Mack – Draft News – Robert Hassell, Luke Little, Jared Kelley, Casey Opitz, Luke Smith

https://www.soxmachine.com/2020/05/10/2020-mlb-mock-draft-1-0/ Mets pick at #19 –

            New York Mets: CF Robert Hassell, Independence HS (Tennessee)   

 

       

https://www.perfectgame.org/players/playerprofile.aspx?ID=485148 - 

  Robert Hassell III is a 2020 OF/LHP/1B with a 6-2 190 lb. frame from Franklin, TN who attends Independence. Lean high waisted athletic build, lots of physical projection and room to get stronger. 6.54 runner, moves well in the outfield with light feet and good overall athleticism and bounce, can use his lower half more throwing. Left handed hitter, wide slightly open stance, has fast hands he uncoils well to start his swing, uphill swing plane with good extension out front, projects power, ball jumps when squared, loose and easy swing. Also pitched, quick compact delivery with a clean and fast arm stroke, high 3/4's with some whip out front, some spinal tilt to get his arm through. Fastball topped out at 90 mph, shows a tight slider that bites hard and that he has feel for, flashed a change up. High level athlete with plenty of projection left, could end up as a two-way player if he goes to school.

http://baseballprospectjournal.com/2020-mlb-draft-three-underrated-prospects/    -

Luke Little, LHP, San Jacinto (Texas) College

Luke Little is an imposing 6-8, 225-pound left-handed pitcher who displayed encouraging results in five appearances this spring. Little, whose top two pitches are his high-90s fastball and a wipeout slider, recorded a 2.00 ERA with 17 strikeouts and three walks allowed in nine innings as a sophomore at San Jacinto.

His success was an improvement over last year’s numbers when he posted a 2.04 ERA with 69 strikeouts and 36 walks allowed in 35 1/3 innings as a starter and reliever in 2019.

Little averaged 17.58 strikeouts per nine innings as a freshman. He followed that up with a 17.00 K/9 rate in his abbreviated sophomore season this spring.

Teams are familiar with Little, as he was in draft discussions last year. But his command struggles caused teams to fall short of Little’s signing bonus demands.

Although he tweaked his back and missed multiple starts this spring, Little showed improved command. He currently profiles better as a late-inning reliever but it wouldn’t shock me if a team tried him in the rotation due to his size and five-pitch mix.

Little likely will be drafted anywhere between the third to fifth round.

Little was recently clocked at 105 mph.

https://prospectinsider.com/mlb-draft-prospects-rankings-veen-bailey-asa-lacy-torkelson/    -

16. Jared Kelley, RHP — Refugio HS (TX)

Kelley is kind of the tweener between the other two top prep arms in the class. He doesn’t offer the physical projection of Abel or Bitsko and he’ll turn 19 in October, but relatively speaking Kelley offers more probability.

“He might be the safest of the three you’re talking about,” said one crosschecker. Love the fastball, the arm (action) is clean and he’s pretty aggressive with his changeup.

Kelley has the best velocity of the three at present, touching 98 mph and living 93-96.

https://athlonsports.com/mlb/2020-mlb-draft-top-50-college-prospects   offered up their list of their top 50 college prospects that will be available in the 2020 draft.

One is 

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32. Casey Opitz, C, Arkansas

https://arkansasrazorbacks.com/roster/casey-opitz/ - 

As a Junior (2020)

Entered the 2020 season as a Baseball America Third Team Preseason All-American … Rated as the “Best Catcher Arm” by Major League Baseball scouts (BA) … Ranked fifth at catcher in D1 Baseball’s Preseason Position Power Rankings … Buster Posey National Collegiate Catcher of the Year Watch List … Preseason All-SEC First Team (Coaches) … Played in all 16 games, starting 14 at catcher, entering the other two as a defensive replacement during the 2020 season … Hit fifth-through-eighth in the order as a junior, seeing five starts in the seven-hole … Finished the season with a .302/.509/.361 slash line at the plate over 53 at-bats … Tallied 16 hits, eight for extra bases, with six doubles, a triple and a homer … One of two Hogs with a triple in 2020 … Scored 10 runs, drove in 11 and walked six times … Threw out six-of-10 base stealers … Reached base safely in each of the first five games … Had two hits in the opening series against Eastern Illinois (Feb. 14-16), including a double, two RBIs, a run scored and a team-high four walks … Brought in two runs on a double, scoring once while drawing two walks in the finale against the Panthers … Punched out the one EIU runner attempting to steal … Hit .429 against Gonzaga on Feb. 20-23 with a .929 slugging percentage after four of his six hits when for extra bases … Opened the series with a two-hit, two-RBI showing, also scoring a run in the contest after hitting a double … Followed it up by coming a double shy of the cycle on Feb. 21, with a single in the fifth, a triple off the top of the right-center field wall in the sixth and a homer in the seventh … First Razorback in 2020 to come a hit away from the cycle … Recorded an RBI double in the finale against the Bulldogs … Tallied three hits at the Shriners College Classic (Feb. 28-March 1), including a multi-hit performance against Texas on Feb. 29 … All three hits in Houston were doubles … Produced a three-hit game against South Alabama on March 8, scoring twice with one RBI … Had two RBIs in the series opener on March 7 behind a sacrifice fly and an RBI groundout … Notched a knock in both games against Grand Canyon (March 10-11), driving in a run in the first game of the series, while scoring and walking in both contests … Part of an offense that finished with a .310 average at the plate with 175 hits and 118 runs scored in 2020.

2020 Stats:  16-G, 53-AB, .302/.361/.509, 1-HR, 11-RBI

https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/top-25-seniors-we-want-to-see-in-college-baseball-in-2021/    -

5. Luke Smith, RHP, Louisville

Pitching alongside lefthander Reid Detmers and righthander Bobby Miller, Smith was the third most famous member of the Louisville weekend rotation this season, but he was more than holding his own, going 3-0, 3.42.

With the expectation that Detmers and Miller will be off to pro baseball next season, getting Smith back for another season in 2021 would be a huge boon for the Cardinals.