB) (2013: .225/.290/.275 – 14 BB/40 K – 0/1 SB – 160 AB) (2014: .273/.376/.384 – 33 BB/28 K – 0/1 SB – 198 AB) (2015: .340/.420/.575 – 31 BB/48 K – 0/0 SB – 212 AB)
36. Florida International rSR 3B Josh Anderson: average power; strong to plus arm; good athlete; average defender; 6-0, 220 pounds (2013: .288/.344/.485 – 14 BB/39 K – 5/5 SB – 229 AB) (2014: .300/.364/.427 – 24 BB/25 K – 3/6 SB – 220 AB) (2015: .271/.357/.436 – 21 BB/28 K – 0/1 SB – 181 AB)
37. Savannah State SR 3B Zachary Brigham: 6-0, 220 pounds (2014: .271/.320/.337 – 13 BB/9 K – 1/3 SB – 166 AB) (2015: .353/.431/.476 – 24 BB/15 K – 5/9 SB – 187 AB)
38. Coastal Carolina JR 3B/C Tyler Chadwick: good approach; can play anywhere; average speed; 5-9, 180 pounds (2013: .333/.451/.359 – 8 BB/10 K – 0/1 SB – 39 AB) (2014: .299/.389/.369 – 25 BB/28 K – 4/5 SB – 187 AB) (2015: .302/.419/.459 – 30 BB/41 K – 3/5 SB – 172 AB)
39. Florida Atlantic SR 3B/SS Ricky Santiago: really good defender; strong arm; good speed; sneaky pop; too aggressive for his own good, but improving; 6-0, 190 pounds (2012: .195/.290/.379 – 12 BB/30 K – 0/0 SB – 87 AB) (2013: 278/.331/.405 – 17 BB/60 K – 3/5 SB – 237 AB) (2014: .243/.291/.343 – 17 BB/51 K – 1/2 SB – 210 AB) (2015: .317/.402/.511 – 32 BB/54 K – 3/4 SB – 227 AB)
40. Chicago State SR 3B Mattingly Romanin: good speed; 5-10, 185 pounds (2012: .311/.403/.417 – 27 BB/39 K – 6/13 SB – 206 AB) (2013: .290/.399/.395 – 18 BB/39 K – 11/17 SB – 162 AB) (2014: .312/.424/.401 – 34 BB/33 K – 13/17 SB – 202 AB) (2015: .318/.410/.498 – 26 BB/43 K – 5/8 SB – 201 AB)
41. College of Charleston rJR 3B/SS Morgan Phillips: good athlete; strong arm; good defensive tools; gap power, could be more there; above-average speed; untapped upside as a hitter; might be destined for OF; 6-1, 210 pounds (2013: .276/.315/.474 – 6 BB/55 K – 3/6 SB – 152 AB) (2014: .247/.305/.379 – 13 BB/40 K – 4/4 SB – 182 AB) (2015: .324/.364/.488 – 11 BB/34 K – 7/10 SB – 207 AB)
42. Wright State SR 3B/2B Michael Timm: quick bat; big power upside; good athlete; average arm; good at third base; good speed; FAVORITE; 6-4, 200 pounds (2012: .275/.376/.358 – 16 BB/21 K – 2/3 SB – 120 AB) (2013: .227/.305/.319 – 19 BB/34 K – 1/3 SB – 207 AB) (2014: .325/.432/.467 – 31 BB/37 K – 7/10 SB – 212 AB) (2015: .294/.356/.387 – 15 BB/29 K – 5/8 SB – 238 AB)
43. Missouri State SR 3B/OF Dylan Becker: 6-0, 200 pounds (2014: .266/.354/.365 – 29 BB/35 K – 14/17 SB – 222 AB) (2015: .318/.457/.462 – 49 BB/33 K – 3/10 SB – 195 AB)
44. Louisiana SR 3B Tyler Girouard: 5-9, 180 pounds (2014: .324/.433/.458 – 29 BB/26 K – 4/7 SB – 179 AB) (2015: .337/.440/.468 – 39 BB/29 K – 6/7 SB – 205 AB)
45. St. Joseph’s SR 3B Stefan Kancylarz: strong; 6-0, 200 pounds (2012: .265/.347/.308 – 26 BB/24 K – 5/7 SB – 211 AB) (2013: .283/.408/.467 – 35 BB/33 K – 5/6 SB – 184 AB) (2014: .349/.436/.529 – 27 BB/24 K – 2/3 SB – 172 AB) (2015: .317/.424/.505 – 32 BB/29 K – 2/4 SB – 186 AB)
46. Wichita State JR 3B/RHP Willie Schwanke: 88-92 FB; good cut-SL; like his approach a lot; has bounced around a lot, so never been able to put it all together; upside play for sure; Arkansas transfer; 6-1, 200 pounds (2013: .200/.349/.243 – 16 BB/19 K – 0/0 SB – 70 AB) (2014*: .324/.426/.532 – 32 BB/26 K – 1 SB – 173 AB) (2014*: 26 K/24 BB – 52.1 IP – 4.64 ERA) (2015: 6.82 K/9 – 3.00 BB/9 – 33 IP – 3.00 ERA) (2015: .182/.280/.273 – 2 BB/3 K – 0/0 SB – 22 AB)
47. North Florida SR 3B/2B Trent Higginbothem: gap power; good glove; 6-0, 200 pounds (2014: .335/.393/.495 – 18 BB/18 K – 0/0 SB – 173 AB) (2015: .305/.365/.439 – 25 BB/26 K – 1/1 SB – 246 AB)
48. Furman SR 3B Chris Ohmstede: power upside; 5-9, 200 pounds (2012: .273/.317/.442 – 8 BB/30 K – 1/3 SB – 154 AB) (2013: .279/.320/.509 – 13 BB/45 K – 3/5 SB – 222 AB) (2014: .318/.383/.511 – 21 BB/35 K – 6/7 SB – 233 AB) (2015: .315/.366/.539 – 15 BB/31 K – 4/4 SB – 241 AB)
49. Fresno State JR 3B/OF Kevin Viers: good athlete; power upside; 6-1, 200 pounds (2013: .251/.302/.405 – 13 BB/50 K – 5/8 SB – 195 AB) (2014: .222/.304/.320 – 21 BB/55 K – 2/5 SB – 203 AB) (2015: .257/.349/.422 – 25 BB/37 K – 6/9 SB – 187 AB)
50. Evansville JR 3B Jonathan Ramon: power upside; 5-10, 200 pounds (2013: .276/.368/.425 – 16 BB/39 K – 1/1 SB – 127 AB) (2014: .234/.333./312 – 11 BB/41 K – 2/3 SB – 141 AB) (2015: .304/.409/.485 – 24 BB/55 K – 4/4 SB – 194 AB)
51. George Mason JR 3B Kent Blackstone: 5-11, 190 pounds (2015: .256/.380/.446 – 32 BB/23 K – 4/5 SB – 195 AB)
52. Miami (Ohio) rSO 3B Adam Yacek: 6-1, 180 pounds (2015: .340/.402/.579 – 12 BB/25 K – 2/4 SB – 159 AB)
53. Oral Roberts JR 3B Rolando Martinez: power upside; 6-0, 185 pounds (2015: .322/.403/.405 – 16 BB/21 K – 1/2 SB – 121 AB)
54. Utah rSO 3B Dallas Carroll: good athlete; 6-0, 190 pounds (2013: .282/.361/.350 – 11 BB/14 K – 7/9 SB – 103 AB) (2015: .283/.407/.332 – 28 BB/22 K – 16/26 SB – 187 AB)
55. Missouri JR 3B/1B Josh Lester: average speed; 6-2, 210 pounds (2013: .273/.329/.377 – 13 BB/22 K – 1/1 SB – 154 AB) (2014: .237/.298/.278 – 18 BB/25 K – 4/11 SB – 194 AB) (2015: .280/.363/.436 – 30 BB/30 K – 2/6 SB – 211 AB)
56. Texas A&M SR 3B/RHP Logan Nottebrok: power upside; strong arm; can also play OF; good approach; not a great defender; 90-93 FB with sink; good upper-80s SL; 6-3, 225 pounds (2014: .250/.342/.478 – 19 BB/29 K – 0/0 SB – 136 AB) (2015: .220/.310/.440 – 10 BB/23 K – 1/1 SB – 100 AB
57. Arkansas rJR 3B Mike Bernal: good defender; good athlete; Oklahoma State transfer; 5-11, 190 pounds (2014: .250/.357/.317 – 12 BB/41 K – 1/2 SB – 180 AB) (2015: .282/.416/.396 – 25 BB/34 K – 1/5 SB – 149 AB)
58. Georgia rSO 3B Trevor Kieboom: power upside; steady glove; 6-4, 230 pounds (2014*: .325/.437/.414 – 34 BB/30 K – 10/11 SB – 191 AB) (2015: .241/.359/.324 – 19 BB/33 K – 0/0 SB – 108 AB)
59. Nebraska SR 3B/1B Blake Headley: power upside; good glove; 6-2, 200 pounds (2013: .302/.372/.355 – 19 BB/32 K – 1/2 SB – 169 AB) (2014: .323/.370/.413 – 16 BB/30 K – 2/3 SB – 201 AB) (2015: .271/.345/.425 – 26 BB/39 K – 0/5 SB – 221 AB)
60. Northwestern State SR 3B Chase Daughdrill: 6-1, 200 pounds (2014: .324/.410/.401 – 24 BB/37 K – 5/9 SB – 222 AB) (2015: .324/.417/.476 – 28 BB/32 K – 6/9 SB – 210 AB)
61. Oregon JR 3B/SS Matt Eureste: average or better speed; some pop; good glove; can also play OF; 6-1, 190 pounds (2015: .249/.330/.333 – 18 BB/33 K – 7/13 SB – 177 AB)
62. Ohio State JR 3B/1B Jake Bosiokovic: good athlete; average speed; interesting hit tool; too aggressive; good defender; 6-6, 220 pounds (2013: .278/.344/.374 – 16 BB/57 K – 4/5 SB – 198 AB) (2014: .268/.358/.372 – 16 BB/47 K – 1/2 SB – 164 AB
63.
South Alabama SR 3B/RHP Bud Collura: good speed; 92-94 FB; 6-0, 200 pounds (2013: .257/.370/.271 – 37 BB/25 K – 2/3 SB – 214 AB) (2014: .297/.359/.330 – 9 BB/15 K – 0/2 SB – 91 AB) (2015: .303/.368/.353 – 24 BB/29 K – 16/24 SB – 241 AB)
64. Seton Hall SR 3B Kyle Grimm: 5-11, 190 pounds (2012: .329/.409/.364 – 14 BB/15 K – 2/2 SB – 143 AB) (2013: .341/.422/.407 – 12 BB/11 K – 5/5 SB – 91 AB) (2014: .286/.362/.392 – 17 BB/21 K – 4/4 SB) (2015: .297/.382/.365 – 19 BB/13 K – 2/2 SB – 148 AB)
65. Bowling Green rSR 3B Brandon Howard: good defensive tools; good arm; good speed; 6-0, 165 pounds (2012: .226/.271/.252 – 6 BB/39 K – 3/7 SB – 159 AB) (2013: .203/.318/.243 – 22 BB/47 K – 4/7 SB – 148 AB) (2014: .299/.393/.362 – 17 BB/35 K – 23/24 SB – 127 AB) (2015: .296/.429/.374 – 38 BB/49 K – 42/50 SB – 179 AB)
66. San Diego State SR 3B/1B Ryan Muno: steady defender, average across the board defensively; slow; interesting hit tool; 6-1, 210 pounds (2012: .308/.407/.432 – 18 BB/34 K – 5/7 SB – 185 AB) (2013: .318/.419/.488 – 28 BB/38 K – 0/1 SB – 170 AB) (2014: .268/.320/.333 – 9 BB/27 K – 1/1 SB – 138 AB) (2015: .246/.333/.362 – 14 BB/30 K – 1/5 SB – 138 AB)
67. Wichita State JR 3B Chase Rader: interesting bat; good athlete; strong; good speed; 6-0, 210 pounds (2015: .239/.363/.381 – 19 BB/59 K – 13/18 SB – 176 AB)
68. College of Charleston rSR 3B/RHP Brandon Glazer: plus defender; strong arm; good raw power; 85-90 FB, 92 peak; CU; SL; fresh arm; 6-2, 210 pounds (2012: .313/.407/.500 – 17 BB/29 K – 128 AB – 4/4 SB) (2014: .221/.297/.324 – 20 BB/62 K – 7/10 SB – 222 AB) (2015: 5.11 K/9 – 1.00 BB/9 – 80 IP – 2.67 ERA)
69. Maine SR 3B Luke Morrill: 6-4, 215 pounds (2014: .250/.340/.341 – 5 BB/9 K – 0/2 SB – 44 AB) (2015: .367/.438/.503 – 22 BB/25 K – 8/9 SB – 177 AB)
70. Massachusetts-Lowell SR 3B Matthew Sanchez: good glove; 5-9, 180 pounds (2014: .357/.409/.420 – 11 BB/26 K – 14/17 SB – 157 AB) (2015: .327/.428/.431 – 22 BB/25 K – 18/23 SB – 153 AB)
71. Purdue SR 3B/SS Brandon Krieg: good speed; power upside; strong arm; 6-1, 200 pounds (2014: .264/.329/.337 – 14 BB/31 K – 12/15 SB – 193 AB) (2015: .279/.322/.396 – 15 BB/48 K – 11/13 SB – 222 AB)
72. Houston SR 3B/1B Justin Montemayor: strong hit tool; average at best arm; approach needs work; 6-3, 225 pounds (2013: .315/.380/.414 – 19 BB/56 K – 3/5 SB – 222 AB) (2014: .298/.345/.371 – 13 BB/47 K – 0/0 SB – 248 AB) (2015: .184/.279/.230 – 25 BB/39 K – 3/3 SB – 196 AB)
73. Mississippi State rJR 3B/2B John Holland: good speed; steady glove; Florida State transfer; 5-11, 185 pounds (2015: .246/.316/.316 – 19 BB/26 K – 1/2 SB – 171 AB)
74. Missouri JR 3B/1B Zach Lavy: power upside; 6-3, 220 pounds (2014: .196/.318/.232 – 10 BB/13 K – 0/2 SB – 56 AB) (2015: .238/.281/.367 – 12 BB/50 K – 11/12 SB – 210 AB)
75. Arkansas-Little Rock SR 3B/RHP Tanner Rockwell: 6-3, 200 pounds (2014: .321/.400/.526 – 26 BB/40 K – 4/4 SB – 209 AB) (2014: 10.96 K/9 – 7.43 BB/9 – 22 IP – 1.57 ERA) (2015: .314/.386/.443 – 20 BB/25 K – 3/5 SB – 185 AB)
76. Rice JR 3B Grayson Lewis: steady glove; 5-11, 185 pounds (2015: .277/.444/.301 – 19 BB/13 K – 2/3 SB – 83 AB)
77. Presbyterian SR 3B Jay Lizanich: 6-1, 185 pounds (2012: .316/.354/.353 – 12 BB/26 K – 5/7 SB – 190 AB) (2013: .272/.320/.320 – 14 BB/18 K – 3/4 SB – 206 AB) (2014: .193/.253/.218 – 12 BB/24 K – 1/2 SB – 197 AB) (2015: .344/.394/.455 – 18 BB/13 K – 4/6 SB – 224 AB)
78. Oral Roberts JR 3B Chase Stafford: 6-0, 185 pounds (2015: .301/.426/.438 – 31 BB/31 K – 8/9 SB – 153 AB)
79. Michigan State rSR 3B Mark Weist: 6-3, 215 pounds (2015: .346/.407/.526 – 17 BB/25 K – 11/15 SB – 228 AB)
80. North Carolina Greensboro JR 3B Collin Woody: 6-1, 200 pounds (2015: .296/.362/.508 – 20 BB/28 K – 1/2 SB – 199 AB)
81. Central Michigan JR 3B/OF Justin Wagler: good athlete; good power; good speed; good defensive tools; 6-2, 170 pounds (2013: .222/.290/.368 – 10 BB/29 K – 1/1 SB – 117 AB) (2014: .234/.330/.349 – 14 BB/32 K – 9/11 SB – 192 AB)
82. Morehead State rSO 3B Alex Stephens: 5-10 (2015: .331/.360/.543 – 6 BB/9 K – 2/2 SB – 127 AB)
83. St. Bonaventure JR 3B/RHP Thad Johnson: 5-9, 170 pounds (2014: 5.81 K/9 – 2.32 BB/9 – 31 IP – 4.35 ERA) (2014: .290/.381/.391 – 18 BB/19 K – 3/7 SB – 169 AB) (2015: .354/.403/.481 – 11 BB/18 K – 1/3 SB – 189 AB)
84. Indiana State JR 3B Andy Young: 5-11, 190 pounds (2015: .296/.378/.498 – 14 BB/33 K – 4/5 SB – 203 AB)
85. Wagner JR 3B/OF Ben Ruta: 6-3, 200 pounds (2013: .322/.409/.373 – 13 BB/15 K – 2/2 SB – 118 AB) (2014: .250/.322/.358 – 15 BB/15 K – 18/21 SB – 204 AB) (2015: .327/.412/.469 – 29 BB/33 K – 10/15 SB – 196 AB)
86. Cal State Fullerton JR 3B Jerrod Bravo: 5-10, 200 pounds (2015: .333/.456/.442 – 17 BB/20 K – 4/5 SB – 120 AB)
87. Winthrop SR 3B/OF Brad Kaczka: 6-1, 200 pounds (2015: .369/.429/.442 – 22 BB/26 K – 12/16 SB – 217 AB)
88. Incarnate Word JR 3B Brance Kahle: quick bat; above-average arm; 6-1, 175 pounds (2015: .266/.340/.379 – 17 BB/28 K – 0/0 SB – 177 AB)
89. Portland SR 3B Cody Lenahan: power upside; average at best arm; improving as defender; 6-4, 200 pounds (2013: .326/.356/.374 – 9 BB/37 K – 4/10 SB – 190 AB) (2014: .203/.244/.266 – 8 BB/33 K – 4/6 SB – 192 AB) (2015: .271/.292/.424 – 6 BB/52 K – 0/3 SB – 210 AB)
90. Pacific JR 3B JJ Wagner: good defender; strong arm; 6-3, 200 pounds (2013: .195/.250/.293 – 6 BB/25 K – 0/0 SB – 123 AB) (2014: .190/.253/.232 – 14 BB/35 K – 4/6 SB – 168 AB) (2015: .250/.300/.307 – 11 BB/40 K – 2/5 SB – 176 AB)
91. Nicholls State JR 3B Kyle Reese: 6-0, 185 pounds (2015: .377/.413/.527 – 13 BB/33 K – 4/5 SB – 207 AB)
92. UAB SR 3B Nathan Vincent: good glove; above-average speed; 5-11, 200 pounds (2014: .216/.285/.296 – 14 BB/54 K – 5/6 SB – 162 AB) (2015: .238/.310/.340 – 16 BB/64 K – 8/10 SB – 206 AB)
93. Stony Brook JR 3B Johnny Caputo: like his bat a lot, but still waiting on it to show up in games; 6-2, 200 pounds (2013: .249/.289/.333 – 10 BB/63 K – 5/9 SB – 225 AB) (2014: .236/.295/.352 – 10 BB/30 K – 1/1 SB – 165 AB) (2015: .257/.279/.352 – 2 BB/24 K – 3/3 SB – 105 AB)
94. Long Island-Brooklyn SR 3B Bobby Webb: power upside; strong; 6-2, 210 pounds (2014: .369/.407/.466 – 8 BB/16 K – 1/2 SB – 176 AB) (2015: .251/.310/.383 – 12 BB/29 K – 3/4 SB – 175 AB)
95. La Salle SR 3B Cameron Johnson: 5-11, 200 pounds (2014: .308/.337/.473 – 7 BB/37 K – 2/2 SB – 169 AB) (2015: .327/.381/.509 – 15 BB/47 K – 3/5 SB – 220 AB)
96. Washington SR 3B Alex Schmidt: 6-0, 200 pounds (2013: .081/.190/.135 – 5 BB/9 K – 0/1 SB – 37 AB) (2014: .233/.316/.360 – 13 BB/39 K – 0/1 SB – 172 AB) (2015: .283/.364/.449 – 22 BB/39 K – 1/1 SB – 187 AB)
97. Southeast Missouri State SR 3B Andy Lennington: 6-1, 180 pounds (2014: .312/.336/.433 – 11 BB/52 K – 9/15 SB – 231 AB) (2015: .333/.390/.500 – 19 BB/43 K – 4/7 SB – 204 AB)
98. St. Mary’s JR 3B Anthony Villa: 6-2, 200 pounds (2013: .291/.356/.362 – 19 BB/30 K – 2/5 SB – 196 AB) (2014: .276/.335/.345 – 20 BB/36 K – 4/8 SB – 203 AB) (2015: .343/.415/.488 – 20 BB/37 K – 1/5 SB – 201 AB)
99. Ball State SR 3B Elbert Devarie: 6-0, 170 pounds (2015: .332/.394/.454 – 19 BB/29 K – 4/7 SB – 229 AB)
100. UC Irvine JR 3B Mitchell Holland: 6-0, 215 pounds (2015: .325/.382/.482 – 13 BB/37 K – 1/3 SB – 197 AB)
*****
101. Fairleigh Dickinson JR 3B Joel Roman: 5-8, 185 pounds (2014: .293/.316/.393 – 4 BB/20 K – 0/0 SB – 150 AB) (2015: .246/.351/.438 – 17 BB/29 K – 1/2 SB – 130 AB)
102. Saint Louis JR 3B/SS Josh Bunselmeyer: 6-0, 180 pounds (2015: .275/.353/.430 – 23 BB/48 K – 2/2 SB – 193 AB)
103. Chicago State SR 3B Matt Schmidt: 6-1, 200 pounds (2014: .283/.360/.323 – 10 BB/11 K – 3/3 SB – 99 AB) (2015: .331/.406/.444 – 12 BB/26 K – 1/3 SB – 142 AB)
104. Marshall JR 3B Aaron Bossi: 5-11, 190 pounds (2015: .305/.351/.429 – 7 BB/15 K – 1/6 SB – 105 AB)
105. Fairleigh Dickinson JR 3B/OF Ryan Brennan: 6-2, 180 pounds (2014: .285/.344/.354 – 10 BB/27 K – 2/4 SB – 144 AB) (2015: .261/.318/.449 – 7 BB/26 K – 1/4 SB – 138 AB)
106. Appalachian State SR 3B Noah Holmes: 6-0, 200 pounds (2015: .291/.387/.412 – 21 BB/34 K – 0/1 SB – 148 AB)
107. Air Force SR 3B/2B Noah Pierce: 6-1, 190 pounds (2014: .296/.317/.429 – 5 BB/33 K – 2/4 SB – 196 AB) (2015: .274/.338/.447 – 14 BB/38 K – 12/14 SB – 208 AB)
108. Fordham JR 3B Ian Edmiston: 5-11, 180 pounds (2015: .307/.360/.406 – 11 BB/29 K – 6/12 SB – 192 AB)
109. Siena SR 3B Justin Esquerra: 6-1, 210 pounds (2015: .311/.376/.425 – 19 BB/46 K – 0/0 SB – 193 AB)
110. Bradley rJR 3B Paul Solka: 6-3, 200 pounds (2015: .286/.381/.434 – 16 BB/46 K – 0/1 SB – 182 AB)
111. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi JR 3B Cody Clarke: power upside; good speed; 6-0, 200 pounds (2015: .194/.269/.235 – 7 BB/18 K – 0/0 SB – 98 AB)
600 SLG and BB > K Club
The college update is up to 59.36% complete. Still shooting to get it all wrapped up by Monday. As pumped as I am for this year’s draft to get here, I’m already thinking about projects to work on throughout the rest of the summer. One such project will be my attempt to figure out if there are any statistical benchmarks that correlate to professional success for college prospects. I’m particularly intrigued with doing this with finding the minimum requirements for college pitchers, but some work for hitters might also be fun. That led me to coming up with the mostly arbitrary stat deadlines of a .600 or better slugging percentage AND more walks than strikeouts. I hope to do this a bit more scientifically in the future, but figured these guidelines would make for an interesting look at some of college ball’s top performers in time for this year’s draft. Who are our .600+ SLG and more BB than K hitters?
Again, I’m only about 60% of the way done. If a player is missing it is very possible that I simply haven’t gotten to his team yet. Out of thousands of names, only eight so far hit those high standards…
Illinois SR 1B David Kerian
South Carolina SR 1B Kyle Martin
Arkansas SO OF Andrew Benintendi
Florida International 3B/2B Edwin Rios
Memphis SR 1B Tucker Tubbs
Cincinnati JR 2B/OF Ian Happ
Miami JR 3B/OF David Thompson
Evansville rSR OF Kevin Kaczmarski
Kerian, Martin, and Tubbs are all rock solid senior signs. Benintendi and Happ are top half of the first round talents. Thompson is a gigantic favorite that I’d consider as early as the second round. Kaczmarski, like Benintendi, were originally missed when I went through my notes because of their slugging percentages that begin with 7’s and not 6’s. That’s production right there. Rios is easy to like as a steady fielding, strong armed, above-average power hitting third baseman. I haven’t gotten any worthwhile recent reports on his defense at third, but one of the last notes I have on him is a scout comparing his overall defensive ability (arm, range, hands, instincts, etc.) to Maikel Franco, an underrated defender in many of those areas.
Nevada SR 1B Austin Byler
Florida State JR OF DJ Stewart
Vanderbilt JR SS Dansby Swanson
These guys all just barely missed the cut. Byler is another first base senior sign to add to the mix. Swanson is Swanson. Stewart remains a guy that I’ll likely have higher than in most other places because I believe in the bat so much. It’s a stretch and not an advisable strategy, but a team picking around ten or so in the first round could conceivably walk away from the first three rounds of the draft with Happ, Stewart, and Thompson. Heck, the Astros could potentially go Swanson (2), Happ (5), and Stewart (37) if they wanted to go all-in on crazy productive college bats. Again, I wouldn’t necessarily advise any team do such a thing — diversification is key when building a draft portfolio — but it could be possible. Brendon Sanger of Florida Atlantic, another player I really really really like, also just missed.
CJ Hinojosa and David Thompson
For better or worse, I have a tendency to stick with guys I’ve long liked. Though it may not be the perfect example of that line of thinking, the relatively high placements of SS CJ Hinojosa and 3B David Thompson on my current college hitting big board reflects as much on the promise each player once exhibited (fourteenth and fifty-sixth on the final 2012 board here, respectively) than anything either guy has done through two years of college ball. That’s not to say that Hinojosa and Thompson have disappointed at Texas and Miami. It’s true that both players were better as freshmen than sophomores, though Thompson’s second season struggles can be explained in part to battling injuries. Even if they haven’t quite lived up to the considerable expectations placed on them by internet know-it-alls like me, both have shown plenty of flashes of the ability that once made them potential stars. Both have the talent to get back into the first round conversation with springs that line up with their ability.
At face value Hinojosa’s raw tools and production to date don’t blow you away. His physical abilities defensively work as well as they do because of exceptional first-step instincts and a keen awareness of situational baseball. All of that belies his as yet untapped talent as both a hitter and a fielder. I’m not a scout nor do I have any serious aspirations to be one. I do, however, watch an unhealthy amount of baseball, so I’d like to think I’ve picked up on a few things over the years as a reasonably intelligent person. Even after years of closely watching the game, assessing bat speed remains one of the most nebulous concepts for me. Many of the professionals I’ve talked to over the years have made me feel a bit better about this, as many have agreed with my take that judging bat speed is the closest baseball gets to Justice Potter Stewart’s obscenity threshold test of “I know it when I see it.” Not everybody I’ve talked to has agreed with me on this, but Hinojosa’s bat speed falls in the top tier of all college prospects in this year’s class (if we expanded that search for all of college ball he’d be joined by exciting 2016 prospects like Pete Alonso, Sheldon Neuse, and Kyle Lewis). Plus bat speed with a whole bunch of 50’s and a high degree of certainty of sticking up the middle defensively makes for a pretty enticing pro prospect.
From this very site back in April 2012…
At his best, Hinojosa swings the bat with some of the most fluid yet chaotic yet silky smooth violence you’d ever like to see – his level swing and crazy bat speed epitomize the old John Wooten quote “Be quick but don’t hurry.” Defensively, I think he’ll stick up the middle fairly easily, but he’s one of those “tweener” types for some. Tweener is normally a pejorative turn, but in this case I’d say that the two things that Hinojosa is between are average or better shortstop and potential Gold Glove winning third baseman. His strong commitment to Texas and a season-ending shoulder injury should push him down the board, but I’d take him in the first if I thought he could be convinced to sign.
I’m surprised to have never seen this comparison before, but Hinojosa as a draft prospect reminds me in many ways of former Texas infielder and eventual late-first round pick Omar Quintanilla. That’s the kind of draft ceiling (Quintanilla went 33rd overall) that I think currently makes sense for Hinojosa. Things didn’t work out as hoped for Quintanilla professionally, but that’s hardly a red flag worth stressing out about when evaluating Hinojosa. I have one buddy in the game that likes Hinojosa as much as I do (perhaps even more), and he threw out an Edgar Renteria statistical comp (.280/.340/.400 with 10 HR, 30 2B, and 20 SB) as an absolute best-case scenario ceiling. I’d love to go there, but can’t quite see the bat reaching those heights (to say nothing of the overly generous stolen base totals). If you knock just 5% off of those totals, however, you get a rough line of .265/.320/.380, which feels more within reach. If 95% of Edgar Renteria doesn’t capture the imagination, then think of it as an outcome that should fall within the same ballpark of Erick Aybar’s offensive value. My favorite comparisons guard against my optimism (to a degree) that Hinojosa is a shortstop forever and always, and take a wider look at his long-term professional future. The two most logical career paths for him would resemble something like what Marco Scutaro (an all-time favorite of mine) and Julio Lugo managed to do in in the big leagues. A Scutaro/Lugo comp combo gets you to a .270ish/.335ish/.385ish type of hitter with a long career as a player capable of playing both second and third effectively (plus some outfield here and there) in addition to being able to hold it down at short. Maybe there will be flashes of putting it all together mixed in along the way like Scutaro’s run from 2008 to 2013 or Lugo’s from 2003 to 2006, but the real legacy of this hypothetical career path is in the steady yet unspectacular play and consistent professional approach to the game. I actually really like the Scutaro comp the more I think about it, so, if you’re the type that thinks throwing multiple comps out and seeing what sticks is a little too easy (I get it, it’s cool), then consider Scutaro my one official player comparison for Hinojosa.
(While on the subject of Hinojosa comps, here’s one from one of the best in the college business, Aaron Fitt: former Arizona Wildcat and current member of the St. Louis Cardinals minor league system SS Alex Mejia. That’s a really good comparison, and certainly more grounded in reality than a lot of my more optimistic guesses. I can’t quibble with it, though you can check the archives and see that I was never all that thrilled about Mejia — certainly not like I am about Hinojosa — as a prospect back in the day. I’ll counter his Mejia with another contemporary comp out of Arizona: Kevin Newman. This year’s class has an unusually high number of head-to-head prospect battles with seemingly very similar players, so it’ll be a lot of fun to see how pro teams go about differentiating guys like Hinojosa and Newman, Ben Johnson and Steven Duggar, Giovanni Brusa and Kyri Washington, etc.)
Thompson is a harder player to assess right now because a) we’re still waiting to see him at 100% and b) as one of the draft’s better prospects who isn’t a 2B/SS/CF type, he carries the burden of the needing his righthanded bat to do major damage and fast. I know comps aren’t for everybody, but I’ve always liked them for a variety of reasons. In the case of Thompson, I think the thought exercise of coming up with players with similar athletic backgrounds, physiques, and developmental challenges can be used as a jumping off point to help determine what kind of prospect we’re dealing with. If comps aren’t your thing, that’s cool; I suggest reading the following paragraph from my Miami preview a few weeks ago and calling it a day.
Outside assessments of his raw talent, physical abilities, and professional baseball projection aside, JR 3B/1B David Thompson is a really easy person to root for. Hey, I said I don’t root for teams, but I certainly root for players. I’ve not once heard a negative word uttered about his makeup, both on-field and off, and the hard work and perseverance he’s demonstrated in repeatedly battling back from injuries, including remaking his swing after tearing his right labrum in high school, are a testament to his desire to make it no matter the cost. The fact that he went down from surgery to correct complications from thoracic outlet syndrome in late March of last year only to come back to finish the season by mid-May (he even had a huge hit in their Regional matchup against Texas Tech) tells you a lot about his will to compete. Through all the ups and downs physically, his upside on the diamond remains fully intact from his HS days — I had him ranked as the 56th best overall prospect back then — and a big draft season is very much in play if he can stay healthy throughout the year. The bat will play at the next level (above-average raw power, plenty of bat speed, physically strong, plus athleticism, knows how to use the whole field), so the biggest unknown going into this season is where he’ll eventually call home on the defensive side. I’ve liked his chances to stick at third since his prep days; failing that, I’d prioritize a home in the outfield (he’s not known for his speed, but the athleticism and arm strength should make him at least average in a corner) over going to first, where, overall loss of defensive value aside, at least he’s shown significant upside. His strong showing at the end of the summer on the Cape is an encouraging way to get back into the grind of college ball, though he did appear to sacrifice some patience at the plate for power down the stretch. If he can find a way to marry his two existences — college (approach: 35 BB/45 K in his career) and Cape (power) — in this upcoming season (like in his healthy freshman season), Thompson should find himself off the board early this June.
Now to work backwards a bit to see what recent(ish) prospects Thompson can be measured up against. There have been a fair number of R/R former quarterbacks that have made an impact on professional ball in recent years. Josh Booty and Drew Henson were flops, though extenuating circumstances undoubtedly played a factor in each player’s development. The final word on Josh Fields’ career winds up being a tougher call because there’s little reason to call his career a success (getting bounced from the league at 27 is less than ideal), but he did manage to hit a little bit (.421 career SLG) in just under 800 lifetime plate appearances. If you can go back in time to 2004 and remember how we viewed Josh Fields back then, I think you might agree with me he’s a reasonable comparison for Thompson as a draft prospect. This Scout’s View (it looks like a broken link, but it’s there on the right sidebar) from the March 17, 2004 edition of Baseball America was written about Fields, but could just as easily be written about Thompson today…
He’s going to be a guy with power. He’s got bat speed and strength. He’s not making the kind of contact you hope he will in the future, but he hasn’t played collegiately a lot, and he hasn’t played in the summers to my knowledge, or in the fall (because of football). He’s basically played spring to spring. I think he won’t be a tremendous average hitter, but he will make enough contact to get to his power.
(Defensively), he just needs to continue to make improvements. I don’t see him needing to move if he works hard. His hands and feet are a little rough and his arm is erratic and no better than average. He’s got to work to stay there, but just being around him and knowing his makeup and work ethic, I think he’ll work at it. He’ll be adequate, and when I say adequate, you’re going to give a little bit because of the bat and power you think he’ll have.
As much as I’ll defend Fields as a better player than teams realized, a comparison to him knowing what we now know about his future reads more like a cautionary tale rather than a compliment. But much like comparing Hinojosa to Quintanilla, the comparison itself isn’t designed to predict a pro future but rather to demonstrate a similarity in perceived draft stock. Fields went eighteenth overall in 2004. A mid-first round selection feels like a fairly generous ceiling for Thompson at this point, though it’s not inconceivable he’ll play himself into that range come June.
Another R/R former QB that shares some traits with Thompson is former Clemson football and baseball star Kyle Parker. Parker went 26th overall in 2010. I currently like Parker more than most, so getting a bat like that who has a good shot to play third base (failing that, an outfield corner) intrigues me. Perhaps the best comparison for Thompson in terms of potential professional production is yet another former QB, Eli Manning’s backup at Ole Miss Seth Smith. Smith is a L/L guy, but his career 162 game averages of .265/.350/.450 with 16 HR, 30 2B, 50 BB, and 100 K look like attainable benchmarks (maybe a touch more power, closer to the 18-22 range) for Thompson as a big leaguer. With all college statistical comparison caveats in mind, join me in gazing at Smith as a Rebel (top) and Thompson as a Hurricane (not top)…
.338/.410/.473 with 78 BB/76 K (751 PA)
.286/.372/.434 with 37 BB/50 K (375 PA)
It wouldn’t be a major upset if Thompson closed that performance gap on Smith here in his junior season and went on to have similar success as a big league hitter. With average-ish defense at third, that’s a really nice prospect. Even if he has to play in an outfield corner (like Smith), he’d still hold considerable value.
Running 2015 MLB Draft Prospect Follow Lists (Week Two)
The original is here. The latest is below. The title says it all.
Georgia Tech, Maryland, Miami, and North Carolina State have been added to Boston College, Clemson, Duke, and Florida State. Still waiting on North Carolina to post a real roster online, so we’ll keep skipping them and move on to Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Virginia, and Virginia Tech for next week.
C
- Maryland JR C Kevin Martir
- Duke rSR C Mike Rosenfeld
- Miami SR C Garrett Kennedy
1B
- Boston College JR 1B/OF Chris Shaw
- Florida State rSR 1B Chris Marconcini
- Georgia Tech SR 1B/C AJ Murray
- Georgia Tech rSO 1B Cole Miller
2B
- Maryland rSO 2B Brandon Lowe
- Georgia Tech SR 2B/SS Thomas Smith
- North Carolina State SR 2B/3B Logan Ratledge
SS
- Clemson JR SS/3B Tyler Krieger
3B
- Miami JR 3B/1B David Thompson
- Maryland JR 3B Jose Cuas
- Miami JR 3B/OF George Iskenderian
- Georgia Tech JR 3B/SS Matt Gonzalez
OF
- Florida State JR OF DJ Stewart
- Clemson JR OF Steven Duggar
- Georgia Tech rJR OF Dan Spingola
- Clemson SR OF Tyler Slaton
- North Carolina State SR OF Jake Fincher
P
- Duke JR RHP Michael Matuella
- Clemson JR LHP Matthew Crownover
- Miami rJR LHP Andrew Suarez
- Clemson JR RHP Clate Schmidt
- Florida State JR LHP Alex Diese
- Duke JR RHP Kenny Koplove
- Maryland JR LHP Alex Robinson
- Maryland JR LHP Jake Dorssner
- Clemson JR LHP Zack Erwin
- Clemson rSO RHP Wales Toney
- Florida State JR RHP/OF Jameis Winston
- Duke SR RHP Andrew Istler
- Duke rSO RHP James Marvel
- Maryland JR RHP Kevin Mooney
- Maryland JR RHP Jared Price
- Florida State SR LHP Bryant Holtmann
- Maryland rJR LHP Zach Morris
- Clemson rJR RHP Patrick Andrews
- Florida State rJR RHP Mike Compton
- North Carolina State JR LHP Brad Stone
- Miami JR LHP Thomas Woodrey
2015 MLB Draft Prospects – Miami
JR 3B/1B David Thompson (2015)
JR 3B/OF George Iskenderian (2015)
SR C Garrett Kennedy (2015)
rSO 1B/OF Chris Barr (2015)
JR OF Ricky Eusebio (2015)
JR SS/RHP Brandon Lopez (2015)
rJR LHP Andrew Suarez (2015)
JR LHP Thomas Woodrey (2015)
JR RHP Enrique Sosa (2015)
SO 1B/C Zack Collins (2016)
SO OF Willie Abreu (2016)
SO RHP/1B Derik Beauprez (2016)
SO OF Jacob Heyward (2016)
SO LHP Danny Garcia (2016)
SO RHP Bryan Garcia (2016)
SO SS Sebastian Diaz (2016)
SO INF Johnny Ruiz (2016)
SO RHP Cooper Hammond (2016)
rFR RHP Andy Honiotes (2016)
FR OF Carl Chester (2017)
FR OF Justin Smith (2017)
FR LHP Michael Mediavilla (2017)
FR RHP Jesse Lepore (2017)
FR RHP Keven Pimentel (2017)
FR LHP Luke Spangler (2017)
FR RHP Devin Meyer (2017)
I have zero rooting interest when it comes to college baseball, but isn’t it nice when Miami is stocked with talent? There’s something about having those traditional powers of your youth remain a constant that just make you feel better about everything. My earliest baseball memories go back to 1992, the very same year that Miami began a stretch of seven College World Series appearances in eight years and twelve in seventeen years. I’m sure there’s some obvious underlying point there, but we’ll save the therapy session for another day. The strength of this year’s team appears to be found in the potential of the underclassmen dotted throughout the roster, but there’s still some players of note ready for June 2015 to quickly get here. Outside assessments of his raw talent, physical abilities, and professional baseball projection aside, JR 3B/1B David Thompson is a really easy person to root for. Hey, I said I don’t root for teams, but I certainly root for players. I’ve not once heard a negative word uttered about his makeup, both on-field and off, and the hard work and perseverance he’s demonstrated in repeatedly battling back from injuries, including remaking his swing after tearing his right labrum in high school, are a testament to his desire to make it no matter the cost. The fact that he went down from surgery to correct complications from thoracic outlet syndrome in late March of last year only to come back to finish the season by mid-May (he even had a huge hit in their Regional matchup against Texas Tech) tells you a lot about his will to compete. Through all the ups and downs physically, his upside on the diamond remains fully intact from his HS days — I had him ranked as the 56th best overall prospect back then — and a big draft season is very much in play if he can stay healthy throughout the year. The bat will play at the next level (above-average raw power, plenty of bat speed, physically strong, plus athleticism, knows how to use the whole field), so the biggest unknown going into this season is where he’ll eventually call home on the defensive side. I’ve liked his chances to stick at third since his prep days; failing that, I’d prioritize a home in the outfield (he’s not known for his speed, but the athleticism and arm strength should make him at least average in a corner) over going to first, where, overall loss of defensive value aside, at least he’s shown significant upside. His strong showing at the end of the summer on the Cape is an encouraging way to get back into the grind of college ball, though he did appear to sacrifice some patience at the plate for power down the stretch. If he can find a way to marry his two existences — college (approach: 35 BB/45 K in his career) and Cape (power) — in this upcoming season (like in his healthy freshman season), Thompson should find himself off the board early this June.
I’m more excited than I probably should be to see what JR 3B/OF George Iskenderian will do on the big stage this year. I tend to overrate the big program (South Carolina) to junior college (Indian River) back to big program (Miami, obviously) prospects (there are more of these guys than you’d think), so I’m trying to tone it down with Iskenderian. I believe there’s power in his bat that hasn’t really shown up yet and his defensive upside at third base intrigues me. He didn’t exactly tear it up at the juco level, so he’s a wait-and-see guy for me right now. That’s me at my tempered enthusiastic best. SR C Garrett Kennedy was a massive sleeper catcher of mine last year, but fell off big time (.290/.430/.395 to .231/.336/.308) and now has to hit his way back into late-round draft consideration as a senior. JR SS Brandon Lopez has been nothing if not consistent (.249/.330/.271 in year one, .233/.320/.275 in year two), but without any semblance of power he looks more like a senior sign type than a worthwhile junior draft. His defense is good enough that that projection could change in a hurry if he shows any kind of improvement with the stick in 2015.
JR LHP Andrew Suarez has the raw stuff to find himself selected once again in the top two rounds this June, but the peripherals leave something to be desired after two seasons (6.33 K/9 in 2013, 7.16 K/9 in 2014). Still, he’s a rapidly improving arm (especially his changeup) who throws a pair of quality breaking balls and can hit 94/95 from the left side. His control has also been really good and he’s been a workhorse for the Hurricanes after labrum surgery (believed to be as minor as a shoulder surgery can get, for what it’s worth) two years ago. He’s a reasonable ceiling (mid-rotation starting pitcher) prospect with a high floor (if healthy, he’s at least a quick-moving reliever). It’s a profile that’s really easy to like, but fairly difficult to love. JR LHP Thomas Woodrey reminds me some of a lefty version of Florida State pitcher Mike Compton: fastball doesn’t blow you away, but good secondaries and deception in the delivery make them both fun crafty college arms to watch. JR RHP Enrique Sosa does not remind me of Mike Compton at all. Sosa throws hard, but all over the place. Control issues and slight build (5-10, 180) aside, he’s a big enough arm to track this spring.
Impact players are coming in the form of SO 1B/C Zack Collins (listed as only a catcher on the Miami website, for what it’s worth), SO OF Willie Abreu, SO RHPs Derik Beauprez and Bryan Garcia, FR OFs Carl Chester and Justin Smith, and your freshman pitcher of choice (I’ll say LHP Michael Mediavilla and RHP Keven Pimentel for now). Collins’ monster freshman season has me reevaluating so much of what I thought I knew about college hitters. I see his line (.298/.427/.556 with 42 BB/47 K in 205 AB) and my first instinct is to nitpick it. That’s insane! In the pre-BBCOR era, you might be able to get away with parsing those numbers and finding some tiny things to get on him about, but in today’s offensive landscape those numbers are as close to perfection as any reasonable human being could expect to see out of a freshman. Player development is rarely linear, but if Collins can stay on or close to the path he’s started, he’s going to an unholy terror by the time the 2016 draft rolls around. Here’s a quick look at what the college hitters taken in the first dozen picks in the BBCOR era (and Collins) did as freshmen (ranked in order of statistical goodness according to me)…
Kris Bryant: .365/.482/.599 – 33 BB/55 K – 197 AB
Michael Conforto: .349/.437/.601 – 24 BB/37 K – 218 AB
Colin Moran: .335/.442/.540 – 47 BB/33 K – 248 AB
ZACK COLLINS: .298/.427/.556 – 42 BB/47 K – 205 AB
Kyle Schwarber: .300/.390/.513 – 30 BB/24 K – 230 AB
Casey Gillaspie: .274/.378/.442 – 34 BB/43 K – 215 AB
DJ Peterson: .317/.377/.545 – 15 BB/52 K – 246 AB
Hunter Dozier: .315/.363/.467 – 12 BB/34 K – 197 AB
Max Pentecost: .277/.364/.393 – 21 BB/32 K – 191 AB
I’d say Collins stacks up pretty darn well at this point. Looking at this list also helps me feel better about their being a touch too much swing-and-miss in Collins’ game (see previous heretofore ignored inclination to nitpick). It is also another data point in favor of that popular and so logical it can’t be ignored comparison between Collins and fellow “catcher” Kyle Schwarber. Baseball America also threw out a Mark Teixeira comp, which is damn intriguing. I won’t include Teixeira’s freshmen numbers because that was back in the toy bat years, but from a scouting standpoint it’s a comp that makes a good bit of sense. Fine, you’ve twisted my arm. Here are Teixeira’s freshmen numbers: .387/.478/.640 with 39 BB and 27 K in 225 AB. Damn. The comp to Schwarber really works well; so much so, in fact, that I think using some of Schwarber’s old comps can work for Collins as well. My favorite of those for Collins are a lefty Paul Konerko and, my favorite of the favorites, Travis Hafner. I like that one a lot. Heck, I like Collins a lot. Heck again, I like this Miami team a lot. I have no insight as to what the Hurricanes are planning on doing with their 1-9 this season, but the fact you could send out a lineup with Kennedy, Barr, Diaz, Lopez, Thompson, Iskenderian, Chester, Abreu, and Collins on a daily basis if you wanted to is pretty fun to think about from a prospect standpoint. Put Suarez on the mound and that’s a fine looking team of prospects.
The Baseball Draft Report 