Here are five more draft prospects that are climbing on my draft board:
LHP Adam Hachman
12-14-22 - Here's a first look at 2023's top Draft prospects -
https://www.mlb.com/news/draft-top-100-prospects-list-2023?s=03
#41 Adam Hachman
LHP, Timberland (MO)
Scouting grades: Fastball: 65 | Curveball: 55 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 45 | Overall: 50
Hachman offers more upside than any left-hander in the 2023 Draft and has a chance to become the first Missouri prep pitcher taken in the first round since Jacob Turner in 2009.
He barely pitched during his high school junior season because of a forearm strain and struggled to throw strikes at the outset of the showcase circuit, but he rebounded to repeatedly push his fastball to the upper 90s by the end of the summer. He also served as one of the top relievers on the U.S. team that won the 18-and-under World Cup in September.
Hachman's fastball sat at 94-97 mph and topped out at 99 later at the East Coast Pro Showcase, and its outstanding induced vertical break coming out of his high arm slot makes it even tougher to hit. There's the potential for more velocity as he fills out his 6-foot-5 frame. He also flashes a plus curveball with power and depth, though it lacks consistency in terms of quality and strikes.
Primarily a fastball pitcher at this point, Hachman also owns a rudimentary mid-80s changeup. He doesn't have the smoothest delivery, though it also doesn't have any glaring red flags and the hope is that he'll develop average control once he adds more strength and experience. An Arkansas recruit, he comes with reliever risk but also a legitimate swing-and-miss fastball.
Mack - I now have Hachman 6th on my LHP board. Definitely a second day pick.
2B David Smith
12-2-22 - 2023 MLB Draft: Ten Rising Hitters To Watch - https://d1baseball.com/prospects/2023-mlb-draft-ten-rising-hitters-to-watch/ -
David Smith, INF, UConn– Beginning his collegiate career at La Salle, Smith had to sit out the 2021 season after transferring to UConn. He became an impact player for the Huskies this past spring, batting .307/.405/.496 with nine homers, 11 doubles and 23 stolen bases, giving an indication of his well-rounded skill set. He has a sturdy, athletic frame at 5-foot-10, 190 pounds, and he’s a switch-hitter with sneaky pop. He runs well and picks his spots adeptly on the basepaths. His feet play well at second base, where he has smooth actions and sure hands. The rising prospect had a strong fall and also caught scouts’ attention with a hard-nosed work ethic.
Mack - Drafts are never big on second baseman. In the pros, most turn out to be converted shotstops.
That being said, Smith is now 9th on my pure second nase board, currently a day three pick.
OF Jonny Farmelo
12-14-22 - Two Virginia Baseball Players Listed in Top 100 Prospects for 2023 MLB Draft - https://www.si.com/college/virginia/baseball/two-virginia-baseball-players-listed-in-top-100-prospects-for-2023-mlb-draft -
Jonny Farmelo, who announced his commitment to play baseball at UVA back in July 2020, is ranked the No. 52 overall prospect in the MLB Pipeline for the 2023 Draft. A highly-touted recruit from Centreville, Virginia, Farmelo is expected to arrive at UVA next fall, but could decide to go straight to professional baseball instead.
Mack - The 2023 draft has seven ++ outfielders. Farmelo is now up to 10th on my outfield board and could come in as a round two pick.
RHP Levi Wells
12-14-22 - Here's a first look at 2023's top Draft prospects -
https://www.mlb.com/news/draft-top-100-prospects-list-2023?s=03
#49 Levi Wells
RHP, Texas State
Scouting grades: Fastball: 55 | Curveball: 60 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 50 | Control: 50 | Overall: 50
After spending his first college season as a reliever at Texas Tech in 2021, Wells transferred to Texas State and got the chance to start. The move paid off, as he earned All-Sun Belt Conference honors, beat Stanford in NCAA regional action and continued to thrive in the Cape Cod League. He has thrust himself into early-round consideration and could become the Bobcats' highest-drafted pitcher since 2000 first-rounder Blake Williams.
Wells works at 91-95 mph and reaches 97 with his fastball, showing the ability to get it past hitters with high spin rates and carry at the letters or downhill plane lower in the zone. He also generates good spin on a pair of breaking pitches, with his 78-82 mph downer curveball grading better than his 84-89 mph slider/cutter with tighter break. He doesn't use his changeup very often and it gets too firm in the upper 80s at times, though it does have some bat-missing fade.
Wells has improved significantly since high school, when there were questions about his maturity and he threw with significant effort and head whack. He has grown up and cleaned up his delivery, allowing him to consistently provide strikes unless he lapses into overthrowing. Projected as a reliever when he was a prepster, he now looks like a four-pitch starter with a bulldog attitude.
Mack - Wells has been getting some solid press lately. He’s now 17th on my RHP board and is slotted to be a second day pick.
LHP Grayson Hitt
12-7-22 - MLB DRAFT 2023: WINTER'S MOCK DRAFT - https://www.prepbaseballreport.com/news/PBR/MLB-Draft-2023-Mock-Draft-First-Edition-4397815602?s=03 -
16
Giants
Grayson Hitt
LHP
Houston HS (TN)
The top left-hander in the college class continues his ascent into the middle of the first round.
Mack - Hitt has established himself early as one of the top college lefty. I have him 3rd on my LHP board behind prep star Thomas White and Arizona State’s Ross Dunn.
All the 2023 Draft Prospects in the Mack’s Mets database can be viewed by going to www.macksmets.blogspot.com and clicking on 2023 DRAFT PROSPECT DATABASE found on the top, left of the front page of the site.
Happy New Year. A good group of prospects here. A lefty with a 65 FB? Nice.
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