While many Georgia high school baseball fans will remember 2012 as the year Byron Buxton went No. 2 overall to the Minnesota Twins and Brookwood’s Lucas Sims was selected by the hometown Atlanta Braves, 2013 could turn out to be a banner year for prep talent in the MLB draft. All across the state, baseball stars will bash and strikeout their way through the regular season and possibly into the first round.
Much like this past February when Robert Nkemdiche had eyes all across the nation on Grayson, Rams outfielder Austin Meadows will have baseball scouts flocking to the Gwinnett campus to judge whether he is worth a top-10 pick. Meadows, a 2012 Perfect Game first-team Underclassmen All American, has committed to Clemson but appears less likely to attend the ACC institution with each at-bat. In an 18-3 win over Dacula Tuesday, Meadows went 3-for-3 with three runs, three RBIs and his third home run of the season. Meadows helped the Rams to within one win of the GHSA Class AAAAA finals last year. If he gets the Rams, ranked by Baseball America as the nation’s No. 13 team, to the finals this year, he could see his stock soar into the top three.
Just up the street from Meadows is Loganville’s Clint Frazier. The outfielder has already set the state record for home runs in a season and career and still is bashing away at an alarming rate for opposing pitchers.
Frazier, who has committed to David Perno and UGA, will likely never set foot in Foley Field as a member of the Bulldogs as he was listed as the No. 3 overall draft prospect by Matt Garrioch, a baseball blogger in his recent look at the 2013 draft talent pool. Frazier and Loganville put on a show in a recent matchup against Meadows and Grayson. Loganville, ranked No. 15 nationally by Baseball America, pounded Grayson 14-4 before the game was halted by the GHSA run rule. Frazier clobbered a pair of home runs in front of roughly 70 scouts and had six dingers in his first seven games of the 2013 seasons.
Travis Demeritte, a third baseman, projects well with his quick bat speed and tremendous power. Scouts worry about the Winder-Barrow Bulldogg’s long and busy swing, but Demeritte has the tools to rake at the next level and scouts also love his arm for the hot corner. He has committed to South Carolina.
Parkview has turned out some incredible talents in recent years and center fielder Josh Hart is the next one. Hart has plus speed and is a great defender. While he isn’t a threat to go deep for 20 home runs each season, he will set the table at the next level according to various scouts. He has committed to Danny Hall and Georgia Tech and could head to the Flats if not selected on the first day of the MLB draft like former teammate Matt Olson was last year. Riverwood’s Terry McClure has also committed to the Yellow Jackets after making the Perfect Game 2012 first-team Underclassmen All American list.
The University of Georgia could lose two additional in-state players from its recruiting class to the MLB draft in Redan shortstop Wesley Jones and Walton outfielder/pitcher Stephen Wrenn. Both have received plenty of accolades after the past 24 months and each will likely hear their names called this June.
The most intriguing name coming out of the state of Georgia may just be Eagle’s Landing Christian Academy’s Jacob Heyward. The future Miami Hurricane is the younger brother of Braves right fielder Jason Heyward. Last season he hit .333 but was pitched around plenty, leading to low RBI and home run totals but a high on-base percentage. Heyward will look to help ELCA to a state title before worrying about the MLB draft or Miami.
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