The Love Below, on Jun 10 2009, 02:45 PM, said:
Maybe just some highlights, not the whole thing. Anything of notice that really sticks out to you. If another mod feels otherwise they can remove it.
I looked at the guidelines of the board, just quote it and link the source.
Okay. We just took another Top 150 guy with Renny Parthemore.
Red Sox picks w/ scouting reports (subscriber-only)
BA's Draft Top 200, 1-100 (subscriber-only)
BA's Draft Top 200, 101-200 (subscriber-only)
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#45 MADISON YOUNGINER, RHP, MAULDIN (S.C.) HS
While Younginer has thrown well this spring, he's been one of the harder players in the country to scout because his high school team has used him as a reliever. That approach has frustrated scouts and might cost Younginer some money. Recruited to Clemson as both a hitter and pitcher, he has one of the best raw arms in the draft. He's athletic and throws two plus pitches: a fastball that has sat in the mid-90s in short relief bursts, with reports of him touching 97, and a power breaking ball in the upper 80s. Both pitches have late life, with the fastball featuring armside run. Younginer has trouble repeating his delivery and some scouts question his arm action, which can get long. He has flashed the makings of a changeup in past showcase action but hasn't used it much this spring. Last year's top South Carolina prep pitcher, Jordan Lyles, had less fastball and much less breaking ball yet was a supplemental first-rounder after a good workout. Younginer could improve his stock considerably in the same manner after being so hard to scout this spring and could go anywhere from the first to the third round.
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#52 ALEX WILSON, RHP, TEXAS A&M
Wilson projected as a possible first-round pick before he blew out his elbow in the Cape Cod League in the summer of 2007, shortly before he transferred from Winthrop to Texas A&M. He redshirted with the Aggies last spring, though he did reach 94 mph in bullpen workouts that attracted a number of scouts. The Cubs took a flier on him in the 10th round last June and followed him when he returned to the Cape in the summer. Chicago reportedly offered him $600,000 to sign but he was looking for $1.5 million. Wilson looked to be in line for that kind of bonus when he opened this season with a 91-95 mph fastball and a true slider, but his stuff slacked off later in the spring and didn't pick up when Texas A&M moved him to the bullpen. By May, his fastball had flattened out and was down to 88-91 mph and his breaking ball had become slurvy. Wilson is mainly a two-pitch pitcher, so he projects as a reliever in pro ball. His control has been sharp (105-18 K-BB ratio in 75 innings) for a pitcher in his first season back after elbow reconstruction. He figures to be a second-round pick at this point, though he's believed to be looking for a seven-figure bonus as a 22-year-old junior.
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#54 REYMOND FUENTES, OF, CALLEGO HS, MANATI, P.R.
A relative of Mets center fielder Carlos Beltran, Fuentes is an electric, game-changing player. The 6-foot, 160-pound center fielder is slender, but has wiry strength and can put a change in a ball during batting practice. Like a ticking clock, he hits line drives from foul pole to foul pole with his lefthanded swing. He's also an elite runner, clocking in at just under 6.3 seconds in the 60-yard dash at Puerto Rico's annual Excellence Tournament in early May. In game situations, Fuentes stays within himself, goes with a contact-oriented approach and lets his plus speed play to his advantage. These tools make Fuentes an ideal leadoff hitter. Defensively, Fuentes' range will allow him to stay in center field as a professional. Right down to his below-average arm, he's a similar player to the Yankees' Johnny Damon.
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#67 DAVID RENFROE, SS/RHP, SOUTH PANOLA HS, BATESVILLE< MISS.
Renfroe's father Laddie played baseball at Ole Miss, where he was a pitcher and a two-time all-Southeastern Conference selection. If the younger Renfroe makes it to Oxford, he has a chance to exceed his father's accomplishments as a power pitcher who also could be an outstanding college hitter. That's the problem for Ole Miss, though—Renfroe may be too good to get to school. He's a legitimate prospect both ways and reportedly put the word out that he wanted to hit, and that he wanted to sign if the money was right. Renfroe has a polished approach as a hitter, with solid-average power and hitting tools. He's a smooth defender with good hands who should be a capable college shortstop and an outstanding third baseman at the pro level. He has obvious arm strength that also plays on the mound. He sits at 88-92 mph with his fastball and has touched higher, up to 95 at times. He has the ability to spin a breaking ball and has shown a feel for a changeup. Scouts are split on whether he has more upside as a pitcher or as a hitter. He showed his wood-bat power with a home run last year during the Under Armour/Baseball Factory all-star game, easily reaching the Wrigley Field seats. He could go late in the first round as a hitter for a team that wants to buy him away from Ole Miss, though the consensus had him as a second- to third-round talent.
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#92 KENDALL VOLZ, RHP, BAYLOR
Expectations were high for Volz after he showed a 92-95 mph fastball and a low-80s slider with late break as Team USA's closer last summer. He didn't allow an earned run in 14 innings, saved the gold-medal game at the FISU World Championships in the Czech Republic and looked like a possible top-10 pick for 2009. But his stuff had gone backwards so much by May that he might not even go in the first two rounds. His fastball parked in the high 80s and flattened out, and his slider no longer was a weapon. His delivery looks different, as it now contains some ugly recoil, and his command has gotten worse as well. Volz has flashed an effective changeup and has a 6-foot-5, 225-pound frame built for a workhorse role, so he has the ingredients to be a starter at the next level—provided his previous fastball, slider and command return. If not, he looked well suited for a late-inning role last summer. But outside of his time with Team USA, he has been hit harder than someone with his stuff should.
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#107 JEREMY HAZELBAKER, OF, BALL STATE
Hazelbaker hit .246 with 31 errors at second base in his first two seasons at Ball State, but earned all-star honors as an outfielder in the Great Lakes League last summer. Even then, no one expected him to rank among the NCAA Division I leaders in batting (.429), runs (77), hits (87), triples (nine), total bases (147), walks (48), on-base percentage (.550), slugging percentage (.724) and steals (29). He's a totally different hitter now, as he has stopped trying to pull everything and focused on using the entire field and letting his considerable speed work for him. A 65 runner out of the box on the 20-80 scouting scale—he grades as a 70 once he gets going—Hazelbaker is adept a bunting, a skill that helped the lefty hitter bat .419 against southpaws. The 6-foot-3, 195-pounder also has deceptive strength, hitting for the cycle against Kent State (doing most of the damage off prospect Brad Stillings) and driving some balls out of the park to the opposite field. Despite his strength, he understands his primary role as a leadoff hitter is to get on base and create havoc. His speed also allows him to chase down balls in center field, where his arm is playable. He made seven errors this spring, though it was his first year as a full-time outfielder. His limited track record bothers some scouts, but there aren't many college prospects in this draft who are legitimate up-the-middle players and have performed, so he could get picked as high as the third round.
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#150 RENNY PARTHEMORE, RHP, CEDAR CLIFF (PA.) HS
The top prospect in a thin Pennsylvania crop, Parthemore's biggest asset is his projectability. His 6-foot-5, 185-pound frame and his quick arm hint at his considerable upside, and he has reached 93-94 mph in the past, though he worked mostly in the 88-91 range this spring. Parthemore's 12-to-6 curveball currently rates as an average pitch and projects to be plus. He also shows good feel for a changeup, giving him a chance for three average or better pitches down the road. Characteristic of a cold-weather high school pitcher, Parthemore's command comes and goes, and he tends to have trouble getting over his front side in his delivery, but there are no major red flags in his delivery. Some scouts question his competitive fire, but he has top-three-rounds potential. At this stage, however, it seems more likely Parthemore will honor his commitment to Penn State, where he could develop into a first-round pick in three years.
Again, if there's a problem with this, feel free to delete it. But I highly recommend BA for their coverage all year 'round.
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