Blake Forsythe
Rumors

Hitting is considered one of the weaknesses of the 2010 MLB draft and power hitters, in particular, are in short supply.  Some prognosticators predict that we'll see eight pitchers taken in the Top 10 picks with only Bryce Harper and Bryce Brentz joining that parade.

Nevertheless, hitters pose less risk to clubs when making draft picks, so we could see a few more names slip into the first day draft picks than expected.  Jason Churchill of espn.com recently polled a few talent evaluators to see what power bats they were looking at. 

First Base: Andy Wilkins, Arkansas; Christian Yelich, Westlake, HS; Hunter Morris, Auburn; Cody Hawn, Tennessee

Third Base: Zack Cox, Arkansas; Nick Castellanos, Archbishop McCarthy HS; Jedd Gyorko, West Virginia; Chad Lewis, Marina HS; Kris Bryant, Bonanza HS; Stetson Allie, St. Edward HS; Derek Dietrich, Georgia Tech; Ross Wilson, Alabama; Rick Hague, Rice

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Here's a review of on-field hitting performances by notable 2010 draft prospects for February 28th through March 5th.

Tyler Holt: The outfielder from Florida State walked twice, stole his second base and scored against Hofstra on 2/28.  Holt finally struck out on 3/2, three times, but also added two hits.

Cameron Rupp: Texas' first baseman had a single and a walk vs. Stanford on 2/28 to raise his numbers to .364/.533/.455.  Cameron finally hit his first home run of the season on Tuesday.

Micah Gibbs: The LSU catcher hit a double and three singles, walked, had a RBI and stole a base in Sunday's Game 1 win over William & Mary.  Went 0-fer in Game 2.

Micah Gibbs

Leon Landry: Gibbs' outfield teammate at LSU went 3-for-7 in the double header with five stolen bases on the day. 

Andy Wilkins: Arkansas' first baseman had two hits prompting a scout to say "I learned...this weekend [that] Wilkins can hit."  On Tuesday, Wilkins had two doubles in three at-bats, raising his batting average to .435.  On Friday, Wilkins went 2-for-4 with a homerun against Cal.

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Keith Law of espn.com dubbs the 2009 Team USA "easily the worst...in terms of prospects for the following year's MLB draft" since 2003.  Nevertheless, there are a few prospects worth paying attention to for the 2010 MLB Draft.

• Bryce Brentz, LF/RHP, Middle Tennessee State: In 230 ABs so far Brentz sports 465/535/930 ratios and 28 home runs.  Even as a pitcher he had 63Ks in 88.2 IP and a 4.57 ERA.  "He was by far the best player on Team USA," according to Law
• Chad Bettis, RHP, Texas Tech: While Bettis has been both a starter and a reliever, he figures to come out of the pen as a pro and has done so for Team USA.  He been clocked at 94-90 and has a very good slider.
• Yasmani Grandal, C, Miami: Grandal sports an above average arm, but really gets scouts attention with his ability to hit effectively from both sides of the plate.
• Christian Colon, SS, Cal State Fullerton: His speed is suspect and that's usually a red flag for playing shortstop, but Law insists that he can play the position at the pro level. 
• Blake Forsythe, C, Tennessee: Law critizes Forsythe by saying "he's Adam Dunn at the plate -- it takes an act of Congress to get the bat off his shoulder."  Maybe I'm missing something, but that's a pretty good comparison.  
• Michael Choice, OF, Texas-Arlington: He has below average speed and arm strength, so his only available defensive position is likely left field, but he has shown great power.

Drew Pomeranz from Ole Miss is on Team USA, but Law missed his start and was thus unable to give an update.  Other Team USA prospects include Tyler Holt a CF from FSU, TJ Walz a RHP from Kansas, Andy Wilkins a 1B for Arkansas and Rick Hague a thirdbaseman for Rice.

Jason Churchill of espn.com has an update from the summer leagues with plenty of players who will be available in the 2010 MLB Draft.

New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL)

• Adam Matthews of South Carolina impressed an area scout.
• Vanderbilt's best hitter, Aaron Westlake, will be playing for the Newport Gulls.
• Kansas RHP TJ Walz had 88Ks in 82.1IP this season and will be playing in the NECBL.
• Mitchell Beacom from UCLA will be playing for the Holyoke Blue Sox. "He's one of those, you know, projectable types," one AL club's West Coast area scout said. "Lots there to look for, and he's a lefty."
• If I were playing in the NECBL, I'd be really bummed if I got stuck in Holyoke, MA vs. Newport, RI.

Texas Collegiate Baseball League (TCBL)

• RHPs Willie Kempf from Baylor and Jeff Emens are prospects on scouts radars who will be playing in the TCBL this summer.

Cape Cod League

• SS Christian Colon from Cal State-Fullerton, 1B Andy Wilkins from Arkansas and RHP Anthony Ranaudo will be suiting up for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox and likely trailed by scouts all summer.
• Arkansas' Zack Cox, Texas RHP Chance Ruffin and Clemson LHP Chris Dwyer (taken by the Royals in the 4th round) will be playing for the Cotuit Kettleers.
• SS Derek Dietrich from Georgia Tech and OF Alex Dickerson from Indiana will be playing for the Wareham Gateman.
• Georgia Tech RHP Deck McGuire and Fresno State 2B Danny Muno will be on the Orleans Firebirds along wtih Max Stassi's older brother, LHP Brock Stassi from Nevada.
• Middle Tennessee State's Bryce Brentz and LSU OF Leon Landry will team up for the Harwich Mariners.
• The Bourne Braves might have the best team with Ole Miss LHP Drew Pomeranz, FSU OF Tyler Holt and Tennessee C Blake Forsythe.
• If Kentrail Davis does not sign with the Brewers soon, he'll be playing for the Falmouth Commodores.
• RHP Matt Harvey from UNC will be playing for the Chatham Anglers.

The 2010 MLB Draft class might not have the star power at the top that the 2009 MLB Draft class did (Stephen Strasburg, Dustin Ackley) or be as loaded as the 2011 draft class (Sonny Gray, Alex Meyer, Anthony Rendon, Gerrit Cole and Danny Hultzen) but there's plenty of talent to track.

College Bats

• Bryce Brentz, OF, Middle Tennessee State
• Christian Colon, SS, Cal-State Fullerton
• Derek Dietrich, SS/3B, Georgia Tech
• Yasmani Grandal, C, Miami
• Josh Rutledge, SS, Albama
• Ross Wilson, 3B, Albama
• Blake Forsythe, C, Tennessee
• Leon Landry, OF, LSU
• Andy Wilkins, 1B, Arkansas
• Micah Gibbs, C, LSU

College Arms

• Anthony Ranaudo, RHP, LSU
• Justin Grimm, RHP, Georgia
• Drew Pomeranz, LHP, Mississippi
• Nick Tepesch, RHP, Missouri
• Matt Harvey, RHP, UNC
• Kevin Rhoderick, RHP, Oregon State
• Josh Osich, LHP, Oregon State
• Kyle Blair, RHP, San Diego
• Chris Hernandez, LHP, Miami
• Brandon Workman, RHP, Texas
• Chad Bettis, RHP, Texas
• Alex Wimmers, RHP, Ohio State

High School Bats

• Trey Griffin, OF, Martin Luther King HS, GA
• Austin Wilson, Harvard-Westlake School, CA
• Kris Bryant, SS/3B, Bonanza HS, NV
• Krey Bratsen, OF, Bryan HS, TX
• Nick Castellanos, 3B, Archbishop McCarthy HS, FL
• Yordy Cabrera, SS/RHP, Lakeland HS, FL
• Reggie Golden, Wetumpka HS, AL
• Taylor Lindsey, OF, Desert Mountain HS, AZ
• Marcus Littlewood, SS, Pineview HS, UT

High School Arms

• AJ Cole, RHP, Oveida HS, FL
• Jameson Taillon, RHP, The Woodlands HS, TX
• Stetson Allie, RHP/SS, St. Edward HS, OH
• Zach Lee, RHP, McKinney HS, TX
• Justin O'Connor, RHP/SS, Cowan HS, IN
• Kevin Gausman, RHP, Grandview HS, CO
• Rudy Acosta, RHP, Mt. Miguel HS, CA
• Cam Bedrosian, RHP, East Coweta HS, GA