After two weeks of the College Baseball season, there is already a need to update the 2020 MLB Draft Board because of injuries. Mississippi State RHP J.T. Ginn didn't post the best numbers in his one start against Wright State on Valentine's Day. He only lasted three innings, throwing 58 pitches, allowing two runs on three hits while striking out four and walking two batters.
A rather pedestrian appearance, but reports out of Starkville after Ginn's start were alarming. A velocity drop on the fastball suggested that Ginn was dealing with an arm issue, and MSU Coach Chris Lemonis has shut down his ace pitcher indefinitely. While this is a significant loss for the Bulldogs early in 2020, it does raise red flags in Ginn's draft stock. Widely considered a Top-10 pick before the season start, if Ginn misses significant time during the 2020 season, he'll continue dropping down a few team's draft boards.
Ginn isn't the only concerning injury. Tennessee LHP Garrett Crochet is still sidelined dealing with his arm issues and has yet to appear in a game this season. Hopefully, this trend doesn't continue, and if it does, teams hoping to select an advanced college arm may risk buying damaged goods.
With Ginn's injury, the Sox Machine 2020 MLB Draft Board has been updated.
| Rank | Player | Position | School | 2020 Stats |
| 1 | Austin Martin | SS/3B | Vanderbilt | .367/.512/.600 4 Doubles, 1 HR, 4 RBI |
| 2 | Spencer Torkelson | 1B | Arizona State | .320/.605/.880 4 HR, 4 RBI, 18 BB to 8 K |
| 3 | Nick Gonzalez | 2B | New Mexico State | .515/.667/1.303 7 HR 26 RBI 12 BB to 5 K |
| 4 | Emerson Hancock | RHP | Georgia | 11 IP 4.91 ERA 11 H 6 ER 12 K 1 BB |
| 5 | Asa Lacy | LHP | Texas A&M | 11 IP 1.64 ERA 7 H 2 ER 22 K 3 BB |
| 6 | Jared Kelley | RHP | Refugio HS (TX) | |
| 7 | Mick Abel | RHP | Jesuit HS (OR) | |
| 8 | Reid Detmers | LHP | Louisville | 11 IP 0.82 ERA 6 H 1 ER 23 K 2 BB |
| 9 | Ed Howard IV | SS | Mount Carmel HS (IL) | |
| 10 | Austin Hendrick | OF | West Allegheny HS (PA) | |
| 11 | CJ Van Eyk | RHP | Florida State | 8.2 IP 1.04 ERA 7 H 1 ER 11 K 5 BB |
| 12 | Cole Wilcox | RHP | Georgia | 11 IP 3.27 ERA 11 H 4 ER 15 K 2 BB |
| 13 | Zac Veen | OF | Spruce Creek HS (FL) | |
| 14 | Nick Bitsko | RHP | Central Bucks East (PA) | |
| 15 | Heston Kjerstad | OF | Arkansas | .393/.500/.929 4 HR 11 RBI 5 BB 5 K |
| Dropped | ||||
| Casey Martin | SS | Arkansas | ||
| JT Ginn | RHP | Mississippi State | ||
| Garrett Mitchell | OF | UCLA |
Highlights
Vanderbilt could have three potential #1 picks
Two weeks ago, I wrote about how Vanderbilt may have back-to-back number one overall picks on their roster with Austin Martin and Kumar Rocker. They may now have three number one picks as freshman RHP Jack Leiter has been outstanding. In his first two starts, Leiter has yet to allow a run over ten innings. Opponents only have one base hit against Leiter, and he's struck out 16 batters while walking just four.
Jack Leiter, Filthy Curveballs paired with a 96mph Fastball.
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) February 25, 2020
Starts off where he left off (K'ing the side). pic.twitter.com/XTCkX5rSoQ
A new challenger for "Best College Starting Pitcher"
Asa Lacy is going to challenge Emerson Hancock for the title of "Best College Starting Pitcher." Striking out 14 batters in his last start against Army, Lacy has two must-see starts on the upcoming schedule: March 6th against New Mexico State to face Nick Gonzales, and April 3rd against Georgia to counter Hancock. There will be plenty of scouts in attendance for those starts.
???? all fourteen of 'em ????@The_Ace35 | #GigEm pic.twitter.com/U18uI3Knol
— Texas A&M Baseball (@AggieBaseball) February 22, 2020
Nick Gonzales moves to shortstop
Speaking of Gonzales, his video game slash line of .515/.667/1.303 (yes, that's his slugging percentage) is not the only eye-opening part of his game. Gonzales moved from second base to shortstop as his primary position. Not considered a good defender at second base, but the potential to be average defensively, the move over to shortstop is curious by New Mexico State. Maybe it makes the Aggies better, but I'm skeptical about his defense. If a team like the Detroit Tigers buys in that Gonzales can stick at short, that could be enough to make him the first overall pick. With higher-profile games coming, we'll get more verdicts from the scouting and analyst community.
ASU Alika Williams rockets one at Nick Gonzales and he backs a diving play #ProspectOne pic.twitter.com/alK8EGCjzj
— The Welsh (@IsItTheWelsh) February 26, 2020
Games to Watch this Weekend:
The place to be this weekend is in Frisco, Texas for the Frisco College Baseball Classic. Texas A&M, UCLA, Oklahoma State, and Illinois are the four teams participating this year. For the Illini fans, Lacy will be the opposing pitcher on Friday.
Full schedule here: https://www.friscoclassic.com/schedule
NCBWA Top 25 Poll (February 24th)
| Rk. | School | Record | Pvs. |
| 1 | Florida | 8-0 | 5 |
| 2 | Arkansas | 7-0 | 6 |
| 3 | Texas Tech | 6-1 | 1 |
| 4 | Vanderbilt | 6-2 | 4 |
| 5 | Georgia | 7-1 | 3 |
| 6 | Mississippi State | 5-1 | 7 |
| 7 | UCLA | 7-0 | 11 |
| 8 | N.C. State | 7-0 | 12 |
| 9 | Louisville | 4-3 | 8 |
| 10 | Miami | 4-3 | 2 |
| 11 | Arizona State | 5-3 | 14 |
| 12 | Florida State | 6-1 | 15 |
| 13 | Texas A&M | 8-0 | 19 |
| 14 | Duke | 6-1 | 18 |
| 15 | Ole Miss | 6-1 | 20 |
| 16 | LSU | 5-3 | 13 |
| 17 | East Carolina | 6-1 | 16 |
| 18 | Michigan | 4-3 | 9 |
| 19 | Georgia Tech | 6-1 | 22 |
| 20 | Oklahoma | 7-2 | 24 |
| 21 | Auburn | 5-3 | 10 |
| 22 | Dallas Baptist | 6-1 | 27 |
| 23 | North Carolina | 6-2 | 17 |
| 24 | Tennessee | 7-0 | RV |
| 25 | UCF | 7-1 | NR |
| 26 | TCU | 5-1 | 25 |
| 27 | Texas | 8-0 | 30 |
| 28 | Oklahoma State | 5-2 | 29 |
| 29 | Clemson | 7-0 | RV |
| 30 | Arizona | 5-2 | 23 |
