2nd Pick - Pittsburgh Pirates - RHP Jameson Taillon

1. Jameson Taillon – (TY-on) - The Woodlands HS, Spring, Texas – already hitting mid-90s with his fastball… nice curve… great size and athleticism… heavy 92-94 FB; also seen at easy 93-95; most recently hit 96-97 - plus 77-84 CB; 75-76 maybe? - underutilized 76 CU with real potential - 83-84 with SF - plus command - 6-7, 230 pounds - popular comps include Gerrit Cole, Stephen Strasburg, Josh Beckett, and, wait for it, Roger Clemens…




Blake's Scouting Report: - Taillon has three quality pitches. His fastball sits around 94-96 and coming from his tall frame makes it even quicker with a long and balanced drive to home plate. His hard slider comes in around 81-83 with sharp downwards movement. Although Taillon likes to use hard stuff being the power pitcher he is, there is a quality changeup in his repertoire that drops to 77-79 mph. He has ace of a staff type stuff and I see him playing pro ball in 2011 rather than being a Rice Owl.



Fr. www.espn.com: Jameson Taillon, a 6-foot-6, 225-pound righty from The Woodlands High School in Texas, was 90-94 mph with good life on his fastball and a very sharp, almost spike-like slider at 83-86. He also showed a curveball with depth and a decent changeup. He's got a quick arm and still has projection left in his body.



7-21: Fr. http://baseballdraftreport.com: potential first round pick



8-1: from http://perfectgame.atinfopop.com: appeared to be the same guy I saw last year, velocity topped out at 93, command was ok, for a big kid, breaking ball still needs help and has the makeup to get better with more instruction.



8-6: From www.baseballamerica.com: - Taillon's big frame is likely maxed out, but he has established himself as one of the top pitchers in the upcoming draft class. His fastball sits in the 92-93 mph range and Taillon also throws a harder slider at 84-85 and a sharp curveball that registers at 82-83 mph.



8-9: from www.baseballamerica.com: - Taillon, a big, strong righty from The Woodlands (Texas) HS, sat 94-95 in his one inning of work with a filthy breaking ball that was in the mid-80s.



8-11 from www.espn.com: Jameson Taillon from Woodlands HS, TX, was the most dominant pitcher with a fastball going 95-93 and a 84-83 splitter.



8-15: from XMLBScout on www.perfectgame.com: showed a much better CB with downward bite and occasional late tail on his heater. TV scouts had his FB at 96 on a couple pitches.



8-17 from www.baseballamerica.com re: AFLAC games - Righthander Jameson Taillon is a near perfect pitching prospect. Taillon (The Woodlands, Texas, HS) is an ideal prep pitching prospect, appearing to be formed out of a scout's dream. Solidly constructed at 6-foot-7 and 230 pounds, he comfortably draws comparisons to Stephen Strasburg. Taillon easily fires a blistering 93 to 95 mph fastball that peaks at 96. He adds a wicked 82 mph curve, a vicious breaking ball that is already a plus big league pitch. After registering one strikeout in a quick first inning, Taillon breezed through the second frame, striking out the side while barely breaking a sweat. "Nooooo contest," a scout said behind home plate.



8-19: Jeff Sullivan from the AFLAC Games: - This big right hander dominated in the game, striking out four, including striking out the side in the second. He is in a class by himself as far as pitchers go this year. He ran his fastball up to 97, and his breaking ball was also very sharp. In the second, he struck out Reggie Golden and Stetson Allie with the fastball, then got Connor Narron looking on his sharp breaking ball. For me, he is a definite top 5 pick in the draft at this point.



9-5: from Jonathan Mayo’s 8-26 article on www.minors.mlbblogs.com: - He looked like a Top 10 pick, throwing an explosive fastball up to 95 mph and locating it to both sides of the plate. He showed a slider and a curve, the latter of which might be a plus pitch down the line. The FB and slider are plus offerings right now. He even showed a changeup. He's big, strong and showed an ability to throw down and to both sides of the plate.



9-7: From www.perfectgame.com on the AFLAC games: - Jameson Taillon, right now on paper would be in my top 5 for the 1st round if it were held today. He's always had the velocity, except now the cb is a true dominant type pitch, graded it at 70 right now, fb at times will have some inner half movement vs RHH. Good trajectory and is better balanced after he delivers the ball. He's cleaning up that delivery almost daily. Gotta love his work ethic, but remember, he's gonna have to go 6-7 innings a game and sustain it over 35-40 starts in pro ball, as compared to 1 inning stints in all-star tilts. I've now seen 35 innings pitched by Jameson and he's k'od 39 hitters, walked only 7 and allowed just 19 hits, 1 long hr last year.



9-6: From an 8-25 post www.pgtracker.com: - “right now on paper, top 3 picks for 2010 MLB for me would be” - 2.) RHP Jameson Taillon, The Woodlands HS, 6'5 plus, 230, great arm strength, power type arm and 70 cb right now. Control is at least average projects to be 60, plus. Comparable big leaguers, better arm speed and action than Rick Sutcliffe, comparable bodies however and competitiveness.



9-16: From www.baseballamrica.com : - High School Top 25 draft prospects: 1. Jameson Taillon, rhp The Woodlands (Texas) HS



9-24: From: http://mlbresource.blogspot.com: Mock Draft Version 1.0 – 12th pick overall - Jameson Taillon, RHP - The Woodlands HS (TX)



9-27 from: http://web.usabaseball.com: Jameson Taillon struck out 12 and gave up three hits in an overpowering performance and the USA Baseball 18U National Team logged a seven-run inning for a third consecutive day in a 14-0 run-rule shutout Sunday against Panama in the third day of the COPABE "AAA" Pan American Junior Championships at Daniel Canonico Stadium. Taillon led the way on the mound for the Americans with a strong six-inning outing. The right hander struck out five in a row at one juncture and fanned the side in both the second and fourth innings. He allowed only one runner from Panama (1-1) to reach third base and no more than two baserunners in any inning. Taillon issued just two walks.



9-28: From http://mlbresource.blogspot.com: - Mock Draft Version 2 - #9 pick overall - Jameson Taillon, RHP - The Woodlands HS (TX) - The Padres under Grady Fuson and Bill "Chief" Gayton have done a great job in restoring the Padres farm system. As seen these past couple weeks the Padres have some nice young talent and GM Kevin Towers when given the resources is one of the best in the game at putting a team together. With this said I think San Diego should boost that farm even more and taking the hard throwing prep out of Texas. He is committed to Rice so it could be a hard buy but it is worth the risk.



9-29: From: http://www.baseballrumormill.com – Currently considered the #1 high school prospect available in the 2010 draft, Jameson Taillon continued to impress in his COPABE "AAA" Pan American Championships debut for the 18-and-under USA team. Taillon threw six strong innings, yielding just three hits and two walks, while striking out 12 in Team USA's 14-0 drubbing of Panama.



10-4 from www.myworldofbaseball.com: Bryce Harper may be considered a top draft pick by many, but Jameson Taillon made a statement by striking out 16 Cuban hitters in the United States 6-1 win over Cuba in the gold medal for the 18 and unders. Taillon went two outs into the eighth inning, giving up four hits and walking none with his 16 K’s.



10-5 from http://mlbbonusbaby.com: - 3. Baltimore Orioles – Jameson Taillon, RHP, The Woodlands HS (TX) – (2nd RHP picked in draft) - I had a hard time putting Taillon below Ranaudo, but I still think Ranaudo’s more proven history puts him slightly above Taillon’s rawness. There’s no doubt to me that Taillon is the best pitcher the 2010 prep class has to offer, as he’s raised his stock clearly above A.J. Cole. He’s got great size, great projectability, and great current stuff, so there’s not much to dislike here. His main question mark will be his representation, and he’s got a Rice commitment, too, so when the signability fog begins to clear, we’ll have a better read.



10-5 from http://baseballdraftreport.com: - top 50 prospects in 2010 draft – #2 – Jameson Taillon – 1st RHP on list)



10-6 from: http://baseballdraftreport.com: - RHP Jameson Taillon – Picking Harper for the top spot was a piece of cake. Picking Taillon right behind him is almost as easy. A piece of pie, if you will. Taillon’s extensive arsenal of quality pitches (heavy FB, nasty low-80s SL, near-plus high-70s CB, occasional splitters and CUs) and high level of high school competition put him above the rest of this year’s impressive crop of teenage righthanded pitching.



10-13 from www.mymlbdraft.com: 2010 MLB Mock Draft - #3 - (2nd RHP picked_ - Jameson Taillon



10-24 from www.baseballrumormll.com: - top 10 prospects: - 2. Jameson Taillon, RHP (1st RHP on list), The Woodlands HS, TX: Because of his size (6'7", 230 lbs) and where he's from (Texas), Taillon is already hearing Roger Clemens comparisons. Those are certainly premature, but the righty throws a very hard fastball and a good curveball. Taillon was dominant for Team USA during the COPABE "AAA" Pan American Championships.



11-2 from www.perfectgame.com: - Future Scout Sully said: Here is my list of the Top 50 in the class. I have seen almost every one of these players. Went out to AFLAC for the week, saw team usa play, and went to many cape games: - 2- RHP Jameson Taillon (1st RHP on list)



11-3 from www.mlbresource.com: 3rd Mock draft – 3. Jameson Taillon, RHP - The Woodlands HS (TX) - In my previous mock I had Christian Colon going to Baltimore. This is still a possibility due to Baltimore's love of Cal State Fullerton infielders. However, Taillon will be a nice restock of young pitchers with Matt Hobgood from last year. (2nd RHP on list)



11-9-9 from www.examiner.com: - Top 15 High School Draft Prospects - 2. Jameson Taillon, rhp
The Woodlands (Texas) HS
College Commitment: Rice - Taillon performed well at every showcase venue this summer, as the 6-foot-7, 230-pounder impressed with good command of a mid-90s fastball and a hard, late-breaking curveball. (2nd RHP on list)

11-17 from www.mlbdraft.blogspot.com: - 2. Pittsburgh Pirates- Jameson Taillon, RHP, The Woodlands HS (TX) The Pirates almost always lean on the college side with their first pick. However, Taillon has established himself as the front runner for this pick. Pittsburgh saved money with their first pick last year in Tony Sanchez, but signed some good HS players late. When drafted, Taillon would immediately become the number one pitcher in the system. (1st RHP picked)

11-18 from www.macksmets.blogspot.com: - 4. RHP - Jameson Taillon – my compilation mock has Taillon and Ranaudo neck and neck, but I place him a distant second to the LSU star. Still, he’s the top high school pitcher out there. (2nd RHP on list)

11-20 from www.draftamerica.com: - 2. Pittsburgh -- Jameson Taillon, RHP, The Woodlands HS (TX). Unlike 2009, where PIT felt there wasn't a clear-cut superior talent at 1:4, Taillon is positioning himself to be a "special" enough talent to entice PIT to go over slot (the big question remains, how much over will Taillon require?). (1st RHP on list)

11-23 from www.deepleagues.com: - #6 - Arizona D’Backs Jameson Tallion (P, Woodlands, TX) (3rd RHP on list)

12-10 from www.baseballdraftreport.com: - check out my initial ranking of 2010’s top righthanded high school pitching prospects. 1.Jameson Taillon

12-15 from www.5tooltalk.com: Mock Draft – 1st round: - 3 Orioles Jameson Taillon RHP High School

1-7-9: Morisato's 2010 MLB Mock Draft - Version 1.0 - 4th Overall – The Kansas City Royals

Jameson Taillon (RHP), Texas High School - Arguably the best arm in the draft, Taillon has drawn comparisons to Stephen Strasburg in terms of his stuff. Standing at 6-7, Taillon is blessed with a power pitchers frame and power stuff. He throws in the low 90’s, touching 96. It’s possible he might even gain velocity as he ages. He throws a power curve that is a solid out pitch. He is working on developing a changeup as well. However, he’s not very athletic and his delivery is a bit rough. Overall,Taillon could go anywhere from first to fourth, but this is probably the lowest he goes unless his elbow explodes. Even then, he’d get a huge contract from a big market club to forgo his Rice commitment.

2010 MLB DRAFT MOCK DRAFT- 12/31/09 – www.jjscouting.com - 2. Pittsburgh Pirates- Jameson Taillon, RHP, The Woodlands HS (TX) (1st RHP picked) - The Pirates almost always lean on the college side with their first pick. However, Taillon has established himself as the front runner for this pick. Pittsburgh saved money with their first pick last year in Tony Sanchez, but signed some good HS players late. When drafted, Taillon would immediately become the number one pitcher in the system.



#2 Pittsburgh Pirates: RHSP Jameson Taillon – The Woodlands HS (TX) - There are plenty of different ways to approach a given pick in a mock draft. You can look at a team’s recent drafting history in an attempt to discern notable patterns and trends. You can look at organizational strengths and weaknesses to help partially rule out or narrow down certain positions of interest, e.g. knowing with a high degree of certainty that Houston wasn’t taking a catcher, especially a college catcher, in the first couple of rounds last year. You can also just look at the draft board, check what individual talent is there, and just line up the best player available with whatever team happens to be picking. I try to combine all three components in every mock I do, but I’m slowly coming to realize the last part, the one about staying true to the draft board and slotting players in that way, is probably the surest way to get a mock draft looking like the eventual real deal in June. That’s why Taillon to Pittsburgh makes sense to me. He’s currently the second highest ranked draft-eligible player on the board. If Pittsburgh sees that the same way, they’ll take Taillon without hesitation, Tony Sanchez signability pick be damned. I love the willingness of the Pirates to take high upside fliers late in the draft. I go back and forth too much on these things to really have a meaningful draft philosophy of my own, but, if I had to align myself with a pro club’s approach to drafting, I think there would be a lot of similarities between what I would do and what the Huntington Pirates have done over the past two years. Then again, I’ve never been a Tony Sanchez guy at all, dating back to watching him play extensively over the past three years in person along the parking garage ramp at Boston College. Guess that just goes to show how hard it is to really understand what certain clubs will wind up doing on draft day.

1-1-9 from www.draftsite.com: - mock draft: - #8 Houston Jameson Taillon RHP The Woodlands HS, Tx. 6'5" 215 R,R

1-15-9 from http://baseballdraftreport.com: 3. Baltimore Orioles – Jameson Taillon, RHP, The Woodlands HS (TX) – Taillon’s the clear-cut best prep arm at this point in time, and if he drops here, I don’t see the Orioles passing him up. To most teams, Taillon would be the best player available after Harper and Colon, with Ranaudo being the other option. I see the Orioles opting for the higher-ceiling arm and picking Taillon. Beware the Rice commitment, though. He could end up as Gerrit Cole version 2010. Previously: #3.

1-30-10: - named to the Louisville Slugger 2010 Pre-Season High School All-America Team

1-28 from: http://web.usabaseball.com: - USA Baseball has announced Jameson Taillon as the recipient of the inaugural USA Baseball International Performance of the Year Award. Taillon led the 2009 USA Baseball 18U National Team to its first ever gold medal in the COPABE Pan American "AAA"/18U Championships on Oct. 3 in Venezuela, defeating intercontinental rival Cuba, 6-1. In the final, Taillon was awarded the win after striking out 16 Cuban batters in 7.2 innings pitched, with no runs allowed and one walk. The 16 strikeouts set a single-game record for a Team USA pitcher in an 18U Pan Am game, breaking the former mark of 15 which was set by Scott Kazmir (vs. Cuba in 2001) and Jeff Manship (vs. Netherlands Antilles in 2003). Taillon was USA Baseball's USOC October Athlete of the Month nominee.

3-21 from: - http://www.federalbaseball.com/2010/3/20/1381983/washington-nationals-saturday?ref=yahoo - • And I know, I know, the Nationals will never draft Jameson Taillon, no team has ever taken a prep school pitcher number one overall and this particular pitcher has even verbally committed to Rice, so it's even more unlikely, but he is the best high school pitcher available, and he has a 99mph fastball according to an MLB.com Video Scouting Report, which also says he has, "...two breaking balls, a curve and a slider, and both are plus offerings and yes, he's got a good changeup, though he doesn't need it much at the high school level." That sounds familiar...

3-25 from: - http://myworldofbaseball.com/wordpress/?m=201003 - If I’m the Nationals, and I’m looking at that first pick, I select Jameson Taillon and not Bryce Harper. Pitching wins championships. If the Nationals don’t select Harper it will be interesting to see if the Pirates do. Or do they contain costs and select another player. That gives the Orioles Harper.

3-24 from http://www.baseballamerica.com/blog/draft/?p=2038 - Although he's had a few rough outings recently, No. 1 prospect Jameson Taillon from The Woodlands (Texas) High righted the ship in a hurry last night by firing a no-hitter against Conroe (Texas) High in a 7-0 victory. The 6-foot-7, 230-pound righthander struck out 19 batters and walked only one over seven innings.

4-6 from Jason Churchill/ http://www.baseballrumormill.com/2010/04/a-preliminary-top-5-mock-draft/#more - 3) Baltimore Orioles - Jameson Taillon, The Woodlands HS, RHP: The only concern with Taillon is that he might be looking for a signing bonus well above slot demands. The Orioles also have pitching depth in their farm system already and could look to someone like Manny Machado.

4-30 from: - http://www.mlbbonusbaby.com/2010/4/30/1451211/casing-the-states-texas-part-four#storyjump - Taillon has been the top prospect in the 2010 high school class since the class entered high school, and he hasn't disappointed this spring. A big, hulking righty standing at an easy 6'6'', Taillon has emerged as an elite prospect, even when compared across draft history. Very rarely do right-handed high school pitchers prove themselves enough to warrant consideration for a top pick, and Taillon has done just that, though he's unlucky enough to be in the same class as Bryce Harper. He has true number one upside on the mound, and that will ultimately get him drafted within the first handful of picks. His fastball, a plus-plus pitch already, sits easily in the 93-96 range, touching 98-99 at times, and he even maintains that velocity through most of the late innings of his outings. He pairs that with a plus to plus-plus curveball that is the top breaking ball in the entire draft class, college pitchers included. He also throws a functional slider and changeup, but his bread and butter is the fastball-curve combo that could get a number of Major League hitters out already. With all this talent, Taillon's biggest question mark is his projected asking price. He's established himself as a generational high school pitcher, and his agents, the Hendricks Brothers, are notorious for getting higher prices for their select draft clients such as Aaron Crow. In addition, he's committed to Rice, a school that usually means high bonus demands from its commits. The overall bonus demands could set records, but he's expected to get it from a top team. Projected Draft Range: #3 Overall-#9 Overall

5-31 from: - http://metsmerizedonline.com/2010/05/mlb-draft-preview-righties.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+MetsMerizedOnline-GetMetsmerized-NewYorkMets+%28Mets+Merized+Online%29&utm_content=Twitter - Jameson Taillon: I won’t go into too much detail on Taillon, as there is no way he falls to 7th. He’s an high-school pitcher who is built like an NBA player (6’7’’, 230 lbs. and growing) who happens to be the best pitcher in a weak class. Taillon throws gas with movement, and quality breaking pitches and a changeup that he can get over for strikes. Taillon will almost certainly be a top 3 pick, and a top of the rotation starter.