Draft 14 – Taylor Sparks, Brandon Finnegan, Michael Conforto, Luke Bonfield, Carl Chester

2-21-14 – Project Insider -  Taylor Sparks, 1B/3B — UC Irvine - Sparks enters the season with a chance to be a top 50 pick, but his week-1 performance isn’t going to help him. Spark went 0-for-15 with seven strikeouts and will give it another go this weekend at home versus Wright State. Sparks is a 6-foot-4, 225-pound right-handed hitter with a swing that needs work but plus raw power. http://prospectinsider.com/draft-prospect-watch-hoffman-vs-fisher

3-25-14 – MLB Draft Insider Mock – 21   Brandon Finnegan           LHP        TCU        -  Finnegan is one of the more controversial prospects in the class, some believing he’s a future No. 2 and some convinced he’s a reliever. I split the difference and think he can be a solid mid-rotation starter. http://mlbdraftinsider.com/2014/03/the-board-2014-volume-ii/   

2-19 – TTF - 10 college players on the rise - Michael Conforto, OF, Oregon State (24)  Considered one of the best bats in the 2014 MLB draft, the 6’-2”, 215 pound right-hander has been on fire out of the gate. After going 0-for-4 in the opener, he has gone 7-for-10 over his last three games with two doubles, a triple, 11 RBI and has drawn six walks to no strikeouts. Conforto’s ability to wait on his pitch and utilize his excellent bat speed allows him to spray the ball to all fields. http://throughthefencebaseball.com/2014-mlb-draft-10-college-players-rise/41224#Brkvtc4VfkP16udZ.99

2-11-14 – PG/Florida HS Dream Team – OF – Luke Bonfield, Sr. IMG Academy - Bonfield might be new to the state of Florida after transferring down from New Jersey for his high school senior season, but his reputation with the bat followed him. Bonfield has the ability to cover the entire plate and barrel up the ball with very good bat speed to all parts of the field. While he makes consistent, hard line drive contact to the gaps for doubles, don’t be surprised when those balls start making their way over the fence. http://perfectgame.org/Articles/View.aspx?article=9372

1-3-14 – TTF Baseball - 63. Los Angeles Dodgers — Carl Chester, OF, Lake Brantley HS (FL) - A plus/plus runner who has been times at 6.28 in the 60, the right-hander can wreak havoc on the base paths, as well as in the outfield where you’d be hard pressed to hit anything over his head. At 6’-0” and 170 pounds, he also shows some raw power in his swing and excellent bat speed. A quick-twitch athlete with a lot of upside. He stole 18 of 20 bases as a junior and struck out just 11 times over 110 plate appearances. Committed to Miami. http://throughthefencebaseball.com/2014-mlb-draft-2/40753#ppGUqI6CbWFvzsPf.99 

Draft 14 – Brad Zimmer, Luis Ortiz, Touki Toussaint, Taylor Sparks, Zach Sullivan

2-5-14 - Bradley Zimmer, OF, San Francisco - The 6’-5”, 210 pound left-hander oozes potential and shows every tool except power right now. With his size, however, most think he can hit around 20-25 home runs a year down the line. He has a plus arm, much like his older brother, and Royals top prospect Kyle Zimmer, and mixed with his speed and instincts, should remain a legit center fielder. Over 58 games as a sophomore, he hit .320/.437/.512 with 12 doubles, seven home runs and 19 stolen bases. He also shows a great approach at the plate as he drew 29 walks to 31 strikeouts and was hit by a pitch a whopping 16 times, proving he’ll do whatever it takes to get on base. He showed off his wheels for the Collegiate National Team, swiping 11 of 12 bases over 21 games while also hitting an even .300. He hit .270 over 22 games with Cotuit of the Cape Cod League with eight extra-base hits and six stolen bases. He drew just three walks to 22 strikeouts but this was after a long season of baseball and fatigue may have been setting in. He’s a big, athletic left-hander who can play a premium position and there is still upside left. http://throughthefencebaseball.com/2014-mlb-draft-dark-horse-candidates-chicago-cubs-first-pick/41075#UeYBipV5rOuYd7xE.99  

3-25-14 – MLB Draft Insider Mock –  10  Luis Ortiz              RHP        Sanger HS (Calif.)  - Many scouts that I’ve talked to believe that Ortiz is as good — if not better — than every prep pitcher in the class, with two 60 pitches and a prototypical pitcher’s body. http://mlbdraftinsider.com/2014/03/the-board-2014-volume-ii/

2-11-14 – PG/Florida HS Dream Team – Best Fastball: Touki Toussaint, Sr. Coral Spring Academy - As impressive as the reading on the radar gun is when Toussaint’s fastball crosses the plate, there are other factors that put him to the front of this group. With such an easy and loose arm action, it is easy to envision a few more ticks being added to his fastball that already tops out at 97 mph. The pitch is very clean out of his hand and shows explosive life in the zone. http://perfectgame.org/Articles/View.aspx?article=9372   

1-3-14 – TTF Baseball - 49. Toronto Blue Jays — Taylor Sparks, 3B/1B, UC Irvine - The Big West Conference Player of the Year as a sophomore, the 6’-4”, 210 pound right-hander hit .360/.388/.581 over 55 games with 10 home runs and 50 RBI. He only drew six walks to 40 strikeouts, showing needed work on his approach. Defensively, he has the arm and actions to stick at the hot corner where his plus power would play well. He led Collegiate Team USA with a .396 average over 19 games and was 7-for-7 in stolen bases, showing good speed on the base paths. http://throughthefencebaseball.com/2014-mlb-draft-2/40753#ppGUqI6CbWFvzsPf.99

11-21-13 – BA Top 100 High School Players - 94 Zach Sullivan OF R/R 6-2 175 Corning (N.Y.) Painted Post East Stony Brook http://www.baseballamerica.com/college/2014-high-school-top-100-with-commitments/

Draft 14 – Dylan Davis, Aaron Nola, Griffin Helms, Taylor Sparks,Tanner English

10-15-13 – Baseball America - 37. Dylan Davis, of/rhp, Oregon State: Similar to J.D. (no relation) with power both ways, he’s more advanced as a hitter and has more velocity on the mound. http://www.baseballamerica.com/college/2014-draft-top-50-october-2013-carlos-rodon/
 

9-30-13 – TTF Mock 2.0 - 23. Texas Rangers — Aaron Nola, RHP, LSU  Maybe the best control artist available in the 2014 MLB draft, the 6’-1” right-hander features a plus, low-90s fastball with nasty sink to it. He offsets his fastball with a deceptive change-up that freezes hitters. As a freshman, he had 89 K/7 BB over 89.2 innings and 40 of those strikeouts were looking. He was lights-out as a sophomore for LSU, going 12-1 over 17 starts with a 1.57 ERA, 0.80 WHIP and 122 K/18 BB over 126 innings. His size limits his upside a bit, but you’d be hard pressed to find a better pitcher, in the true sense of the word, out there. http://throughthefencebaseball.com/2014-mlb-mock-draft-2-0-draft-order-set/38280#5E3F5j1jWOgE69bJ.99


9-11-13 - Sully’s 2014 Top 100 MLB HS Draft Prospects – 60.Griffin Helms – C, Norcross (GA) HS http://www.ninebaseball.org/Wordpress/sullys-2014-top-100-mlb-hs-draft-prospects/


10-14-13 – Top ’14 College Hitters - 9. Taylor Sparks / RF / UC-Irvine — Sparks has a smooth swing and should product above-average power numbers, but he’ll have to show better plate discipline and more consistency if he’s going to justify going in the top 2-3 rounds in June. http://mlbdraftinsider.com/2013/10/top-14-for-14-college-hitters/


10-18-13 – Matt Garroich – OF Tanner English at South Carolina is one of the remaining college hitters I haven't mentioned. He reminds me a little of Tyler Naquin a few years ago but Naquin was a better hitter at this point. English covers center field better and looks like he could be a 4th outfielder type of guy.http://www.minorleagueball.com/2013/10/18/4851030/2014-mlb-draft-atlantic-region-college-discussion

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