The top 12 unsigned high school pitchers from the 2022 draft

Earlier this week, we took a look at the top high school hitters to reach campus and before that looked at a rather shallow group of unsigned college players. We'll close it out with incoming freshman pitchers, which bring eleven different schools for the twelve arms. Just like with the hitters, LSU is again the only school with multiple names on their list, and their five combined blows out second place Notre Dame with two combined. Pitchers can be more unpredictable than hitters, but certainly keep an eye on these names as past lists have included names like Jack Leiter, Hunter Barco, Cade Horton, Ricky Tiedemann, Tanner Witt, Thatcher Hurd, Chase Burns, Brody Brecht, and Carter Holton, all of whom went on to become impact pitchers in one way or another. This list also includes my top overall recruit at any position in terms of MLB Draft value in Andrew Dutkanych, who regularly flashed first round potential.

1. RHP Andrew Dutkanych, Vanderbilt. My 2022 draft rank: #37*.
Andrew Dutkanych removed himself from the draft before the event and therefore did not appear on my draft rankings, but he would have ranked #37 and is therefore the top high school prospect at any position to reach campus this fall, well ahead of #54 Max Martin of Rutgers. Dutkanych's stock had been very up and down throughout the draft cycle, so rather than play games with the draft, he'll look for more consistency as part of a Vanderbilt program that could use a boost in the rotation. He looked exceptional at times over the summer and heard his name as high as the middle of the first round, but also had some rougher outings that threw some doubt into the equation. While warm weather arms like Jackson Ferris, Dylan Lesko, and Brandon Barriera got off to hot starts, Dutkanych had to hang back an extra minute while the Indiana weather warmed up, and he slipped a little on boards. Then he came out firing early in the Indianapolis spring, rocketing back into the first round conversation, before his command began to falter and he slipped back down once again. So what is Vanderbilt getting? I'm personally a fan of Dutkanych, who at his best looks like by far the best incoming freshman pitcher in the country. His fastball sits in the low to mid 90's and can touch 97 with some ride, while his short, tight slider looks plus at its best and can miss a ton of bats. He also throws a loopier curveball that shows promise if he can tighten it up in addition to a fringy but improving changeup, giving him the chance for four average or better pitches. The 6'3" righty loves to go right after hitters and pounds the strike zone with intent, throwing all of his pitches with conviction just the way you want to see it. His control is ahead of his command, as he can miss up with his fastball and spike his breaking balls and is overall inconsistent in that department, but that's where you'd rather miss and I have confidence Tim Corbin's staff will get him straightened out. Even with Christian Little gone to LSU and Chris McElvain now in the Reds system, it's a crowded rotation picture in Nashville between Dutkanych, Carter Holton, Devin Futrell, Patrick Reilly, and the litany of talented young arms waiting to step up. Dutkanych will be draft eligible again as a sophomore in 2024, having been born right on the cutoff day just like Stanford's Malcolm Moore and Texas' Jalin Flores ironically enough, so he'll want to earn those innings sooner rather than later. I think he can, and he could challenge Holton for the Friday night spot by 2024.

2. LHP Tristan Smith, Clemson. My 2022 draft rank: #68.
Clemson thought they might land two of the best high school pitchers in the country when both Tristan Smith and Brock Porter slipped out of the top three rounds, but even with Porter signing with the Rangers for a massive bonus, Smith will bring some real firepower to a pitching staff that remains largely intact outside of ace Mack Anglin (Royals). With only Anglin gone, it may be tough to find innings in a rotation that will also add impact transfer Willie Weiss from Michigan, but the 2022 South Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year has what it takes to break through. He sits in the low 90's with his fastball and can reach back for 96, with high spin rates that give it plenty of life. His best pitch is a plus slider, again with high spin rates, that comes in with sharp, late break to miss bats in bunches. Smith mainly works off those two pitches and will need to develop his changeup to eventually take over that Friday night role, but it's a very loud arsenal regardless. The 6'2" lefty is athletic and moves well on the mound, though he has some moving parts in his delivery and can lose his release point at times, leading to inconsistent command. It's good enough for now, but he'll want to clean that up quickly because he's extremely old for an incoming freshman and will be draft eligible again in 2024. If he can't take a step forward with either his command or his changeup, he'll project well as a starter in pro ball, but there is some long term relief risk.

3. RHP Riley Kelly, UC Irvine. My 2022 draft rank: #88.
Riley Kelly is a projection play that may not make an immediate impact at UC Irvine with only moderate turnover on the pitching staff, but given some time, I think he could become the next great Anteater ace. He was a pop-up prospect this spring and had some serious draft helium as scouts came rushing in to Orange County to see him at Tustin High School, though he was still just a little bit to raw to command a signing bonus large enough to steer him away from school. His fastball sits around 90 and tops out around 94, dipping into the upper 80's at times. Kelly's best attribute is his curveball, with huge top to bottom break that he can sharpen up for a tighter look if he wants. He commands it well and it might be the best incoming freshman breaking ball coming to campus this fall. The changeup is a distant third pitch for now, which of course he'll want to develop in order to take that Friday night role eventually. The 6'4" righty is tremendously projectable and will almost assuredly add velocity in Irvine as he fills out that big frame, especially as he smooths out a methodical delivery that loses power as he moves through it. That in turn should help his command, which is presently fringy. Kelly has a ton of work to do to reach his lofty ceiling, but UC Irvine has a strong track record of pitching development from Trenton Denholm to Andre Pallante.

4. LHP Levi Huesman, Coastal Carolina. My 2022 draft rank: #110.
Levi Huesman has some work to do before he's ready to take on Sun Belt competition, but Coastal Carolina lost its entire weekend rotation and would love for him to step up if possible. He burst onto the scene last fall at the WWBA Championship, then rode a solid but unspectacular spring to a seventeenth round selection by the Rays. Huesman sits in the low 90's with his fastball and can get up to 96 at best, though he didn't always maintain that velocity last spring and often pitched closer to 90. He also throws an interesting sweeping slider that looks like a plus pitch at its best with plenty of break, but he does need to tighten it up as it gets loopy at times. Lastly, his changeup is well behind and will need to be developed. The Richmond-area native stands just six feet tall and doesn't offer a ton of projection with his skinny frame, but he is very athletic on the mound and repeats his delivery well, pounding the strike zone with average command. His shorter stature also helps him get a lower release height on the ball, giving his fastball great ride and helping the slider play off it. Coastal Carolina will want to help him get stronger so he can maintain his peak stuff over a long college season, and if he can hold his command together while doing so, he has every chance to jump into that weekend rotation.

5. RHP Chase Shores, Louisiana State. My 2022 draft rank: #111.
LSU landed three names on the position player version of this article, and Chase Shores gives them their first pitcher. Last year, LSU was more known for their bats than their arms, but they return virtually everyone from last year's staff save for starter Ma'Khail Hilliard (graduation) and relievers Eric Reyzelman (Yankees) and Paul Gervase (Mets). In addition, they're bringing in a huge class of transfer arms led by Thatcher Hurd (UCLA), Christian Little (Vanderbilt), and Paul Skenes (Air Force), and then there's the freshman class led by Shores and the next man on this list, Jaden Noot. So long story short, it will be tough to earn innings, but he could be up to the task. Standing 6'8', he's already the tallest man in the dugout, and at 250 pounds he's no string bean. Shores comes in with a low to mid 90's fastball that can touch 98, playing up with running and sinking action from a low three quarters slot. That slot and height combination gives hitters a very tough look, and immediately gives him a leg up even on SEC competition. The West Texas native has a full set of inconsistent secondaries that flash average, with the slider the most promising pitch for now with above average grades at its best. Meanwhile, his arm slot can drop when he gets tired, leading to diminished command in those cases, but he fills up the zone when he's at full strength and getting on that LSU conditioning program should help him stay there. It feels redundant to say with a 6'8" freshman that can touch 98, but there is a ton of upside here if Jay Johnson's staff can get him more consistent with his secondary stuff while holding the command together.

6. RHP Jaden Noot, Louisiana State. My 2022 draft rank: #118.
Jaden Noot will jostle with Chase Shores for innings on that crowded LSU pitching staff, and he may have a better shot to win innings right away in 2023. He's also a big man at 6'4", 235 pounds, but he's more physical and not quite as athletic at this point. Noot sits in the low to mid 90's with his fastball and can get up to 97, adding a slider that flashes above average, a loopy curveball with good depth in the low 70's, and a decent changeup. It's a very college-ready arsenal, though he does need to sharpen some things up to get from freshman innings eater to impact Friday/Saturday guy. The fastball has the velocity, but it's fairly straight and he'll need to play it off his other pitches. Meanwhile his curveball needs to add power to complement its depth, while he can slow his arm down on changeups at times. None of that is anything crazy, and there's no reason Jay Johnson and co. shouldn't be able to get him there. The Southern California native has tremendous arm strength and looks like he's just playing catch out there, which makes up for a relative lack of athleticism. If he can maintain his body and refine his offspeed stuff a bit, he has the chance to pitch a lot of big innings in Baton Rouge.

7. LHP Cade Obermueller, Iowa. My 2022 draft rank: #124.
Cade Obermueller draws a lot of parallels to Coastal Carolina's Levi Huesman. He's another undersized lefty that stands just 5'11", though he's thirty pounds lighter than Huesman and clocks in at just 155 pounds. Obviously the first thing the Iowa staff will want to do will be to stuff him full of steaks and protein, but he's already a great athlete and should put any added strength to good use. His fastball sits around 90 for now and tops out at 93, with similar flat plane to Huesman from a lower slot, albeit with some cut as well that makes it a fairly unique pitch. He brings a sweepy slider similar to Huesman as well and a decent changeup, rounding out a three pitch arsenal. Once Obermueller puts that weight on, he'll likely add a tick or two of velocity to his fastball and power to his slider, which will be necessary for him to fill Adam Mazur's shoes as a Friday night starter. Otherwise, his floor is something similar to Illinois' (now the Marlins') Cole Kirschsieper if the stuff doesn't tick up, which is still solid. The Iowa City native is a great athlete who should be able to hold his command together as his stuff ticks up, making it a very interesting profile all around. With Mazur (Padres) and swingmen Dylan Nedved (Padres) and Duncan Davitt (Rays) gone to pro ball, he'll have the opportunity to step into some innings quickly.

8. RHP Kassius Thomas, Duke. My 2022 draft rank: #130.
Duke is losing four of its top five arms by innings from 2022, plus TJ returner Henry Williams, so getting Kassius Thomas to campus will be a huge boon and he'll have an opportunity to earn big innings right away. He and Jaden Noot formed one of the best 1-2 punches in the country at Sierra Canyon High School in the Los Angeles area, and now both are heading way east for school. While Noot is a big, sturdy power arm, Thomas is more athletic and projectable as he trends in the right direction. His fastball sits in the low 90's and gets up to 95, with a quick right arm that promises more velocity as he fills out. He works in a full arsenal of solid secondary pitches, lead by a slider that flashes plus at its best and followed by a solid curveball and potentially above average changeup. The 6'1" righty doesn't always repeat his arm slot and can get around his breaking stuff, losing bite in the process and impacting his command, but he is trending in the right direction and hopefully Duke can keep that progress rolling. There is plenty to work with here and Thomas is a heady athlete with a high baseball IQ, so if he can put the velocity, athleticism, and feel for spin together consistently, he'll be a star in Durham.

9. RHP David Lally, Notre Dame. My 2022 draft rank: #134.
Interestingly, two of my favorite lesser-known names getting to campus are both heading to Notre Dame. Incoming infielder Estevan Moreno is my sleeper pick as a hitter, while righty David Lally is a very interesting one on the mound. The Irish will have significant turnover on the mound, losing most of their go-to arms either to pro ball or the transfer portal while also bringing in a couple of useful transfers, not to mention swapping head coaches from Link Jarrett to Shawn Stiffler. All that upheaval will give Lally a chance to break through, though he is fairly raw and might not be quite ready from the get go. He sits in the low to mid 90's with his fastball and can get up to 96, with running life that can make it tough to square up. His breaking ball hasn't quite found its identity yet, but he does show good feel for spin and with some coaching could make some real leaps int hat area. Additionally, Flint, Michigan-area native shows a very strong changeup for a cold weather arm from an area that isn't traditionally a prospect hotbed, giving him an immediate weapon to use in South Bend. Standing 6'4", he comes with good projection and moves very well on the mound, though his mechanics are raw and will need to be smoothed out by the Notre Dame coaching staff. All together, if they get this right, Lally brings a ton of upside as a hard throwing righty that could end up with two or even three above average offspeed offerings.

10. RHP Jack O'Connor, Virginia. My 2022 draft rank: #142.
Despite losing Friday night starter Nate Savino (Diamondbacks) and swingman Brandon Neeck (Dodgers), among others, UVA projects to bring back a deep pitching staff augmented by a strong transfer class, so Jack O'Connor will have to fight for innings early on. He was inconsistent this spring, but had a little bit of late helium and may be ready. O'Connor sits in the low 90's with his fastball and can get up to 96, adding in a full set of secondaries. His above average slider is the best for now, and he can turn it into a harder cutter if he needs to, while his curveball is a bit looper and his changeup is a fringy pitch at this point. The Northern Virginia native hides the ball well from a very short arm action, though his command has been inconsistent and he'll want to get that ironed out in Charlottesville in addition to getting more consistent with his secondaries. O'Connor is big and projectable at 6'5" with plenty of arm strength, giving him a ton of upside, though UVA has had mixed results with premium arms that have reached campus lately like Savino and Mike Vasil.

11. RHP Grayson Saunier, Mississippi. My 2022 draft rank: #144.
Six different pitchers started at least five games for Ole Miss in 2022, and five of them plus closer Brandon Johnson are gone to either pro ball, the transfer portal, or medical school (props to you, John Gaddis), so there will be turnover on that champion pitching staff. That gives Grayson Saunier a chance to wrestle for innings in the rotation, though I see him more as a long term projection play who may not be ready for extended innings in the SEC until 2024. He has missed significant time with injuries in high school but should be healthy now, giving him the opportunity to build up for the season. Those injuries have caused Saunier's fastball to dip into the upper 80's at times, but he's up to 96 at his best with a ton of projection in his 6'4" frame promising to bring even more. His secondaries all flash big promise, with a couple of high spin breaking balls and a fading changeup making for a very intriguing four pitch arsenal. Being hurt has meant that he hasn't gotten the opportunity to refine those offerings and get more consistent, but now that he's healthy the Ole Miss coaching staff will get to work on that with him. The Memphis-area product has a clean, athletic delivery with the aforementioned ideal frame, so once he gets a little stronger, the sky is the limit if everything breaks right.

12. RHP Eli Jerzembeck, South Carolina. My 2022 draft rank: #153.
South Carolina returns the vast majority of its pitching staff and adds a couple of big transfer arms as well, so Eli Jerzembeck will have to fight for innings.  The good news is that he's fairly advanced coming in and should be able to provide quality innings as a reliever before jumping into the rotation in 2024, when he'll be draft eligible again due to a very early birthday. Jerzembeck sits around 90 with his fastball but has been up to 96, so the arm strength is certainly there. His best pitch is a plus curveball with sharp, late bite that can get SEC hitters out right away, while his slider and changeup are less used pitches. The 6'2" righty does need to iron out his mechanics as a short strider and an upright thrower, and doing so could help him settle closer to his peak velocity than he does right now. Out of the USC bullpen, I can imagine him sitting 93-95 with that power curveball and carving up SEC lineups immediately, then working into the rotation as he gets those mechanics optimized and refines the rest of his arsenal a little more. How well he makes those adjustments will also determine his future role in pro ball.

Honorable Mentions
#158 RHP/QB Sam Horn, Missouri
#160 RHP Tyler Bremner, UC Santa Barbara
#163 RHP Hayden Murphy, Auburn
#167 RHP Malachi Witherspoon, Jacksonville
#185 BHP Jurrangelo Cijntje, Mississippi State
#189 LHP Brennan Phillips, Oklahoma State
#197 LHP Bradley Loftin, Mississippi State
#204 LHP Zach Crotchfelt, Auburn

2022 MLB Draft Review: Tampa Bay Rays

Full list of draftees

The Rays always draft well, and this year was no different. After pulling off a surprise with the powerful Xavier Isaac at the back of the first round, they transitioned to a mostly college-oriented draft that only included two more high schoolers the rest of the way, one of which (seventeenth rounder Levi Huesman) may not even sign. They diversified for sure, mixing Isaac's and Dominic Keegan's immense raw power and well below average speed with Chandler Simpson's top of the scale speed and bottom of the scale power. Meanwhile, Brock Jones and Ryan Cermak offer a nice mix of both. My personal favorite pick in this class is sixth rounder Gary Gill Hill, who fits way too perfectly in this development system and could come out an absolute monster.
Full index of team reviews here. Full rankings here.

1-29: 1B Xavier Isaac, East Forsyth HS [NC]. My rank: #166.
Slot value: $2.55 million. Signing bonus: likely below slot value.
Kumar Rocker and the Rangers made headlines for the most surprising pick in the first round, but those who follow the draft closely may have been equally or more surprised by the Rays and Xavier Isaac. He ranked #92 on Baseball America, #113 on MLB Pipeline, #166 on my board, and #172 on Prospects Live, and I saw other boards that had him outside the top 200. I'm not pointing this out to call it a bad pick, rather to show that nobody saw it coming. Isaac has very little track record against high quality pitching, so this is a massive gamble, but the Rays clearly believe the bat is for real and that playing on the summer showcase circuit would have only proven what they already knew. Nobody doubts the raw power, which is among the best in the entire high school class up there with names like Elijah Green and Jayson Jones. The Winston-Salem-area native packs an incredible amount of brute strength into his 6'4", 240 pound frame, channeling it into a powerful left handed swing that might put the Tropicana roof in danger. If you want an example, just look at this opposite field laser that other teenage hitters simply cannot replicate. He hit very well against North Carolina high school pitching this year, but like I mentioned earlier, the hit tool is very unproven and he could move slowly through the system. That's viewed as a negative in scouting circles, but technically, it's just a lack of a positive instead and there's a key difference. The Rays obviously are fully bought in, and they see a kid who could hit 35+ home runs a year, perhaps the next David Ortiz at the high end. He'll have to hit, because he's a well below average athlete that will be limited to first base defensively, if not DH. Isaac is committed to Florida, but I can't imagine that will be a factor this high in the draft as the Rays look to lure him a little bit farther down I-75.

2-65: OF Brock Jones, Stanford. My rank: #38.
Slot value: $1.08 million. Signing bonus: $1.08 million.
Brock Jones' stock has been on a little bit of a roller coaster over the past couple seasons, but it's definitely on the upward trend right now and Tampa Bay could be picking up a true impact player here. Originally recruited for both football and baseball, Jones logged some time as a safety at Stanford Stadium before giving up football to focus on baseball as a sophomore. That paid off as he hit .311/.453/.646 with 18 home runs that year, and he entered the 2022 season a potential top ten pick. However, he didn't get much to hit early in the season and struggled to adjust, slashing an unremarkable .247/.417/.416 with a 28.7% strikeout rate through his first 25 games. However, he turned things around in a big way starting in mid April and slashed .366/.470/.799 with 16 home runs and a 22.3% strikeout rate over 40 games the rest of the way. So enough history, who is Brock Jones? He's a chiseled athlete with a compact, strong-as-heck six foot frame that did not look out of place on the football field. He has a simple but powerful left handed swing that enables him to hit the ball out to all fields, and has not one but two three homer games in NCAA Tournament play to his name. The Fresno native is a patient hitter that works a lot of deep counts, leading to a ton of walks (17.4% rate in 2022) but there's a healthy amount of swing and miss in his game as well. He may always be a streaky hitter because of that, but when he's hot, it's a complete offensive profile. You can see the safety in him in the outfield, where his plus speed helps him track down fly balls, but safeties don't throw the football much and his arm is fringy. Because of that, a better defender may push him to left field, where he'll likely hit enough to play every day. The ceiling is an impact bat that could knock 25-30 or more home runs per year with high, walk-driven on-base percentages, while the floor would be a streaky, power hitting platoon bat.

CBB-70: SS Chandler Simpson, Georgia Tech. My rank: #86.
Slot value: $953,300. Signing bonus: $750,000 ($203,300 below slot value).
Hey, does anybody else remember the late 2000's "Running Rays" with Carl Crawford, B.J. Upton, and Jason Bartlett? No? My brain may have invented the term. Anyways, Chandler Simpson is a fascinating prospect who could bring back the moniker, and funnily enough, he literally could not be more different than first rounder Xavier Isaac. Simpson is coming off a fantastic season at Georgia Tech in which he slashed .433/.506/.517 with nearly double as many walks (31) as strikeouts (16) over 47 games, then followed that up by hitting a near-identical .455/.510/.523 with five walks to just two strikeouts in twelve games in the Cape Cod League leading up to the draft. He stands out the most for his blazing speed as a true top of the scale runner that can change games from the batter's box, on the bases, or in the field. He gets to use it often, too, as he possesses elite bat to ball skills that help him put the ball in play with extreme consistency. Unfortunately, those elite bat to ball skills don't translate into any power, as he's much more of a slash and dash type that throws the barrel at the ball and lets his legs do the rest. You'll see a lot of ground balls and line drives over the infielders' heads, but outfielders typically won't have to worry about guarding the warning track and he hit just one home run in three years of college ball. The Atlanta native doesn't project to add much, either, but the good news is that he is such a good pure hitter that his approach should have little difficulty transitioning to pro pitching. The Rays drafted Simpson as a shortstop, but he doesn't quite have the arm strength to play there and profiles better at second base. They may also deploy him in center field, where his speed would be fantastic.

CBB-71: SS Ryan Cermak, Illinois State. My rank: #77.
Slot value: $929,500. Signing bonus: $750,000 ($179,500 below slot value).
The Rays had two competitive balance picks in a row and used the second one on Illinois State center fielder Ryan Cermak. He's a very interesting player that has steadily improved throughout his time in Normal, culminating in a breakout 2022 in which he slashed .340/.441/.696 with 19 home runs and a 44/30 strikeout to walk ratio over 48 games. Cermak is an exceptional athlete that can do a lot well on the diamond, with easy plus speed and a great 6'1" frame. There are some moving parts in his right handed swing, which combined with an aggressive approach at the plate leads to more swing and miss than you'd like to see from a hitter in a mid major conference, but he did cut his strikeout rate from 25.1% in 2021 to 19.2% in 2022 while upping his walk rate from 8.4% to 13.1%. The Chicago native has shown off plus power in games to go with his plus speed, and with pro instruction in a system as strong as Tampa's, I imagine he'll only get better at deploying it. Cermak also shows off a plus arm that will make him an asset in center field, though the Rays interestingly drafted him as a shortstop despite having never played the position in college. He was a full time center fielder in 2022 but did play 20 games at third base from 2020-2021. Overall, I see some Joey Wiemer in this profile, as Wiemer was also a right handed hitter from a mid major Midwestern school that flashed big tools but required significant refinement. He's off to a great start to his pro career in the Brewers system, and Cermak could follow a similar ascent.

3-104: RHP Trevor Martin, Oklahoma State. My rank: unranked.
Slot value: $588,700. Signing bonus: likely a bit under slot value.
Trevor Martin is one of those power arms with big stuff that he struggles to execute consistently, meaning he'll fit right in with the Rays and probably come out a stud. He was up and down in 2022, where he posted a 4.75 ERA and a 79/22 strikeout to walk ratio over 47.1 innings for Oklahoma State, but he finished the season on a strong note by striking out sixteen Missouri State batters in that wild 29-15 game at the Stillwater Regional. Martin can run his fastball up to 98 in relief with explosive life from a low release point with tough angle, a true weapon when he harnesses it. He spins off a power slider that flashes and can also drop in a curveball and changeup, but all three secondaries are inconsistent, as is his command. The 6'5", 240 pound righthander looks like a starting pitcher and with careful development, could become a very useful one. He grew up in a very small town in rural Oklahoma and is just a true sophomore, although a junior by age, and he'll be jumping into a player development system that thrives on pitchers with unique stuff. I'm curious to see how this one turns out.

4-134: C Dominic Keegan, Vanderbilt. My rank: #116.
Slot value: $439,600. Signing bonus: likely around slot value.
Dominic Keegan combines elite batted ball data with huge traditional stats in the SEC, making him one of the most sought after senior bats in the class. He was eligible for the 2021 draft after hitting .345/.427/.638 with 15 home runs for a Vanderbilt team that reached the College World Series, but teams didn't quite match his asking price and with a late birthday that made him 20 on draft day, he returned to Nashville for another year. Keegan put up even bigger numbers in 2022, slashing .371/.458/.646 with 14 home runs and a 51/39 strikeout to walk ratio over 62 games for an otherwise disappointing Vanderbilt team. The Massachusetts product stands out first and foremost for his massive raw power, a plus-plus tool that he taps effortlessly in games with a simple right handed hack. He just flicks the barrel through the zone, then before you know it, there's a baseball in your windshield even though you swore you parked far enough away. There were some swing and miss concerns last year when he struck out at a 27.7% clip, but he dropped that number to 18.5% this spring while showing the same big time impact. Vanderbilt is always deep behind the plate and has usually had a better glove to stick back there, but Keegan did look like he improved this year and he has a chance to stick. The Rays have an extremely deep farm system but are a bit shallow (by their high standards) behind the plate, which may give Keegan some extra opportunity to prove he's capable of holding down the position. A below average runner with an average arm, he would have to play a corner if he could not stick. Though he's a senior sign, his August birthday means he was still 21 on draft day.

5-164: SS Jalen Battles, Arkansas. My rank: #165.
Slot value: $328,400. Signing bonus: $247,500 ($80,900 below slot value).
First of all, Jalen Battles is one of the best names in the entire draft class, so that's a plus right there. As for the player, he's been a known commodity for a while now and earned some mid round interest a year ago, but returned to Arkansas to build his stock. That looks like it worked out, as Battles slashed .289/.364/.480 with ten home runs and a 57/30 strikeout to walk ratio over 66 games for the Razorbacks this season. He does a lot of things well, starting with very strong defensive acumen at shortstop where his springy athleticism, strong arm, and advanced instincts make him a real asset. He's a line drive hitter at the plate that makes a lot of hard contact, with his lean strength leading to some solid pull side power that will help him provide impact as he moves up. Though he struck out at a 20.3% clip this spring, it's an overall advanced package that can provide value on both sides of the ball. His glove will carry him to the big leagues, while his bat will keep him there and provides some upside. I see a very strong utility infielder in this package with a chance for more. The San Antonio native was a senior sign and will turn 23 in the offseason, but could move relatively quickly.

6-194: RHP Gary Gill Hill, Kennedy Catholic HS [NY]. My rank: unranked.
Slot value: $255,500. Signing bonus: likely above slot value.
Another pick, another great name. This is a prospect I really wish I had on my radar prior to the draft, because looking into him now, it is an extremely fun profile that only gets better now that it's in the Tampa Bay player development system. Gary Gill Hill is a 6'2" righty just dripping with projection, with a frame that is both ultra skinny and ultra athletic. He's smooth and explosive on the mound, generating natural power from his long arms and legs. The fastball sits in the low 90's for now, touching the mid 90's, but I have no doubt that he'll add at least a couple ticks to that as he fills out if not more. Honestly, this is an arm that could sit in the mid 90's one day and regularly bump the upper 90's. The offspeed stuff requires more projection, with a nice sweepy slider that he needs to tighten up significantly and a distant changeup, but Hill is extremely young for the class with his 18th birthday not coming until September. He may spend a couple years in the FCL and move slowly up the ladder, but if the Rays get this right which they are certainly capable of, they could have a real impact arm on their hands. Committed to Wake Forest, the New Yorker will likely require a sizable over slot bonus to sign here.

9-284: LHP Chris Villaman, North Carolina State. My rank: unranked.
Slot value: $157,000. Signing bonus: likely around slot value, possibly a bit above.
Chris Villaman has filled a variety of roles at NC State, but settled in as a long reliever in 2022 with a 3.40 ERA and an 85/14 strikeout to walk ratio over 55.2 innings. He showed flashes of greatness throughout the season and closed it out with six perfect innings against Pittsburgh and UNC (eleven strikeouts) in the ACC Tournament. Villaman is a fastball/changeup type that sits in the low 90's with good carry, touching the mid 90's, hiding the ball well along the way. The changeup plays very well off the fastball and when both are working. he can be untouchable. The 6'2" lefty also adds a slider but it's not the bat misser you look for in a pro pitcher and will be a point of emphasis going forward. Villaman goes right after hitters and rarely hurts himself with walks, so if you squint, you can see a move back to the rotation if he improves his feel for spin. The Rays will work towards that, but if not, a tick up in fastball velocity could make the North Carolina native a very useful fastball/slider reliever.

17-524: LHP Levi Huesman, Hanover HS [VA]. My rank: #110.
Slot value: up to $125,000. Signing bonus: likely well above $125K if he signs.
Levi Huesman is a Coastal Carolina commit that seems likely to reach campus, but I don't see any obvious over slot candidates in the top ten rounds for the Rays aside from Gary Gill Hill and they may end up with money left over to make a run here. Huesman has been somewhat inconsistent, but at his best, he looks like a second round pick. His fastball can dip into the upper 80's at times but has touched as high as 96 at others, while his slider shows great sweeping action and his changeup is a distant third pitch. The Richmond-area native is a great mover on the mound that gets out and releases the ball out front with great riding action and flat angle, helping his fastball play up above his velocity. At just 5'10", Huesman is not the most physical player in the draft and he'll turn 19 in August, making him more than a year older than Gill Hill. He'll need to get significantly stronger to add power to his stuff and maintain it over longer outings and longer seasons, and he'll also need to refine his changeup to avoid a career in the bullpen.