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
Atlanta Braves
Before They Were Pros, 2013-14 – Lucas Sims, J.R. Graham, Jason Hursh
Before They Were Pros, 2014-15 – Alec Grosser
PG in the Pros, 2015-16 – Dansby Swanson
PG in the Pros, 2016-17 – Kolby Allard
Austin Riley, 3B
Riley matured early physically and was a two-way starter in baseball for four years at DeSoto Central High School in Mississippi along with playing football for three years. He played in numerous WWBA events with Dulins Dodgers from the start of his high school days and participated in the 2014 PG National Showcase, from which he was named a PG All-American.
Riley's defining characteristic as a player was that he was pretty evenly evaluated as both an infielder and as a righthanded pitcher. He was throwing in the low-90s by his sophomore year and eventually went 25-7, 1.53 as a pitcher during his high school career. But with a very strong 6-foot-3, 225-pound build that was plenty quick and nimble for its size, Riley could also put a charge in the ball and make any field look small when he squared it up. He hit .418-26-137 with 42 doubles during his four high school seasons.
Riley's report from that 2014 PG National highlights his ability on both sides of the ball and lists Riley as a primary pitcher and a secondary position player.
Big strong athletic build, has looseness for his size and strength, mature physically. High-level two-way prospect. Well-paced, low effort delivery on the mound, compact arm action with some hook in back, repeats his mechanics well. Fastball topped out at 92 mph, very good run and sink at times, throws fastball to spots and works ahead. Hard slurvy breaking ball varies between curveball and slider shape, has hard spin and bite and has a feel for locating the pitch. Tends to wrap changeup in back and tip the pitch with slower arm speed. Fills up the zone and gets quick outs. Righthanded hitter, balanced swing with very good bat speed, big power to the middle of the field and pull side, solid overall swing approach. Good footwork at third base defensively and some quickness for his size, loose quick arm with very good carry on his throws. Can see professional scouts split on which side of the ball he has more potential on. Good student, verbal commitment to Mississippi State. Selected for the Perfect Game All-American Classic.
One thing Riley did prior to his senior baseball season was to give up playing football and he showed up in the spring having lost weight and increased his mobility in the field, even playing shortstop when he wasn't pitching. The scouting consensus seemed to lean towards Riley's future being on the mound but the old axiom in player development is to let such two-way prospects hit first, then have pitching as a backup. The Braves followed that road, picking Riley 41st overall and signing him for $1.506,000 and sending him out as a third baseman.
Miami Marlins
Before They Were Pros, 2013-14 – Andrew Heaney, Jake Marisnick, Anthony DeSclafani
Before They Were Pros, 2014-15 – Trevor Williams, Avery Romero, Justin Nicolino
PG in the Pros, 2015-16 – Tyler Kolek
PG in the Pros, 2016-17 – Braxton Garrett
Dillon Peters, LHP
Peters matured physically and as a pitcher very early was already touching the upper-80s as a high school freshman at Cathedral High School in Indianapolis, Indiana. He went 29-2 his final three years in high school with 344 strikeouts in 205 innings and was named the Indiana high school player of the year in 2010. He participated in the 2009 PG Underclass All-American Games the summer before his junior year, the underclass event associated with the PG All-American Classic, topping out at 91 mph with a very good mid-70s curveball and an advanced changeup.
Perfect Game had him as a the 52nd overall prospect in the 2011 class but as a 5-foot-9 lefthander with effort to his delivery and only solid average stuff, albeit with plus polish and command, teams decided to wait for Peters to spend three years at Texas to further evaluate how he performed and grew as a pitcher.
Peters did exactly what he had always done from the outset at Texas, working primarily out of the bullpen while going 4-1 as a freshman, then going 13-6 in 27 starts with a 2.04 ERA combined during his sophomore and junior years. He was considered a potential top three round pick leading up to the 2014 draft but injured his elbow in May and underwent Tommy John surgery prior to the draft. The Marlins drafted Peters in the 10th round anyway and eventually signing him just before the deadline for an above slot $175,000.
New York Mets
Before They Were Pros, 2013-14 – Kevin Plawecki, Brandon Nimmo
Before They Were Pros, 2014-15 – Steven Matz, Dominic Smith
PG in the Pros, 2015-16 – Gavin Cecchini
PG in the Pros, 2016-17 – Thomas Szapucki
Pete Alonso, 1B
Alonso was an extra strong athlete at a young age and was listed at 6-foot-3, 210-pounds early in his high school career. He started for Jesuit High School in Tampa, one of the top programs in Florida, as a sophomore and hit .495-5-53, which is guaranteed to get one instant attention as a young hitter. Alonso played in numerous WWBA championships with the All-American Prospects during the summer and fall, played at the 2012 PG National Showcase and stood out at other national scouting events as well.
Despite his size, Alonso ran well, including a 6.97 60-yard dash at the PG National, and had solid actions at third base. He did play plenty of first base as well and really stood out as a potential impact player there, with outstanding hands and athletic actions and scouts were happy to project him at that position in the future. Alonso's strength as a righthanded hitter was when he was keeping his swing under control and driving the gaps and especially right-center field. He would get pull and lift happy at some events and that wasn't his natural swing and he was plenty strong enough to drive the ball out of the park without the extra effort.
With the corner infield profile as a player and outstanding work in the classroom, Alonso was a easy choice for scouts to send off to college at Florida. He was ranked 114th in the PG Class of 2013 high school rankings at the end of his senior year.
Alonso started as a freshman at Florida, hitting .264-4-32, but battled injuries much of his sophomore season. He had an exceptional summer after getting healthy, hitting .354-18-53 in the Northwoods League and continued to crush the ball as a junior, hitting .374-14-60 with 18 doubles, and notably for a power hitter, walking 31 times against only 31 strikeouts.
Legitimate college power bats are hard to find and Alonso's stock was rising going into the 2016 draft. The Mets grabbed him in the second round with the 64th overall pick and signed him for a $909,200 bonus.
Philadelphia Phillies
Before They Were Pros, 2013-14 – Jesse Biddle
Before They Were Pros, 2014-15 – J.P. Crawford
PG in the Pros, 2015-16 – Zach Eflin
PG in the Pros, 2016-17 – Cornelius Randolph
Mickey Moniak, OF
Moniak's most impressive tool dating back to early in his high school career was his ability to barrel up the baseball to all fields from a simple, short and quick swing. He hit .461-2-27 as a sophomore at La Costa Canyon High School in Southern California and pretty much hit everywhere the rest of his high school career, whether it be at WWBA tournaments with the San Diego Show, at USA Baseball events or any of the four Perfect Game showcases he attended over a three-year period. He was the kind of player a scout could confidently project was going to be a high average hitter, especially when you factored in his plus speed and his consistent ability to run 4.1 from home to first from the left side.
Moniak's report from the 2015 PG National Showcase, where he was selected to participate in the PG All-American Classic, read as follows:
Large, long frame with lean, athletic build, projects very well physically. Impressive body control, athleticism, and foot speed, ran a 6.58 60-yard dash. Long, easy strides in the outfield, moves well to the ball, quick arm speed with accurate throws to bases. Lefthanded hitter, tall, slightly open stance with calm, simple weight shift. Very fluid swing with quick hands and line drive swing path. Excellent barrel utilization, displays advanced ability to hit balls hard to all parts of the ballpark. Good bat speed with wiry strength, developing raw power that should continue to improve with added strength, just an impressive offensive performance. Good student, verbal commitment to UCLA. Named to National Showcase Top Prospect Team. Also selected to participate in the Perfect Game All-American Classic.
The one thing holding Moniak back at that point was his lack of power, although ironically he hit home runs at two of the four PG showcases he attended, including a ball he crushed off an upper-80s fastball over the right field fence at the University of San Diego at the 2014 PG Underclass All-American Games. He entered his senior year with just two high school career home runs, including none as a junior, and the scouting community was likely slotting him in the late first round/second round category going into the spring of 2016.
Moniak got stronger over his senior winter, however, and consistently showed his increased power all spring, hitting .476-7-46 overall with 12 triples and only 6 strikeouts in 29 games. Scouts took immediate notice and by mid-spring it was common to hear top 10 references to Moniak and about scouts who preferred him to fellow highly regarded Southern California prep outfielder Blake Rutherford.
The top of the 2016 draft was very crowded with candidates and very short on any consensus on the top player, setting up a scenario where signability took on an especially important role. The Phillies were able to reach an agreement with Moniak for the first overall pick for $6.1 million, almost $3 million below the recommended slot for that pick, a savings they used to target players lower in the draft for over-slot bonuses.
Washington Nationals
Before They Were Pros, 2013-14 – Lucas Giolito, A.J. Cole, Brian Goodwin
Before They Were Pros, 2014-15 – Michael Taylor, Jake Johansen
PG in the Pros, 2015-16 – Trea Turner
PG in the Pros, 2016-17 – Andrew Stevenson
Blake Perkins, OF
Perkins was a well known outfield prospect from his sophomore year at Verrado High School in Arizona, competing in many events with the PB Outlawas, PROspects 18u and Rays Scout Team along with attending the 2013 PG Underclass Session 1 Showcase. He only ran a 6.76 60-yard dash at that showcase but his speed was significantly better than that by the summer before his junior year and he stood out in center field for his advanced jumps and plus range.
Perkins’ righthanded swing was very short, simple and balanced, and although he was a wiry 6-foot, 180-pounds, he had solid bat speed and could drive the gaps well, where his speed was especially effective in stretching doubles into triples. Perkins didn't show much more than gap power on the summer circuit but did show more lift in his swing during the springs, hitting .551-10-37 as a junior and .461-7-35 as a senior, while also hitting 16 triples and stealing 42 bases during his high school career.
The Arizona 2015 draft class was very strong and eight players from the state went in the first five rounds. Perkins had a scholarship to Arizona State but the Nationals grabbed him in the second round with the 69th overall pick, somewhat higher than most of the scouting industry had him evaluated at that point, and signed him for a $800,000 bonus.