Toronto tabs right-hander Hollon with 47th pick
TORONTO -- The Blue Jays used their second pick on Day 1 of the First-Year Player Draft to select 18-year-old right-hander Clinton Hollon.
Hollon is a senior from Woodford County High School (Ky.) and was taken with the 47th overall selection of the Draft. He has the ability to reach mid-90s on his fastball while also possessing a power curveball, slider and changeup.
The 6-foot-1, 195-pounder was one of the most hyped pitching prospects in the game a year ago until a right arm injury temporarily derailed his lofty expectations.
As a junior, Hollon experienced tendinitis in his right forearm after leaving the East Coast Pro Showcase and was eventually shut down for the year. He returned this spring and was throwing well, which allowed him to climb up the Draft board.
Hollon was ranked the 86th-best prospect in the Draft, according to MLB.com. He went 9-1 with a 0.61 ERA in 10 starts as a senior this season while striking out 87 batters in 57 innings and also being a 2013 Rawlings First Team All-American.
According to various reports, Hollon's mechanics are a work in progress and he will need to fix a few issues with the lower half of his body during the windup. There is a belief that his velocity could increase even more as he matures and gets stronger.
The 47th overall pick comes with a recommended slot value of $1,168,200. Hollon has a commitment to the University of Kentucky, but he does not have the same type of signability concerns that came with Toronto's first pick of the day, Phil Bickford (No. 10), who has a commitment to Cal State Fullerton.
Hollon is the earliest Draft pick out of Kentucky since Ben Revere was taken by the Twins with the 28th overall selection in the 2008 Draft, according to the Kentucky Forward. He's also the first player to be drafted out of Woodford County High School in Major League history. Hollon was taken 12 picks before fellow Kentucky native Hunter Green was taken by the Angels.
Day 2 of the Draft continues with Rounds 3-10, streamed live on MLB.com on Friday, beginning with a preview show at 12:30 p.m. And Rounds 11-40 will be streamed live on MLB.com on Saturday, starting at 1 p.m.
MLB.com's coverage includes Draft Central, the Top 100 Draft Prospects list and Draft Tracker, a live interactive application that includes a searchable database of Draft-eligible players. You can also keep up to date by following @MLBDraft on Twitter. And get into the Draft conversation by tagging your tweets with #mlbdraft.