8/23/12

2013 Draft-Notes - Sean Manaea , Brandon Pierce, Mark Appel, Nick Ciuffo, Taylor Sparks


Indiana State junior lefthanded pitcher Sean Manaea has made the full transformation from a little known freshman a couple of seasons ago into one of college baseball's elite starting pitchers and MLB draft prospects. Perhaps we should've seen this coming. Manaea wasn't a highly recruited lefty out of high school, only ranked as one of the top 1,000 national prospects to watch. But he made a huge statement the summer of 2011 when he was the top prospects at the Prospect League, a summer collegiate level. There, he topped out at 93 and attracted plenty of eyeballs for his sophomore season with ISU this past spring. PG

RHP Brandon Pierce, Nebraska -- Pierce entered the spring with some high hopes with the Huskers, but control issues plagued him at times. Pierce put together a very good summer season, making nine appearances and having a 2.45 ERA in 44 innings. He also struck out 30 and walked 15, while teams hit him at a .229 clip. PG

Mark Appel RHP Stanford- I am just not a huge fan of Appel but the arm is full of projection. He commands the zone well with plenty of action from a 3 pitch mix. He finished 2012 with a 10-2 record and a 2.56 e.r.a in 123 IP with 130 K and 30 walks. pinetarpress

Nick Ciuffo  C  Charleston, S.C. Ht.: 6-1. Wt.: 200. B/T: L/R.  Ciuffo is one of the most complete catchers in the 2013 class. He is an advanced receiver with a feel for the game and has a strong, accurate arm. His lefthanded swing is quick and clean. He uses the whole field and flashes some power to the pull side. He is verbally committed to South Carolina.

Taylor Sparks, 3b/of, Wenatchee (So., UC Irvine): In high school and as a freshman at UC Irvine, Sparks' performance lagged behind his impressive tools, but he may have narrowed the gap this summer after hitting .388/.448/.709 over 134 at-bats, ranking second in the league in batting average and first in home runs with nine. Sparks has a brawny, 6-foot-4, 210-pound frame and power is his best tool. He won the league's home run derby at the all-star game and hit a few balls nearly 450 feet. He has a compact swing but his brute strength allows him to occasionally mis-hit balls and still muscle them through the infield for hits.. http://ht.ly/1m4q1n

The Newport Gulls clinched the New England Collegiate League championship on Aug. 11. Some 10 days later, that title has resulted in an unofficial national championship. http://www.collegesummerbaseball.net/2012/08/newport-gulls-finish-season-at-no-1.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Patrick Ebert‏ -  Congrats to Indiana State LHP Sean Manaea, our 2012 PG summer collegiate POY

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