MACK – MEDIUM - 2027 MLB Draft Top 9 Prospects

 

https://medium.com/@oliver.mitsuo/2027-mlb-draft-top-100-prospects  

Picks 4-6:

4. Dylan Seward (HS SS)

Norco HS (CA), Tennessee Commit

6' 0", 180 lbs, S/R

Seward is an exceptional athlete who brings with him true impact tools on both sides of the ball. A true 80 grade runner, Seward can really turn on the jets and post loud run times on the bases. It translates well to the field, too. Seward is an excellent shortstop defender. It’s elite actions with above-average arm strength. He combines violent athleticism with a polished defensive toolkit. He could be a double plus defender. And he’s a presence on the bases, a true stolen base threat who projects as a 30+ SB a year kind of guy. The combination of such loud defensive and baserunning value already provides him a high floor off the rip.

Offensively, Seward is a switch hitter who shows plenty of promise and tools. He’s better from the right side, where he typically hits the ball harder, and shows more bat speed. The left side is passable, though the bat’s more sluggish, and he has less barrel accuracy from that side presently. He tends to show out best in batting practice, where he shows solidly average power in the tank long-term, with the potential for 20+ home runs. Converting those tools into games has been more difficult, however. Seward’s shown hit tool risk from both sides of the plate, the biggest hole being velocity up in the zone, present from both sides, but more prevalent from the left side. He has experience, and has been tested against good competition throughout his high school career. Against better competition, he has a tendency to fold a bit more than you’d like to see.

There’s been plenty of examples of this archetype in recent years near the top of the draft. The best comparison would be Jacob Lombard in terms of tools. That being said, Seward’s overall swing and hit tool visually looks much better than did the ultra-risky Lombard who ran one of the highest summer circuit whiff rates we’ve ever seen among top draft prospects with an extended sample size. The tools are truly elite, and Seward provides a higher innate floor than does someone like Lombard. His tools are albeit a gurantee that Seward won’t make it out of the top 5–8 picks of any class, realistically. And he looks to have the highest ceiling out of anyone in the class, with true superstar level tools if it all works out. 

5. Tomas Valincius (LHP, Mississippi State)

6' 2", 225 lbs

Valincius has as dynamic of a pitch mix as you’ll ever find in a college lefty at this stage. Up to 98 mph, Valincius holds 94–96 mph on his fastball that naturally possesses late running life that’s a real pain to square up. He gets weak contact from hitters of both handedness. More than that, Valincius naturally hides the ball well in his motion, releasing from a low launch, and he can blow some guys up at the top of the zone if need be, too.

Valincius’ best pitch is a slider he manipulates that can look like one of the best sliders in the country when it’s on. It’s a hard breaking ball into the upper-80s at times with sharp, hellacious late break. He can pitch it to both LHH and the back foot of RHH if he needs to. It pairs with the two-seamer quite well, the two pitches staying in the same tunnel until they both break late in different directions. It’s a bit of a baby sweeper, but the action is befitting of a true impact offering, a potential double plus breaking ball from the left side. It’s a tight, hard breaker that looks big leaguer ready today.

He’s not just a sinker/sweeper merchant, though, and shows a variety of differing shapes. He pronates an upper-80s changeup well that projects forward, as well. The pitch projects above-average, with solid action off the firm fastball and good feel to sell and locate the pitch already. There’s a slower true sweeper that he’ll throw in the mix as well, and a cut fastball he’ll flash as well. A good diet of secondaries behind a firm foundation.

Valincius possesses a workhorse frame with a clean, polished delivery. He has good pace to his motion, and has learned to better tap into his athleticism below the bulky body. He’s put in the work to improve the look of the body as a whole, too. He is a consummate strike thrower that’ll stick as a starter with solidly above-average strikes. It’s extremely polished. This clay from the left side is rarely this refined, and it’s not hyperbole to say Valincius is a pro ready prospect right now.

 

6. Jimmy Janicki (C, Troy)

6' 3", 230 lbs, R/R

Janicki possesses one of the more lethal offensive profiles in the class, and has tools suggesting real aircraft carrier kind of potential. At the plate, Janicki has a high handset with the hands fairly out from his body, and works completely no-stride. While it can look unorthodox, however, Janicki’s operation works quite well for him, hinging on his back-side, and generating impressive force, loft, as well as hand and bat speed.

Janicki possesses loud offensive traits and skills. An aggressive swinger, Janicki does run high chase rates, but it’s excused by his many other offensive abilities. His feel for contact is very impressive, able to cover both in and out of the zone. And, an immensely physical hitter, Janicki is in no hurry to try and pull the ball. But he’s as good as any hitter in the country when it comes to getting to the fat part of the bat. He absolutely pummels the baseball, boasting double plus raw power and top-end exit velocities, and has added more depth to his swing, allowing him to get the ball in the air more often, allowing the raw to translate to game power. He lets fastballs travel the other way, with impressive back-side power, picking up and adjusting to spin in the zone, and torching it pull-side. On the whole, Janicki is a player who’s incredibly difficult to pitch to. He hammers every pitch type, covers every part of the zone with ease, and makes tons of contact. The only potential hole may be big velocity, given his no-stride nature, but it’s not even really a yellow flag. Janicki has the look of a potential monster bat, and he’s certainly got the makings of a 30 home run hitter if he can get enough at-bats to get to that threshold at the next level.

Janicki is an impressive athlete who’s shown he can man third base in a pinch, the position he manned as a freshman. He got to be the backstop as a sophomore, and looked like a real natural immediately. The visual framing skills are very impressive, with big, sweeping glove movements, looking at his best at the bottom of the zone, primarily, though he overall looks like an above-average receiver. He’s a strong athlete as a whole, an above-average runner with an above-average arm, which should both show out well defensively as he gets more reps and pro coaching. Janicki will comfortably stick behind the dish with the look of a solidly above-average defender.

Janicki is an extraordinarily well-rounded player who’s really come into his own. He is a mid-major hitter, but he was one of the biggest standouts in the country in the playoffs and MCWS, facing premier competition, and still didn’t break a sweat against some of the best in the country. More than that, it seemed as if he got better every game. He was still constantly finding refinements and adjusts that unlocked another gear, even against the best in the country. Janicki is a really explosive talent, with the look of a potential middle of the order bat who holds his own at the most rigorous position on the field. He’s got star upside.