A Look Ahead to the 2010 Draft

Bryce Harper lore is likely to surpass that of Stephen Strasburg

With the 2009 Draft in the books, and the announcement this weekend that Bryce Harper is enrolling at the College of Southern Nevada in order to make himself eligible for the 2010 Draft, it seemed like a good time to get an early peek at some of the players to watch as the next year unfolds. If you are unfamiliar with Bryce Harper, we’ll give you a few of the tidbits here, as the legend that is Bryce Harper is likely to dwarf the legend that is Stephen Strasburg. Harper is a 16yo, high school sophomore, that many Major League scouts feel would have been the second player taken had he been eligible for the 2009 draft. At 6’3”, he currently plays catcher, even though he sports a 96Mph Fastball, and the athleticism to play any position on the field. It is reported that as a freshman, the left-hander hit a homerun during a game that traveled a distance of 570’. In a showcase event in Tampa this past January, he hit a 510’ home run that is the longest ever recorded in Tropicana Field—at any level. His .626 average, to go along with 14 HRs and 33 SBs this season only added to his ‘Sid Finch-like’ lore that has propelled him to the cover of the most recent issue of Sports Illustrated. If Stephen Strasburg is the best college draft prospect of all-time, Bryce Harper is positioned to become the best high school draft prospect of all time. There will be plenty of people, over the next twelve months, willing to add to the, already-enormous, legend; for now we’ll just focus on next June’s draft.

The draft itself is shaping up to be a solid draft overall—similar in overall quality to this past year. Outside of Harper, the strength of this draft, similar to 2009, is in its pitching. At this time, the College pitching is probably not quite as deep or quite as strong as 2009. On the prep side, it is slightly less deep, but the power arms at the top of the draft are comparable to the top of the 2008 draft. At both levels, the draft appears to be short of left-handers. On the hitting side, there is similar talent to 2009 on the prep side—with likely more depth. While the college bats can’t compare to the 2008 draft, they are not only stronger than 2009, but there is talent up the middle—a quality that has been missing the last couple of season. So here is our look at the players to keep an eye on over the coming year.


2010 Draft – Top 30 Players

1) Bryce Harper, C, Las Vegas
2) Anthony Ranaudo, RHP, LSU
3) Bryce Brentz, OF, Middle Tennessee State
4) Yordy Cabrera, SS, Lakeland, FL
5) A.J. Cole, RHP, Winter Springs, FL
6) James Taillon, RHP, Woodlands, TX
7) Kyle Blair, RHP, Univ. of San Diego
8) Trey Griffin, OF, Stockbridge, GA
9) Deck McGwire, RHP, Georgia Tech
10) Blake Forsythe, C, Tennessee
11) Christian Colon, SS, Cal State-Fullerton
12) Alex Wimmers, RHP, Ohio State
13) Chris Hernandez, LHP, Miami
14) Austin Wilson, OF, Los Angeles, CA
15) Daniel Renken, RHP, Cas State-Fullerton
16) Josh Rutledge, SS, Alabama
17) Kris Bryant, SS/3B, Las Vegas, NV
18) Drew Pomeranz, LHP, Mississippi
19) Kaleb Cowart, RHP, Adel, GA
20) Yasmani Grandal, C, Miami
21) Nick Tepesch, RHP, Missouri
22) Nick Castellanos, 3B, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
23) Derek Dietrich, 3B, Georgia Tech
24) Cameron Bedrosian, RHP, Coweta, GA
25) Krey Bratsen, OF, Bryan, TX
26) Matt Harvey, RHP, North Carolina
27) Victor Sanchez, 3B, Univ. of San Diego
28) Brandon Workman, RHP, Texas
29) Marcus Littlewood, SS, St. George, UT
30) Dylan Covey, RHP, Pasadena, CA