Our second mock draft of the year starts college heavy and includes Charlie Condon, Travis Bazzana and others at the top.
2024 Pre-Season Top 100 Prospects Led by SS Jackson Holliday
Introducing the pSTFERA Suite - a new set of predictive ERA-estimators based on the Stuff of a given pitch, put on an ERA scale.
Miami is one of the more talented teams in the ACC this season, with a handful of players who could be drafted within the first 10 rounds in July. With Alejandro Rosario on the bump, four of those players were on display Friday night against North Carolina.
North Carolina got to Rosario the second time through the order, bumping up his pitch count and knocking the junior right-hander out of the game in the fifth.
Rosario has a medium frame with a slight build and good athleticism. His delivery is simple and repeatable, and he has excellent arm speed throwing out of a low-three-quarters slot, although he doesn’t offer much deception.
His two-seam fastball sits 95-97 and topped out at 98 on Friday, but it doesn’t generate nearly enough whiffs– all four of his strikeouts against North Carolina were looking. His slider and changeup each sit in the mid-80s and show flashes of plus potential. The slider has sharp, two-plane bite at best, but its shape is inconsistent, while the changeup has good fading action but too often starts off out of the zone against lefties.
Fringy command of all three pitches and below-average control of the strike zone – he leads the ACC in walks and is second in hit batsmen – has kept Rosario from reaching his potential at Miami. Still, some teams will be enticed by his raw stuff late on Day 2.
Morales put the ball in play five times in Friday’s game but only came away with one hit. He caught the ball off the end of the bat twice on fairly hittable pitches. Normally a bat-first player, he was actually more impressive with the glove against Carolina.
At six-foot-four and 225 pounds, Morales has an extra-large frame with a strong build. He comes with lots of strength in his upper and lower body and surprising athleticism. He has a long swing with some moving parts, but he makes up for it with his exceptional hand speed.
After a breakout 2022 season in the power department, Morales has taken a step back as a junior. He has legitimate double-plus raw power and the ball explodes off his bat when he finds the barrel, but he doesn’t consistently do so. He doesn’t strike out at a concerning clip, but he also doesn’t draw many walks, and while he doesn’t chase too many pitches, his pitch recognition could definitely use some work. Still, he has been a highly productive run producer for the Hurricanes over the last two seasons.
Morales looked fairly spry at third base, showcasing the ability to make several different kinds of plays– barehanded, throwing on the run, ranging into the hole. His lack of speed may push across the diamond down the road, but his plus arm strength should keep him at the hot corner for the time being. Once considered a first-round lock, Morales is looking more like a comp round pick these days, but his offensive upside remains incredibly appealing.
Kayfus reached base four times in Friday’s contest against North Carolina, walking twice and putting the ball in play in his other four trips to his plate.
Kayfus has a medium frame with a slight build– although he’s added significant weight since arriving in Coral Gables. He has an open stance, with a small leg lift and a simple, left-handed stroke.
He doesn’t have much power for a first baseman, but he boasts strong plate discipline and excellent bat-to-ball skills. He has been a bit more of a free swinger in 2023, striking out at a slightly higher clip and currently on pace for double-digit homers, but he will always be hit-over-power. The junior has been cemented as Miami’s leadoff hitter since early March, with above-average speed and good instincts on the basepaths.
Kayfus spent a little bit of time in the outfield early in his college career but has only played first base this season. He is a capable defender there, but playing a non-premium position puts extra pressure on his bat. He’s a Day 2 guy as it is, but an uptick in power would make him a more complete prospect.
#Miami 1B CJ Kayfus (No. 108 on @ProspectsLive) with a single up the middle of his own
— Harris Yudin (@hayudi18) April 14, 2023
Light power for a 1B, but excellent bat-to-ball skills pic.twitter.com/beynPtbFx0
Levenson made plenty of noise with the bat against the Tar Heels, including a pair of hits that gave him his 13th multi-hit game of the season.
Levenson has a strong build with modest athleticism. He has an incredibly simple approach at the plate, with a small load and an even smaller toe tap, using his compact-yet-explosive uppercut swing to barrel up the baseball and hit it in the air.
Over his two years at Miami, the JuCo transfer has displayed solid plate discipline to go along with quality contact skills and solid-average power to all fields. He extends plate appearances and waits for a pitch he can drive. He doesn’t run particularly well, but he isn’t a liability on the bases.
Although not a difference-maker with the glove, Levenson looks the part of a solid corner outfielder with average arm strength. He’s spent time in both left and right and could handle either spot at the next level. Regardless, he is a bat-first prospect who should come off the board on Day 2.
#Miami OF Zach Levenson (No. 179 on @ProspectsLive) rips one down the line, just under the glove of Johnny Castagnozzi, to bring in another run pic.twitter.com/XqkhTEduwn
— Harris Yudin (@hayudi18) April 14, 2023
