Inspired by the national exploits of the renowned Marietta-based East Cobb youth program, Georgia has become a hotbed for high-school baseball talent over the last two decades. No state has made comparable strides in producing talent at the grassroots level of the game, and Georgia now stands behind only California, Florida and Texas (the long-standing Big Three) as a talent source.

The strength of the Georgia prep ranks will be much in evidence in this year’s draft as the state could yield as many as four first-round selections with rightanders DeAndre Smelter and Cam Bedrosian, outfielder Chevez Clarke and two-way talent Kaleb Cowart being the obvious candidates. Another half-dozen prospects could be tapped in the top three rounds.

Georgia’s college ranks, however, are just as talented, and could make every bit as big an impact in this year’s draft. It’s even possible that three college players could come off the board before any of the state’s high-school talent is taken. To say the least, Georgia will be a popular destination for scouts this spring.

Georgia Tech has two projected first-rounders in junior right-handers Deck McGuire and Kevin Jacob, while Georgia right-hander Justin Grimm also is a first-round target.

Though Georgia colleges have routinely tapped liberally into the state’s rich prep ranks for talent, and also managed to hang on to more than their share of players who became high-round picks out of high school, the odd feature of this year’s Georgia college crop is that all three projected first-rounders are neither home grown nor early-round high-school selections.

McGuire and Grimm are both Virginia prep products, while Jacob is from Maryland. Additionally, both the 6-foot-6, 230-pound McGuire and the 6-foot-6, 235-pound Jacob weren’t even drafted out of high school. But both those arms have clearly installed themselves as first-round talents with a mid- to high-90s fastball to accompany their intimidating size.

Interestingly, Grimm, Jacob and McGuire all cemented their place as potential future first-rounders off their performance in summer-league competition. McGuire dominated the Coastal Plain League in the summer of 2008 before putting together a solid sophomore campaign (11-2, 3.50, 100 IP/118 SO) for Georgia Tech.

Grimm, who overcame significant arm problems in high school to become a 13^th-round pick of the Boston Red Sox in 2007, went just 4-4, 4.15 as a sophomore for Georgia, but blossomed last summer in the Cape Cod League. Jacob struggled in a swing role for Georgia Tech in 2009, going 5-3, 4.69, but was thoroughly dominating as a closer last summer in Alaska, allowing just nine hits and striking out 45 in 27 innings.

Led by those three talented arms, pitching is the theme in the Georgia college ranks in 2010. Among the top 10 prospects noted below, as ranked by PG Crosschecker, nine are pitchers.

With that as a backdrop, here’s an overview of how we see the talent stacking up in the Georgia college ranks (excluding the junior colleges) in 2010.

GEORGIA: IN A NUTSHELL