Mack – Draft News – Austin Hendrick , Jacob Young, Carson Montgomery, Pete Crow-Armstrong, Parker Bates

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/2020-mock-draft-mach-one/ -

 

            19. New York Mets- Austin Hendrick, OF, West Allegheny HS (PA)

 

All three of these are strong value picks. Both Hassell and Hendrick are in some teams’ mixes in the back half of the top 10. I think Hassell is a threat to go anywhere from nine onward and is probably off the board at this point, and perhaps I don’t have his name attached to teams right in front of this because they assume he’ll be gone. The Red Sox early hitter draftees have been contact-first types (even Triston Casas was advanced from a contact standpoint) so I’ve given them Hassell here, who I think would be the dream for the D-backs.

 

Neither Bitsko nor Hendrick played a game this spring (Hendrick was heavily scouted last summer, Bitsko had not yet reclassified), and though I disagree with it, there’s real risk it will impact where they’re taken.

 

 

https://www.perfectgame.org/Articles/View.aspx?article=18220&src=hmrep –

 

Perfect Game listed this player ranked in the 251-275 range for the draft… which now means he will be available to be signed as a free agent once the five rounds are picked:

 

            251. Jacob Young, of, Florida (SO)

 

R-R, 6-0/175, Ponte Vedra, Fla.

 

Previously Drafted: Never Drafted

 

Young is an exciting catalyst at the top of the Florida Gators lineup who has a knack for finding the barrel to go along with serious speed. He has been adjusting well to a corner outfield spot but the wheels in conjunction with his ability to hit make him intriguing as a draft eligible sophomore

 

 

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-draft-2020-ranking-top-50-prospects-in-the-class-with-collegiate-hitters-at-the-top/    -

 

39. Carson Montgomery, RHP, Windermere (HS)

 

Montgomery already possesses a starter's frame, at 6-foot-2 and nearly 200 pounds. He has other innate qualities teams desire in their rotation arms, too, like the raw spin on his pitches and the ability to touch the mid-90s with his fastball. Montgomery will need to work on his changeup and his command, and he'll have to be convinced to leave his Florida State commitment in the past, but whatever team commits could benefit in the long run.

 

https://www.azsnakepit.com/2020/5/24/21266738/players-in-play-for-arizona-diamondbacks-top-pick-in-2020-mlb-draft  -

 

            Arizona picks at #18, one slot before the Mets, The AZ Snake pit listed 18 players that could be on their draft board at this position.

 

One is:

 

Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF, Havard-Westlake HS (CA), B/T: L/L

 

The D-backs drafted a player with similar traits in the first round last year in Corbin Carroll. PCA is a bit taller than Carroll at 6’1” and projects to have some of the best hit, run, and defensive tools from the high school ranks, and gives the team security in case one of their top 3 prospects (Carroll, Alek Thomas, Kristian Robinson) flops down the road. Given the team’s abundance of outfielders already ahead of PCA, with potentially four of their top five prospects seeing significant outfield action, it may not be the best pick in terms of long term value.

 

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

 

25. Parker Bates, OF, Louisiana Tech

 

Hitters can’t do much better than what Parker Bates accomplished in 2020. Through those four weeks, he hit .422/.531/.891 with eight home runs and 28 RBI, putting him among the national leaders in all of those categories. The eight homers were also already tied for his career high.

 

He’s surely disappointed to not get to finish out that season, but instead, if he chooses to return, he’ll likely get to play his final season at the newly-rebuilt J.C. Love Field, which is slated to be ready for the 2021 season.