Stanford’s Mark Appel is currently the favorite for next year’s draft after opting not to sign with the Pittsburgh Pirates. this year
If the season ended today, this is what the first round of the 2013 First Year Player Draft would look like.
- Houston Astros
- Chicago Cubs
- Colorado Rockies
- Cleveland Indians
- Minnesota Twins
- Miami Marlins
- New York Mets
The Mets and Marlins still have six remaining contests among their 14 final games to this season and only 1.5 games separate them from owning last place in the NL East. I’ve already moved on to football season.
Prospect Nation profiles some of the top names currently being bandied about for next years First Year Player Draft are the following:
Mark Appel, RHP, Stanford
Mark Appel is the most major league ready pitcher in the draft. Opting not to sign with the Pirates after being selected with the eighth-overall pick last year, Appel returns to Stanford for his senior season. While others may have a higher ceiling than the 6’-5” right-hander, Appel should be a quick riser to the show and has the stuff to be a front line starter thanks to a mid-90s fastball and great mound presence. He also features a swing-and-miss slider, a change-up with late fade and he will mix in a cutter. Went 10-2 as a junior with a 2.56 ERA and 130 K/30 BB over 123 innings, averaging 7.7 innings per start.
Austin Meadows, OF, Grayson HS (GA)
Meadows opened eyes and showed the entire world how special his talents are at the 2011 IBAF Youth Championships held in Mexico. As a member of the U16 team USA squad, he was the MVP of the tournament, hitting a ridiculous .537 (22-for-41) over eight games as Team USA won the gold. He added nine extra-base hits, six stolen bases and set a Team USA record by knocking in an absurd 28 runs. The 6’-4”, 200-pound left-hander has all five tools including power to all fields and great speed. His outstanding talent and high character has teams drooling already.
Ryne Stanek, RHP, Arkansas
With three pitches that project to plus, the 6’-4”, 180-pound right-hander will see plenty of scouts in the stands on Friday nights next season. His fastball touches 97 mph, his curveball sits in the low 80s and his change-up in the mid 80s with good deception. He went 7-4 with a 2.91 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 80 K/33 BB over 86.2 innings as a sophomore. Stanek missed being a draft eligible sophomore in the 2012 draft by a week and the extra year at Arkansas should do nothing but improve his stock.
Jeremy Martinez, C, Mater Dei HS (CA)
Arguably the most polished high school player in the draft, the 5’-11”, 200-pound right-hander excels on both sides of the field. Defensively, he should contend for Gold Gloves at the next level as his arm and footwork are outstanding behind the plate. With his Albert Pujols-like stance, he can rake at the dish, too. He has an advanced approach at the plate and his bat speed allows him to drive the ball to all fields. Hit .388 as a junior with just eight strikeouts over 29 games for powerhouse Mater Dei. An intelligent player who has played on the highest level as he was part of the U18 USA Team that won the gold and is currently in Seoul, South Korea trying to win another with the 2012 U18 team.
Sean Manaea, LHP, Indiana State
Not highly touted coming out of high school, The 6’-5”, southpaw has emerged as one of the top pitchers in the country after absolutely dominating the Cape Cod League this season. He went 5-1 with a 1.20 ERA and 87 K/7 BB over 52.2 innings for the Hyannis Harbor Hawks. He had four double-digit strikeout games including 15 over seven shutout innings on July 19, allowing just two hits to no walks. His fastball sat in the 93-96 mph range and his slider was filthy, sitting around 80-83 mph with hard downward action. His change-up is still developing, but with two plus pitches in his arsenal already, coupled with his size, there isn’t a lot not to like. As a sophomore for Indiana State, he went 5-3 with a 3.34 ERA and 115 K/37 BB over 105 innings.
Clinton Hollon, RHP, Woodford County HS (KY)
A 6’-1”, 185-pound right-hander with four quality pitches and good command of all of them, Hollon is one of the top prep pitchers in the country and still has a lot of room for improvement. His fastball has touched 97 mph but sits more comfortable in the 92-94 mph range, and both his curveball and change-up project to plus. His frame suggests he could add another 20+ pounds with ease and the early success of Orioles’ prospect, Dylan Bundy, will have a lot of scouts keeping a close eye on Hollon’s progress this season.
Austin Wilson, OF, Stanford
Like Joey Gallo last year, Wilson is a 6’-5”, left-hander with tremendous power. He is a better athlete than Gallo but he also has a lot of swing-and-miss to his game, like Gallo. Over 59 games as a sophomore last season, he hit .285 with 12 doubles, 10 home runs, 56 RBI and stole nine bases. Huge upside because of his size, power from the left side and ability to play a corner outfield position.
The field is very mixed right right now among the experts as to whether the 2013 draft class will be as good as it was this year. So far it doesn’t seem to be as deep in talent, but that could change by next Spring. I would say it’s 60/40 among the sites I frequent that it wont measure up to this year’s crop which was very deep, especially in pitching, or even the two year’s prior which was top heavy in very elite talent.
