The draft is just ten days away, so between now and then I’m going to highlight some players individually rather than lump a few together in one post.

Blake Swihart | C

Background
After helping Rio Rancho High School to the New Mexico state championship as a sophomore, Swihart transferred to the nearby and brand-new Cleveland High School, where he supposedly has a 4.0 GPA. His showcase performances with Team USA, the Area Code Games, and the AFLAC All-American Game are the stuff of legend, as he’s routinely wowed onlookers over the last few summers. He is committed to Texas.

Scouting Report
Swihart is a rare breed. He’s a true switch-hitter with the potential to have power and be above-average from both sides of the plate. He spent the spring focusing on his development by alternating sides of the plate from at-bat to at-bat regardless of the pitcher’s handedness. The 6-foot-0, 170 lb. Swihart is a very good athlete that spent most of his high school career bouncing around the infield before moving behind the plate in earnest just last year. His arm is strong and his footwork is good, but he’s raw defensively and just needs more experience. If catching doesn’t work out for whatever reason, third base and right field are legitimate fallback options. Here’s some video.

Miscellany
In yesterday’s chat, Keith Law said that Swihart “keeps telling teams he has no interest in signing this year,” which is probably just a way of manufacturing leverage as one of the draft’s best high school prospects. KLaw and Baseball America rated him as the 17th and 19th best draft prospect in their latest rankings, respectively. Swihart has significant upside but still has a lot of work to do, and some team will surely offer him life changing money to see that he does that work under professional instruction and not some college coaching staff. The Yankees would have to hope that those bonus demands scare some teams into looking elsewhere if they hope to land Swihart with the 51st overall pick.

The draft is just 11 days away, so between now and then I’m going to highlight some players individually rather than lump a few together in one post.

Tyler Goeddel | 3B, OF

Background
The brother of Mets’ prospect Erik Goeddel and the son of a pioneer in the biotech industry, Tyler attends St. Francis High School just outside of San Jose in Mountain View, California. He missed part of the spring with mono, but Goeddel’s prospect status was cemented long before his senior year. Like his brother before him, he’s committed to UCLA.

Scouting Report
Long and lanky at 6-foot-4 and 170 lbs., Goeddel’s athleticism is most evident in the field. He’s an above-average runner with a strong arm, and he has to tools to play either third base or center field. Goeddel has good bat speed and bat control, consistently getting the barrel on the ball even though he doesn’t have much power to speak of at the moment. With a frame like that, it’s not all that hard to envision him growing into some. Goeddel has a great feel for a game and is very instinctive, and he has a history of playing well against top competition in showcase events. Here’s some video of him hitting and fielding.

Miscellany
The Yankees have been “heavily linked” to Goeddel this spring, and he fits the Damon Oppenheimer mold of athleticism, well-roundedness, and upside. The potential is there for him to be an impact player on both sides of the ball in center field, where he would provide the most value, though he could end up in right if he really fills out over the next few years. There’s no word on his asking price, but for what it’s worth, he’s a better prospect than his brother and Erik eventually got an above-slot deal from the Amazin’s.

Keith Law considers Goeddel the 35th best prospect in the draft, so he sees him as a borderline first rounder. Baseball America doesn’t like him quite that much, ranking him 89th overall. Either way, it sounds like he’s a guy that will be in the mix for the Yankees at number 51, their first selection.

The draft is just 12 days away, so between now and then I’m going to highlight some players individually rather than lump a few together in one post.

Bryan Brickhouse | RHP

Background
Brickhouse attends The Woodlands High School in Texas, which produced flamethrowing righties Kyle Drabek (18th overall in 2006) and Jameson Taillon (second overall in 2010) in recent years. Brickhouse isn’t the same level of prospect as those two, but he certainly fits the power arm profile. A strong commitment to North Carolina might make him unsignable unless he gets that Drabek/Taillon kind of money though.

Scouting Report
Big and strong at 6-foot-2 and 190 lbs., Brickhouse routinely sits at 91-93 mph with his fastball and will run it up as high as 95 on occasion. He also throws a power curveball that can be unhittable when it’s on, but there are times when he doesn’t get on top of the pitch enough and it flattens out into more of a sweepy slider. His changeup is in its infancy stages. Brickhouse struggles with his mechanics and has yet to find consistency with his delivery, leading to arm slot and command problems. He’s some video from last summer.

Miscellany
The UNC commitment is the wildcard here. The talent and everything else adds up to a second round selection, but if Brickhouse throws a big number out there I could easily see him falling into the later rounds, I’m talking double digit rounds similar to Alex Meyer in 2008 (first round arm, unsigned 20th round pick because he wanted multi-millions). The command and mechanical issues are what’s keeping Brickhouse from being one of the top high school arms in the draft class, so he’s a nice high-upside project for a team with money and patience.

Keith Law ranked Brickhouse as the 90th best prospect in the draft in his latest rankings while Baseball America left him off their latest top 60.