As part of Perfect Game's recurring PG in the 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 PG in the Pros series for other reports on prospects, both past and present.


Previous 2017-18 PG in the Pros features: NL West | NL Central | NL East


Baltimore Orioles

Before They Were Pros, 2013-14 – Kevin Gausman, Dylan Bundy
Before They Were Pros, 2014-15 – Hunter Harvey, Chance Sisco, Christian Walker, Josh Hart
PG in the Pros, 2015-16 – Mychal Givens
PG in the Pros, 2016-17 – Ryan Mountcastle

Cedric Mullins, OF

Boyce "Cedric" Mullins had two things working against him as a member of the 2012 high school class at Brookwood High School in Georgia. First was that by age he should have been a 2013 graduate. Secondly, perhaps due in part to his young age, he was 5-foot-8, 150-pounds.

Along with playing in numerous WWBA tournaments for the Atlanta Blue Jays and the East Cobb Blue Jays, Mullins participated in three PG showcases, including the 2011 National Academic Showcase, where he received a PG grade of 8. His notes were very consistent from event to event, repeatedly talking about his very fundamentally sound swing from both sides of the plate along with his similarly skilled outfield play, but always noting his lack of strength. The best 60-yard dash time that Mullins recorded was 7.02 seconds.

Mullins played at Louisburg Junior College for two years and got stronger while developing his speed as well. He hit .417-7-33 as a sophomore, was a perfect 27-for-27 stealing bases and was named a Junior College All-American. Mullins also pulled down a perfect 4.0 in the classroom. Passed over twice more in the draft while at Louisburg, Mullins attended Campbell University as a 20-year old junior in 2015 and hit .340-4-23 with 23 steals and finally caught the attention of the pro scouts, with the Orioles drafting him in the 13th round.

Now listed at a much stronger 5-foot-9, 180-pounds, Mullins made an immediate impression in his first full season, hitting .273-14-55 with 37 doubles and 37 stolen bases in the South Atlantic League in 2016 and becoming one of the Orioles top outfield prospects.


Boston Red Sox

Before They Were Pros, 2013-14 – Jackie Bradley, Henry Owens, Garin Cecchini, Blake Swihart, Mookie Betts
Before They Were Pros, 2014-15 – Rafael Devers, Matt Barnes, Brian Johnson
PG in the Pros, 2015-16 – Michael Kopech
PG in the Pros, 2016-17 – Andrew Benintendi

Michael Chavis, 3B

Perfect Game didn't have the ability to track individual performance across all its tournaments in 2013, as it does now with a couple of clicks, but if that software did exist back in 2013 it would likely show that Chavis was one of the top performers in WWBA history. At one point that summer the then 5-foot-11, 175-pound slugger hit home runs for the East Cobb Braves in five straight tournaments and one loose accounting had him with 11 home runs just in WWBA events during the summer.

At that size and with the ability to play the middle infield at a high level, Chavis didn't look like the prototypical slugger. His power came from a combination of his aggressive righthanded swing approach, very quick wrists and hands and a swing plane that was ideal for putting backspin on the ball for maximum carry. Chavis also had a very simple set of load and swing mechanics that made him very consistent in his timing and ability to adjust to different types of pitching. There were often comparisons between Chavis and Cubs infielder Javy Baez, the ninth pick in the 2011 draft and also a member of the East Cobb organization, due to those quick and explosive hands at the plate.



Chavis played shortstop at Sprayberry High School in Marietta, Ga., and third base during the summer and fall for the most part. He had 91 mph arm strength across the infield and ran between 6.68 and 6.87 in three 60-yard dashes he ran at showcases, so his raw physical tools on defense were solid. While most scouts strongly penciled him in for third base as a professional there was some speculation that he was athletic enough to handle second base and even some loose talk that he had the type of tools and makeup that would be ideal for a catcher. He did play 13 games at shortstop in rookie ball in 2014 but otherwise has strictly been a third baseman as a professional.

Chavis finished his senior season hitting .580-13-37 with 21 stolen bases, giving scouts plenty of very positive performance to get excited about. Perfect Game had him ranked 12th overall in the 2014 high school class and he ended up as the 10th prep player selected, going 26th overall to the Red Sox. Boston paid Chavis $1,875,500 to forego his commitment to Clemson.


New York Yankees

Before They Were Pros, 2013-14 – J.R. Murphy, Tyler Austin, Greg Bird
Before They Were Pros, 2014-15 – Ian Clarkin, Rob Refsnyder
PG in the Pros, 2015-16 – Aaron Judge
PG in the Pros, 2016-17 – Justus Sheffield

Nick Solak, 2B

An Illinois native, Solak competed in eight WWBA tournaments between 2010 and 2012, including two trips to the WWBA World Championship as a member of the Illinois Sparks and Cangelosi Baseball. His scout notes are full of comments about his speed, quickness and overall instincts and aggressiveness on the field. Solak, a high energy second baseman, was also an extraordinary student in the classroom, although he received scant interest from the scouting community in high school and was an obvious secure recruit for the Louisville Cardinals.

Louisville went 50-17 in Solak's freshman year and he got more playing time behind a veteran starting lineup, 97 at-bats, than what is retrospect one of the most impressive classes in recent college baseball history. Joining him on the pine in 2014 were a trio of future first rounders in outfielder Corey Ray, catcher Will Smith and reliever Zach Burdi. Solak hit .351-2-25 with 17 walks to make the most of his playing time.

His performance over the next two years was very consistent with what he showed as a freshman. He finished his three-year college career as a .346 hitter with more walks than strikeouts and was 36-for-47 in career stolen base attempts.

In current baseball terminology, Solak was a high floor player and the Yankees recognized that, picking Solak in the second round with the 62nd overall pick and paying him a $950,000 signing bonus, slightly under slot for that pick. He's performed immediately, as expected, as a professional, reaching Double-A in his first full season and hitting .297-12-53 with 14 steals and 63 walks.


Tampa Bay Rays

Before They Were Pros, 2013-14 – Jake Odorizzi, Andrew Toles
Before They Were Pros, 2014-15 – Justin O’Conner, Nathan karns, Taylor Guerrieri, Justin Williams
PG in the Pros, 2015-16 – Blake Snell, LHP
PG in the Pros, 2016-17 – Ryne Stanek

Josh Lowe, OF

Lowe's defining characteristic as a prospect was that he was arguably a first round draft pick both as a pitcher and as a position player, although at that point his position was as a left side infielder and not the right fielder he's become as a professional.

Even though he listed himself as a position player from when he started going to PG events as a freshman at Pope High School in Marietta, Ga., Lowe did throw at 15 different PG events, including the 2015 Perfect Game All-American Classic. In fact, at Lowe's first PG showcase, the 2014 PG Underclass All-American Games, it was very clear at that point that Lowe was a better pitching prospect than position prospect.

Here is part of his report from that Underclass event:

Joshua Lowe is a 2016 SS/RHP with a 6-3 185-pound frame from Marietta, Ga., who attends Pope HS. Long and lean athletic build, very projectable physically. Listed as a primary shortstop, grades out much better as a pitching prospect. Arm works extremely well on the mound, high three-quarters arm slot with loose easy extension in front, low effort release, gets downhill with all pitches, still young in repeating mechanics but that is understandable. Upper-80s fastball, topped out at 89 mph, mostly straight with good plane and will pitch to both sides of the plate. Primary fastball pitcher, flashed quality with both his changeup and his slider but still developing. High ceiling pitching talent.



What Lowe didn't show at that point was the lefthanded bat speed and especially the power he developed over the next year, and especially after the mid-point in his junior to senior summer. When he attended the 2015 PG National Showcase, it was as a primary pitcher throwing in the mid-90s and he was selected for the All-American Classic as a primary pitcher despite running a 6.57 and playing very good defense in the middle infield.

During that summer and through his senior year, Lowe filled out his lean and angular 6-foot-4 frame and developed some real strength. He also made an adjustment at the plate that got his hands out from his body, enabling him to extend much better through contact and use the leverage that his build naturally gave him. Lowe's raw power went from fair to average to top-of-the-scale in just a couple of months time and changed his baseball future.

Lowe hit .391-11-39 as a high school senior along with picking up six saves and striking out 33 hitters in 22 innings working as a reliever. Perfect Game had him as the sixth-ranked high school prospect in the 2016 class and the Tampa Bay Rays agreed, picking him with the 13th overall pick and buying him out of a Florida State scholarship for a $2,597,500 bonus.


Toronto Blue Jays

Before They Were Pros, 2013-14 – Marcus Stroman, Aaron Sanchez, Daniel Norris, Chase DeJong
PG in the Pros, 2015-16 – Rowdy Tellez
PG in the Pros, 2016-17 – Sean Reid-Foley

Anthony Alford, OF

Baseball history is full of multi-sport athletes who have followed their talents and passion for football as well as baseball. In the last decade, it seems more and more common for players to pursue baseball first then return to football after struggling in the minor leagues and become successful college and sometimes professional players.

Alford is a rare case of a player who went to college primarily to play football but switched gears and returned to baseball with success.

Alford was named the Mississippi Player of the Year at Petal High School in football as a dual-threat quarterback both in 2010 and 2011 and finished his high school career with 3,903 yards and 41 touchdowns throwing and 4,202 yards and 54 touchdowns rushing. All he did in baseball was hit .437-15-91 with 43 steals over the same three-year period.

Alford did play in some WWBA tournaments during the summers with Team Mississippi and was invited to the 2011 PG National Showcase. While his baseball skills were understandably raw, his physical potential was equally as obvious.

Anthony Alford is a 2012 OF with a 6-foot-2, 210-pound frame from Petal, Miss., who attends Petal HS. Extra strong chiseled build. Open stance at the plate, very strong hands, short and quick to contact, the ball jumps hard, drives the ball to the gaps, will be able to hit the ball out to all fields with more experience, needs to keep the barrel on plane longer for consistent hard contact. Sound athletic actions defensively, accurate arm, playable present arm strength. Didn't run 60 but likely plus/plus runner. Football standout, Mississippi 2010 State Player of the Year, high level dual-threat quarterback recruit, has some present baseball skills despite that. Outstanding all-around athlete.

The Blue Jays drafted Alford in the third round in 2012, signing him for $750,000 with the agreement that he could pursue his college football career and just play baseball as available in the summer. Alford started five games as a freshman at Southern Mississippi, throwing for 664 yards and rushing for 329 more but Southern Mississippi went 0-12 and Alford transferred to Mississippi and ran the Ole Miss scout team in 2013 while not eligible due to his transfer.

During the 2012-14 summers, Alford only played in 25 games combined but nonetheless decided to give up football before 2014 fall football season and the Blue Jays immediately dispatched him to Australia to play in the Australian Winter League to help make up for lost at-bats. It was less than three years, despite consistent struggles with minor injuries, before that athleticism that Alford had always shown enabled him to reach the big leagues.