MLB Draft: Top High School Prospects From The Summer, Fall Circuits (Part 3)

Tyler Bell, SS, Lincoln-Way East HS, Frankfort, Ill.

Commit: Kentucky

A lean and athletic shortstop with a projectable, 6-foot-1, 180-pound frame, Bell established himself as a well-rounded player and solid performer as an underclassman. He’s a patient hitter with a solid eye at the plate from both sides, though there is a bit of length to his swing and it can get steep, which leads to some questions about how he might handle elevated velocity at the next level. Still, he can drive the ball hard and he makes a lot of contact in general and should provide average and on-base value as a hitter. He’s a solid defender at shortstop with fluid actions and above-average body control, with above-average arm strength and the ability to throw from multiple angles. While Bell went just 2-for-14 (.143) at Perfect Game’s WWBA World Championship in Jupiter this fall, he hit a number of balls hard that just didn’t find a gap in the field. 

Jack Brown, RHP, Fishers (Ind.) HS

Commit: Louisville

Brown is a 6-foot-1, 205-pound righthander with a strong lower half and a powerful, sinking fastball. He pitched in the low 90s in short outings this summer and has been up to 95 mph at peak velocity, with heavy sinking action that should allow him to drive a high ground ball rate. In a five game Synergy sample in 2023, Brown induced ground balls at nearly a 60% clip. 

Brown throws two breaking balls, though both his slider and curveball blend together consistently in the upper 70s. The pitch, which has spin in the 2,300-2,500 rpm range, looks like a slider at times and a curveball more at others, but is generally slurvy overall with solid-average upside. He will get around the breaking ball occasionally, but when he’s fully on top of the pitch it flashes good late biting action to his glove side.

He’s also thrown a solid, mid-80s changeup at a decent usage rate, particularly for a high school pitcher. The cambio looks like a potentially above-average offering that he throws with fastball arm speed for the most part. The pitch comes in around 1,600-1,800 rpm with lots of tumbling action. It falls off the table at its best and looks like a legitimate swing-and-miss offering to lefthanders, though he’ll need to avoid allowing it to run into the barrels of righthanders.

Jackson Burns, RHP, Southwest Christian HS, Fort Worth, Texas 

Commit: Texas Tech

A big and physical righthander with an extra-large, 6-foot-5, 215-pound frame, Burns attacks hitters with a low-90s fastball and a curveball that flashed above-average potential this summer. Burns throws from a three-quarters slot and works from the first base side of the rubber, with a direct stride to the plate and some violence in his finish with a downward head whacking motion.

He pitched in the 90-93 mph range for the most part, though he touched 95 with the pitch and it also features some cut/ride life that consistently helped him miss bats and generate whiffs. Burns will need to improve his command, as he tends to yank the fastball and miss to his glove side, but the velocity and movement make it a powerful No. 1 pitch in his arsenal. 

Burns also throws a mid-70s curveball with good spin in the 2,500-2,600 rpm range. The pitch has 12-to-6 and 11-to-5 shape and features tight biting action at its best, though he needs to get on top of the breaking ball more consistently and avoid it popping up and out of his hand, where it flattens out or hangs up. 

He’s mixed in an 85-87 mph changeup that flashed solid-average with good arm speed at Perfect Game’s National showcase, though he overwhelmingly uses his fastball/curveball combination. 

Levi Clark, C, Walton HS, Marietta, Ga.

Commit: Tennessee

Clark has been a tremendous performer at just about every event he’s attended this summer. A physically developed righthanded hitter and catcher, Clark is listed at 6-foot-2, 195 pounds and pairs a sound batting eye with bat speed and strength. He has a wide and slightly open setup at the plate with little or no stride, and instead uses a deep hand press in his load and a violent weight transfer through his swing to generate force and impact. He used the opposite field a lot in 2023, which could indicate an advanced hitting approach, though he also has more swing-and-miss tendencies vs. fastballs and has little production against 90+ mph velocity as well, which could also point to a tendency to simply be late.

Outside of the nitpicks in his profile, Clark has been excellent. In 17 games logged in Synergy he slashed .343/.511/.743 with two home runs, three triples, two doubles and more walks (9) than strikeouts (6) and his numbers in a 30-game Perfect Game tournament sample is even more impressive: .441/.576/.853 with six home runs and 21 walks to 12 strikeouts. He was also third in hitting with USA Baseball’s 18U National team. On top of his offensive performance, Clark also has a strong throwing arm, is a solid blocker behind the plate and turns 18 just a month before the draft—plenty of positive indicators here. 

Braylon Doughty, RHP, Chaparral HS, Temecula, Calif.

Commit: Oklahoma State

Doughty recently committed to Oklahoma State and if he makes it to campus, the Cowboys are landing a big-time arm talent. This summer Doughty showed excellent swing-and-miss stuff, and at the Area Code Games he struck out five of the eight batters he faced. A muscular righthander listed at 6-foot-1, 196 pounds, Doughty throws from a three-quarters slot and has a fastball in the 90-94 mph range and has touched 96. He’s a bit fringy and scattered with his control of the pitch, but if he gets it around the zone enough, batters will have a ton of trouble with his 81-86 mph slider, which is an easy plus offering with exceptional spin rates and consistent late, biting action. He generated whiffs on four of the six swings against it at the Area Code Games, and it’s a vicious offering with spin in the 2,800-3,100 rpm range that looked like one of the better breaking balls at the event. 

Colin Guerra, SS, Olathe (Kan.) HS

Commit: Texas

PG National is a notoriously difficult event for hitters, who are stepping into the box against a new pitcher who is trying to light up the radar gun during each at-bat. That’s why Guerra’s performance at this year’s showcase was so impressive. The 5-foot-11, 165-pound middle infielder went 3-for-6 (.500) and put six balls in play, while walking once and swinging and missing just a single time. All of his hits were singles, but he did an excellent job putting the barrel on the ball and lining hard hits up the middle from both sides of the plate. Guerra’s swing is fairly direct and level from both sides of the plate, and he showed an ability to turn around 90+ mph velocity as well.

Jake Hanley, RHP/1B, Mason (Ohio) HS

Commit: Indiana

A large-framed two way player, Hanley is a 6-foot-6, 225-pound lefthanded hitter and righthanded pitcher. While he touched 94 mph and showed solid feel to spin the baseball this summer, he also had a loud offensive showing at the Area Code Games, where he went 5-for-11 (.455) with two doubles, three singles and four balls in play hit harder than 90 mph. 

Hanley has more strength than bat speed, and he also employs a slight hand hitch that can cause timing issues in his load—in addition to a bat path that can get a bit lengthy at times—but he showed impressive ability to get on time and utilize his strength in games and hit balls deep to both gaps. He’s not a great runner, but he moves well underway and turned in fringe-average times from home to first from the left side. 

Chase Harlan, 3B, Central Bucks East HS, Doylestown, Pa.

Commit: Clemson

Harlan showed off exciting offensive tools at the Area Code Games as a member of the Northeast-based Yankees team. In batting practice, Harlan used a crouched setup and low handset but was consistently direct to the baseball with minimal moving parts in the swing and also showed surprising raw power. He hit the middle of the batter’s eye in center field at San Diego’s Fowler Park. He doesn’t have the most electric bat speed, and the swing can get a bit longer in game action, but Harlan does have plenty of strength projection with a 6-foot-3, 205-pound frame.

At the Area Code Games, Harlan went just 3-for-13 (.231) with five strikeouts and no walks, but he was a solid performer throughout the travel ball circuit and in 40 games with Perfect Game he hit .333/.483/.540 with three home runs and more walks (22) than strikeouts (20). And while his sample against 90+ mph velocity is limited, Harlan’s production against that sort of velocity has been solid.

Dasan Hill, LHP, Grapevine (Texas) HS

Commit: Dallas Baptist

Hill is a tremendously projectable pitcher with a 6-foot-4, 170-pound frame that should be able to layer on a ton of muscle mass and strength in the next few years. He opened up with a 91-93 mph fastball in his appearance at the Area Code Games this summer, though the pitch backed down to 87-89 mph in his second inning. The same was true of the velocity of his breaking ball, which started in the low 80s before backing off into the mid and upper 70s and getting a bit more slurvy and loose as his outing progressed. Both Hill’s fastball and breaking ball are high-spin pitches that got up to 2,600 rpm in this look, though his release point wandered a bit and he was generally scattered with both pitches. Hill is a deeper projection prospect at the moment, but he’s got a frame to dream on with flashes of an exciting two-pitch mix.

Ethan Holliday, SS, Stillwater (Okla.) HS (Class of 2025)

Commit: Oklahoma

Holliday is becoming one of the more highly-touted underclassmen we’ve seen in years. That’s probably not much of a surprise given his father’s big league career and the fact that his older brother, Jackson, was the No. 1 overall pick just two years ago and is currently the No. 1 prospect in baseball.

Still, the middle Holliday brother is a standout prospect in his own right and he’s more advanced—physically, as a hitter and relative to his peers—than Jackson was at the same time. At 6-foot-4, 195 pounds, Holliday has lots of strength and power currently and is lefthanded swing is a thing of beauty with ease, balance and lots of bat speed.

At Baseball Factory’s All-America game in Globe Life Park, the booming crack of his bat in batting practice elicited chuckles from scouts in attendance and he also showcased advanced hitting traits in game. In a tough left-on-left matchup, he drove an 82-mph slider backside down the left field line in a 1-2 count for a standup double, then one plate appearance later he barreled a 92-mph fastball right back up the middle for a hard hit single.

He has a strong eye, tracks pitches well and seems to use the entire field naturally and with authority. Holliday has a chance to develop into plus hitting ability with plus or more power and if he were in the 2024 draft class, there’s a decent chance he would immediately become the top prep player in the class. For now, MLB teams will have to wait a year before the next start of the Holliday family comes along. 

Blake Larson, LHP, IMG Academy, Bradenton, Fla.

Commit: Texas Christian

A lean lefthander with a great pitcher’s frame at 6-foot-3, 180 pounds, Larson is an exciting, yet erratic, arm on the mound who creates an uncomfortable at-bat for both lefties and righties. He has a high-effort delivery with a lot of moving parts, including a high leg kick, a sharp stabbing action in the back of his arm stroke and a violent finish including a head whack and a hard fall off to the third base side. Larson throws from a lower, three-quarters arm slot that is almost fully sidearm at times and has tons of arm speed as he delivers the baseball.

It’s a reliever look now, but Larson does have impressive pure stuff, led by a low-90s fastball that has been up to 95. In addition to above-average present velocity for a lefty, Larson has quite a bit of sinking and running life on the pitch and it’s a real bat-misser when he’s able to put it over the plate. He has consistently shown below-average control and command that will need to improve in the future. 

His main secondary offering is a sweepy slider in the upper 70s. The pitch has big shape and spin rates in the 2,600-2,800 rpm range and could be an above-average offering as a chase pitch to lefties and a backfoot breaking ball to righties, but like his fastball he needs to sharpen the command of the offering. Larson has mixed in a few changeups in the 87-88 mph range with 1,900 rpm spin, but both pitches looked rudimentary when he flashed them at the Area Code Games. An Iowa native, Larson transferred to IMG Academy for his senior season where he will be scouted heavily. 

Chris Levonas, RHP, Christian Brothers Academy, Lincroft, N.J.

Commit: Wake Forest

The Northeast seems to pump out lean righthander who can spin the baseball and this year’s version of that profile is Levonas, who has tons of strength projection with a lanky, 6-foot-1, 170-pound frame and showed a solid, four-pitch mix at the Area Code Games. He struck out five batters in two innings of work and pitched in the 90-94 mph range with his fastball, while spinning a big downer curveball in the mid 70s that has above-average or plus potential as he adds more power and feel to the pitch. He spun the curveball in the 2,600-2,900 rpm range and it features impressive bite and tons of depth, though those movement characteristics meant he had a tough time landing the pitch in the zone consistently. Levonas also mixed in a short-breaking slider that had cutter-like movement in the mid 80s, and threw a low-80s changeup around the zone a few times as well. It’s rare to see a distinct four-pitch mix at this level, but Levonas appears to have one.

Ryan Lynch, RHP, Moorestown (N.J.) HS

Commit: North Carolina

A 6-foot-3, 215-pound righthander, Lynch is solidly build and is a solid athlete on the mound. He employs an extra high leg kick in his delivery before driving down the rubber and throwing with a lower, three-quarters arm slot.

Lynch pitches in the 87-91 mph range and has touched 92-93 at peak velocity, but his fastball is a high-spin pitch—around 2,500-2,600 rpm—with lot of sink and run that jams righthanded hitters in on the hands. He pairs the fastball with a slower, sweepy slider that has slurve-like shape at times, but features tons of depth and horizontal movement. With more power it could become an above-average breaking ball. Lynch has also thrown a mid-80s changeup with arm-side fading action that he throws with solid arm speed and gives him a real third pitch to round out his repertoire.

He pounded the strike zone and worked quickly in his two-inning Area Code Games outing, and with a bit more power on his fastball, has the makings of a solid starting pitcher at the next level.

Tatum Marsh, OF/RHP, Valley Christian HS, San Jose, Calif.

Commit: Stanford

A teammate of Medicoff’s at the Area Code Games with the NorCal-based A’s team, Marsh has a projectable frame at a 6-foot-1, 180 pounds and showed a few solid tools, including speed, power and arm strength. A righthanded hitter, Marsh has some length to his bat path and at times he can be late getting his front foot down and getting his hands into launch position, but he does have some bat speed and power in the tank.

He went 4-for-13 (.308) with one home run and one double at the Area Code Games, and his homer was a backside blast to right field with impressive carry that came against a 90-mph fastball and left his barrel at 93 mph. The pitch was middle-middle, and he didn’t get fully extended with his hands, which perhaps speaks to his late trigger but his ability to drive the ball out speaks to the strength he has now. Marsh’s approach could use a bit of refinement, as he expanded the zone on a few bad chases in this look and struck out five times compared to no walks.

He gets out of the box quickly and looks like an above-average runner at times, and he also showed a plus arm from left field when he threw out a runner attempting to tag up on a fly ball from third base.

Burke Mabeus, C, Bishop Gorman HS, Las Vegas

Commit: Oregon

Mabeus is a large and physical switch-hitting catcher who is listed at 6-foot-4, 210 pounds. While he is on the bigger side for a high school catcher, he has the tools to stick at the position with above-average throwing arm and an advanced ability to work with his pitchers. He’s a vocal defender behind the plate and sets up nicely in a one-knee stance behind the dish, with quiet hands and presents the ball well. He moves well for his size while blocking the ball and also has solid footwork on his throws, which are aided by a quick exchange. It’s normal to see pop times in the 1.9-2.0 second range during games.

As a hitter, Mabeus is a power-over-hit offensive profile who seems much more comfortable and dangerous from the left side of the plate. His bat speed comes easier as a lefty swinger, and his righthanded swing is a bit more rigid and forced than an easy, powerful lefty stroke. He’ll need to make more contact against secondary pitches in particular, but when Mabeus gets his foot down, gets extended and makes contact he can send the ball a long way—particularly to the pull side. One of his more emphatic batted balls of the circuit came against an 89-mph fastball at the Area Code Games in an 0-1 count. The pitch was left just above his belt and over the plate and Mabeus drove the ball 374-feet for a no-doubt home run to right field. 

In 32 logged games with Synergy in 2023, Mabeus hit .275/.366/.449 but if you isolate his lefthanded at-bats, that jumps to a .288/.387/.519 line.

Tate Medicoff, RHP/1B, Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep, San Francisco

Commit: Uncommitted

Medicoff has one of the more unusual swings in the 2024 class, but he showed impressive bat speed and raw power at the Area Code Games this summer. A 6-foot-2, 205-pound righthanded hitter and first baseman, Medicoff has an ultra wide setup at the plate with a deep crouch that is reminiscent of Jeff Bagwell. Despite that heavily grounded setup, Medicoff hammered the baseball in batting practice and hit the ball hard with tons of bat speed and a level path that found the barrel often.

He went hitless in three games at the event and showed a bit more swing and miss, but also took solid at-bats and hit one 90-mph fastball hard to the opposite field that left his bat at 92 mph but was caught in right field. In 17 games with Perfect Game in 2023, Medicoff slashed .278/.409/.361 with five walks and six strikeouts. He’s an intriguing, albeit unorthodox, righthanded bat.

Nicholas Montgomery, C/1B, Cypress (Calif.) HS

Commit: Arizona State

Montgomery had a productive summer overall, but he was particularly impressive at the Area Code Games, where he showed bigtime raw power from the right side in batting practice as well as a savvy eye during games. A 6-foot-4, 210-pound infielder and catcher, Montgomery has tons of strength and has an ability to drive the ball with authority to all fields. He sets up slightly crouched and open and takes a sizeable leg kick before firing his hands with plenty of bat speed through the zone with an uppercut path. 

Montgomery will swing and miss by nature of his long levers, but he hammered fastballs all year and also did a solid job making contact against 90+ mph velocity. He can get pull-heappy at times, and there’s a step in the bucket action, along with some back foot drift, that could leave him vulnerable on the outer third, but in general he put together competitive at-bats and was happy to take his free passes when pitchers pitched around him. 

In 27 logged games, Montgomery hit .309/.481/.491 with one home run, one triple, five doubles and 18 walks compared to nine strikeouts. Montgomery is larger than your typical catcher, and he’ll need to work hard to stick behind the plate but his actions and hands are quite solid and he does a nice job getting rid of the ball quickly on throws, with above-average arm strength.

Anderson Nance, RHP, Morehead HS, Eden, N.C.

Commit: North Carolina State

A filled out and physical righthander with a 5-foot-11, 185-pound frame, Nance showed a solid combination of stuff and strike throwing ability this summer. At Perfect Game’s National showcase, he struck out four of the seven batters he faced and later during the fall he was a member of a 5 Star/Top Tier Roos Mafia team that won the WWBA World Championship.

Nance works reasonably quickly on the mound and throws from a high, three-quarters slot. He works from the first base side of the rubber and has a slight crossfire landing in his finish and at his best does a nice job changing eye levels with an 88-92 mph fastball that has been up to 93 while mixing in a trio of secondaries. Nance’s go-to breaking ball is a mid/upper-70s curveball with 11-to-5 shape and solid depth that flashes solid-average when he’s on top of it, but is hittable when he leaves it up over the heart of the plate. He also throws a slider that’s a tick harder with shorter movement and typical three-quarter shape, though the pitch well blend into his curveball at times. 

Nance has also flashed a changeup that has solid tumbling action and could be a nice ground ball inducing pitch, though he throws it rarely. 

Xavier Neyens, 3B/RHP, Mount Vernon (Wash.) HS (Class of 2025)

Commit: Oregon State

A standout two-way player who ranks as the No. 10 player in the 2025 high school class, Neyens looked like one of the best players regardless of class on the Royals team at the Area Code Games. He struck out the side in his one inning on the mound and threw a 90-93 mph fastball, and he also showed a lot of impact in batting practice with strength, bat speed and plenty of leverage in a slightly uphill lefty swing. He went 4-for-8 (.500) with three walks and one strikeout and looked extremely comfortable facing upper class competition. While most scouts appear to prefer him as a hitter at the moment, Neyens has legit upside on both sides of the ball and is one of the most exciting players to monitor for 2025.

Cole Royer, RHP, Pierce County HS, Blackshear, Ga.

Commit: Georgia Tech

Royer stood out on the mound at Perfect Game’s National showcase earlier in the summer and also threw three shutout innings during the fall at Perfect Game’s WWBA World Championship. A lean, lanky righthander with a 6-foot-6, 195-pound frame, Royer throws a fastball in the 89-93 mph range and has touched 95. The fastball is a high-spin offering in the 2,400 rpm range and he used it to generate nine swings and misses against just nine batters in his PG National showing. He also showed a high-spin breaking ball in the 75-78 mph range that had 11-to-5 shape and solid potential as he learns to throw the pitch with more consistency and accuracy. Royer seems to hide the ball well in his delivery, and while he has a bit of recoil that could be smoothed out, he paired arm speed with a quick tempo and filled up the zone in both of these looks. 

Omar Serna, C, Dobie HS, Houston (Class of 2025)

Commit: Louisiana State

Serna ranks as the No. 47 prospect in the 2025 high school class, and showed out at Baseball Factory with big power, big arm strength and surprisingly impressive receiving skills behind the plate. Serna is extremely physical with a 6-foot-2, 225-pound frame and generates a lot of power with a noisy righthanded swing. He has a lot of hand movement and a significant hitch in his load, which on top of a decent sized leg lift and overall aggressive approach at the plate can create a lot of timing issues and contact questions. Serna will need to refine his approach and potentially simplify his hitting setup to maximize his in-game power production—which is significant. Behind the plate he impressed scouts for his receiving skills as one of two underclassmen—along with Ethan Holliday—at Baseball Factory’s All-America game, and he has an easy plus arm strength that could become a 70-grade tool in short order.

Ryan Sloan, RHP, York HS, Elmhurst, Ill.

Commit: Wake Forest

Sloan is a strong and physical righthander who has trended upwards in velocity over the past year, touching 96 mph at peak velocity during the Area Code Games. At 6-foot-4, 220 pounds, Sloan has a lot of strength in his lower half and throws from an arm slot that ranges from three-quarters to a lower, three-quarters release. His delivery can be a bit stiff at times and he’ll need to do a better job syncing up his lower half and upper half to consistently repeat his release point and sharpen his strikes, but he has shown three quality pitches.

His fastball sits in the 90-94 mph range fairly consistently and he touches 95-96 mph early in outings, with solid running action on the pitch and spin rates in the 2,200-2,300 rpm range. He has a low-80s slider that could become an above-average offering. Like his fastball, the breaking ball has added a bit of power in recent months and features 2,500-2,600 rpm spin and solid sweeping shape. He can get around the pitch when his arm slot drops a bit too much, but it’s been a solid chase offering out of the zone and below it against righthanded hitters.

He’s shown decent feel for an 84-87 mph changeup that gets misses vs. lefthanders as well, and for a pitcher whose fastball command can be scattered, he has actually shown solid feel to spot the changeup at the bottom of the zone and around it. It looked like a solid-average or better pitch this summer.

Ariston Veasey, C/RHP, Starrs Mill, Fayetteville, Ga.

Commit: Alabama

Veasey is a two-way player who showed bigtime arm strength this summer, both behind the plate and on the mound. He had a very quick outing on the mound at Perfect Game’s National showcase, where he faced just three batters but threw a fastball in the 91-95 mph range and also showed impressive ability to spin the baseball. He threw a 73-77 mph curveball with 2,500 rpm spin and solid downer shape and depth that flashed average and buckled the knees of a righthanded hitter.

At the moment Veasey’s delivery and operation is fairly rudimentary and simple, but the ease with which he throws velocity and shows potential with his breaking ball will surely have teams interested in his upside on the mound. A primary catcher, Veasey’s arm should be an asset behind the plate, and he turned in pop times in the 1.95-2.00 second range throughout the summer, though his actions and hands behind the plate need plenty of work. He’s an athletic catcher who runs well and so might be able to move off the position if necessary. 

As a hitter, Veasey at various times this summer and fall employed a closed off and even stance at the plate. The former can look awkward, though it seems to be an attempt to keep him from pulling out too aggressively, which is a tendency that shows up for him often. While Veasey has a solid batting eye there is a lot of swing-and-miss in his operation and a bat path that gets a bit long and steep.  

Jake Yeager, RHP, Archbishop Spalding HS, Severn, Md.

Commit: Maryland

Yeager is a mid-atlantic righthander with a great pitcher’s frame and a solid three-pitch mix. Listed at 6-foot-4, 195 pounds Yeager is lean and lanky with long levers and plenty of growth potential, and he throws a fastball that was in the low 90s and up to 95 mph this summer. He generated six whiffs with his fastball in eight plate appearances at Perfect Game’s National showcase, where the pitch featured plenty of sink and run. Yeager also mixed in an 80-84 mph slider that showed 10-to-4 shape and late movement at times, though he spiked the pitch on occasion and didn’t show as much feel to throw it for strikes compared to his fastball. After the fastball/slider combination, Yeager also showed a firm, upper-80s changeup with some fading life that should provide him with a solid-average third offering in the future. Yeager does have a long, extended arm action in the back of his arm stroke which could create some issues for his strike throwing and particularly the timing of his secondaries.