Backyard Baseball Players Ranked
Today, Baseball America released its first combined draft list for the 2021 class, with scouting reports for each player and video for many as well.
Below is a breakdown of the list by the numbers, checking in on various regions of strength, positional breakdowns, schools with the most prospects ranked and more.
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- Sergio Francisco Romo (born March 4, 1983) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Oakland Athletics of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Dodgers, Tampa Bay Rays, Miami Marlins, and Minnesota Twins.
States
It’ll be noteworthy when there is a year where one of Florida, California and Texas isn’t represented among the top three states. That’s the case every year and is again true entering 2021.
California and the West Coast generally could be underrated at this point given the lack of coverage many players from the West had last summer and fall.
One sneaky state this year could be North Carolina, which should have a tremendous amount of collegiate depth that could begin to surface this spring as teams get more looks at the college class.
Additionally, while the Northeast doesn’t have any one state that cracks the top 10 individually, the region is loaded with draft talent this year—with the potential to be an all-time year. Massachusetts and New Jersey just missed the top 10 with five players, while Connecticut, New York and Pennsylvania have four apiece.
| Rank | State | Count | % |
| 1 | Florida | 27 | 13.5% |
| 2 | California (S) | 25 | 12.5% |
| 3 | Texas | 15 | 7.5% |
| 4 | Tennessee | 13 | 6.5% |
| 4 | North Carolina | 13 | 6.5% |
| 6 | Georgia | 12 | 6.0% |
| 7 | Kentucky | 9 | 4.5% |
| 8 | Mississippi | 8 | 4.0% |
| 9 | South Carolina | 7 | 3.5% |
| 10 | Alabama | 6 | 3.0% |
Positions
It’s a strong year for college pitching and that demographic perhaps more than any other has a chance to move up boards this year, with plenty of pitchers showcasing either stuff or performance (or both) in smaller track records and samples of playing time.
The high school class is heavy on shortstops this year, with five shortstops currently ranked in first-round territory, and quite a few sleepers who could easily end up in that range when the draft comes, including Maxwell Muncy, Edwin Arroyo, Cody Schrier, Alex Mooney and Jordan McCants—to name a few.
At this point it seems like a weak year for corner players in general, and particularly at the collegiate level where those profiles are more appealing to pro scouting departments. That could be a reason why the college hitting class is perceived as down, as many bat-first players come from either third or first base.
| Position | Count | % |
| RHP | 79 | 39.5% |
| LHP | 36 | 18.0% |
| OF | 30 | 15.0% |
| SS | 30 | 15.0% |
| C | 14 | 7.0% |
| 3B | 6 | 3.0% |
| 2B | 3 | 1.5% |
| 1B | 2 | 1.0% |
Level
Typically at this time of the year, there’s close to a 50-50 split between the college and high school classes, with the edge almost always going to the college players.
There are currently 23 more college players ranked than high schoolers, and there is just one junior college prospect ranked among the top 200.
That difference is smaller when looking at only top-30 ranked players, with that subset split 16 to the college group and 14 to the high school group. Many scouting departments feel more confident with the prep class at the moment because there was more evaluation time for the top of the class last summer, but that could change during the college season. For now the prep class looks strong.
| Level | Count | % |
| 4YR | 111 | 55.5% |
| HS | 88 | 44.0% |
| JC | 1 | 0.5% |
Youngest Players
The later draft date means players are entering pro ball about a month later, but there are still three players who will be 17 years old on draft day and a handful more who will only have recently turned 18.
| Youngest Players | Position | Age |
| Roman Kimball | RHP | 17.8 |
| Edwin Arroyo | SS | 17.9 |
| Dennis Colleran | RHP | 17.9 |
| Joshua Baez | OF | 18.0 |
| Carter Jensen | C | 18.0 |
| Brandon Neely | RHP | 18.0 |
| Daniel Corona | SS | 18.0 |
| Mitchell Bratt | LHP | 18.0 |
| Thaddeus Ector | OF | 18.0 |
| Brady House | SS | 18.1 |
| James Peyton Smith | RHP | 18.1 |
| Caedmon Parker | RHP | 18.1 |
Oldest Players
A shortened five-round draft means there are many more quality players returning from the 2020 class who will have to deal with the stigma of age. It will be interesting to see how various teams choose to penalize older players in this class under the circumstances.
| Oldest Players | Position | Age |
| Luke Waddell | SS | 23.0 |
| Parker Chavers | OF | 23.0 |
| Brannon Jordan | RHP | 23.0 |
| Casey Opitz | C | 23.0 |
| Brant Hurter | LHP | 22.9 |
| Seth Lonsway | LHP | 22.8 |
| Jack Leftwich | RHP | 22.8 |
| Tommy Mace | RHP | 22.7 |
| Glenn Albanese | RHP | 22.7 |
| Carson Seymour | RHP | 22.6 |
Schools
The usual suspects in college top the list here with the most players ranked. Louisville has three potential first-round hitters, while Vanderbilt has the most elite 1-2 prospect combination in the country with righthanders Kumar Rocker and Jack Leiter.
Of note here are two high schools that crack the list. As you would expect, both are powerhouse programs that consistently turn out talent. IMG Academy is the newer school and looks to have another strong class after six players were drafted out of the program in 2019. Outfielder James Wood has a chance to be the highest drafted player out of the program this year.
JSerra Catholic High is a traditional powerhouse in Southern California and lands four prospects on the top 200, led by shortstop Cody Schrier. The program has produced pro players including Austin Hedges, Royce Lewis and Chase Strumpf.
| Rank | School | Players |
| 1 | Louisville | 7 |
| 2 | Florida | 6 |
| T3 | Vanderbilt | 5 |
| T3 | UCLA | 5 |
| T3 | IMG Academy, Bradenton, Fla. | 5 |
| T6 | Virginia | 4 |
| T6 | JSerra Catholic HS, San Juan Capistrano, Calif. | 4 |
| T8 | Ohio State | 3 |
| T8 | North Carolina State | 3 |
| T8 | Mississippi State | 3 |
| T8 | Mississippi | 3 |
| T8 | Miami | 3 |
| T8 | Duke | 3 |
Commitments
Three of the top four schools in terms of current prospects are also among the top four in committed prospects.
Florida leads all programs with eight commits, including two of the best righthanders in the country in Andrew Painter (the consensus top arm in the prep class) and Chase Petty.
UCLA has commits from all four JSerra prospects in its backyard, as the program consistently holds onto the best talent in the Southern California area. Outfielder Malakhi Knight is from Washington and could be the highest upside player of the group.
Vanderbilt has arguably the best 1-2 hitting combination of any program, with shortstop Jordan Lawlar (No. 2) and outfielder Joshua Baez (No. 20). It’s hard to see the program getting either player to campus considering their electrifying toolsets—let alone one.
| Commitments | Players |
| Florida | 8 |
| UCLA | 7 |
| Vanderbilt | 6 |
| Louisiana State | 6 |
| Tennessee | 4 |
| Mississippi State | 4 |
| Arkansas | 4 |
| South Carolina | 3 |
| Florida State | 3 |
| Clemson | 3 |
POWER PLAYER RANKINGS
Top hitters and pitchers for all age groups
The Power Player Rankings are for Houston/Gulf Coast-Area teams only (including Beaumont and College Station) and are generated by All-Tournament Team selections, Top Performer Data, and individual stats. To nominate your players please DM us on any social media account or email us at powerplayers@selectballcentral.com.
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Hitters
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Pitchers
1. Mason Salinas – ZT Elite Salinas
2. Landyn Reynolds – Lumberjacks Baseball 9U
3. Landon Ayers – South County Mavericks Brown
4. Bryson McCune – ZT Elite Salinas
5. Charlie Gale – Lumberjacks Baseball
6. Aaron Cabello – Texas Finest
7. Malacai Bullock – Scorpions Team Easton
8. Drew Stewart – Texas Twelve Black
9. Javier Solis – Texas Nitro Baseball
10. Blake Garrett – Scorpions Team Easton
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Hitters
1. Harper Wilson – Lumberjacks Baseball
2. Case Shipley – Scorpions Team Easton
3. Gerardo Hurtado – ZT Elite Salinas
4. Knox Briner – Scorpions Team Easton
5. Mason Salinas – ZT Elite 9U Salinas
6. Brody Lunsford – Backyard Ballers Black
7. Jacob Radow – Sienna Knights
8. Brock Ford – Scorpions Team Easton
9. Carson Smith – Team Citius Malcom
10. Mason Reyna – Pearland Expos Alpha
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Pitchers
1. Steven Adame III – Banditos Black
2. Adam Morales – Houston Brewers
3. Noah Mendez – Banditos 10U Black
4. Talon Sweat – Piranhas Baseball Tynder
5. Tanner Klentz – ZT Elite Jacob
6. Carter Gentzel – Boombah Blacksox
7. Gavin McDonald – Texas Mizuno Autrey
8. Gage Parsons – Boombah Blacksox
9. Cooper Price – Houston Gamblers
10. Estaban Duenes – ZT Elite Jacob
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Hitters
1. Carter Holder – Boombah Blacksox
2. Tanner Klentz – ZT Elite Jacob
3. Brandon “Bj” Lafell – ZT Elite Jacob
4. Jose Vera – Dynasty Black
5. Brody Herd – Banditos Black
6. Cooper Thompson – Boombah Blacksox
7. Maddox McBryde – Scorpions Team Easton
8. Austen Acuna – ZT Elite Jacob
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9. Brayden Lyszaz – Dynasty Black
10. Jacob Ramirez – ZT Elite Medina/Nava
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Pitchers
1. Kyle Kirk – Dynasty Black
2. Karsen McCoy – Texas Twelve Black
3. Caleb Alexander – Dynasty Black
4. Adriene Barrios – HTX Rebels
5. Carter Culbreth – Backyard Ballers Black
6. Dylan Mercado – ZT Elite Burgos
7. Kyle Mercer – South County Mavericks Red
8. Kyle Crockett – Five Tool Players
9. Parker Legh-Page – Premier National
10. Orangel Hernandez – ZT Elite Burgos
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Hitters
1. Carter Culbreth – Backyard Ballers Black
2. Dylan Mercado – ZT Elite Burgos
3. Easton Brunson – Premier National
4. Parker Ross – 9elite
5. Adniel Quiles Torres – ZT Elite Burgos
6. Jake McPherson – Premier National
7. Caleb Alexander – Dynasty Black
8. Luis Olmeda – ZT Elite Burgos
9. Kaleb Foster – Backyard Ballers Black
10. Braxton Jones – Five Tool Players
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Pitchers
1. Roman Martinez – ZT Elite 12U Gonzalez
2. Oscar Barron – ZT Elite 12U HTX
3. Adan Ramirez Jr. – 21 Baseball Academy
4. Elias Hernandez – Premier Baseball (Campos)
5. Grant Sperandio – Texas Twelve Black
6. Michael Holliday – Banditos 12U Black
7. Logan Asebedo – Gladiators 12U Hampshire
8. Hunter Golden – Hustle-Aguilera
Backyard Baseball
9. Noah Melendez – ZT Elite 12U HTX
10. Jake Burton – ZT Elite Jacob
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Hitters
1. Chris Gonzales – Banditos Black
2. Jonell Rodriguez – ZT Elite 12U HTX
3. James Mass – Fort Bend Bombers
4. Aiden DeLeon – Banditos Black
5. Jansyel Otwell – 21 Baseball Academy
6. Troy Gonzalez – ZT Elite 12U Gonzalez
7. Xavier Blanco – ZT Elite HTX
8. Aiden Salinas – Vendetta Baseball
9. Michael Holliday – Banditos Black
10. David Harris – Fort Bend Bombers
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Pitchers
1. Logan Shields – ZT Elite 13U Nava
2. Colton Gilbert – Scorpions Team Easton
3. Karson Dupre – Marucci Elite Texas 13U Rodriguez
4. CJ Sampson – Texas Twelve Black
5. Ross Sullivan – Futures Baseball
6. Devin Mayahi – Marucci Elite Texas 13U Rodriguez
7. Edmond (Maxime) Gonzalez – Marucci Elite Texas Rodriguez
8. Nikolas Peinado – ZT Elite 13U Nava
9. Harper Gates – Texas Twelve Black
10. Cade Low – ZT Elite 13U Avalos
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Hitters
1. Karson Dupre – Marucci Elite 13U Rodriguez
2. Bryce Nixon – Texas Twelve 13U Black
3. Valentin Regalado – ZT 13U Nava
4. Anthony Zepeda- ZT Elite 13U Nava
5. William Fielder – Dynasty Black 2025
6. Cedrick McClintock – ZT Elite 13U Nava
7. Peyton Trummell – Scorpions Team Easton
8. Danny Villarreal – Marucci Elite 13U Rodriguez
9. Mark Macklin – Scorpions Team Easton
10. Judson Dowell – Texas Twelve 13U Black
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Pitchers
1. Jack McKernan – Texas Twelve Black
2. Dylan Rostron – Scorpions Team Easton
3. Jacob Milam – Dynasty Black HTX
4. Maverick Delgado – ZT Elite Requena
5. Victor Coronado – Houston Bengals Scout
6. Will Van Wie – Twelve 14U Silver
7. Tommy Vandor – Branch Baseball
8. Cooper Chambers – Texas Twelve Black
Backyard Baseball Players Ranked 2019
9. Chase Connell – Banditos 14U
10. Nathan Johnson – Twelve 14U Silver
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Hitters
1. Victor Corondo – Houston Bengals Scout Team
2. Juan Ortigoza – Twelve 14U Silver
3. Blake Dardis – Branch Baseball
4. Jayden Blalack – Trosky Texas 2025
5. Mesa Chilcutt – Banditos 14U Black
6. Omar Sema – ZT Elite 14U American
7. Jordan Gomez – ZT Elite 14U American
8. Trae Allen – ZT Elite 14U Requena
9. Brody Smith – Houston Bengals Scout Team
10. Jase DeSantis – ZT Elite 14U Requena
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Pitchers
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Hitters
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