It’s a dark time to be a baseball fan. The uncertainty of when Major League Baseball will lift their lockout creates unnecessary anxiety. Flocks of fans will be making their way to Arizona or Florida on vacation to enjoy following their favorite teams during Spring Training. With teams now locking out scouts to the backfields, it’s doubtful that fans will be allowed able to watch minor league camp action.
As this lockout continues through March, possibly April, and god help us all if it extends into May, I can’t help but wonder how the MLB Draft will be impacted? We’ve seen it reported that changes are coming to the amateur draft implementing a lottery to decide who gets the top draft slots. What’s not clear is if a new CBA agreed upon this spring would implement those changes in this upcoming draft. That could heavily influence how teams operate at the top if it does.
But I can’t help being pessimistic now, and my more significant worry is not having a draft. We still don’t have an official date for this year’s upcoming draft. Making assumptions based on the success of hosting at the All-Star site, perhaps Monday, July 18th is the target hosted in Los Angeles.
Again, those are assumptions. Without a new CBA, we won’t know for sure. It’s great to have college baseball to help fill the void and watch the top prep players perform at the moment. I can’t help to feel this level of dread if they are next to be significantly impacted. After all, they are the future stars of this sport. Too bad the current MLB Owners don’t care much for the present stars to work out a deal.
Entering the third week of college baseball, we’ve seen a few surprises early. NC State’s Tommy White is the star of this young season. In his first eight games, White is 20-for-34 at the plate (.588 avg) with nine home runs (!) and 29 RBI (!!). His slugging percentage of 1.412 would be a great OPS by itself, but White’s is currently at 2.062. I don’t recall seeing an OPS start with a “2” before.
The Wolfpack continues to rise in this week’s Top 25 poll with their 8-0 record and staking a claim in being the ACC’s strongest team. Only Texas, Ole Miss, and Stanford are ranked ahead of NC State, but I’m not sure how much longer.
A team that is surprising me but not in a good way is Mississippi State. What should have been an easy home series against Northern Kentucky this past weekend, the Aggies lost a Landon Sims start again. I was baffled when Northern Kentucky took a 2-0 deficit and turned it around to a 7-3 lead. Northern Kentucky held off Mississippi State’s late rally for a 7-6 victory that caught the attention of many who cover college baseball.
The defending champions are 5-3 and in no way in boiling water, but they are struggling. My early draft crush, catcher Logan Tanner, is hitting .276/.364/.379 with just one extra-base hit (a home run). Their starting pitching has only allowed five ER in 33 innings, but the bullpen has allowed 22 ER in 37 innings.
SEC play doesn’t start until St. Patrick’s Day weekend, so there’s still time for Mississippi State to get back on track. It would be nice to see them have a strong Friday performance as they play Tulane this weekend in New Orleans.
NCBWA Top 25 Poll (As of 3/1/2022)
| Rank | School | Last Week Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Texas | 1 |
| 2 | Ole Miss | 2 |
| 3 | Stanford | 4 |
| 4 | NC State | 7 |
| 5 | LSU | 6 |
| 6 | Vanderbilt | 9 |
| 7 | Arkansas | 3 |
| 8 | Oklahoma State | 5 |
| 9 | Oregon State | 12 |
| 10 | Georgia | 16 |
| 11 | Arizona | 8 |
| 12 | Mississippi State | 10 |
| 13 | Notre Dame | 13 |
| 14 | Tennessee | 15 |
| 15 | Florida State | 11 |
| 16 | Florida | 17 |
| 17 | TCU | 19 |
| 18 | Miami (FL) | 22 |
| 19 | Georgia Tech | 18 |
| 20 | Maryland | 25 |
| 21 | Texas Tech | 21 |
| 22 | Liberty | 24 |
| 23 | Virginia | 20 |
| 24 | Sacramento State | NR |
| 25 | UCLA | 23 |
NCBWA Hitter(s) of the Week:
3B Jake Gelof, Virginia and 3B Trey Lipscomb, Tennessee
Sharing this week’s hitter award are a couple of third basemen who both hit for the cycle this past weekend. Virginia’s Jake Gelof is the first Cavalier to hit for the cycle since 2001 and is off to a strong start in his Sophomore campaign. Last year, Gelof hit .252/.336/.468 with four home runs and 15 RBI in 38 games as a Freshman. In just eight games this season, Gelof has surpassed those counting stats (5 HR, 23 RBI) and is hitting .636/.676/1.682.
NCBWA Pitcher of the Week:
LHP Chazz Martinez, Oklahoma
A new addition to the Sooners roster, Chazz Martinez transferred to Oklahoma after playing at Orange Coast College in 2021 and UC Santa Barbara before that stint. In his first start of 2022, Martinez was solid against Michigan, finishing with a line of 4.2 IP 4 H 1 R 0 ER 0 BB 5 K.
Against Northwestern State, Martinez found another level tossing seven scoreless innings striking out 14 batters while allowing three hits and just one walk on 97 pitches.
Draft Watch Notes:
LHP Hunter Barco, Florida
Entering the 2022 season, LHP Hunter Barco was not considered a Top-10 SP prospect for this draft class. By adding updated draft rankings from ESPN and FanGraphs, Barco is ranked 36th in the Average Rankings Database. That puts him squarely in the late first to the early second-round range.
After his strong Opening Day start against #22 Liberty going 6 IP 1 H 0 R 1 BB 11 K on 87 pitches and earning NCBWA's Pitcher of the Week award, I figured it was appointment viewing to watch Barco against Georgia State this past Friday. Especially in this draft class starving for better starting pitching prospects with uncertainty surrounding RHP Kumar Rocker and season-ending injuries to RHP Peyton Pallette and LHP Connor Prielipp.
On Friday, Barco allowed a leadoff triple to Josh Smith and would score two batters later to give Georgia State an early 1-0 lead. It wasn't long after that Barco settled in and controlled the game flow.
The first thing I noticed is how fast Barco works. He doesn't waste much time on the mound between pitches. There were a few occasions in which Barco was already mid-windup with a Georgia State hitter still getting situated in the batter's box. This rapid pace became contentious as the game progressed between both teams accusing of quick pitching. I view this pace to be an effective weapon for Barco. He aims to make hitters feel uncomfortable in the batter's box. It works.
Barco's arsenal includes a four-seam fastball, a couple of slider variations, and a changeup. I was impressed with Barco's fastball command. He could locate and hit his target on each side of the plate. In some cases, even off the plate with two strikes getting opposing hitters to whiff on a pitch several inches outside. His velocity sat between 92 to 94 mph and maintained that velocity into the sixth inning. For a left-hander, that's a 55-grade pitch in my book.
The breaking stuff, in a way, reminds me of Carlos Rodón on how it's used. Barco is not afraid to throw a slider that appears more like a slurve to get ahead of hitters, often aiming this pitch on the outside corner against right-handed hitters. Then there is the wipe-out slider.
This slider can be devastating for hitters chasing. However, I noticed against Georgia State; these pitches were never close to being strikes. Against more polished hitters, Barco could face a situation where they watch his wipe-out slider spike in the dirt. I don't feel that Barco's get-me-over breaking pitches have enough bite yet to be a 60+ grade pitch. I'm going to keep an on Barco's breaking stuff because if he can throw that devastating wipe-out slider in the strike zone as we have watched with Rodón and even Chris Sale during their White Sox stints, there's good potential here.
Georgia State was able to track Barco's changeup well. Out of hand, it just looks like a slower version of his fastball. The pitch needs more refinement. Perhaps with some more sink or cutting action.
I don't question Barco's ability to develop into a starting pitcher, which is why I think we will see his draft stock continue to rise. He finished with another impressive line against Georgia State, going 6 IP 3 H 1 ER 1 BB 12 K. So far, Barco has 23 strikeouts to just two walks in 12 innings. That works.
Games I'm Watching This Weekend
Gonzaga at #8 Oklahoma State - Friday, March 4, 4:00 PM CST
I watched much of Gonzaga's RHP Gabriel Hughes start against Cal State Fullerton last Friday and I'm waiting to write a report after seeing how he fares against #8 Oklahoma State. Hughes didn't face much of a challenge against the Titans as he went 6 IP 3 H 1 ER 3 BB 9 K. His fastball was dynamic clocking frequently at 94 mph and paired with a devastating slider. It's excellent stuff, but the command wasn't great. I need a second viewing against tougher competition to see if Hughes is a first-round talent.
Shriner's College Classic - March 4 to 6
#1 Texas, #5 LSU, #14 Tennesee, #25 UCLA along with Baylor and Oklahoma will play in this year's Shriners Children's College Classic in Houston. One of the best in-season college tournaments will feature plenty of MLB Draft talent.
The games I have circled:
- Oklahoma vs. LSU - 3:00 PM CST, March 4
- Tennessee vs. Texas - 7:00 PM CST, March 4
- LSU vs. Texas - 7:00 PM CST, March 5
Full schedule here.
