NEW JERSEY 

2007 FOLLOW LIST  

OVERVIEW:New Jersey has had two prospect-filled teams enjoy very successful seasons. Seton Hall Prep, led by righthander Rick Porcello, the top high school pitcher in the country, has held down the No. 1 national high school ranking for much of the year. Rutgers, led by player of the ear candidate Todd Frazier, was a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament field.

The talent depth goes well beyond Porcello and Frazier, who could also be a first-round pick. Signability concerns could affect the New Jersey high school class as much as any in the country, as the top players all are perceived to have strong college commitments, many to top level schools (Notre Dame, Vanderbilt, Rice, Wake Forest ).

Things look good for New Jersey in 2008, as well. Monmouth’s program is a 2007 NCAA qualifier and Seton Hall has had strong recruiting classes on the college level. Righthanders Quinton Miller and Chris Knapp both rank among the top 2008 high school pitchers in the country.

STRENGTH: Power arms, especially high school arms.
WEAKNESS: Hitters, particularly high school hitters.
OVERALL RATING (1-to-5 scale): 4.

Best Out-of-State Prospect, New Jersey Connection: Sean Doolittle, lhp-1b, U. of Virginia (Attended high school in Tabernacle.
Top 2008 Prospect: Quinton Miller, rhp, Shawnee HS, Medford .

Highest Pick, Draft History: Jeff Kunkel, ss, Rider U. (1983, Rangers/1^st round, 3^rd pick); Willie Banks, rhp, St. Anthony’s HS, Jersey City (1987, Twins/1^st round, 3^rd pick).
Highest Pick, 2006 Draft: Billy Rowell, 3b, Bishop Eustace HS, Pennsauken (Orioles/1^st round, 9^th pick).

Best College Team: Rutgers.
Best Junior College Team: Brookdale CC.
Best High School Team: Seton Hall Prep, West Orange.

TOP 25 PROSPECTS / By David Rawnsley

GROUPS (College, Junior College, High School)
      1   High-round draft (Rounds 1-3)
      2   Mid-round draft (Rounds 4-10)
      3   Late-round draft (Rounds 11-25)
      4   Chance draft / Player to follow

GROUP ONE
Rank  Player                                  Pos.       Yr     B-T      HT     WT     School                              Hometown           Drafted/(Commit) B’date
     1.   Rick Porcello                       RHP      Sr.     R-R     6-5     190     Seton Hall Prep               Chester                   (North Carolina )     12-27-88
SCOUTING REPORT: Porcello has solidified his status as the top high school pitching prospect in the 2007 class all spring and could go as high as the No. 2 pick, to the Kansas City Royals. The best way to summarize Porcello is to compare him to the Tigers’ Justin Verlander, the No. 2 pick in the 2004 draft. The two compare well across the board, except Porcello has fewer delivery issues to work through as an amateur. While many pitchers can top out at impressive velocities but actually maintain significantly less speed on their fastballs, Porcello, like Verlander, maintains a mid-90s fastball from the first pitch to the last due to easy arm strength and consistent mechanics. Porcello throws both a slider and a curveball, and both show the potential to be plus pitches down the road. His changeup is pretty good for a young pitcher who doesn’t need one yet. Underappreciated is the fact that Porcello is a top-level athlete who plays shortstop for the high school team that has been ranked No. 1 in the country much of the spring. He’s agile and can swing the bat with power, and that athletic ability is a huge plus to his pitching skills. Porcello comes from a baseball family and is a ball player, not just a gifted pitcher.