MLB mock draft: Hunter Greene draws intrigue
By John McCarty
8. Philadelphia Phillies
2016 Record: 71-91
Selection: Austin Beck, OF, High School
College Commitment: North Carolina
Signing Bonus Slot Value: $4,780,400
This pick is quite possibly the most difficult to figure out and guess. In the middle of a rebuild that’s not going as fast as teams like the Houston Astros were able to do, or as completely it the Atlanta Braves have done. Philadelphia has been associated with basically any and every name projected in the top 15, so hammering down what they are targeting, be it a college or high school player is tough to hammer down.
In this scenario, the Phillies target perhaps the hottest name in the draft in the North Carolina prep outfielder Austin Beck. in the 2017 draft, there may not be a prospect in the draft with better tools. A serious knee injury (torn ACL) suffered a year ago kept him off the summer scouting circuit for scouts. Questions about how his game plays with a wood bat and against the top level of competition were left unanswered due to the injury. Also, he’s committed to North Carolina, which, true or not, has raised some concerns about his sign ability.
On the field however, Beck has been compared, in certain terms, to Mike Trout. Just as Trout, Beck has speed and power to all fields with a strong understanding of the strike zone and quick hands through the zone. It also helps that Beck is a really fast runner, both offensively and on defense. Combined with a strong arm and the aforementioned speed, and you can see what some scouts see a little bit of Trout when they scout Beck.
This spring, returning to the field, Beck reportedly has not been slowed much if at all by the knee injury, and appears there may be no long term concerns about his knee. That being said, he could find himself going higher then eight. (Atlanta and Oakland are known to have been doing extensive background work on the Tar Heel commit.) Regardless, his ceiling would be difficult to pass up unless the Phillies are strictly targeting college pitching, as some rumors would lead you to believe, or are looking for an advanced bat to move through the system.