2016 Perfect Game MLB Draft Preview Index

The more the Louisville Cardinals keep winning and the more All-American outfielder Corey Ray keeps hitting and stealing bases, the higher the volume is going to be cranked up on the noise that links Ray to a very low number in the first round of the MLB June First-Year Player Draft three weeks hence.

Perfect Game’s first mock draft, published May 11, had Ray going to the Cincinnati Reds with the No. 2 overall pick in the draft. Five other mock drafts published online in the last two weeks had Ray going, right in order, at No. 3 to the Atlanta Braves, No. 4 to the Colorado Rockies, No. 5 to the Milwaukee Brewers, No. 6 to the Oakland Athletics and No. 7 to the Miami Marlins.

A 6-foot, 190-pound sweet-swinging speedster from Chicago, Ray ranks in the top-47 nationally in five NCAA Division I offensive categories, including No. 4 in stolen bases (36), No. 23 in total bases (130) and No. 26 in sacrifice flies (6). He knows the “early first-round” draft talk is out there, but he’s somehow able to seal himself in a sound-proof capsule. There is still way too much for the Cardinals to accomplish between now and the first day of the draft on June 9 for him to pay any attention to the outside noise.

“I don’t think about it at all. Not in a program like this,” Ray told PG this week. “If you don’t bring it every day you could be sitting on the bench with no reason to worry about the draft at all. The guys that we have and the goals that we have, I owe it to them to give them my all and not worry about anything other than ways to help my team win.” It’s a mindset that has been working pretty effectively all season long for Ray and his talented teammates.

After last weekend’s Atlantic Coast Conference Atlantic Division three-game series sweep of North Carolina State, the No. 5-ranked Cardinals (43-10) finally felt like they could slowly exhale the deep breath they had been holding since the ACC campaign began in early March.

The sweep of the Wolfpack moved the Cardinals' magic number for clinching the the Atlantic Division championship to two, and their 19-8 league record kept them in the hunt mathematically with Coastal Division champion Miami (19-6) for the overall ACC regular-season championship with three games to play. Louisville won the 2015 ACC regular-season title and eight of its last nine conference championships under 10^th-year head coach Dan McDonnell.

“We’ve been very consistent, especially at home this year,” McDonnell told PG when asked about this year’s club, which ran its record at 4,000-seat Jim Patterson Stadium to 33-1 with Tuesday night’s non-conference victory over Indiana, its 13^th win in 14 games. “You get good starts on the mound, play good defense and get some timely hits, it’s a recipe for winning. It’s just not always that easy.

This is a team that hits, pitches, runs the bases and plays defense as well as any club in the country, as its lofty No. 5 national ranking implies. Among the 300 teams the NCAA lists in its Division I statistical leaders, the Cardinals rank in the top-40 in 14 offensive categories and nine pitching categories.

They lost three-game ACC series to No. 4 Miami, No. 17 Florida State and unranked Boston College this season – each one 2 games to 1 – but those have been the only blips. Louisville finishes the season with three games at Wake Forest (32-20, 11-14 ACC) before heading off to the ACC Tournament Championship in Durham, N.C., on May 24.

“Everyone’s been playing well and we’re doing what we thought we were capable of doing,” Ray said a tone of accomplishment. “We’re competing, everyone’s playing well and doing what we can to contribute to this great run that we’re on.”

There is a predetermined destination here, and for Ray – and several of his teammates – it has nothing to do with the 2016 MLB Amateur Draft. The endgame for the Louisville Cardinals is getting back to the College World Series in Omaha for what would be the third time in four years after back-to-back trips in 2013-14 and missing in 2015. A Louisville team also advanced in 2007 and the program’s overall record in Omaha is a less than lofty 1-6.

“The central goal for everyone on this team is to win a national championship,” Ray said, again deferring any talk of the draft. “When I first got in here the emphasis was just making it to Omaha, and that’s what we did. We made it to Omaha and we enjoyed everything that came with being in Omaha, but we weren’t as focused on winning in Omaha as this is; that’s the difference. Instead of just getting to Omaha we want to get there and win the whole thing.”

… … …

AS THE 2016 REGULAR SEASON GRINDS TO A CLOSE AND THE POSTSEASON TAKES ITS PLACE, McDonnell and his staff are overseeing a collection of position players that slash .325/.408/.488 and average nearly eight runs per game. Four regulars – Ray, sophomore shortstop Devin Hairston, sophomore third baseman Blake Tiberi and sophomore first baseman/left-hander Brendan McKay – have all started at least 51 of the Cards’ 53 games and are all hitting .327 or better.

The left-handed hitting Ray is slashing .327/.400/.583 with team-highs in home runs (13), RBI (55) and runs scored (48) in 53 starts. He hit .325 with 11 home runs and 56 RBI in 65 starts as a sophomore and was at .325 with a home run and 17 RBI in 43 games (19 starts) as a freshman. Ray was also a star on last summer’s USA Baseball Collegiate National Team, leading the squad in five offensive categories.

“My approach is see the ball, hit the ball,” he said matter-of-factly when asked how he goes about his business at the plate. “If it’s a strike and I feel like I can do something with it, I’ll swing. I’m not really a typical leadoff hitter that takes pitches and gets deep in the count … I’m just taking what the pitcher gives me. If he gives me the fastball inside I can pull it, if he throws it away I’ll hit it the other way and if he leaves one hanging, I have the ability to hit it out of the ballpark.”

Sometimes lost amongst his high batting average and on-base and slugging percentages is a part of Ray’s game that he does as well as anyone playing college baseball this season: stealing bases. His 36 steals (in 43 attempts) rank in the top-four nationally; he has 70 stolen bases since the start of the 2015 season.

The way McDonnell sees it, Ray’s ability to steal bases can effect a game by him not only physically stealing a base but also letting it be known he might steal a base. It can all be very disconcerting to a pitcher who is trying only to throw strikes, get some outs and keep runners out of scoring position.

“The threat of the steal is sometimes as valuable as the steal itself,” McDonnell said. “The only way you can have the threat of the steal is by racking up stolen bases, so you’ve earned that right to have the threat of the steal. Corey is dynamic – electric – on the bases … and he wants to go, go, go and do whatever he can do to help the team.”

Ray looks at it much the same way: “Me being in the leadoff spot and me being able to steal a base helps the offense,” he said. “The pitcher worries about me on base … and then they’re trying to be quick to the plate. And what I’ve seen is they don’t throw as many strikes as they would, the pitchers who typically pound the zone.

“When I’m on base, they tend to become a little erratic – they’re worried about me a little too much – and that just allows the offense and the people that hit behind me to hit the fastball down the middle or the hanging breaking ball.”

Hairston has a slash-line of .365/.420/.466 with 41 RBI and 47 runs scored; Tiberi is at .343/.391/.542 with seven home runs and 43 RBI and McKay hits .339/.423/.508 with a team-high 19 doubles and 33 RBI. In all, there are eight players with at least 23 starts hitting .327 or higher.

“These guys are all a year older, and a year’s worth of maturity and experience in college baseball is huge,” McDonnell said. “Anytime you’re saying that’s an older lineup, you know they understand the game, the strike zone and the importance of quality at-bats. It’s their second year with (hitting coach) Eric Snider and he’s just done a great job with the hitters.”

The more one guy in the lineup hits, the more it makes everyone else want to be a part of the action. A guy’s job might be at risk, after all: “The competition that we have on this team and the depth that we have, we know anybody could step in at any time and can compete and can be successful at this level,” Ray said. “It’s just bringing it every day, and realizing that if you don’t bring the intensity then someone else can take your spot.”

As good as the Cardinals have been at the plate, their pitching staff has done everything it can to outshine the bats. It’s a staff that was immediately buoyed by the return of senior right-hander Kyle Funkhouser, a top pitching prospect the Los Angeles Dodgers selected with the 35^th overall pick in the first round of the 2015 MLB Draft; Funkhouser turned down a reported $1.7 million signing bonus to return to Louisville for his senior year.

The 6-foot-3, 225-pound Funkhouser (7-3, 4.24 ERA, 78 Ks, 76 1/3 IP) got off to a slow start but has rallied over the last couple of weeks, picking up wins in each of his last four starts. He was as good as he’s been all season in the Cardinals’ 6-1 win over N.C. State on Sunday, allowing just one run on two hits while striking out eight and walking three in seven innings of work.

“There were a lot of references (after Sunday) about the ‘old Funk’ but it’s a better Funk; it’s a more seasoned Funk, it’s a mature Funk,” McDonnell said. “I think he’s pitching with great demeanor and body language. Pro baseball is going to get a better Funkhouser this summer than they would have gotten last summer; I believe that with all my heart.”

Three other Cardinals starters have stepped into the spotlight this spring. Junior left-hander Drew Harrington (10-1, 1.80 ERA, 68 Ks, 85 IP), the aforementioned McKay (10-2, 2.02 ERA, 99 Ks, 84 2/3 IP) and sophomore righty Kade McClure (11-0, 2.50 ERA, 66 Ks, 72 IP) have a combined 31-3 record in 38 starts and lead a staff that boasts a 2.71 team ERA. McDonnell gives all the credit to longtime associate head coach/pitching coach Roger Williams.

“We argue with a lot of backing that (Williams) is the best pitching coach in the country; our kids know that and they trust his leadership,” McDonnell said. “It starts with our starting pitching and we’ve been very good ever since we made the move of McKay at one, Harrington at two and Funkhouser at three. It took a couple of weeks to make that adjustment but everybody really settled into their roles well.”

The disappointing series loss to ACC also-ran Boston College April 22-24 seemed to light a fire under the Cardinals. Their only loss since a 2-1 setback to BC on April 23 came eight games later when they dropped a 3-2, 10-inning decision to then-No. 17 North Carolina in Chapel Hill on May 7; six straight wins followed that loss.

“I’m very pleased with where we’re at,” McDonnell said. “We’ve fought through tough times and we’ve been very consistent in a lot of areas; our kids show up every day. It’s what we call a ‘professional group’ – that’s been our phrase, all year: be professional. … I’m very proud of this group, they’ve been very professional all year along, and I feel like they’ve got the right mindset coming down the stretch and heading into the postseason.”

… … …

SOMEWHERE IN THE GREATER CHICAGOLAND AREA, COREY RAY’S PROUD GRANDDAD, Ernest Ray, is probably smiling ear-to-ear while planning his next trip to watch his grandson play baseball. Ernest, who never played baseball himself, is Corey’s biggest supporter and it’s just always been that way. The younger Ray remembers how his granddad seemed to be at every single game during his high school and travel ball years – always driving, never flying – and that has continued into his career at Louisville.

“I could always count on him, no matter what the circumstances or where we played, to be in the stands cheering me on,” Corey Ray said. “I feel like I owe it to him to reach my full potential and go as far as I can in this game because he has shown me such support.”

Corey’s father, also named Corey Ray, played basketball collegiately at Northeastern University in Boston, and only dabbled in baseball. McDonnell said it was easy to understand why Corey is such a remarkable young man once he met his support group.

“The longer he’s been in our program and the more I’ve gotten to really know about him and his family,” the Louisville skipper said. “You realize that this is why he’s special. The talent is obviously special but it’s the makeup, it’s the person that he is on the inside that really puts the icing on the cake.”

Corey Ray said he was most influenced baseball-wise by two big-leaguers he came to admire: former player Scott Podsednik, who was with Ray’s hometown White Sox for four seasons, and then Jacoby Ellsbury, the former Boston Red Sox now with the New York Yankees.

“They were lefty-lefties like me who could play the outfield and who could swing it a little bit, too,” Ray said. “You’re talking about guys who could steal a base and hit at the top of the order, guys who I wanted to be like. When Scott Podsednik came over to Chicago (in 2005) I saw him play all the time and I saw a little bit of myself in him.”

Perfect Game had Ray ranked the No. 176 overall national prospect in the high school class of 2013 (No. 2 in Illinois) after he had excelled during a prep career at Chicago’s Simeon Career Academy and at seven Perfect Game events between 2010 and 2012. He was named to the Top Prospect List at the 2012 PG National Showcase in Minneapolis and was All-Tournament at the 2011 PG WWBA Underclass World Championship in Fort Myers, Fla., playing with Hitters Baseball.

He played for Hitters at the PG WWBA Kernels Foundation Championship in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, in both 2011 and 2012, was with tournament champion Marucci Elite at the 2011 PG WWBA Championship in Jupiter, Fla., and with the Top Tier Americans at the 2012 17u PG WWBA National Championship in Marietta, Ga. Ray experienced a lot and learned a lot at each one of those events.

“You see that type of pitching – low to mid-90s (mph) – for the first time at those (PG events), and it’s what we see in the ACC on a daily basis,” he said. “The consistency of being in college helped me the most, seeing that pitching day-in and day-out, which you only see (in high school) were you to go to a showcase or a big event like that. You don’t want to go to those type of events every weekend or you’ll burnout, but here at college you get the chance to see it on a daily basis so you can’t help but improve and get used to it.”

The Seattle Mariners selected Ray in the 33rd round of the 2013 MLB Amateur Draft, nowhere near high enough to influence his decision to enroll at Louisville. The school’s baseball and academic programs – Ray graduated from high school with a 3.9 grade-point average and is majoring in Exercise Science at Louisville – had too much to offer for a young man who identifies his favorite quote as: “If you could, you would.”

“I wanted to go to a place where I had a chance to compete for a national championship and also somewhere that I could learn and grow and play right away; the University of Louisville gave me the best chance to do that,” Ray said. “Also, it’s only 4½ hours away from home and with my parents and my granddad being baseball lovers, they can come and see me player whenever they like. … I left this campus after my visit knowing that this is where I wanted to be.”

When McDonnell is asked to look back on Ray’s three years at Louisville, he speaks first about the impression the young outfielder from Chicago made when he came in as a freshman in the fall of 2013. The kid had no sense of entitlement, unlike a lot of other talented high school players who might arrive with an “ask and you shall receive” type of attitude. Ray, on the other hand, knew he would have to work for everything he hoped to attain.

“He learned early in his career that, ‘I have to fight, I’ve got to earn this,’ and that freshman year he fought his way into the lineup; he earned it,” McDonnell said. “He’s very humble about that, and I think he realized how hard it was to be an everyday player, to crack the lineup, to show up every day, and he’s never stepped off the pedal.”

He may not want to talk about it, but the MLB Amateur Draft will be coming to call on Ray early in the second week of June. In a Perfect Game Draft Pack notebook published March 25, PG National Scouting/Event Coordinator Jheremy Brown wrote that despite being used in left field both last summer and at times early this season, “There is plenty of optimism that (Ray will) be able to play center at the next level, only further enhancing his overall future potential as he shows top-of-the-line athleticism and closing speed to either gap.”

It’s that versatility that is most endearing to McDonnell, and he’s confident MLB scouting departments appreciate it as well. The Louisville head coach points out that Ray batted sixth in the Cardinals’ order as a freshman, third as a sophomore and is now the leadoff hitter. He can play all three outfield positions with aplomb and is able to slip into any role that is asked of him.

 “There’s the physical side the ability to play so many different positions and to hit in so many different places in the lineup,” McDonnell said. “But I’ve also told many of the pro clubs when he’s walking into the clubhouse he’s the unofficial captain when he shows up. Not because of arrogance but because of energy, because of enthusiasm.

“Whatever minor league town or team they send him to, it will be ‘OK guys, I’m here. Let’s play, let’s have fun, let’s win,’ and I don’t know how you turn that down in professional athletics. The great ones make others around them better and that’s going to be his big strength, making everyone around him better.”