The MLB draft is just three days away, with the Pittsburgh Pirates making their first four selections of the draft on Monday night. There are going to be plenty of mock drafts between now and then, but MLB Pipeline’s newest mock draft has a name we have heard often recently for the Pirates. With the 18th overall pick, Jim Callis has the Pirates taking right-handed pitcher Quinn Priester out of Cary-Grove HS in Illinois.
Priester has been connected to the Pirates more than anyone. Here’s the timeline of events:
On May 5th, we first heard his name for the Pirates in an MLB Pipeline mock draft. That link has a scouting report and three videos.
Twelve days later, Pipeline did an updated mock draft and again they went with Priester. That link has a fourth video on him, one that was uploaded after the first article was posted.
A week later, Baseball America posted a mock draft, and while he wasn’t their selection for the Pirates, they noted that the Pirates were showing interest in him.
Finally, Fangraphs posted an updated mock draft two days ago and they had Priester going to the Pirates.
Priester has a lot to like, from a projectable frame, to a solid three-pitch mix. The 18-year-old righty has a four-seam fastball that gets up to 96 MPH, sitting in the low-90s, with excellent control. His also has a two-seam fastball with plenty of sinking action and movement. His curveball sits in the high-70s and has a chance to be a plus pitch. He gets praise for his easy delivery and repeatable mechanics. All that is coming from someone who has never had a pitching coach, so the thought is that he still has a lot to learn, but he’s also already one of the best HS pitchers in this draft.
Here are two videos I haven’t posted yet for Priester, but the better ones are linked up top
This is last year from Perfect Game Baseball
This is summer ball action from ten months ago, courtesy of Baseball Factory
Last year, Monday was the big day for mock drafts, sometimes with multiple attempts from the same people as they got more inside info. We will have one running mock draft post going all day, which will be updated often. I’ll change the title after each update, so if you’re checking the site throughout the day, you’ll know when something has been added.
