In just about 4 months, Major League Baseball will hold its annual amateur draft. D1 baseball has been rolling for 3 weekends now and our own Greg Zumach has done his Top 100 list and 1st round mock draft,

Me, on the other hand, I am still in my busy season at school and that wraps up tomorrow. After that, I can start getting into the draft a bit more and hopefully I will have a 5 or 6 round Cubs mock draft the week of the 27th. 

So far, I laid out 5 college guys to keep an eye on when the season began. They were Homer Bush, Jr., Tanner Witt, Jack Hurley, Cade Kuehler, and Carson Montgomery. Let’s look at how they are doing.

Bush – Hitting ..395, OBP of .500, .512 slugging, 8 RBI in 11 games, 0 HR, with 3 SBs. Not a bad start. 

Witt – He has yet to pitch. I am not concerned. Ask me again in April.

Hurley – He is hitting .286 with 2 HR and 11 RBI. .995 OPS, 5 of his 11 hits were doubles and he also had a triple.

Kuehler – 26 Ks in 16 IP so far. Struggled vs Butler but demolished Louisiana with 10 Ks.

Montgomery – It’s been rough go with a 7.15 ERA in 11 innings.His first outings were fine but then he was shelled by Florida Gulf Coast. There is still plenty of time left.

As I mentioned in “The Weekly,” Brock Wilken is taking off, but so is everybody at Wake Forest who look like they could be a powerhouse come tourney time. Fellow Deacona pitcher Rhett Lowder is one arm who is on fire and might not be available for the Cubs at 13. In 3 games, Lowder has thrown 19 frames with a 0.47 ERA and 26 Ks!

Here are some other players whose stock has also been rising.

1. Paul Skenes – LSU – He’s been a machine mowing guys down. Probably not going to get past 4 or 5 in the draft. He was originally ranked in the low 10s.

2. Jackson Finley – Georgia Tech – 1B – A Two player, he’s been dominating at the plate hitting.357 with 5 HR, 9 RBI, 3 BB.

3, Ryan Vanderhei – RHP _ TCU – Last week he threw 6 scoreless and struck out 8.

4. LeBarron Johnson – RHP – Texas – 5 scoreless with 9 against the vaunted LSU bats.

5. Cameron Johnson – LHP – IMG Academy – 6’5 230 and can just bring it at the plate. He might be my guy before too long for the Cubs at 13. That’s a lot for him to rise but that is also four months away. Considering the depth in this class, it might be harder than seems.

He hasn’t started playing yet, by Parker Detmers of Chatham Glenwood, just south of Springfield, Illinois, is going one to watch the next few weeks. He  is committed to Louisville where his brother Reid, who pitches for the Angels, went as well.

I am sure there will be more risers right up through draft night!