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2018 MLB Draft Profile – Notre Dame
I’m a big fan of OF/RHP Matt Vierling, though I think it’s time we put the pitching side of his game to bed. Vierling’s stuff — 88-92 FB (up to 94) with a nasty (occasionally) hard cut-slider — should be good enough to make him a viable two-way performer, but the results simply haven’t been there on the mound. Thankfully, Vierling can really hit. And run. And throw. The well put together 6-3, 200 pound athlete has above-average speed, a strong arm befitting a part-time pitcher, and enough range to dabble in center. It’s easy to put a backup outfielder — a good one, to be fair — ceiling on him and call it a day, but I’m not ready to rule out Vierling as being skilled enough to play regularly if the power plays in the pros.
3B/2B Nick Podkul is really appealing as a bat-first utility type who can play just about every defensive spot but catcher and short. He’s steady but not spectacular at multiple positions with enough of a power/patience blend to potentially profile as a regular if his hot hitting to start 2018 is for real. I’ve been burned by Notre Dame infielders before, but am happy to go back to the well one more time with Podkul. No mention of this Notre Dame infielder is complete without bringing up his propensity for getting plunked. Quick math has Podkul’s career college HBP% at 5.4. That would put him second all time in ML history (1921 on) behind Brandon Guyer, who is now sitting at 5.8% for his career. Lots of black and blue for the guy in blue and gold.
2B/SS Cole Daily doesn’t have quite the same track record of hitting (or getting hit) as Podkul, but his 2018 has been really good so far. He holds the edge over his infield mate when it comes to athleticism and ability to play a credible shortstop, neither of which being a small thing when it comes to forecasting success of likely bench players.
OF Eric Gilgenbach is a small sample three-true-outcome poster boy who is more interesting to me than he probably ought to be. We’ll wait to check back on him until we get closer to the 2019 draft.
LHP Scott Tully hits all the undersized pinpoint command/plus control lefty archetype boxes without having the pinpoint command/plus control.
rSR LHP Scott Tully (2018)
SR RHP Charlie Vorscheck (2018)
JR OF/RHP Matt Vierling (2018)
JR 3B/2B Nick Podkul (2018)
JR 2B/SS Cole Daily (2018)
SR OF Jake Johnson (2018)
JR OF Eric Gilgenbach (2018)
rSO OF Eric Feliz (2018)
JR 3B Jake Singer (2018)
SR OF Alex Kerschner (2018)
SO RHP Zack Martin (2019)
SO RHP Anthony Holubecki (2019)
SO RHP Cameron Junker (2019)
SO RHP Andrew Belcik (2019)
SO LHP Cameron Brown (2019)
SO RHP Patrick McDonald (2019)
SO 1B/OF Daniel Jung (2019)
FR RHP Joe Boyle (2020)
FR RHP Brian Morrell (2020)
FR LHP Tom Sheehan (2020)
FR LHP Tommy Vail (2020)
FR LHP Brandon Knarr (2020)
FR OF Niko Kavadas (2020)
FR C David LaManna (2020)
FR 1B/LHP Cole Kmet (2020)
FR 3B Jared Miller (2020)
2017 MLB Draft Report – Notre Dame
Much to the chagrin of my wife, I take in anywhere between two to four games per week from the start of the amateur season here (mid-March) right up until the end (late-May). Fine, this isn’t entirely true; the old lady is super supportive and actually likes going games to me, but that’s not as fun as portraying her as the stereotypical ball-and-chain. The editor says it makes me more relatable the original way, so it stays. Anyway, I like baseball and try to see as much live action as humanly possible. That’s a good thing for this site…except when it isn’t. The aim here was never to provide a steady stream of firsthand game stories and personal observations. Those are great, of course, but one man attempting to cover an entire country’s worth of amateur prospects that way was never going to fly. The plan was always to read as much as physically possible, reach out to old contacts within the game (and make new ones along the way) to crosscheck, and, sure, see a ton of live baseball, for reasons both business and pleasure, along the way. Eventually enough of those primary, secondary, and tertiary sources add up to something worthwhile to share with fellow baseball obsessives. Hopefully.
Besides having to work through issues of narrowing my focus too drastically at the expense of broader draft interests, the downside to seeing players in person is falling in love with guys despite the better judgment of all other inputs. Calling it a downside is a little harsh; seeing players up close and forming opinions about what they could be is what is fun about being a wannabe scout on the internet. It can, however, get you into trouble when the overarching goal is to be as objective as possible in an otherwise highly subjective world. I saw Kyle Fiala as a freshman and was so thoroughly impressed with his skill set that I haven’t shut up about him since. This made me look pretty smart his first season, smarter yet his sophomore year, and utterly foolish in what should have been his triumphant draft year in 2016. Things haven’t gotten much better early on in 2017. I’d still think about Fiala really late on draft day since it’s worth a shot to see if he can rekindle that sophomore year magic. That’s both the good and the bad of seeing players up close. It’s unfortunate that I maybe got a little carried away in my initial viewing of Fiala and maybe overrated him the last few years because of it…but it’s kind of nice that I have that memory of a pretty damn talented guy that I’d still be willing to bang the table for even as his numbers suggest he’s a non-prospect.
As with Fiala, I was happily on board the Ryan Lidge bandwagon after a successful 2015 season. Pretty much nothing has gone right since. I also really liked Jake Shepski coming into the season. Best not to look at his current numbers if you still want to believe I know what I’m talking about. Maybe I should stop liking guys on Notre Dame for the greater good. If any fans of the team want to take up a collection for me to start publicly trashing their players instead, let me know. It’ll have to wait until next season, however, since their pitching is pretty damn exciting.
Peter Solomon, Brandon Bielak, and Brad Bass give Notre Dame three hard throwing righthanders capable of hitting the mid- to upper-90s. Knowing where those mid- to upper-90s fastballs are going once they leave the hand is an entirely different thing altogether. Solomon, a favorite of many, is a classic case of a young pitcher with too much natural movement for his own good. Nothing he throws is straight, a blessing for a veteran but a curse for most younger pitchers. A bet on Solomon is a bet on him finding a way to harness his explosive his stuff professionally in a way he’s never consistently shown as an amateur. Even with his wild ways, there was a point early on last summer when Solomon looked like a sure-fire first round pick. From a stuff, body, and projection standpoint, that’s exactly what he is. I’d personally be scared to death to take him there (and, for what it’s worth, I felt the same way even as he was blowing up on the Cape), but a subsequent late-summer fade and an inconsistent start to his junior season have almost certainly knocked him out of that range. Now the idea of picking a guy with his kind of premium arm talent past the top hundred picks (give or take) roll by is one I can excitedly get behind. If that feels a little prospect hipster-y, then so be it. When everybody really liked him, I thought his flaws were being glossed over too readily. Now that his prospect buzz has died down significantly, I think where he wins is overlooked. It’ll take a lot of work in pro ball, but an unhittable 88-94 MPH (96 peak) fastball with even a modicum of command combined with two legitimate breaking balls that can flash plus (emphasis on can and flash) and a decent diving 81-86 MPH changeup is a heck of a starting point for your player development staff to work with. If you trust your coaches, Solomon should be a target. If not, leave him for a team that does.
Bielak is wild like Solomon with a tick less impressive stuff across the board. That’s not a knock on Bielak, a legitimate four-pitch pitcher in his own right; Solomon’s stuff is just that good. Bielak has enough of a changeup to start professionally with real mid-rotation upside. Bass feels like the most natural reliever of the trio. Big (6-6, 240), fast (90-95 FB, 97 peak), and sharp (above-average 81-85 SL, flashes plus) plays well in short bursts. He has a softer breaking ball and will throw an occasional change, so maybe a team buys him as good enough to remain in the rotation going forward. In either role, count me in as a big fan. I like all three pitchers depending on when you can get them on draft day. If that’s not a super obvious statement, I’m not sure what is. Still think it has some merit, though: I’m just ballparking rounds here, but Solomon in the second, Bielak in the third, and Bass in the fourth all feel about right to me in terms of relative value.
Evy Ruibal has enough fastball/breaking ball to get a look, especially at his size (6-4, 225). Sean Guenther has similar heat (88-92, 93 peak) with a more well-rounded arsenal. He lacks Ruibal’s clear go-to secondary pitch and certainly can’t match him pound for pound (he’s 5-11, 200), so it’ll be interesting to see what ultimately wins out on draft day. Do you like the short lefty with the longer track record and deep assortment of offspeed stuff or the sturdy righthander with the better breaking ball but more inconsistent results? I like to pretend that the results of the MLB Draft act as some sort of referendum on player types, but hopefully we all realize that’s not the case. The old adage “it only takes one team…” to fall in love with a guy is true. Maybe 29 teams have Player B higher on their board, but that one remaining team prefers Player A…and they get the chance to pick first. Or something like that. I don’t know where I was going with that exactly. Chances are decent that the Ruibal/Guenther “debate” I’ve manufactured in this paragraph will live on another year. Both guys could fit better as 2018 senior-signs…unless that one team out there likes them enough to make the call, of course.
“Crazy wild” is a line right from my notes on Ryan Smoyer. I still like him — one man’s crazy wild is another’s effectively wild — and think his changeup is a good enough pitch to get him deserved pro attention. I know some who feel the same way about Michael Hearne, a mid-80s lefty with standout control. Effectively wild righty with a pro-ready build or the command/control undersized lefty? Feels familiar…
*****
JR RHP Peter Solomon (2017)
JR RHP Brandon Bielak (2017)
JR RHP Brad Bass (2017)
rSR LHP Michael Hearne (2017)
SR RHP Ryan Smoyer (2017)
SR LHP Scott Tully (2017)
JR LHP Sean Guenther (2017)
JR RHP Charlie Vorscheck (2017)
JR RHP Evy Ruibal (2017)
JR OF/RHP Jake Shepski (2017)
SR 2B/SS Kyle Fiala (2017)
SR C Ryan Lidge (2017)
JR OF Jake Johnson (2017)
SO RHP Jack Connolly (2018)
SO OF/RHP Matt Vierling (2018)
rFR OF Eric Feliz (2018)
SO 3B Jake Singer (2018)
SO 3B/1B Nick Podkul (2018)
SO 3B/SS Cole Daily (2018)
FR RHP Zack Martin (2019)
FR LHP Cameron Brown (2019)
FR RHP Anthony Holubecki (2019)
FR INF Michael Feliz (2019)
FR INF Nick Neville (2019)
FR 3B/C Connor Power (2019)
FR 1B/OF Daniel Jung (2019)
2016 MLB Draft – ACC
If you’re one of the small handful of daily readers, you can go ahead and skip this post. You’ve already seen it. Not that you needed my permission or anything, but you’re free to pass all the same. The intent here is to get all of the college content in one place, so below you’ll find everything I’ve written about the 2016 class of MLB Draft prospects currently playing in the ACC. Then I’ll have a college baseball master list post that will centralize everything I’ve written about the 2016 MLB Draft college class all in one place. It’s a rare bit of inspired organizational posting around here, so I’m trying to strike while motivated…
ACC Overview Part 1
ACC Overview Part 2
Boston College
Clemson
Duke
Florida State
Georgia Tech
Miami
North Carolina State
Notre Dame
Virginia Tech
Wake Forest
2016 MLB Draft Prospects – Notre Dame
SR RHP Nick McCarty (2016)
SR RHP David Hearne (2016)
SR LHP Michael Hearne (2016)
JR RHP Ryan Smoyer (2016)
JR LHP Jim Orwick (2016)
JR LHP Scott Tully (2016)
SR RHP Connor Hale (2016)
SR OF/LHP Zac Kutsulis (2016)
JR 2B/3B Cavan Biggio (2016)
JR 2B/SS Kyle Fiala (2016)
SR SS Lane Richards (2016)
JR C Ryan Lidge (2016)
rSO OF Torii Hunter (2016)
SR C/OF Ricky Sanchez (2016)
SO RHP Brad Bass (2017)
SO LHP Sean Guenther (2017)
SO RHP Brandon Bielak (2017)
SO RHP Peter Solomon (2017)
SO RHP Evy Ruibal (2017)
SO OF Jake Johnson (2017)
FR OF Matt Vierling (2018)
FR RHP Connor Hock (2018)
FR RHP Chris Connolly (2018)
FR 3B Jake Singer (2018)
I like the collection of Notre Dame 2016 position player prospects quite a bit. We’re too removed to make any bold predictions about how pro teams will view them on draft day, but I can say with some confidence that this will be an entertaining offensive team to watch.
JR 2B Cavan Biggio, JR 2B Kyle Fiala, and SR SS Lane Richards make up three-fourths of what has to rank of one of college baseball’s most fun infields. Biggo has been covered before (search his name here and you’ll find plenty), but Fiala hasn’t gotten his time in the internet sun just yet. That needs to change. Compare these two sophomore seasons…
.258/.406/.462 – 50 BB/54 K – 14/16 SB – 221 AB
.301/.394/.452 – 31 BB/33 K – 10/12 SB – 239 AB
Top is Biggio, bottom is Fiala. That’s not to say that they are on the same prospect tier — there’s more than sophomore year stats that go into that equation — but Fiala is a damn good player. Middle infielders with the chance for average power, an above-average glove, average or better arm strength, and average or better speed that have done what he’s done in major college ball don’t grow on trees.
Of course, you wouldn’t know that thanks to the presence of Biggio. If you didn’t take my advice and search his name already, I’ve saved you the trouble by finding the most recent blurb written about him…
Without having seen every Notre Dame game the past two years — I’m good, but not that good — one might be confused as to how a player with Biggio’s pedigree and collection of scouting accolades (“line drive machine; born to hit; great pitch recognition; great approach, patient and aggressive all at once”…and that’s just what has been written here) could hit .250ish through two college seasons. I say we all agree to chalk it up to bad BABIP luck and eagerly anticipate a monster junior season that puts him squarely back in the first round mix where he belongs.
Biggio’s hit tool, patience, and ability to play important infield spots at a high level still have him at or near the first round range for me. Not sure if it’s instructive or not, but I like looking back at Biggio’s placement between Tyler O’Neill and Billy McKinney (the two hitters who signed pro deals that sandwiched Biggio in his initial draft year) and using that as a starting point as to what kind of hitter I think he can be as a professional. O’Neill if he sells out some of his patience and contact skills for power and McKinney if he keeps progressing as a hitter as is. McKinney in the infield is a pretty interesting prospect and one that I think can play his way into the first round even in a top-heavy year. Two pros that I’ve heard him compared to so far are Ryan Roberts (realistic floor) and Justin Turner (hopeful ceiling). I can see it.
Richards is an obvious step below, but there’s still pro upside in his game. Teams like guys who can defend, throw, and run like him, plus he has enough juice in his bat to at least make him a threat to occasionally knock one for extra bases. You can do worse for a mid- to late-round senior sign. SR C/OF Ricky Sanchez hasn’t done much in three seasons, but has flashed power and proven to be a dependable backstop if nothing else. JR C Ryan Lidge and rSO OF Torii Hunter both have damn fine bloodlines. They are very different players and prospects — Lidge is coming off an underrated 2015 season and is the more proven of the two while Hunter is know more for his speed, athleticism, and football skills at this point — but both are definite draft candidates to me. People may be surprised at how high I’ll eventually have Lidge on my personal list of college catchers. SR OF/LHP Zac Kutsulis doesn’t have a ton of power, but he’s a good athlete with a real knack for hard contact, above-average speed, and the strong arm you’d expect from a part-time pitcher.
The Notre Dame pitching staff doesn’t have quite the same level of prospects for 2016, but a part of me wonders if there’s an edict coming from the coaching staff about pitching to contact rather than going for whiffs. Some decent arms here are putting up fine earned run averages, but with dangerously low (in a prospecting sense) strikeouts per nine innings. If anybody who knows more about college ball and the Notre Dame team in particular knows what’s up here (if anything), let me know.
Take SR RHP Nick McCarty as one example. His stuff is fine: 87-90 FB, mid-70s breaking ball that flashes plus, and a usable change. He pitched well in 2016 (3.93 ERA in 68.2 IP), but did so while only striking out 4.59 batters per nine. Odd, right? SR LHP Michael Hearne (mid-80s FB, above-average CU that flashes plus, above-average command) kept runs of the board in 2016 (2.38 ERA in only 11.1 IP) without piling up strikeouts (3.98 K/9). SR RHP Connor Hale somehow pitched to a 1.33 ERA (20.1 IP) even though he only struck out 3.57 batters per nine. Maybe I’m easily amused, but this stuff blows my mind.
The only prospect I have listed who bucked this trend is JR LHP Scott Tully. He deserves a mention for his fine 2015 season: 8.68 K/9 and 2.21 BB/9 in 65.1 IP of 3.17 ERA ball. Of course he’s also one of the few Irish arms that I have with no meaningful notes on his stuff. JR RHP Ryan Smoyer kept runs off the board at an even better clip (2.27 ERA in 79.1 IP), but with nowhere near the same peripherals (3.75 K/9). He’s a big guy (6-4, 200) with decent stuff (88-91 FB, 77-80 SL), so we’ll wait and see if he starts missing a few more bats in 2016. What in the world is going on in South Bend?
Interestingly enough, I’ve had a few different people tell me that they think the best 2016 pitching prospect on the Notre Dame roster is SR RHP David Hearne. That’s the very same Hearne who hasn’t pitched much at all since 2013. The big (6-4, 220) righthander missed his share of bats that year (7.57 K/9 in 44.0 IP) with a fastball that got up to 93 and a nice mid- to upper-70s curve. If health and back to his old ways, he might make those who tipped me off to him look smart.
(The lowest K/9 of any of the impressive group of 2017 pitching prospects is 6.30. Every one of Brad Bass, Sean Guenther, Brandon Bielak, Peter Solomon, and Evy Ruibal has a chance to eventually go higher in the draft than any 2016 pitching prospect on the staff. Maybe it’s more of a talent thing than a coaching thing, after all. Who knows?)
2015 MLB Draft Prospects – ACC Follow List
Boston College
JR 1B/OF Chris Shaw (2015)
JR 3B/SS Joe Cronin (2015)
SR 2B/SS Blake Butera (2015)
SR RHP John Gorman (2015)
SR LHP Nick Poore (2015)
JR RHP Jeff Burke (2015)
JR LHP Jesse Adams (2015)
SO RHP Justin Dunn (2016)
SO RHP Mike King (2016)
SO C Nick Sciortino (2016)
SO SS/3B Johnny Adams (2016)
SO RHP Bobby Skogsbergh (2016)
Clemson
JR LHP Matthew Crownover (2015)
JR LHP Zack Erwin (2015)
JR RHP Clate Schmidt (2015)
rSO RHP Wales Toney (2015)
rJR RHP Patrick Andrews (2015)
rSR RHP Kevin Pohle (2015)
rSR RHP Jake Long (2015)
JR RHP Brady Koerner (2015)
rSR RHP Clay Bates (2015)
rSO RHP Garrett Lovorn (2015)
JR RHP/3B Jackson Campana (2015)
JR OF Steven Duggar (2015)
SR OF Tyler Slaton (2015)
rSO 1B/OF Andrew Cox (2015)
rSO OF Maleeke Gibson (2015)
JR SS/2B Tyler Krieger (2015)
SO C Chris Okey (2016)
SO LHP Pat Krall (2016)
SO 3B/SS Weston Wilson (2016)
SO SS/2B Eli White (2016)
SO LHP Alex Bostic (2016)
SO RHP Drew Moyer (2016)
rFR 3B Glenn Batson (2016)
rFR OF Reed Rohlman (2016)
FR OF KJ Bryant (2017)
FR LHP Charlie Barnes (2017)
FR OF Drew Wharton (2017)
FR OF Chase Pinder (2017)
Duke
JR RHP Michael Matuella (2015)
SR RHP Sarkis Ohanian (2015)
SR RHP Andrew Istler (2015)
SR LHP Trent Swart (2015)
rJR LHP Remy Janco (2015)
rJR RHP Conner Stevens (2015)
JR LHP Nick Hendrix (2015)
rSR LHP Dillon Haviland (2015)
rSO RHP James Marvel (2015)
JR RHP/SS Kenny Koplove (2015)
rSR C Mike Rosenfeld (2015)
rSO OF Jalen Phillips (2015)
SR 2B Andy Perez (2015)
SO RHP Bailey Clark (2016)
SO RHP Karl Blum (2016)
SO LHP Kevin Lewallyn (2016)
SO C Cristian Perez (2016)
FR 1B Justin Bellinger (2017)
FR LHP Chris McGrath (2017)
FR SS Ryan Day (2017)
FR 3B Jack Labosky (2017)
FR LHP Mitch Stallings (2017)
Florida State
JR OF DJ Stewart (2015)
rSR 1B Chris Marconcini (2015)
JR 2B/SS John Sansone (2015)
SR C Daniel De La Calle (2015)
SR OF Josh Delph (2015)
rJR RHP Mike Compton (2015)
SR LHP Bryant Holtmann (2015)
JR RHP/OF Jameis Winston (2015)
JR LHP Alex Diese (2015)
JR LHP Dylan Silva (2015)
SR LHP Billy Strode (2015)
SO RHP Taylor Blatch (2016)
SO LHP Alec Byrd (2016)
SO RHP Boomer Biegalski (2016)
rFR RHP Andy Ward (2016)
rFR RHP Ed Voyles (2016)
SO RHP Jim Voyles (2016)
SO OF/SS Ben DeLuzio (2016)
SO 1B/C Quincy Nieporte (2016)
SO C/OF Gage West (2016)
SO INF Hank Truluck (2016)
FR RHP Cobi Johnson (2017)
FR RHP Andrew Karp (2017)
FR RHP Drew Carlton (2017)
FR SS/3B Dylan Busby (2017)
FR SS/2B Taylor Walls (2017)
FR C/1B Darren Miller (2017)
FR OF/RHP Steven Wells (2017)
Georgia Tech
SR 1B/C AJ Murray (2015)
rJR OF Dan Spingola (2015)
JR 3B/SS Matt Gonzalez (2015)
rSO 1B Cole Miller (2015)
SR 2B/SS Thomas Smith (2015)
JR LHP/OF Jonathan King (2015)
SR RHP Cole Pitts (2015)
SO OF Ryan Peurifoy (2016)
SO RHP Zac Ryan (2016)
SO C Arden Pabst (2016)
SO OF Keenan Innis (2016)
SO 3B/RHP Brandon Gold (2016)
SO LHP Ben Parr (2016)
SO SS Connor Justus (2016)
FR OF/1B Kel Johnson (2017)
FR LHP Daniel Gooden (2017)
FR RHP Patrick Wiseman (2017)
Louisville
JR RHP Kyle Funkhouser (2015)
rSO LHP Josh Rogers (2015)
rSO LHP Robert Strader (2015)
JR RHP/1B Anthony Kidston (2015)
SR 2B/SS Zach Lucas (2015)
JR 1B/3B Dan Rosenbaum (2015)
SR OF Michael White (2015)
SR SS/2B Sutton Whiting (2015)
SO RHP Zack Burdi (2016)
SO LHP Drew Harrington (2016)
SO RHP Jake Sparger (2016)
SO OF Corey Ray (2016)
SO 2B Nick Solak (2016)
rFR 3B/SS Blake Tiberi (2016)
rFR OF/C Ryan Summers (2016)
SO OF Colin Lyman (2016)
SO C Will Smith (2016)
rFR OF Mike White (2016)
FR LHP/1B Brendan McKay (2017)
FR SS Devin Hairston (2017)
FR RHP Lincoln Henzman (2017)
FR RHP Kade McClure (2017)
FR C/1B Colby Fritch (2017)
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 2B 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)
North Carolina
SR RHP Benton Moss (2015)
JR RHP Reilly Hovis (2015)
JR RHP Trent Thornton (2015)
rJR RHP Chris McCue (2015)
SR RHP Trevor Kelley (2015)
JR RHP Taylore Cherry (2015)
JR OF Skye Bolt (2015)
JR OF Josh Merrigan (2015)
JR 3B/2B Landon Lassiter (2015)
JR C Korey Dunbar (2015)
JR SS/OF Alex Raburn (2015)
SO RHP/SS Spencer Trayner (2016)
SO RHP AJ Bogucki (2016)
SO RHP Zac Gallen (2016)
SO LHP Zach Rice (2016)
SO C Adrian Chacon (2016)
SO 1B Joe Dudek (2016)
SO 2B/SS Wood Myers (2016)
SO OF Tyler Ramirez (2016)
SO OF Adam Pate (2016)
FR 3B/RHP Ryder Ryan (2016)
FR 1B/LHP Hunter Williams (2017)
FR SS/3B Zack Gahagan (2017)
FR RHP JB Bukauskas (2017)
FR RHP Hansen Butler (2017)
FR RHP Jason Morgan (2017)
FR OF/2B Logan Warmoth (2017)
FR RHP Brett Daniels (2017)
FR INF Brooks Kennedy (2017)
North Carolina State
JR RHP Jon Olczak (2015)
JR RHP Curt Britt (2015)
rJR LHP Travis Orwig (2015)
JR RHP Karl Keglovits (2015)
JR LHP Brad Stone (2015)
rSO RHP Johnny Piedmonte (2015)
SR OF Jake Fincher (2015)
JR SS Ryne Willard (2015)
SR OF Bubby Riley (2015)
SR 2B/3B Logan Ratledge (2015)
SR 1B/OF Jake Armstrong (2015)
JR C Chance Shepard (2015)
SO RHP Cory Wilder (2016)
SO 3B Andrew Knizner (2016)
SO OF Garrett Suggs (2016)
SO 1B Preston Palmeiro (2016)
SO RHP Joe O’Donnell (2016)
SO LHP Ryan Williamson (2016)
SO LHP Cody Beckman (2016)
FR RHP/INF Tommy DeJuneas (2017)
FR RHP Evan Mendoza (2017)
FR OF Storm Edwards (2017)
FR 3B Joe Dunand (2017)
Notre Dame
rSR RHP Cristian Torres (2015)
JR RHP Nick McCarty (2015)
SR RHP Scott Kerrigan (2015)
JR RHP David Hearne (2015)
JR LHP Michael Hearne (2015)
JR LHP/OF Zac Kutsulis (2015)
SR OF/LHP Robert Youngdahl (2015)
SR 3B Phil Mosey (2015)
SR OF/1B Ryan Bull (2015)
SR OF Mac Hudgins (2015)
SR OF Blaise Lezynski (2015)
SR OF Conor Biggio (2015)
JR SS Lane Richards (2015)
JR C/OF Ricky Sanchez (2015)
SO RHP Ryan Smoyer (2016)
SO 2B/SS Kyle Fiala (2016)
SO 2B/3B Cavan Biggio (2016)
SO C Ryan Lidge (2016)
rFR OF Torii Hunter (2016)
FR RHP Peter Solomon (2017)
FR RHP Brad Bass (2017)
FR RHP Brandon Bielak (2017)
FR LHP Sean Guenther (2017)
Pittsburgh
SR OF Boo Vazquez (2015)
SR 1B Eric Hess (2015)
SR SS/2B Matt Johnson (2015)
JR C Alex Kowalczyk (2015)
JR RHP Marc Berube (2015)
JR RHP Aaron Sandefur (2015)
JR LHP/OF Aaron Schnurbusch (2015)
SR RHP Hobie Harris (2015)
SO RHP Sam Mersing (2016)
SO RHP TJ Zeuch (2016)
FR 3B/SS Charles LeBlanc (2017)
Virginia
JR OF Joe McCarthy (2015)
JR 2B/3B John LaPrise (2015)
SO SS/3B Daniel Pinero (2015)
SR 3B Kenny Towns (2015)
JR C/RHP Robbie Coman (2015)
JR LHP Brandon Waddell (2015)
JR LHP Nathan Kirby (2015)
JR RHP Josh Sborz (2015)
JR LHP David Rosenberger (2015)
SO RHP Connor Jones (2016)
SO C Matt Thaiss (2016)
SO RHP Jack Roberts (2016)
SO RHP Alec Bettinger (2016)
FR 2B Jack Gerstenmaier (2017)
FR 1B/RHP Pavin Smith (2017)
FR RHP Derek Casey (2017)
FR RHP Tommy Doyle (2017)
FR OF/LHP Adam Haseley (2017)
FR LHP Bennett Sousa (2017)
FR 3B Charlie Cody (2017)
FR C/2B Justin Novak (2017)
FR OF Christian Lowry (2017)
FR 2B/OF Ernie Clement (2017)
Virginia Tech
rSO OF Saige Jenco (2015)
SR 2B/SS Alex Perez (2015)
rSR OF Kyle Wernicki (2015)
rJR OF Logan Bible (2015)
SR 1B/RHP Brendon Hayden (2015)
rSO 1B/LHP Phil Sciretta (2015)
SR LHP/1B Sean Keselica (2015)
rSO LHP Kit Scheetz (2015)
rJR LHP Jon Woodcock (2015)
SO RHP Luke Scherzer (2016)
SO SS Ricky Surum (2016)
SO RHP Aaron McGarity (2016)
SO 3B Ryan Tufts (2016)
SO OF/LHP Tom Stoffel (2016)
SO 3B/OF Miguel Ceballos (2016)
SO RHP Ryan Lauria (2016)
FR C Joe Freiday (2017)
FR 3B Max Ponzurik (2017)
Wake Forest
JR RHP/C Garrett Kelly (2015)
SR RHP Matt Pirro (2015)
rSO LHP Max Tishman (2015)
rJR RHP Aaron Fossas (2015)
rSR OF Kevin Jordan (2015)
JR OF/2B Joey Rodriguez (2015)
JR OF Luke Czajkowski (2015)
SO C Ben Breazeale (2016)
rFR RHP Chris Farish (2016)
SO 2B/OF Nate Mondou (2016)
SO 3B/RHP Will Craig (2016)
SO RHP John McCarren (2016)
SO RHP Connor Johnstone (2016)
SO RHP Parker Dunshee (2016)
FR OF Stuart Fairchild (2017)
FR INF Bruce Steel (2017)
FR 1B Gavin Sheets (2017)
FR SS Drew Freedman (2017)
2015 MLB Draft Prospects – Notre Dame
rSR RHP Cristian Torres (2015)
SR RHP Scott Kerrigan (2015)
JR RHP David Hearne (2015)
JR LHP Michael Hearne (2015)
JR LHP/OF Zac Kutsulis (2015)
SR 3B Phil Mosey (2015)
SR OF/1B Ryan Bull (2015)
SR OF Mac Hudgins (2015)
SR OF Blaise Lezynski (2015)
SR OF Conor Biggio (2015)
JR SS Lane Richards (2015)
JR C/OF Ricky Sanchez (2015)
SO RHP Ryan Smoyer (2016)
SO 2B/SS Kyle Fiala (2016)
SO 3B/2B Cavan Biggio (2016)
SO C Ryan Lidge (2016)
FR RHP Peter Solomon (2017)
FR RHP Brad Bass (2017)
FR RHP Brandon Bielak (2017)
FR LHP Sean Guenther (2017)
The strength of the 2015 Notre Dame team from a draft perspective is in the pitching. There are no locks to be selected this June, but the odds are better we see an arm go off the board than a bat. Nobody jumps out due to performance — SR RHP Scott Kerrigan and JR LHP Michael Hearne both had shiny ERAs, but middling at best peripherals — but there are a handful of arms who can run it up to the low-90s (rSR RHP Cristian Torres, JR RHP Nick McCarty, JR RHP David Hearne), a significant enough velocity benchmark that gives you a second look from most area guys. Torres (6-6, 215) and Kerrigan (6-7, 215) offer tantalizing size, and JR Zac Katsulis, who I list as a LHP but has seen more time in the outfield of late, brings serious athleticism to the mound. I’d put the over/under on all Notre Dame players being selected this June at 1.5 and still probably pick the under, but it’s not a team completely devoid of worthwhile follows. Let’s check in on how the offense stacks up.
JR SS Lane Richards does good things defensively, but hasn’t shown enough as a hitter yet to warrant serious draft consideration. SR OF/1B Ryan Bull has flashed some decent power in the past, enough that if a team thought he could catch again he could get picked late. SR OF Conor Biggio has a chance to be picked late because of his famous last name, especially if the analytical Houston front office has a sudden moment of sentimentality on draft day. The two best bats on the Notre Dame squad are guys we’ll have to wait another year to get into the pros. SO 2B/SS Kyle Fiala grows on you the more you see him. He held his own as a freshman and could be in line for a breakthrough sophomore campaign. I also expect big things (bigger, really) out of SO 3B/2B Cavan Biggio (one of the smartest, most naturally gifted young hitters I’ve seen up close), which should be unsurprising considering how much I liked him in high school (42nd ranked prospect that year, sandwiched between Ryan Boldt and Billy McKinney). It’s obviously early yet, but FR RHP Peter Solomon looks like the most intriguing young arm to track.
The Baseball Draft Report 