The Braves selected RHP Ian Anderson with the 3rd overall pick tonight, and the big HS righty is already drawing some flattering comparisons.
Standing at 6’3, 175- Anderson reminds Jonathan Mayo of an MLB Star: Jacob deGrom. The Vanderbilt commit out of New York was signed for a fairly cheap deal for 3rd overall, and the Braves plan to use the money saved to balance out the budget for the rest of their draft. Baseball America had him going 12th before tonight, but the intangibles are there for Ian Anderson. His fastball is topping out at 96-97, and his curveball is noted to have a lot of action. He also throws a slurve pitch in the 80’s that is highly praised by scouts. The Braves will immediately begin putting muscle on him, and his velocity will begin to improve. He has good velocity, but his control has been praised by all of the scouts who have watched him.
The Braves were inclined to take a college hitter with their first pick, but they didn’t like what they saw out of Kyle Lewis out of Mercer and they didn’t like the price tag on Corey Ray. The Front Office decided there were enough talented bats around 40 and 44 to take a gamble on Anderson; a guy that they really like. With July 2nd looming, Atlanta is the favorites to sign the following top 30 International prospects :
Kevin Maitan (SS)
Abrahan Gutierrez (C)
Yunior Severino (SS)
Yenci Pena (3B)
Livan Soto (INF)
Juan Contreras (RHP)
It’s obvious that they didn’t think a bat was that pressing of a need, and there are still impact college hitters around 40 and 44. Time will tell who will fall to 40, with rumors that #1 overall prospect Jason Groome may be available there due to the price tag.
Welcome to Atlanta, Ian! Congratulations.