The 2013 amateur draft will be held from June 6-8 this year, and between now and then I’m going to highlight some prospects individually rather than lump them together into larger posts.
Michael Lorenzen | OF/RHP
Background
Lorenzen is an Anaheim kid who spurned the Rays as their seventh round pick in 2010 to follow through on his commitment to Cal State Fullerton. He is hitting .338/.412/.570 with seven homers this year after putting together a .317/.383/.455 batting line during his first two years at school, and he’s also posted a 1.73 ERA with a 29/7 K/BB in 36.1 innings as the Titans closer since the start of 2012.
Scouting Report
Listed at 6-foot-3 and 195 lbs., Lorenzen is a ridiculous athlete and a potential five-tool guy. His cannon arm allows him to sit mid-90s and touch 100 out of the bullpen in addition to shutting down the extra-base game from the outfield. He runs very well and can handle all three outfield positions with ease.
At the plate, Lorenzen shows big power from the right side but there are major concerns about his swing and ability to make contact long-term. His strikeout rates with Fullerton — 16.0% in 2013 and 15.6% career — are way too high for a top college prospect, and even coming out of high school the concern was his ability to hit. Lorenzen is almost like a poor man’s version of Drew Stubbs, the drool-worthy athlete who does everything you could possibly want other than consistently put the bat on the ball. There are plenty more videos on YouTube, including this one of him on the mound.
Miscellany
Baseball America (subs. req’d) and Keith Law (subs. req’d) ranked Lorenzen as the 25th and 48th best prospect in the draft in their latest rankings, respectively. That’s quite a spread, but it indicates he is likely a sandwich round guy with a chance to go at the end of the first round, right in line with New York’s first three picks (26th, 32nd, 33rd). The Yankees and scouting director Damon Oppenheimer love toolsy up the middle players and they were linked to Lorenzen quite a bit back in 2010, and his stock has only gone up over the last three years. The contact problems scare me, but at least the fallback option here is a power reliever who can miss bats.
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