On Monday, MLB Pipeline expanded their top draft prospects list from 100 spots to 200, while also doing some re-shuffling among the top 100 prospects.
Pipeline also posted their list of the best tools in the draft, which is a handy reference for after the draft. We mentioned two days ago that D1 Baseball had an article on the top college power bats in the draft. They had Jake Burger as the top power bat in college, and now Pipeline has him listed as the top power bat in the draft. Baseball America also had Burger listed as the top college power bat, so there seems to be a consensus among draft experts.
Burger is a name who has been connected to the Pirates a few times already as a player they have been scouting this year. In the new top 200 from Pipeline, they had him 16th overall. Most mock drafts have him either going to the Pirates, or being selected shortly after they make their first pick at 12th overall.
One other name connected to the Pirates often is UC Irvine 2B/OF Keston Hiura, who Pipeline picked as the best bat in the draft. He only ranks 22nd in the rankings for Pipeline, but that’s because most people believe he will need elbow surgery right after the draft and that will have him out of action until Spring Training next year. He has only been used as a DH this year, although he has been taking grounders at second base all season, just without making any throws.
One thing to point out about that is that Hiura is young for his draft class, turning 21 in August. For comparison, Kevin Newman turned 22 two months after he was drafted. If you’re going to draft someone who will miss some development time, being young for the draft class helps their case.
While the new top 200 isn’t a mock draft, it is interesting to note that Shane Baz is ranked 12th overall. He’s a name who has been mentioned often as a possibility for the Pirates, just like Burger and Hiura.
Baz is one of the top prep pitchers in this draft. He’s a 6’3″, right-hander out of Texas, who turns 18 just days after the draft end. He recently hit 100 MPH in a start, and he controls five pitches that are all at least average. Baz made the honorable mentions for both best slider and best fastball on Pipeline’s top tools list. Baseball America also had him listed in their top tools for the same two pitches.
The draft starts in just six more days. Expect more mock drafts in the days leading up to the draft, as the experts get some clues as to who could be going where in the draft. Our popular tiered ranking article is scheduled to go up Sunday.
Baseball America Top 500
On Monday afternoon, Baseball America unveiled their top 500 draft prospects list. This will be something we reference often on draft day, or at least you would hope because it means the Pirates are taking a lot of players who rate highly with scouts around the industry. There is a misconception among some people who think that BA puts these lists together based on their own scouting alone, but most of the work is done behind the scenes through phone calls, emails and texts, trying to make sure they aren’t too high or low on any players. That background work also helps them decide which players to cover in person.
Their list has an interesting update. Late last month, Kentucky first baseman Evan White went to the Pirates in a mock draft from Baseball America. That was despite the fact that they had him ranked 43rd until yesterday. BA now has him ranked as the 12th best player in the draft, which lines up with the Pirates, though I always point out, these are talent rankings and not mock drafts. You can read more on White here, along with a video of his career highlights.
For reference, Burger ranks 20th, Hiura is 14th and Baz is 11th on the updated list.
