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Posted

ESPN had a run down of some of the more notable performances from the college baseball opening weekend. Guys who might be relevant to the Jays:

 

Jeff Hoffman: projected to go higher than the Jays first pick at #9, but as we saw with Stanek and Manaea last year, a lot can change between now and June. 93-96, T97, plus curveball, flashed a plus changeup, command left him a bit over the last couple of innings.

 

Trea Turner: 3 for 4 with a stolen base, ran a frickin 3.5 to first base on a bunt. Made some nice plays at shortstop. Another guy who likely goes ahead of the Jays if he has a good season, but could fall. If the hit tool is legit (and there are questions about that happening), he sounds a lot like our current shortstop.

 

I'd post the Beede update but I don't want to get banned on my first day.

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Posted

Baseball America just posted a full report on Turner with a video of the 3.42 run to first and some of those defensive plays:

 

RALEIGH, N.C.—With plenty of scouts on hand (including several directors), lured by a Sunday start for teammate Carlos Rodon, North Carolina State shortstop Trea Turner put on a show. The junior had a terrific all-around showing in his season debut in a 3-0 loss against Canisius. The lean, wiry-built 6-foot-1 Turner is a premium athlete and looks like a different player physically from last summer, with significantly more strength and muscle through his shoulders, upper back and chest.

 

Turner, listed at 170 pounds but looking closer to 180, showed well defensively at shortstop, displaying more arm strength from deep in the hole compared to last summer and fall. To lead off the second inning, he made a spectacular play and showed first step quickness, lateral range and body control to snare a ball bounding up the middle. He finished the play by spinning and making a strong, accurate throw to nail the runner at first. Few college shortstops could have made this tough play. One hitter later, Turner started a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning. He made another nice stop on a groundball up the middle in the fourth inning and handled a pop fly in the eighth.

 

The righthanded-hitting Turner, who entered the season with a .351/.443/.503 career line (in a home ballpark that favors pitchers) and 87 steals in 97 career attempts (90 percent), went 3-for-4 Sunday with a stolen base. He has eschewed the toe tap to start his stride that he used last fall, and his bat shows considerable quickness through the zone. Turner, who has natural power up the middle and to right-center field, laced a line-drive single back up the middle in his first at bat and grounded out to third in his second at-bat, running 4.05 seconds to first. Turner singled through the left side of the infield in his third plate appearance. Then Turner showcased his dynamic, top-of-the scale speed in his final trip to the plate, running a 3.42 on a jailbreak bunt to the right side that resulted in a single. Turner subsequently stole second base.

 

Turner, who was voted as the preseason first team All-American shortstop by scouting directors, will play at home on Monday against Canisius.

 

Posted

 

 

That back leg collapse is kinda eh, but otherwise Hoffman's got a pretty nice delivery. Hadn't seen him before.

Posted
Just did some checking in on some mock drafts. Rodon sure sounds like a monster huh?? Easiest consensus #1 pick in years. Go Astros.
Posted

Right now the players I really want for our picks 9 and 11 are Brady Aiken, Brandon Finnegan, Grant Holmes, and Luis Ortiz.

 

Aiken to me seems like a no-brainer AA type pick. He's one of the youngest players in the class, but he's also pretty polished with tons of experience with Team USA. He's a big lefty with low 90s velocity and a little bit more projection, a big breaking curveball and advanced command and feel. I think he's a notch below a Max Fried in terms of over all upside, but he's also more advanced than him at the same stage I think. He reminds me a bit of Tyler Skaggs from when he was drafted.

 

Finnegan can be either Scott Kazmir or Billy Wagner depending on whether he can stay in the rotation or has to move to the bullpen. His stuff is ridiculous from the left side. Plus-plus fastball velocity with deception cause of his delivery. He'll throw in the upper 90s through 3 innings before settling in the low to mid 90s from about the 4th inning on. There were questions about his secondaries, but if you watched any of his outings with Team USA, his slider looks like a plus pitch right now. Apparently, Rodon showed him a new grip to use, and he's been killing it with the slide piece ever since. I really like Finnegan as kind of a lefty version of Marcus Stroman. I think if he can stay in a rotation he has the stuff to be a number 2 type of starter and like Stro, he should be able to move fast up the ladder.

 

Holmes is just a polished high school player with very good now stuff. He doesn't have a lot of projection left given his build, but low to mid 90s with a plus slider, the feel for a change, and advanced command doesn't grow on trees. I like him because he's a relatively low risk high school player but one with still considerable upside. I think he could be a 2/3 at his peak, probably a very good 3.

 

Ortiz is similar to Holmes in that he doesn't have a lot of projection remaining but he has now stuff and relative polish for his age. Another guy who could be a 2/3. Kind of reminds me of an Osuna type. Him and Holmes are going to dominate the lower minors for whichever team drafts them.

 

Other players I like are Kodi Medeiros, but probably not at 9 or 11. The guy is flashing 3 plus pitches already if you've seen him. Scouts are saying he could pitch in the MLB right now as lefty specialist and not look out of place. The down side is his size and arm action obviously. There's big time reward with this guy IMO if you're willing to take the risk. He looks like a pretty special arm.

 

Ti'Quan Forbes is a name that's not getting a lot of play right now, but I've liked everything that I've seen from him. Big rangy high school shortstop. He's a big guy and might play himself off short eventually, but he looks pretty smooth there right now range wise. That bat has obvious power projection, and he shows a good approach at the plate. If you want to be super optimistic he's like Boegaerts lite. I hope he makes it to our second pick.

 

I love Gettys too, but everyone knows about him already. Loud tools across the board. I'll believe in the hit tool. Reminds me of Hunter Renfroe. If he starts off spring hot with the bat, and people start believing in the hit tool, he's not there at 9 anyway.

 

I have to say I've been really impressed by Justus Sheffield as well. I like his makeup, his confidence, and his advanced 3 pitch mix. Usually when they say a high school guy has a 3 pitch mix, they're talking about him flashing it every now and then, but Sheffield throws what consistently appear to be 3 above average pitchers in his fastball (90-94), changeup, and slider. People will probably cringe at the comparison, but he reminds me of Romero before he fell off the cliff with his command. This guy is really impressive for a high school lefty in the quality of his pitches, and shows the ability to throw all of them for strikes.

Posted
Right now the players I really want for our picks 9 and 11 are Brady Aiken, Brandon Finnegan, Grant Holmes, and Luis Ortiz.

 

Aiken to me seems like a no-brainer AA type pick. He's one of the youngest players in the class, but he's also pretty polished with tons of experience with Team USA. He's a big lefty with low 90s velocity and a little bit more projection, a big breaking curveball and advanced command and feel. I think he's a notch below a Max Fried in terms of over all upside, but he's also more advanced than him at the same stage I think. He reminds me a bit of Tyler Skaggs from when he was drafted.

 

Finnegan can be either Scott Kazmir or Billy Wagner depending on whether he can stay in the rotation or has to move to the bullpen. His stuff is ridiculous from the left side. Plus-plus fastball velocity with deception cause of his delivery. He'll throw in the upper 90s through 3 innings before settling in the low to mid 90s from about the 4th inning on. There were questions about his secondaries, but if you watched any of his outings with Team USA, his slider looks like a plus pitch right now. Apparently, Rodon showed him a new grip to use, and he's been killing it with the slide piece ever since. I really like Finnegan as kind of a lefty version of Marcus Stroman. I think if he can stay in a rotation he has the stuff to be a number 2 type of starter and like Stro, he should be able to move fast up the ladder.

 

Holmes is just a polished high school player with very good now stuff. He doesn't have a lot of projection left given his build, but low to mid 90s with a plus slider, the feel for a change, and advanced command doesn't grow on trees. I like him because he's a relatively low risk high school player but one with still considerable upside. I think he could be a 2/3 at his peak, probably a very good 3.

 

Ortiz is similar to Holmes in that he doesn't have a lot of projection remaining but he has now stuff and relative polish for his age. Another guy who could be a 2/3. Kind of reminds me of an Osuna type. Him and Holmes are going to dominate the lower minors for whichever team drafts them.

 

Other players I like are Kodi Medeiros, but probably not at 9 or 11. The guy is flashing 3 plus pitches already if you've seen him. Scouts are saying he could pitch in the MLB right now as lefty specialist and not look out of place. The down side is his size and arm action obviously. There's big time reward with this guy IMO if you're willing to take the risk. He looks like a pretty special arm.

 

Ti'Quan Forbes is a name that's not getting a lot of play right now, but I've liked everything that I've seen from him. Big rangy high school shortstop. He's a big guy and might play himself off short eventually, but he looks pretty smooth there right now range wise. That bat has obvious power projection, and he shows a good approach at the plate. If you want to be super optimistic he's like Boegaerts lite. I hope he makes it to our second pick.

 

I love Gettys too, but everyone knows about him already. Loud tools across the board. I'll believe in the hit tool. Reminds me of Hunter Renfroe. If he starts off spring hot with the bat, and people start believing in the hit tool, he's not there at 9 anyway.

 

I have to say I've been really impressed by Justus Sheffield as well. I like his makeup, his confidence, and his advanced 3 pitch mix. Usually when they say a high school guy has a 3 pitch mix, they're talking about him flashing it every now and then, but Sheffield throws what consistently appear to be 3 above average pitchers in his fastball (90-94), changeup, and slider. People will probably cringe at the comparison, but he reminds me of Romero before he fell off the cliff with his command. This guy is really impressive for a high school lefty in the quality of his pitches, and shows the ability to throw all of them for strikes.

 

Not a big fan of Aiken, he reminds me of a left handed version of Deck Mcguire. Doesn't do anything special but good command.

 

I really like Ortiz and Forbes though also intrigued by Max Pentecost

Posted
Not a big fan of Aiken, he reminds me of a left handed version of Deck Mcguire. Doesn't do anything special but good command.

 

I really like Ortiz and Forbes though also intrigued by Max Pentecost

 

Yeah, I agree on Pentecost. Should have included him as well. I like the bat, and he has a good chance to stay behind the plate. I haven't seen enough of him to have a good comparison, but he's apparently athletic enough to play second or outfield as well. It doesn't hurt that we don't have a lot of depth behind the plate in the minors either.

 

As for Aiken, I don't think McGuire is a good comparison. McGuire was a college junior without a plus pitch or an out pitch. Aiken is one of the youngest players in the draft out of high school and has a plus curve, that can be a legit out pitch. Reminds me of Tyler Skaggs who was a top prospect once, or a guy like Nicolino (except with a good breaking ball). I think how much more velocity Aiken gets, or his ability to hold his top velocity longer will be the difference between being a 2/3 starter and a 3/4 starter. I never liked McGuire. I didn't agree with picking him and I didn't agree with the rankings that had him so high. If we're looking at a McGuire type pick in this draft it would be a guy like Luke Weaver or even an Aaron Nola I think.

Posted
The Jays should be able to get a nice player with that 2nd round pick with all the depth in this draft. Also I heard scouts were praising Nick Gordon and he's shooting up draft boards, but i like Forbes better he's a possible 5 tool at SS who hits in games and is very young with a lot of project ability.
Posted
The Jays should be able to get a nice player with that 2nd round pick with all the depth in this draft. Also I heard scouts were praising Nick Gordon and he's shooting up draft boards, but i like Forbes better he's a possible 5 tool at SS who hits in games and is very young with a lot of project ability.

 

I like Gordon better than JP Crawford from last year, though I have to admit my read on Crawford was off, as I didn't really believe in the hit tool, that and there isn't really a long list of lefty hitting shortstops who have made it. So far he's proving me wrong. Still, I think the tools are just a grade better all-around for Gordon, in terms of speed, arm strength, power. You have a potential 4 or 5 tool shortstop (depending on how the power develops), with the fall back option of putting him on the mound (like Casey Kelly) if the hitting doesn't translate, since he already throws low 90s with a plus curveball.

 

I still like a few players ahead of him, but I def would not be disappointed if we drafted. I learned my mistake from Crawford not to underrate the bat too much.

Posted
Where do you think Nick Burdi goes in the draft? He's strictly a reliever but...a damn good one at that.

 

I could see him getting snagged in the 2nd round or even the comp balance/supplemental. Corey Knebel was taken by the Tigers 39th last year as arguably the top closer and I think Burdi is better than him. Heck, Detroit probably takes him if I had to bet. Them or the White Sox: lol

Posted
I'm not a big fan of that swing.

 

There's definitely a hitch present there that could be a problem. But he's young enough and athletic enough that you can hope that's correctable. The fact that he's able to make consistent contact despite that, as well as catching up to premium velocity at the HS level speaks to his bat speed, and hand-eye. Also I remember when scouts were concerned about the hitch in Ryan Braun's swing. The lesson being that Forbes should immediately get on the juice once he signs. j/k:p

 

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/2005draft/firstround.html

5. Brewers: Ryan Braun, 3b, U. of Miami

 

Braun has a hitch in his swing and a high, unconventional finish, but his hands are quick enough to make it work, and he’s athletic enough to repeat his stroke and drive pitches to all parts of the field.

Posted
He has the impressive physique of a young Chad Jenkins.

 

Seriously, potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars are at stake, depending on where you get drafted and he can't lay off the sweets.

Posted
How come he's wearing a Blue Jays uniform?

 

Destiny?;)

 

I think he plays for the Atlanta Blue Jays high school travel team.

Posted

My boy Brandon Finnegan tearing it up so far. Nearly 62% k rate on the season.

 

Texas Christian lefthander Brandon Finnegan continues to rack up strikeouts at a high rate this season after striking out nearly 40 percent (12 of 31) of the Michigan State Spartans he faced Friday. On the season, the 5-foot-11, 184-pound Finnegan has struck out 39 percent of all hitters (114) with a strikeout-walk ratio of 7.5 and he ran his fastball up to 96 mph in multiple outings.
Posted

A couple other college players of note.

 

Hartford lefthander Sean Newcomb continued his strong start to the season against East Tennessee State. Newcomb allowed only two hits in seven innings, both of which could have been ruled as errors. The Bucs rarely created hard contact against Newcomb, who generated 13 swinging strikes, eight strikeouts and 11 of his 15 balls in play allowed were groundballs.

 

The 6-foot-5, 240-pound Newcomb produces some of the easiest velocity found in the amateur ranks in recent years as his fastball ranged from 90-95 mph and sat 92-94 at times.

 

“You almost had to check the gun again to after some of those fastballs where it looked like he just lobbed it in there, but then you check and you are like ‘Wow, that was 94.’ It comes out as easy as you will ever see 95 come out,” an American League scouting executive said.

 

When on top of the ball, Newcomb produced above-average fastball life with arm-side run and sink when down in the zone and late glove-side run when working in the upper half of the zone. On a night when his fastball generated 11 whiffs, Newcomb worked heavily off his heater, throwing it 77 percent of the time. Newcomb was primarily fastball-curveball against a Bucs’ lineup that featured only two lefthanded hitters. His 77-80 mph curveball was inconsistent but flashed average potential. He threw only five mid-80s changeups on the night but the offering showed the potential to be at least an average pitch, flashing above-average. Newcomb did not throw his fourth offering, a mid-80s cutter/slider, in game action Friday.

 

63 percent of his pitches went for strikes and he walked three hitters. The lefthander also made an athletic defensive play when he snared a chopper up the first-base line with his bare hand to get the runner to first.

 

“I think if he has a lot of starts like he did Friday night he is going to go pretty good,” the executive said.

 

National college writer Aaron Fitt recently profiled Florida International catcher Aramis Garcia, who sustained his loud offensive start to the season, hitting three home runs and a double over the weekend against Charlotte, which has an offense-oriented ballpark. The athletic 6-foot-2, 200-pound Garcia is hitting .424/.521/.763 in 59 at-bats this season with five home runs and 11 walks against four strikeouts.
Posted

BA on Newcomb:

 

A long-held scouting axiom is that lefthanded pitchers tend to develop later than their righthanded counterparts. So do tall pitchers and prospects from the Northeast.

 

Those factors, and others, make Hartford lefthander Sean Newcomb one of this year’s most fascinating draft prospects and a potential first-round selection.

 

Sean Newcomb

Sean Newcomb was not drafted out of high school. (Photo by John Williamson)

 

Newcomb brandishes easy mid-90s velocity now, after he was a very different pitcher as a three-sport athlete with a mid-80s heater at Middleborough (Mass.) High.

 

“He was a very green player and didn’t look ready for pro ball,” a National League scout said. “He was an unknown because he really didn’t start logging innings until his junior year.”

 

Only one team asked him to fill out a draft questionnaire out of high school. He went undrafted.

 

The 6-foot-5 Newcomb, who played defensive end, considered playing college football but decided to concentrate on baseball. Hartford was the only school he visited.

 

After going 17-80 during Newcomb’s junior and senior years of high school, Hartford changed coaching staffs entering his freshman year, hiring a young coach, Justin Blood, who had been a hard-throwing lefthander himself. As a coach, Blood was one of keys to building up a Connecticut program that produced two first-round picks in 2011, George Springer and Matt Barnes. Newcomb’s velocity increased over the summer leading into his freshman year.

 

“The moment we knew we had something special was watching his first game of catch on the first day,” Blood said. “We saw him throwing and said, ‘Oh my gosh, what do we have here?’ Just watching him play catch and the way the ball carries out of his hand and the effort level, or lack thereof. He was 86-89 and touched 90 in his first bullpen we ever saw.”

 

Newcomb continued to add strength to his extra-large frame and touched the mid-90s as a sophomore.

 

“I started lifting a lot, then started gaining weight, and along with some mechanical changes it all started to come together,” Newcomb said. “My sophomore year I could start to feel the effect of my strength gains. Freshman year I did pretty well, but I think when I was able to put it all together was my sophomore year.”

 

He has gained 40 pounds since high school, sitting around 240. The composition of his weight has changed as well, as he has shed some of the softness to his build.

 

The coaches aided Newcomb’s mechanical adjustments, curtailing the severity of his across-body delivery.

 

“There were times when I would cut off my body and step to the first-base side of the mound,” Newcomb said. “So I straightened that up and that has allowed me to throw to either side of the plate. I had always been able to locate arm side, and with adjustments I have been able to come inside to righties to my glove side.”

 

His arm action has become more compact and streamlined.

 

“He had a tendency to get a little bit longer in the back and straighten out at times as a freshman and sometimes as a sophomore,” Blood said. “He has corrected that. He is fairly consistent with his arm path.”

 

After those adjustments, Newcomb pitched in the Cape Cod League last summer, though he missed nearly a month with mono, and entered his junior season as a priority follow for Northeast scouts. He has allowed only one unearned run in three starts, striking out 23 in 18 innings against eight walks and eight hits.

 

Although his fastball has been 90-95 mph this spring and touched 96 in the past, how he produces that velocity stands out more than the radar gun readings. Newcomb throws with ease and looks like he is playing catch.

 

“You almost had to check the gun again after some of those fastballs where it looked like he just lobbed it in there,” an American League scouting executive said. “But then you check and you are like, ‘Wow, that was 94.’ It comes out as easy as you will ever see 95 come out.”

 

Scouts have to travel years through their mental databases to recall a lefthander that threw hard with so little effort.

 

“I don’t think I have ever seen a lefthander throw that easily with that kind of velocity,” the NL scout said. “It is really tough to think of a lefthander that produced velocity that easily. Maybe Scott Kazmir in 2002. This is something pretty unique.”

 

When he stays on top of the ball, Newcomb produces above-average fastball life with arm-side run and sink when down in the zone, and glove-side run and late giddyup when working in the upper half of the zone. In the early part of the season, Newcomb has operated heavily off his fastball.

 

His curveball has improved over the last year, when it was a consistently below-average offering. It still lacks consistency but has shown the makings of at least an average pitch.

 

“Sometimes I get slider spin and sometimes I get curveball spin,” Newcomb said. “I feel like when I go arm side it is more curveball spin and then when I go to my glove side across the plate it starts to have more slider spin.”

 

“Sean has come an awful long way already, but where he has an opportunity to get better is with the consistency of creating spin,” Blood said.

 

Because Newcomb pitched effectively off his fastball this spring he has not used his mid-80s changeup regularly, but shows surprising feel for the offering. It has shown the potential to be at least an average pitch, flashing above-average.

 

Newcomb is also working on a cutter that he rarely uses in game action.

 

“It’s his new pitch and he doesn’t throw it often, but it could look a lot better in a year or two,” the NL scout said. “It is not there now but it could became a weapon, just like Jon Lester’s.”

 

As a durable-bodied lefthander with high strikeout rates and an easy, live fastball, Newcomb will be a closely examined draft commodity. His inexperience on the mound (117 innings pitched entering the season), the quality of the competition he has faced, his youth compared to his draft class (age 20 on draft day), breaking ball and control all provide touch points for a range of opinions. Newcomb could have as much projection with his stuff and control as nearly any college pitcher in the class, yet scouts prefer to not project on breaking balls from college pitchers like they do with high schoolers.

 

“This is a great case study because there are two or three lefthanders in the whole draft that have that sort of stuff,” the executive said. “You could make a case for him pretty high and you could make a case for him a little lighter as well. Though he’s a college junior, it is almost more how you look at a high school breaking ball, where you see the makings of one and enough to make you think it is going to be an average pitch. But he doesn’t repeat it the way you want a college pitcher to.”

 

Newcomb’s control has improved significantly over his career. He walked 7.5 per nine his freshman year and 4.6 his sophomore year. Although his walk rate this year (4.6) is the same as last, scouts believe he had made legitimate improvements to his strike-throwing ability. He has posted high strikeout rates throughout his career; he entered the year with a career strikeout rate of 10.5 per nine and has struck out more than one-third of all hitters this spring. Some scouts to project average command, although he can struggle to repeat his delivery and can still occasionally throw slightly across his body.

 

Despite the gap between present ability and future impact compared to other college pitchers, it’s hard to not dream big on a lefthander with this much physical talent.

 

“He lacks the finish and what you see has a chance to get really good in one calendar year,” the NL scout said. “You could see him a year from now and go, ‘Wow, everything has cleaned up.’ There is so much room for growth and development that you don’t normally see in a college junior who has the tool set that he does.

 

“Normally what you see is what you get. But a minor league system would be licking their chops to get him because you have the makings of a very good starter, a big time starter. A lefthander with velocity and high strikeout rates who looks like Jon Lester? That could be special.”

Posted

Some early stat lines from the HS draft prospects.

 

http://www.baseballamerica.com/draft/high-school-preview-preseason-high-school-all-america-team/

 

Alex Gordon, C

108ab .343avg 14hr 33rbi 8(2b) 8sb

 

Braxton Davidson, 1B

77ab .403 8hr 30rbi 7(2b) 1(3b) 6sb

 

Jacob Gatewood, 3b

103ab .320avg 4hr 20rbi 5(2b) 1(3b) 3sb

 

Nick Gordon, SS

99ab .505avg 2hr 30rbi 15(2b) 6(3b) 12sb

 

Michael Chavis, 3B

69ab .435 12hr 34rbi 10(2b) 1(3b) 11sb

 

Michael Gettys, OF

106ab .406 4hr 21rbi 5(2b) 5(3b) 38sb

 

Monte Harrison, OF

89ab .464avg 6hr 34rbi 11(2b) 3(3b) 20sb

 

Derek Hill, OF

84ab .417 1hr 27rbi 6(2b) 4(3b) 9sb

 

Brady Aiken, LHP

10g 5-3 0.92era 53ip 30h 25bb 80so

 

Dylan Cease, RHP

15g 10-0 0.81era 69ip 43h 36bb 100so

 

Tyler Kolek, RHP

5g 2-0 1.56era 18ip 6h 9bb 42so

 

Sean Reid-Foley, RHP

14g 7-4 0.86era 81ip 37h 38bb 137so

 

Touki Toussaint, RHP

12g 6-2 0.82era 45ip 17h 33bb 86so

 

Alex Verdugo, LHP

14g 10-0 1.29era 65ip 40h 29bb 130so

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