First five rounds: Bryson Stott (1-14), Jamari Baylor (3-91), Erik Miller (4-120), Gunner Mayer (5-150)
Also notable: Andrew Schultz (6-180), Brett Schulze (7-210), Nate Fassnacht (8-240), Michael Prosecky (35-1050)
The Phillies lost their second round pick after signing Bryce Harper, but they still came away with an interesting draft class. They balanced out their draft, position-wise, by spreading out their Day One/Day Two picks with five infielders, two starting pitchers, and two relievers before starting Day Three with three straight outfielders. First rounder Bryson Stott has a chance to be a real impact player for a long time in Philadelphia, and I really like fourth rounder Erik Miller and fifth rounder Gunner Mayer for their draft positions, as Miller might be a few mechanical tweaks from putting it together and Mayer is just the kind of pitcher that the Phillies can turn into a star.
1-14: SS Bryson Stott (UNLV, my rank: 13)
Bryson Stott was viewed more as a Kevin Newman-esque slap hitter coming into the season, which put him closer to the back of the first round than the front, but he added power in a big junior season and pushed himself into the top half. After slashing .365/.442/.556 with four home runs as a sophomore, the Las Vegas native bumped it up to .356/.486/.599 with ten home runs, 16 stolen bases, and a 39/55 strikeout to walk ratio over 55 games as a junior. Stott is a skinny 6'3", but his combination of long levers, ability to transfer his weight forward, and exceptional feel for the barrel enabled him to get close to average power, and he now projects for 15 or so per season. However, his calling card is his contact ability, as managed to strike out just 13.9% of the time despite changing his approach from a slap-heavy one to a more balanced one. Stott draws plenty of walks and could flirt with .400 on base percentages if he reaches his ceiling, and his above average speed makes him an asset on the bases as well, though not a true threat. He's a shortstop for now and could stick there, but scouts are split as to whether he may be better suited for third base if he loses a step with age. Overall, it's a leadoff projection and he could even add more power down the line. He signed for $3.9 million, which was $140,000 below slot.
3-91: SS Jamari Baylor (Benedictine HS [VA], unranked)
While Stott is fairly refined, Jamari Baylor is more of a raw talent with plenty of upside who will take some patience to develop. The Richmond native comes from Benedictine College Prep, a military academy on the outskirts of the city, where he has shown off his strength and athleticism and pushed his name up draft boards. He hits the ball hard from the right side and shows some nice loft, and while there's less swing and miss in his game than you'd expect, he also doesn't get to his raw power as often as he'd like to at this point. The Phillies are going to have to help him get more consistent with his swing mechanics, though because he finds the barrel fairly easily, he shouldn't have too much of a problem with that. It's hard to project the 5'11" kid at this point but he could end up with 15-20 home runs annually and solid on-base percentages. Defensively, he's currently a shortstop and has worked hard to get better there, though additional work with his glove is needed if he does indeed want to remain at the premium position. His strong arm and plus speed mean that he could also handle third base or right field effectively. Baylor signed away from his Louisburg (NC) Junior College commitment for $675,000, which was $27,700 above slot.
4-120: LHP Erik Miller (Stanford, my rank: 62)
A potential top five round draft pick out of a St. Louis-area high school in 2016, Miller expressed his desire to attend Stanford and ended up undrafted. Three years later, he's still somewhat of an enigma and it's hard to know what to make of him going forward. All three of his college seasons have been very up and down, and he finished his junior season with a 3.48 ERA, a 1.39 WHIP, and a 102/46 strikeout to walk ratio over 82.2 innings. He had some highs, such as when he posted back to back scoreless starts against Washington and Oregon in April, and he had some lows, such as when he was knocked out in the third inning in what ended up being his final start in a Stanford uniform against Mississippi State on June 9th, six days after the draft. The 6'5", 240 pound lefty is an imposing presence on the mound, and he uses his size to fire low to mid 90's fastballs to go with a very good slider. However, he has never quite figured out his mechanics, and his inconsistency there has led to bouts of wildness; he walked at least three batters in 11 of his 16 starts. Miller also has a solid but inconsistent changeup, so if the Phillies think they could get his mechanics under control, he actually has high upside as a mid-rotation starter. However, barring one of those epiphanies, he likely ends up either a back-end starter or a reliever, where his fastball and slider could play up and make him a set-up man or even a closer if he's lucky. Miller signed for $428,300, which was $50,000 below slot.
5-150: RHP Gunner Mayer (San Joaquin Delta JC, unranked)
Gunner Mayer is a bit of a sleeper as a California JuCo arm, but the Phillies do well with this type of player and he could break out once he gets some pro coaching. The Danville, California native stands 6'6" and has plenty of room to add good weight, and his loose arm produces fastballs in the low 90's, a big curveball, and a slider and changeup that still need development. His arm action is a little long, but his delivery is overall fairly smooth, so given that as well as the projection of added weight with maturity down the road, he could sit in the mid 90's when all is said and done. Mayer's command still needs some work and he's a project by most measures, but one with high upside. A college freshman, he's young for his class and still won't turn 19 for a few weeks. As a one man crew, I hadn't come across his name before the draft, but he would not have ranked too far outside the top 100 if I had. Mayer signed for $600,000, which was $242,900 above slot, and he tossed a perfect inning in his first game in the complex-level Gulf Coast League, striking out one.
6-180: RHP Andrew Schultz (Tennessee, unranked)
The Phillies shifted over to the relief side in the sixth round, hoping to get a fast mover in Tennessee's fireballing Andrew Schultz. The Atlanta-area native posted a 3.24 ERA, a 1.56 WHIP, and a 39/22 strikeout to walk ratio over 25 innings out of the Volunteers' bullpen this year, showcasing premium velocity and little ability to actually find the strike zone. Schultz sits in the mid to upper 90's with his riding fastball and his hard slider keeps hitters off balance, though the latter can be inconsistent. The 6'4" righty has always thrown hard, but his delivery is night and day different than it was a year ago. He used to reach back as far as he could before firing, and once it left his hand, he had no clue where it was going. This year, he showed up with extremely short arm action, throwing almost like a catcher because he holds the ball right behind his ear before exploding forward. That mechanical change helped his command improve from a literally non-existent entity to a mediocre, "I guess we can work with this" kind of deal. Now, the Phillies will try to push his command closer to average while helping him get more consistent with his command, and if he can pull both off, he could be a closer in the not-too-distant future. If he even pulls one off, he should still be an impact reliever fairly soon. Schultz signed for $225,000, which was $47,500 below slot, and he has allowed four runs over 2.2 innings between the Gulf Coast League and Class A Lakewood, striking out two and walking three (though one was intentional).
7-210: RHP Brett Schulze (Minnesota, unranked)
A round after taking Andrew Schultz, the Phillies grabbed another reliever with a similar name in Minnesota's Brett Schulze. The Minneapolis-area native was solid out of the Golden Gophers' bullpen, posting a 3.07 ERA, a 1.12 WHIP, and a 55/15 strikeout to walk ratio over 41 innings, reducing his walk rate from his sophomore season. He has the arm strength, command, and mechanics to start, but the lack of depth in his arsenal means he will almost certainly be a reliever in the Phillies' organization. He sits comfortably in the mid 90's with his fastball without much effort, and the pitch's movement as well as his command of it help it miss bats. However, his curveball has nice shape but lacks the power to be a true out pitch, and he'll have to improve it if he wants to become an impact reliever. He has two of the three reliever boxes checked already with velocity and command, so that curveball will be the focus in the minors. No matter what happens with the breaking ball, he should still be quick to the majors and contribute soon in some capacity. The 6'2" righty signed for $175,000, which was $38,300 below slot, and he posted a scoreless inning in his first appearance in the Gulf Coast League, walking one.
8-240: SS Nate Fassnacht (George Washington, unranked)
I don't know much about Nate Fassnacht, but given that he's a Southeast Pennsylvania native from Ephrata, between Lancaster and Reading, I'm going to do my best to write about him. Fassnacht had a huge breakout junior year for George Washington University, slashing .372/.453/.655 with 11 home runs, 12 stolen bases, and a 23/30 strikeout to walk ratio over 54 games against mediocre competition in the Atlantic-10 Conference. It was truly a breakout season in all respects, as he added much more power and improved his plate discipline significantly over his sophomore year (.277/.363/.347, 46/25 K/BB). I found video of exactly one swing from his time at GW, and it looks like he generates a lot of torque from a fairly level swing from the right side. Defensively, he played shortstop for GW but I'm not sure where he will end up in pro ball, as the Phillies technically drafted him just as an infielder with no label. Ultimately, look for a utility infielder who has some upside with the bat. Fassnacht, who grew up a diehard Phillies fan, signed with his hometown team for $100,000, which was $72,100 below slot, and he's slashing .250/.368/.438 with a couple of walks over his first four games at short-season Williamsport.
35-1050: LHP Michael Prosecky (Nazareth HS [IL], unranked)
Michael Prosecky probably doesn't sign here and will instead honor his commitment to Louisville, but the Chicago-area high schooler is one of those kids with both projectability and present aptitude. He's a 6'4" lefty who can sit in the low 90's with his fastball, and his changeup is farther along than that of most high schoolers with its fade and drop. However, he lacks much of a breaking ball at this point, and he'll therefore struggle to get big strikeout totals in the near future. At 6'4", he's projectable and should add a little bit more velocity, and he has a clean delivery that helps him do a good job of throwing strikes. Prosecky has most of the building blocks that go into creating a true starting pitching prospect, but he definitely needs to work on that slider and Louisville will hope to bring it out of him. If he figures it out at Louisville, he could emerge in 2022 as a Day One prospect.
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