Josh Rutledge
Rumors

Unfortunately for teams, scouts, players and fans of baseball's amateur draft, the College World Series does not conclude until after June 7th draft.  However, we will be treated to a number of fun match ups this weekend in the College World Series Regionals.  Here's a look at some fun match-ups and top players to watch, broken down by region.

Tempe Region

If the higher teams advance, #1 Arizona State will face #2 San Diego.  That means Arizona State will face either Sammy Solis or Kyle Blair from San Diego.  Seth Blair will throw for Arizona State, but likely in their opening game against Milwaukee

Fayetteville Region

Top seeded Arkansas sports a likely Top 10 pick, Zack Cox, a likely first day pick, Brett Eibner, and a likely second round pick, Andy Wilkins.  Those three will dominate the conversation in this region

Auburn Region

Jimmy Nelson from Auburn faces off against Todd Cunningham from Jacksonville State in the opening round game.  Both could be Day 2 picks.  Other Day 2 picks include Auburn second baseman Brian Fletcher and first baseman Hunter Morris.

Atlanta Region

Possible Top 5 pick Deck McGuire and possible Day 1 pick Derek Dietrich will pace the Georgia Tech yellow jackets while Josh Rutledge hopes to keep Alabama's title hopes alive.

Charlottesville Region

Virginia is one of the best teams in the country and is headed by draft prospect Jarrett Parker.  Mississippi has possibly the top college pitcher in the country in Drew Pomeranz, someone expected to go in the Top 5.  St. John's sports a possible Day 2 pick, Daniel Burawa.

Norman Region

UNC's Matt Harvey seems likely to go in the first round while California's Dixon Anderson figures to be in the mix on Day 2.

Columbia Region

Pitching prospect Sam Dyson leads the top seeded South Carolina Gamecocks.  Likely first round picks Austin Wates and Asher Wojciechowksi lead Virginia Tech and The Citadel, respectively.

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Jason Churchill of espn.com provides a good review of prospect play from around the nation yesterday.

• Although Bryce Harper received the lion's share of the attention at the College of Southern Nevada, he's not the only player who will be drafted from CSN.  Donn Roach, throwing to Harper, had a solid outing in the National Junior College World Series Semi-Final.  Roach went eight innings giving up two earned runs on ten hits while striking out 11.  While Roach may go as high as the compensatory round, Churchill feels that day two is a better bet.
• Unfortunately for San Diego's Sammy Solis, he did not fare as well as Roach, battling control problems.  Solis had his worst outing of the year: five innings pitched, six earned runs and six walks with just three strikeouts.  Fortunately, the outing is unlikely to affect his draft status: compensatory round to the third round.

• Alabama shortstop Josh Rutledge may have pushed himself in to the second round with a solid season that he kept going on Sunday going 2-for-3 against Florida.  Rutledge is now hitting .360/.402/.527 with eight homers and 14 stolen bases on the season.

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Shortstop is always an interesting position for amateur players when it comes to drafting because so many of them play the position in high school or college, but wind up at another defensive position in their professional career.  The trend seems to be that the prospects available in the draft are regarded more for their bat than their glove.  Jason Churchill of espn.com took a look at the shortstops he expects could go during the first day of the MLB Draft.  In no particular order:

Christian Colon, Cal State Fullerton

Colon struggled quite a bit to start the season, but has since rebounded nicely and looks likely to match his impressive sophomore season.  Though not spectacular with the glove or his bat, he's one of the few players who rates at the position defensively and can still hit.  Seems like a probably first round draft pick.

Manny Machado, Brito High School

Keith Law of espn.com rates Machado as the second best prospect available in the draft behind Bryce Harper, so he is certainly the best shortstop available.  Although he has a big frame that makes people worry he might not stay at short, most believe he can play there professionally.

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Plenty of baseball action this past Saturday, Mar 6.  Let's take a look at the highlights from the draft prospects:

• Jedd Gyorko continues to hit.  His numbers are up to 361/452/639 with six walks vs. four strikeouts in his first nine games.
• Houston's Michael Goodnight out dueled Texas's Brandon Workman in a 1-0 win for the Cougars.  Despite walking four hitters, Goodnight struck out nine over 7IP and allowed just two hits.  Workman was equally as impressive, yielding just a walk, four hits and one earned run over 8IP with seven strikeouts.
• Cal State Fullerton's Christian Colon continues to struggle going 0-for-5 against Arizona.  The shortstop is hitting 194/310/306 through the first nine games of the season.  After having a 971 OPS last year, no one expects his struggles to continue long, but the lapse allows other shortstops like Josh Rutledge to close the gap on draft boards.

Christian Colon needs to snap out of his funk soon

• Alabama's Jimmy Nelson fanned eleven batters over six innings without giving up a walk.  Though considered a second-day pick heading into the season, he has a 19-1 K/BB ratio over the first 16 innings of his season and is moving up draft boards.

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Josh Rutledge, a shortstop from Alabama, continues to improve as he looks to raise his stock before June's draft.  Already a potential first round pick, Rutledge went 2-for-4 against Georgia recently, raising his hitting numbers to 360/400/560.

"Physically, the skills are present for him to hit enough for the big leagues," an AL area scout said. "Ideally this year he'll prove the power - maybe even show more strength, get a little more power out of that swing. I can see him staying up the middle; I really think he stays at short, he can play there."

Will Josh Rutledge be a first round draft pick in 2010?

One hold up for Rutledge is his defense at shortstop.  Often a premiere position for defense, Rutledge's draft stock would remain high if scouts are convinced he can play shortstop professionally.

He also needs to improve on his 25-50 BB/K ratio from 2009.  So far this season, his ratio continues to be poor at 1-6.

Though the 2010 college baseball season has only just begun, the early performances of a few players will only help their draft stock. Here's a look at some of the top performers so far:

Jedd Gyorko: He's hitting .370/.485/.741 with six extra-base hits and a 6 to 1 BB/K ratio in his first seven games.  While he's glove at shortstop is not professional quality, some team will find a place for his bat in their organization.

Tyler Holt: Sports an impressive .545 OBP through his first seven games.  Though he struck out three times in his last game, it was the first time he had struck out all season.

Andy Wilkins: So far he has hit three home runs and three doubles while walking ten times and hitting .435.  "He can hit the fastball, that's for sure," said an area scout. "But I think anyone will tell you that he's got to prove himself in the SEC to make a move (up the draft boards)."

Andy Wilkins hopes his early season performance will move him up draft boards

Cameron Rupp: He has reached base in 17 of his 34 plate appearances for an impressive .500 OBP, but hit just his first home run the other day and has nine strikeouts already.

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Although Cal State Fullerton's Christian Colon might not be the most talented bat available in the 2010 draft, he is already very polished and plays professional quality defense.  The dearth of quality shortstops available and the increase focus by a number of teams on defense will likely make Colon an early pick and he could be on a major league team sooner than most of his peers.

At six feet tall and 180 lbs, Colon his a nice frame for a major league shortstop.  As a sophomore, Colon drilled 26 extra base hits and his percentages were an impressive 357/442/529.  Though he doesn't walk much, he doesn't strike out either. 

If that sounds like a Top 10 pick, you're not alone.  But, Colon does have a number of knocks.  One American League scout doesn't believe the hype about Colon's glove.  ""For starters, I'm not sure he's the glove he's known to be," he said "He fields everything he gets to and makes all the plays around the bag, but I think he lacks top-drawer range."

Where Christian Colon is drafted will be one of the
interesting questions to watch on draft day

Colon is being compared with 2009 draft pick, Grant Green, another college shortstop who was limited on hype, but strong on credentials. Colon is also compared against other shortstops available in the first day of the draft including Jedd Gyorko, Rick Hague, Derek Dietrich and Josh Rutledge.  One of the reasons Colon is expected to go in the first round is because some of the aforementioned college shortstops are not projected to play the position at the major league level.

Keith Law of espn.com ranked the 30 best prospects from the Cape Cod League this summer. 1-15 can be found here and 16-30 can be found here. Keith ranked 2010 and 2011 eligible players, but we're only concerned with 2010, so we have conveniently summarized the 2010 prospects in one post.

1. Zack Cox - 3B, Arkansas: A good defensive thrid baseman who also swings a big bat. Age-eligible sophomore means demands could be high.
2. Austin Wates - OF, Virginia Tech: His defensive position is unclear, but he's a super athlete with good plate discipline.
3. Brandon Workman - RHP, Texas: Good fastball at 94-92 and an unhittable "sharp spike curveball".
4. Alex Wimmers - RHP, Ohio State: Arguably the best curveball on the Cape, Wimmers was also in the top five in D1 in Ks last year.
5. Leon Landry - OF, LSU: A superior athlete who is blazing fast and actually had a higher average with wood bats on the Cape than in college.
6. Rob Rasmussen - LHP, UCLA: An aggressive pitcher with above-average command, he throws four pitches including an above-average fastball and curveball.
7. Bryan Morgado - LHP, Tennessee: Despite a difficult spring, Morgado excelled this summer and displayed an above-average fastball and breaking ball.
8. Brett Eibner - RHP, Arkansas: Good command with a low-90s fastball and a "promising" cutter.
9. Cameron Rupp - C, Texas: Plays like a true power hitter with solid slugging numbers and good walks.
10. Dallas Gallant - RHP, Sam Houston State: His "stuff" has not yet translated into success on the field, but he has good speed on his fastball and a very good curveball.
11. Justin Grimm - RHP, Georgia: Has hit 97 on the gun, but struggles with any other pitch.
12. Mickey Wiswall - 3B, BC: Swing is long and he struggles with his discipline, but good power.
13. Chris Sale - LHP, Florida Gulf Coast: Good movement on his fastball, decent change up, below-average curveball
14. Seth Rosin - RHP, Minnesota: Big 6'6", 220 lb frame with good command of his fastball
15. Kevin Rhoderick - RHP, Oregon State: Mid-90s fastball and a good slider are enticing. His command isn't.
16. Hunter Morris - 1B, Auburn: A big power hitter, who doesn't bring much else to the plate (figurative or literally).
17. Jarrett Parker - OF, Virginia: His power/speed combination draw comparisons to Brett Jackson, but he needs to improve consistency.
18. Dan Tillman - RHP, Florida Southern: While ERA can be erratic at the college level, 0.00 is hard to ignore.
19. Jedd Gyorko - 2B/3B, West Virginia: Despite diminutive size, he has great bat speed which will lead to good contact rates.
20. Micah Gibbs - C, LSU: Switch-hitter, good power, patient.
21. Josh Rutledge - SS, Alabama: Offense is lacking, but he's a rock at shortstop.
22. Kevin Munson - RHP, James Madison: Hard thrower (96-92), but struggles with control. Already a full-time reliever.
23. Nick Tepesch - RHP, Missouri: Very live arm, but struggles with command. Throws four pitches, but only changeup is above-average right now.
24. Michael Olt - 3B, UConn: Has moved from SS to 3B already and may have to move to the OF eventually.
25. Todd Cunningham - OF, Jacksonville State: Led the Cape in batting average, but little power.

Keith Law of espn.com has an update on the action in the Cape Cod League.  Everyone is getting excited for the Cape Cod League All-Star Game at Fenway Park in Boston on Thursday, July 23rd.  I'll be in attendance and have a report from the game afterward.

• LHP Chris Sale out of Florida Gulf Coast University has been one of the top pitchers in the Cape League this summer.  Sale's strength is throwing strikes (somehow one of the most underrated aspects for a pitcher in my opinion) wiht a 89-93 mph fastball, a good low-80s changeup and an above average slider.
• Brett Eibner, a RHP from Arkansas, made his second appearance of the summer.  His fastball was registered at 94-90 and he displayed a solid cutter in the upper 80s along with a 84-85 mph slider.  Law feels he needs to add another average secondary pitch to play professionally.
• Josh Rutledge is playing shortstop for Alabama and actually projects as a professional shortstop.  Clearly this means he's a superior defender and an average hitter.  Law rates him with an above average arm to go with good range and good hands.
• OF Jonathan Jones from Long Beach State has displayed above average speed and a plus arm with a good swing that produces solid contact, but lower power.  While he's solid mechanically, Law feels that he'll need to produce the rest of this summer and next spring to get any serious looks from teams for the 2010 draft.

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