As part of Perfect Game's recurring 'Before They Were Pros' series David Rawnsley will take a look at some of the top prospects in minor league baseball and their impact on the sport prior to their professional careers. This will be done in a six-part series, one feature for each division in Major League Baseball while identifying one of the top prospects for each team. Links are provided below to past installments of the 'Before They Were Pros' series for other reports on prospects, both past and present.


Houston Astros

Before They Were Pros, 2013-14 – Carlos Correa, Mark Appel, Mike Foltynewicz, Lance McCullers
Before They Were Pros, 2014-15 – Brett Phillips, Colin Moran

Alex Bregman, SS

Bregman's amateur career wasn't the longest on record but it may have seemed like it to many. The New Mexico native first put himself on the national scene back in 2010 as the star of the USA National 16u team, a performance that won him the USA Baseball Player of the Year award. He hit .678 with 19 home runs as a junior. However, even back then, Bregman carried the tag with scouts, "Outstanding baseball player, very good hitter, only an average athlete."

Bregman put on an power show at the 2011 PG National Showcase and was named a Perfect Game All-American but the real intrigue followed watching Bregman catch. Following the lead of the scout's tag on him, which implied that he would have trouble staying in the middle infield as the game sped up, Bregman popped a 1.87 in drills and looked like a natural behind the plate. With his established offensive tools and instincts for the game, it certainly was a future possibility at that point.

A broken knuckle on his right hand cost Bregman most of his senior spring season, and likely the catching experiment, but he was considered a difficult sign out of his Louisiana State scholarship regardless. The Red Sox took an unsuccessful flier on him in the 29th round.

Bregman's career at LSU has been well chronicled but it stands out for a couple of things. The first was, again defying the scout's tag on his athleticism, that he strongly established that not only could he stay in the middle infield that he could stay at shortstop and actually be an above average defensive player at that position. Second, that athleticism that was so marginal didn't keep him from stealing 38 bases as a junior, along with knocking out 34 extra-base hits. Lastly, his hitting ability and instincts shined in the area that analysts love; he walked 36 times as a junior and struck out only 22 times.

Throughout last spring one could sense that the old scout tag on Bregman still applied, though. His stock slowly crept up almost week by week as he did what he's always done on the baseball field. Despite already having the best young shortstop in baseball in Carlos Correa, the Astros picked him second overall in the 2015 MLB Draft and signed him for a $5.9 million bonus.


Los Angeles Angels

Before They Were Pros, 2013-14 – Kaleb Cowart, Randal Grichuk
Before They Were Pros, 2014-15 – Nick Tropeano, Cam Bedrosian

Joe Gatto, RHP

Gatto made his first appearance at a Perfect Game event as a 14-year old at the 2011 New Jersey Pitcher/Catcher Indoor Showcase. He topped out at 81 mph with a super projectable young build and showed good feel for his curveball and changeup. Gatto bumped his velocity up to 88 mph that summer while pitching in multiple WWBA events for the Tri-State Arsenal. He threw in one showcase during the 2012 summer, earning a PG Grade of 9.5 at the Mid-Atlantic Showcase while topping out at 90 mph.

So no one was really expecting fireworks when Gatto took the mound at the 2013 PG National Showcase but that's what the New Jersey righthander provided. Gatto topped out at 94 mph with a curveball up to 78 and was an easy choice for the PG All-American Classic. This scout's notes from the event were as positive as could be.

+ build, deep quick arm circle, bit cross body, arm works + well, hides ball, very polished and balanced delivery, good ASR and sink on FB, big sharp downer curveball, CB potential + pitch, all pitches have + life and fills up the bottom half of the zone, could have pitched at any level for those 30 pitches, very impressive.



Gatto's performance and raw stuff the rest of the summer and into the following spring was consistent with his national showing but inconsistent command and mechanics haunted him at times and likely kept him out of the first round. The Angels drafted him with the 53rd overall pick in the 2014 draft and signed him out of a North Carolina scholarship with a $1.2 million bonus.


Oakland Athletics

Before They Were Pros, 2013-14 – Addison Russell, Michael Choice, Bobby Wahl, Daniel Robertson
Before They Were Pros, 2014-15 – Matt Olson, Chad Pinder

Casey Meisner, RHP

Casey Meisner

Drew Jackson