I know for me at least there’s been quite a few talents so far who I feel have really flew under the radar.Derik Beauprez(Shown Above) is just 1 of those.The list could really go on and on but in this specfic post I’m going to focus on some of the names who I feel really deserve a bit more attention.

Derik Beauprez

Dalton Dulin

Connor Jones

Terry Mcclure

Billy McKinney

Chuckie Robinson

Ivan Wilson

I’ll begin with Beauprez.From what I’ve seen and our Scouting Director Kevin Gallo could probably answer this even better.The pure stuff is pretty good.I believe he threw a 1 hitter in last years state finals for his Cherry Creek High powerhouse out of Colorado.On the mound he reminds me of Kevin Gausman in terms of size and delivery. The fastball is a bit straight for my liking but it jumps up on hitters pretty well as most of what I’ve seen guys have a hard time putting solid contact on it.He’s not exactly a flamethrower just yet but he’s extremely projectable in my opinion with the chance to sit comfortably in the mid to high 90s in the near future.I believe he’s been as high as 93-94 recently.The thing with Beauprez though is that he has a very good changeup already and his curveball really flashes solid potential.The change has good life on it and he has a very nice feel for it.Very deceptive.The curve while it’s inconsistent at the moment in my opinion really has the chance to be something special as a hammer type curve in the future.Try to keep in mind he’s also a newly converted SP after being a big power 1B.While he does have plus power potential and I like the swing,I think with the now stuff and the projectability he offers his future is on the mound.Now while I haven’t seen the newly added slider he’s reportedly throwing I’ve heard it’s developing again our Scouting Director Kevin Gallo could probably answer that a bit better,Even with the 3 pitch mix I think he offers the chance for 2 plus pitches in his fastball and change and another above average to plus pitch in his curveball down the road.Now obviously that’s if things break right developmentally but I think he should be just fine down the road.The risk is always a bit high with these High School SP who are also 2 way guys but the upside is sky high for Beauprez and I’ll be the first to admit I always lean on the side of upside especially in Draft scenarios.

Dalton Dulin is a Ballplayer through and through.When you watch him play you can just see it oozing out of him.As a Boston area native and Red Sox fan obviously a 2B who’s a bit on the smaller side but a gamer and hardnosed type reminds me of Dustin Pedroia.I’d hate to put that kind of pressure on the kid but he’s cut from that cloth.He does have solid tools but he really gets all he can out of each one.Another 2B of that kind who’s probably a bit more fair to mention is Scooter Gennet in the Brewers organization.Although I personally believe Dulin has better if not much better tools then Gennet.He’s a legit switch hitter although I personally favor his left side.He does have some pop don’t let the stature fool you he’s strongly built.I think he could be a great doubles hitter with a bit of pop.He’s a 6.69 60 guy on PG and considering his instincts he should be able to rob some bags.On defense I think if you really needed him too he could fill in at SS but he’s a 2B type.The arm should be just fine at 2B and again his instincts really show up on defense.

Connor Jones is a UVA committed RHP who looks like a right handed Danny Hultzen.He’s supposedly a very strong commitment to UVA and there prospects have increasingly become harder to sign I’ve come to understand although don’t quote me on that.Either way the talent stands out.He’s sort’ve a crafty righty if that makes sense.If I’m not mistaken he throws 2 diffrent fastballs and he’s got great run on both.He gets alot of movement on all of his pitches to be quite honest and that’s what stands out when you add in the fact he’s added a good amount of velocity in recent memory.He was very good at I believe the PG national, I got to see some of the footage from his performance and he certainly was.I think what’s caused the under appreciated part is the fact that he has that quick paced delivery.It’s uncommon and we all know how Baseball really takes awhile to catch up or adjust to new things.Very Very interesting prospect.Throws in the 89-93 range but it really plays up because of that movement.

Terry McClure is an OF from Georgia who’s got blazing speed and a great swing.The swing just looks easy to me and he really drives the ball.I think he’s got some solid pop in the bat and his speed will always be a great asset.He doesn’t exactly have a great arm but I think he’d be a great defender in CF and he’s got the raw arm strength to improve down the road.Solid fundamentally on defense.He’s got solid bat speed and it honestly could be a bit better with some minor mechanical adjustments I think the strength and speed combo is always intriguing and McClure really stands out as a toolsy type to me.Georgia really knows how to make them don’t they? Frazier, Meadows, Buxton there’s certainly alot of talent in recent memory coming out of Georgia.

Billy Mckinney is an intersting power bat from TX.He’s played both RF and 1B and I think he could be solid in RF deffinately enough to pass there at least.The bat is what your buying though and for good reason.Very good bat speed in my opinion solid swing and he really drives the ball.Could have very good power down the line.When you add in the fact he’s a Left handed bat with a solid arm and all that power potential and bat speed I think that’s a very intriguing combination.He’s solid at 1B as well and I think that versatility only adds to his value.I don’t think that’s his primary home but it’s always nice as an MLB team to have those options.In my opinion he’s going to have the power for both.

Chuckie Robinson has a hard time getting attention in such a strong C draft class.But he deserves some credit he’s got a ton of power.He’s a big boy for sure but he’s actually quite good behind the plate.With a 1.81 pop time very strong arm and a quick release.The bat again is what stood out to me though.He makes very good contact and consistently at that and with the power potential you have the chance for a very good offensive catcher who’s also solid behind the  plate.I think he’s been a bit overlooked to date but that should change come June.I’m not sure he ever jumps guys like McGuire and Denney but I think he could be the 5th best Catcher in this class.McGuire then Denney Martinez Ciuffo then you have Okey Navaretto who are the other somewhat well known names in Navarettos case well known in Okeys case.But if Okey moves to 2B like has been suggested that leaves you with Navaretto and Robinson in my opinion fighting for that 5th spot.In any case he’s a very intriguing prospect and a name to be remembered.

Ivan Wilson is a big RF but he’s rather athletic for a 6’3 220 pounder.He’s got a very strong arm and he’s pretty accurate with it as well.I think he could be a very very good defender in RF in time.He’s a bit raw to my knowledge but I’ve deffinately liked what I’ve seen.There’s a good amount of risk with this kid but the team that thinks they can develop the tools into baseball skills (Rangers) is deffinately going to want to take a chance on this kid.The swing needs some work but he already can drive it pretty well.Again this is probably the Upside freak in me but I think there’s a baseball player in this kid just waiting to be taught out.

As always if you have any suggestions for future players please comment below.I’m thinking I might do this more as a regular or semi-regular thing then a 1 time post.Suggestions and such are always welcomed and Thanks for taking the time to read my work here at BLF

Kevin.