21
2012
2012 Draft Candidates: Gavin Cecchini, SS
An article by Former Writers
In an effort to cover as many prospects as possible I have decided to begin this feature much earlier than usual and I’ll start off with a name thrown around a lot in regards to the Mets.
Full Name: Gavin Cecchini
School: Barbe HS (LA)
D.O.B.: 12/22/93 (18-years-old)
Height: 6’1″ ft.
Weight: 180 lbs.
Bats/Throws: Right/Right
Position: SS
Stats:
|
Year
|
Team
|
AVG
|
AB
|
R
|
H
|
HR
|
RBI
|
SB
|
CS
|
BB
|
SO
|
OBP
|
SLG
|
OPS
|
| 2012 | HS |
.381
|
- | - | - | 1 | 9 | 7 |
0
|
- | - |
.552
|
- | - |
Accolades:
- 2011 COPABE 18U/AAA Pan American Championships All-Tournament Team
- 2011 USA Baseball 18U Team
- 2011 Under Armour All-American Game American Team MVP
- 2011 1st Team ESPN Rise Underclass All-American
- 2011 Baseball America 2nd Team All-American
- 2011 LSWA Class 5A All-State
- 2011 Under Armour All-American
- 2011 American Press All-Southwest Louisiana
- 2011 MaxPreps All-American 2nd Team
- 2011 Gatorade State Player of the Year
- 2011 Louisiana Coaches Assoc. 5A All-State
- 2011 Perfect Game Underclass 1st Team
- 2011 Perfect Game Underclass 2nd Team
Video:
Scouting Report:
Cecchini has a very athletic frame and well proportioned body that shouldn’t be too much of a concern to outgrow the shortstop position.
He is a pretty good defender and is expected to be able to stick at shortstop because of his instincts and athleticism. He has a strong arm, decent range, and is an above-average runner (6.6 60 yard dash), but it is his superb instincts that really give him a legitimate shot at remaining at short.
At the plate he keeps things pretty simple. He has a fair amount of pre-swing noise, but minimizes movement just as he gets ready for the pitch. His leg kick isn’t anything drastic and he keeps his hips closed well. He creates torque and then explodes with hip rotation creating the source of his power. His power is currently gap power, but in part because of quick hands and strong wrists this projects to grow into more homerun as he matures physically. He can make a few adjustments to smooth out his mechanics, such as lowering his hands, but overall his mechanics are relatively clean.
Cecchini is not described as a hacker, but could benefit from being more selective. His short swing allows him to keep the strikeouts to a minimum, but a better overall approach would bring his offensive game to the next level.
He has plus makeup without any major red flags and is considered an extremely hard worker.
Summary:
He comes from a very athletic family (his brother Garin is a top Red Sox prospect) and has one of the more complete skill sets of all the shortstop prospects in the draft. His offensive game is probably a notch below that of his brother who was a 4th round pick and hit .298/.398/.500 last year, but what makes Gavin more intriguing is the fact that Garin had to switch to third base already and Gavin looks like a shortstop long term.
Cecchini is far enough away where he would not help the Mets short term questions trying to replace Jose Reyes, but he would immediately become the top shortstop prospect in the system and could move fairly quickly for a high school bat.
He has a commitment to Ole Miss along with his good friend Stryker Trahan, but being where the Mets would draft him he would be expected to sign.
Projected: Top 20 picks
About the Author: Former Writers
8 Comments + Add Comment
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He looks extremely polished defensively for an 18 year old. I wouldn’t worry about his bat too much – they’ll work out his kinks once he’s in the system. I’m just wondering where you get all your info on these prospects? This analysis is pretty comprehensive for someone that isn’t a scout.
It is a combo of watching as many videos I can find on the player and reading as much as possible from sources.
In a perfect world I would be able to watch them live but I just don’t have the means or the time to travel to Louisiana, but luckily there is tons of available video on most of these guys nowadays. It obviously makes it harder to get a real feel on the from videos, so I try to rely on scouts (Frankie Piliere, Keith Law, John Klima), services that have direct connections with scouts (Baseball America, Perfect Game, the rest of ESPN like Churchill), and if you look hard enough there are a decent amount of fans who live in areas of top prospects who share some info (like Bullpen Banter for example). All of these people are really good for finding out about things like makeup, plate discipline, etc. that videos don’t show.
Other than that I just try to apply what I’ve learned over the years to try and analyze their mechanics and skills. Obviously I am not a scout, but then again a scout is just a trained eye.
If they draft a SS it will be a mistake!
If they feel they don’t have one in Tejada or the other kids then they should have locked up the all star long term!
They should target an OFer or Catcher so in two years when bay is done they have an option to promote in his place or a Catcher who can replace Thole!
The only other priority would be a pitcher but we don’t have a high enough pick for that this year…Next year is a good bet though!
And Nick just to clarify I wasn’t commenting about the player you mentioned I’m sure he is a fine prospect…
Just don’t feel it is wise to draft for a hole you just created and better to draft for a hole your likely to have in 2 years when that pick should at least be in AAA if you picked well and ready to take over that future hole!
And besides we have WAY too many guys who play middle infield already!
We do?
Like who? Murphy, Turner, Valdespin, Havens, Shields?
Yeah that’s too many lets get rid of a few
The way the talent is laid out this year there is no real catcher or outfielder worth taking at No. 13 who can contribute that fast. Styker Trahan projects as the only catcher who will likely be available and worthy of the spot, but he is far, far away and with Victor Roache’s injury the only outfielders would be high school guys.
You can reach and take one of those positions, but then the fans would make it a pick about saving money and I would prefer the best player available anyway.
Well what you really mean is the way the consensus lays it out but the truth is there is one catcher who is going to be a great player somewhere in this draft!
And if we are smarter than everyone else we should know who that is…
Does that mean we have to take him with the 13th? No especially if no one else is as smart as us and has him way down on their draft board….
I would much rather see them make a surprise pick for something they can use and succeeds than take what everyone expects but can’t be used even if everyone was right!
That said (and in essence agreeing with your statement) any GM worth his salt should at least have a list of the top 15 prospects according to them and take the best guy on that list, HOPING they had a guy in thier top 10 who got passed up and fell.
Truth is I fully expect them to go after a pitcher because thats what Sandy seems to love to have plenty of!
Two years? LOL. That all you think it takes to groom a HS kid into a bonafide Major Leaguer?