PL Missoula PaddleHeads

MLB Draft Day 2 in the Books - Dbacks Focus on College Stars

Published on June 4, 2019 under Pioneer League (PL)
Missoula PaddleHeads News Release


MISSOULA, MT - After selecting 3 high school prospects and 4 college players on Day 1 of the MLB First Year Player Draft, the Arizona Diamondbacks focused more on the college players in Day 2. Shortstop Glenallen Hill Jr. from Santa Cruz High School was one of only two high school players taken on the second day. Hill is the son of the former Major League 13-year veteran of the same name. In addition to Hill, the Dbacks took three college pitchers, 2 college firstbaseman, and a collegiate outfielder. The other high school prospect taken by Arizona was 10th round selection Oscar Santos, a catcher from Puerto Rico. Here are the picks from day 2 in order with a description of each:

Tristin English | 3 rd Rd (93rd overall) | 1B | Georgia Tech University | R/R | 6-3 | 208

"Declining to sign with the Indians as a 39th-rounder out of a Georgia high school in 2015, English opted instead to attend Georgia Tech as a two-way player. He earned all-Atlantic Coast Conference honors as a freshman in 2016 but didn't pitch because of bone spurs in his elbow, then missed all of 2017 following an operation to remove the spurs and subsequent Tommy John surgery. He has succeeded at the plate and on the mound the last two years, including a stint in the Cape Cod League, and could go in the top four or five rounds as a redshirt junior position player. English prefers hitting to pitching and has convinced most scouts that he has a brighter future as an everyday player. He has made huge strides this spring with his ability to translate his strength into power production and make consistent contact from the right side of the plate. He could continue to improve further if he focuses solely on hitting and develops more patience. English moves well for a 6-foot-3, 214-pounder and has close to average speed once he gets going. He plays a quality first base and should be able to handle right field, though the Yellow Jackets have taken it easy on him defensively because he doubles as their closer. A pro club could toy with the idea of using him both ways because he has a 92-95 mph fastball and flashes a solid slider." - mlb.com

Glenallen Hill Jr. | 4 th Round (122nd overall) | SS | Santa Cruz HS, CA | S/R | 5-9 | 170

The son of former 13-year Major League star Glenallen Hill who currently manages the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes in the Rockies' system. "Hill Jr. has all the tools and athleticism one would want to see from a high school performer. There's raw power from both sides of the plate and while it's more of a line drive swing from the left side in games, he shows the pop in batting practice regularly with plus raw power overall. He's also a plus runner with basestealing ability, though he was slowed a bit with a hamstring injury earlier this spring. The only question about him on the offensive side is the swing and miss to his game, with some wondering about him making enough contact to tap into that raw pop. The Arizona State commit has played infield in high school, but there is consensus that he'll move to the outfield at the next level, and he did play out there over the summer. He has the tools to play a strong center field and the bloodlines, not to mention a familial coach, to maximize his potential." - mlb.com Conor Grammes | 5 th Rd (152 overall) | P | Xavier University | R/R | 6'1 | 200

"More of a power hitter than a pitcher in high school, Grammes won nearly as many Virginia state wrestling titles (two) as he pitched innings (three), and he received a walk-on opportunity at Xavier only after emailing the program. While he has posted much gaudier numbers at the plate than on the mound with the Musketeers, he'll definitely become a full-time pitcher as a pro. He turned down the Orioles as a 35th-rounder last year as a sophomore and should go about 30 rounds higher this June. Grammes offers some of the best fastball velocity in the Draft, working at 95-99 mph as a reliever in the past and at 93-95 as a starter this spring. It doesn't feature a lot of life and he struggles to command it, so his heater can get hit when he leaves it over the plate. Similarly, he can throw some sharp low-80s sliders and also get into trouble when his breaking ball flattens out. Grammes has shown little feel for a changeup while trying to incorporate a third pitch as a starter this year, and he'll probably scrap it as a reliever at the next level. Though he throws with some effort, he has made some progress cleaning up his delivery and has the athleticism to continue to improve. He has little history of providing strikes or consistency, though he never has concentrated solely on pitching either." - mlb.com

Andrew Saalfrank | 6 th Rd (182 overall) | 1B | Indiana University | L/L | 6-3 | 205

"Saalfrank has dominated at times with a swing-and-miss, low-80s curveball that he can throw for strikes. He's shown good command with an average of three walks per nine innings with Indiana this year, and can crank up his low-90s fastball to 94 when he needs it. He compiled more in-conference strikeouts than any other Big 10 pitcher this season." - mlb.com

Spencer Brickhouse | 7 th Rd (212 overall) | 1B | East Carolina University | L/R | 6-4 | 235 "Aptly named, Brickhouse is one of the more imposing physical presences in college baseball at 6-foot-4 and 235 pounds. He and Bryant Packard have formed a two-man wrecking crew for East Carolina for the last three seasons. The 2018 Cape Cod League all-star game MVP, he has more power but less pure hitting ability and defensive value than Packard and should join him in the top five rounds this June. Brickhouse's carrying tool is huge raw left-handed power to all fields, the product of strength and leverage more than bat speed. He has reached double figures in homers in each of his three college seasons, and he's willing to take walks when pitchers decline to challenge him. He has some feel for hitting, but his dead-pull approach and struggles with wood bats on the Cape create some swing-and-miss concerns. Most scouts project Brickhouse as a DH in pro ball. He's a bottom-of-the-scale runner with well below-average arm strength and shaky defense at first base. His overall game resembles that of Dan Vogelbach." - mlb.com Dominic Canzone | 8 th Rd (242 overall) | RF | Ohio State University | L/R | 6-1 | 190

"Scouts don't like Canzone's left-handed swing but it's hard to argue with the results. He has produced at the plate for Ohio State for three straight seasons and tied Nick Swisher's school record by reaching base in 51 consecutive games this spring, a streak that was still active at the end of the regular season. Adding more power to his profile this year could help him become just the second Buckeyes position player to get picked in the top five rounds during the last decade. Canzone uses his hand-eye coordination and a disciplined approach to make hard contact to all fields. After struggling to drive the ball in the Cape Cod League last summer, he has become less spread out at the plate and has added some loft to what had been a flat stroke. He still features more strength than bat speed, but his 15 regular-season homers more than doubled his total from his first two years, and he added pop without compromising his ability to control the strike zone. A belowaverage runner out of the batter's box, Canzone is closer to average underway and shows some savvy on the bases. He's a decent defender with an average arm, albeit limited to left field. The team that drafts him will have to bank on his bat, which may be good enough to get him to the big leagues." - mlb.com

Bobby Ay | 9 th Rd (272 overall) | P | Cal Poly - San Luis Obispo | R/R | 6-3 | 190

Started 15 games for the Cal Poly Mustangs this season after missing all but one game in 2017-18 due to an injury. Ay put in an impressive season by going 9-1 with a 3.27 ERA in 15 starts. The righthander is originally from El Toro high school in California and spent four years at Cal Poly.

Oscar Santos | 10th Rd (302 overall) | C | PJ Education School, Puerto Rico | R/R | 5-9 | 175

Santos is a product of the National Baseball Academy in Carolina, Puerto Rico, the hometown of MLB great Roberto Clemente. Drafted as a catcher, Santos has spent considerable time at shortstop in high school. He is considered to project well on both sides of the ball and displays the ability to drive the ball to all fields. Coverage of the 2019 MLB Draft continues Tuesday on MLB.com, which will stream pick-by-pick coverage of Rounds 11-40 starting at 10:00am MT.

MLB.com's full coverage includes Draft Central, the Top 200 Draft Prospects list, and Draft Tracker, a live interactive application that includes a searchable database of over 1,500 draft-eligible players. Every selection will be tweeted live from @MLBDraftTracker, and fans can also follow @MLBDraft to stay in tune with picks. For all picks made by the Diamondbacks, follow @Dbacks on twitter, and also @OspreyBaseball for full announcements of the selections.

The 2019 Osprey season will open their home season on Friday, June 21 when the O's take on the Great Falls Voyagers. Season tickets, ticket packages, and individual game tickets are on sale now at the MSO Hub located at 140 N. Higgins, online at www.missoulaosprey.com and by phone at (406) 543-3300.

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