Mack Draft: – Patrick Johnson, Adam Griffin, Daniel Peterson, Trevor Bauer, Bubba Starling

North Carolina’s Patrick Johnson: Johnson might not light up the radar gun like previous staff aces Matt Harvey and Alex White, but he’s a stud in his own right. The talented right-handed pitcher put together another fantastic start in a 7-1 triumph over Wake Forest. Johnson struck out nine and allowed just three hits in 5 2/3 shutout innings. Johnson improved to 3-0 with the victory. http://www.perfectgame.org/Articles/View.aspx?article=5352

 

2nd time seeing Adam Griffin in as many weeks, he was pin straight, max effort with fb at 90-94, doesn’t fool hitters, breaking ball he changes his arm slot and speed of delivery which tips the hitters. He’s going to be a good college pitcher and end up being drafted or “over drafted” by some ML club. http://xmlbscout.angelfire.com

 

•Troy’s Daniel Peterson hit two homers in a doubleheader sweep over New Orleans as the Trojans upped their record to 12-3 on the year. If they continue at this pace, they will be able to compete with both FIU and FAU for a conference title in late May. http://www.collegebaseballdaily.com/2011/03/13/foleys-quick-hits-for-march-12th

 

Trevor Bauer is a 20 year old junior right handed pitcher out of North Hollywood, CA. According to his UCLA player profile,his favorite pro player is Tim Lincecum, and when trying to project Bauer Lincecum is the first player that comes to mind. The comparison isn’t perfect, of course. Bauer (listed at 6’2′, 185) is bigger than Lincecum, and while at first glance their delivery’s look similar (for a great slo-mo video of Bauer in last year’s Houston Classic click here) closer looks reveal some differences. Most prominently, Bauer doesn’t recreate Lincecum’s now-famous “dangle,” where his pitching arm hangs loose straight down towards the ground. In addition, Bauer’s stride isn’t nearly as long as Lincecum’s. The thing that gives me pause the most about Bauer’s delivery, however, is his seeming inability to repeat it. As I watched, his landing foot seemed to land in a different place every time, and was dramatically different between the stretch and the windup. On the plus side, Bauer is famous for his incredible work ethic and work-out routine, and his delivery avoids the dreaded “inverted W” that has been fingered as the culprit to many arm injuries. http://www.mlbbonusbaby.com/2011/3/13/2048528/notes-on-trevor-bauer-3-12-vs-st-marys 

 

If (Bubba) Starling realizes his potential, he’ll be a five-tool center fielder. He has lots of strength and leverage in his 6-foot-5, 180-pound frame, not to mention above-average speed. Arm strength? He throws 93 mph off the mound, though his future is definitely as a position player. He’s also one of the nation’s top college quarterback recruits and has accepted a football scholarship from Nebraska, though he’s expected to give up the gridiron when he’s an early first-round pick in June. http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/ask-ba/2011/2611416.html

 

Mack Draft: – Harold Martinez, Michael Palazzone, Tyler Maloof, Nick Travieso, Trevor Bauer, Drew Gagnon

 

Harold Martinez – Martinez of course has been a potential first-round pick for this year’s draft since he was thought to be a potential first-round pick coming out of high school three years ago. As noted above, he didn’t do much in this game, if anyone can be taken in the first round for their body type alone, it would be Martinez. Built long and lean with long, strong limbs and sloped shoulders, he looks like a big leaguer. He has a big swing at the plate and great extension, and when he connects, the ball can go a long, long way. That didn’t happen in this game, and overall he’s off to a slow start (he was dropped to the seventh spot in the lineup), but should he heat up he should continue a long line of notable Hurricanes sluggers. http://www.5tooltalk.com/2011-notes-3-7-11.html

 

Recap: Georgia ran its winning streak to four in a row with a 5-3 victory over Southern California Saturday at Dedeaux Field. The Bulldogs got another stellar pitching performance from junior Michael Palazzone and junior Tyler Maloof picked up his sixth save. The Bulldogs’ four wins this week have all come on the road, beating Mercer in Macon, Alabama in Lawrenceville at Coolray Field and now UCLA and USC in Los Angeles. http://sebaseball.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1199630

 

. But probably the biggest impact transfer would probably have to be RHP/1B Nick Travieso. Travieso’s addition to an already very good Archbishop McCarthy (FL) roster makes them a legitimate contender in 4A. The Mavericks are off to a 9-1 start and have been one of the most prolific offenses in the country thus far, racking up 110 runs in their first 10 games. They probably would be winning games without Travieso at this point, but come playoff time his presence in the lineup and arm will likely make the difference against a fellow powerhouse. http://www.perfectgame.org/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=1325

 

UCLA right-hander Trevor Bauer is a probable first-rounder this year and pitched at Jackie Robinson Stadium on Saturday against St. Mary’s, one week after throwing 129 pitches on a cold day at Nebraska. (Yes, that’s an irresponsibly high pitch count for a 21-year-old, and no, no one will bother to question the coach who left Bauer out there to do it.) http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/blog?name=mlb_draft&id=6212518&action=login&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fmlb%2fblog%3fname%3dmlb_draft%26id%3d6212518

 

Long Beach State’s Drew Gagnon: The Dirtbags continue to get excellent starts from the talented right-handed pitcher. Gagnon again was fantastic against Rice, striking out six and allowing just a run on six hits in eight innings as the Dirtbags upset the Owls with a 2-1 victory. It was a fantastic win for the Dirtbags. http://www.perfectgame.org/Articles/View.aspx?article=5352

 

Draft Dope – Trevor Bauer, IF Draft, Kevin Brady, Casey McElroy, J.J. Ethel, Brooks Beisner, Anthony Meo, John Austin Hicks, Eric Oxford, Jonathan Taylor

129 pitches in early March? What are ya talkin’ about, Willis?

UCLA actually let pitching prospect Trevor Bauer pitch the ball 129 times Saturday night. No, he didn’t have a no-hitter going.

I’m thinking of starting a poll on the site with guesses when Bauer will have his first TJS surgery.

I know, the manager will probably tell you ‘I asked Trevor and he said he was fine and wanted to stay in…’.

Jeez…

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According to the current mock drafts, infielders are just not going to dominate the first round of the 2011 draft. Right now, there are no first basemen projected for the first round and, since Florida’s Preston Tucker has now moved to the outfield, there might be none in the second round either. Hawaii’s Kolton Wong is the only second baseman projected there, while there are only two shortstops, Montverde (FL.) High School’s Francisco Linder, and Arlington (TX.) Country Day’s Javier Baez projected that high. Yes, Rice third baseman Anthony Rendon is still ranked as the first overall pick, but only Vandy’s Jason Esposito also projects out as a first rounder.

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Clemson ‘s Kevin Brady is down and out for up to 2 weeks… forearm muscle strain .

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Auburn junior SS Casey McElroy led his Tigers to their 7th victory last Friday, going 3-4, with a 3-run homer. Casey was philosophical: “I think today’s game was great, our team is still trying to find its identity and it was a good win for us today. For me, the past few weeks, I have been hitting the ball right on the nose, but all my balls have seemed to find the leather. Today, I got a couple of those hits back, and got a ball up in the zone to drive out.”

McElroy was named to the Cape Cod League all-star team this past summer. He also hit .325 as a sophomore, with nine home runs and 11 doubles. So far this season, he’s hitting .341/.391/.537.

He followed this game with Saturday stats of 3-5, 1-R, HR, 1-RBI.

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Louisville’s J.J. Ethel (1-4, 1-R, 1-RBI) takes little credit for the come from behind 3-2 win Friday night against Kent State:

“I give a lot of credit to my teammates and coaches. They know I have not had the start I wanted for season, but they kept belief in me. It was the not the hit at the end, that won us the game. It was our pitching and out defense. The pitching has been the main reason why we have our first six wins. Hopefully this come from behind win, can wake up our offense and give our team the confidence it needs. But overall it’s the best feeling to have a walk off win at home, especially in front of the fans.”

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Auburn’s junior OF Brooks Beisner had a killer game against The College of Charleston Saturday, going 3-4, scoring two runs, going yard, and knocking in three. He had nothing but praise for his opponent: “Hey Mack, we had some good at bats as a team. The College of Charleston is a great program, and we got some good balls to hit and we did our jobs. It was a great overall team win.” Beisner hails out of Charlotte (FL.) High School and was a transfer from St. Petersburg Junior College, where he hit .320 as a sophomore.

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As many of you who follow my site know, Coastal Carolina starter Anthony Meo is one of my favorites going into the draft. Meo has been projected as a first round pick in four of the last five mock drafts that have come out and I see him as a lock for a seven figure signing bonus.

Things didn’t start out well for Anthony (2-25: 5.0-IP, 9-ER), but everything got back together in Saturday’s 11-1 rout of Ball State. Meo went 5.0, giving up only one earned run while striking out eight.

Meo was happy with Saturday:

“My last outing was very important for me after having a rough start the week before,” said Meo. “ All week long you really try to figure out what you didn’t do well and you try to improve. No one is going to have their best stuff every time out there and it was important to me to get back on track with a solid bounce back start. Early in the year you’re trying to figure out how to get back to what you do successful and I can see an improvement each and every week.

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Virginia’s 1B John Austin Hicks went 3-4, 2-R, 1-RBI against Cornell on March 4th:

Mack: John, it was just a great overall game for you tonight. What made everything click?

Hicks: “The team had a great day today which helps you get things going. I was able to get a few hits and my teammates continued to drive me in. Our pitching looked great and we got off to a good start. When the team is playing well it helps build up your confidence. I was able to get that confidence today at the plate and my teammates continued to give me opportunities to make things happen.”

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1B Eric Oxford and his 2-3 Holy Cross team kicked St. Joe butt on Monday, going 4-5, 3-R, 3-RBI. Eric was both happy with the win and proud to be a member of this team:

“We were real happy with our win vs. St. Joe’s. I was glad I was able to help my team win. It was a great win all around: pitching, hitting, defense. This win, as well as the previous win against Villanova, were wins we knew we had a great chance of getting. That’s not a knock on Nova or St. Joe’s, because both teams have a lot of talented guys and have a chance to do well this year. But this year, our team has a lot of confidence. The great mix of returners and freshmen gives us a great chance to be successful this season. We know that we have the potential to do well this season, and we are confident that we can get a lot of things done this season.

“Our first weekend, we played 3 games against LSU. Although the results weren’t what we were looking for – we lost all 3 – there were a lot of positives to take out of that series. Those positives shone through this weekend with two solid wins. I think we have a great opportunity this spring to accomplish things that haven’t been done by a Holy Cross baseball team in a long time.

“Our ultimate goal is to win a Patriot League championship this year. We were one win away from winning the league last year, and I’ve never been more excited for a baseball season than this year.”

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An update on the injury to Georgia outfielder Johnathan Taylor… he underwent “surgery to stabilize his neck fracture” and spine Monday at St. Mary’s Hospital in Athens and will move later this week to the Shepherd Center in Atlanta to continue his rehabilitation.

Taylor’s family has established http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/Johnathantaylor for individuals to check of updates and send messages of support.