Phils take athletic SS in college-heavy Day 2

June 4th, 2019

SAN DIEGO – The Phillies continued to load up on college players in the Day 2 of the 2019 Draft.

After they selected UNLV shortstop Bryson Stott with the 14th overall pick on Monday night, they chose seven college players out of eight players selected on Tuesday. The Draft concludes on Wednesday, with exclusive coverage of Rounds 11-40 on MLB.com beginning at noon ET.

Here is a look at the Phillies’ Day 2 picks:

3. SS Jamari Baylor, Benedectine School (Va.)

Baylor made a commitment to Louisburg Junior College, but he is expected to sign. He batted .412 with seven home runs and 21 RBIs as a senior, flashing all five tools, although not consistently. He recently had workouts with the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park and the Nationals at Nationals Park, in part because he could drive there from Virginia. Baylor homered to straightaway center in DC.

"It was really fun," Baylor told the Richmond Times-Dispatch. "I wish I could do it again."

Scouts told MLB Pipeline that Baylor’s right-handed swing works well and he should develop average power.

“It's a loose athletic swing with some bat speed, giving him the chance to hit, but there's some swing and miss and some work to be done on his approach,” MLB Pipeline wrote. “An excellent athlete, Baylor runs well and is aggressive on the basepaths. He's raw at shortstop, and he'll need to work on his angles and footwork, but might have the chance to stick there, thanks to decent hands, his athleticism and a strong arm that has been up to 92 mph on the mound.”

His stock rose this spring as teams moved him into the top five rounds.

4. LHP Erik Miller, Stanford

Miller is an imposing figure at 6-foot-5, 240 pounds, with a fastball in the mid-90s and a solid slider. He went 8-2 with a 3.15 ERA in 15 starts, striking out 97 and walking 42 in 80 innings. He performed well as a junior, easing concerns about his struggles last summer in the Cape Cod League.

Scouts are not certain about his future role on a pitching staff, meaning there is a chance he moves into the bullpen. His fastball touches 96-97 mph, and his velocity has crept upwards this spring after starting at 88-92 mph. He also throws a slider that is a plus-pitch at times and an above-average changeup.

MLB Pipeline wrote that “his command and delivery issues have led some evaluators to see a future in the bullpen, where his fastball-slider combination from the left side could lead to a Josh Hader-like role in the future.”

5. RHP Gunner Mayer, San Joaquin Delta College (Calif.)

Mayer has committed to transfer to Texas Tech, but the Phillies expect him to sign. He is 6-foot-6, 190 pounds, with a fastball in the mid-90s and a solid slider. Mayer made 25 relief appearances this season, posting a 4.78 ERA and striking out 48 in 37 2/3 innings.

6. RHP Andrew Schultz, Tennessee

Schultz is another hard-throwing relief pitcher, sitting in the 95-97 mph range and even hitting 101 mph, consistently throwing harder than any college pitcher in the Draft.

He went 3-1 with a 3.22 ERA and two saves with the Volunteers. Schultz’s fastball hit 97 mph in high school in Georgia, but MLB Pipeline said concerns about his delivery, wildness and signability left him undrafted. He continued to struggle to find the strike zone in college, but after shortening his arm angle and raising his arm slot in 2019, he hit his stride. His fastball not only has velocity, but it has a high spin rate, giving it riding action up in the strike zone.

Schultz also throws a slider, which sits in the upper-80s. It shows flashes of being of a plus pitch, but at times is below average in the low-80s with a slurve quality.

7. RHP Brett Schulze, Minnesota

The pride of Dinkytown is another hard-throwing right-hander with a mid-90s fastball and a breaking ball.
Schulze, who is 6-foot-2, 180 pounds, went 5-1 with a 3.07 ERA and nine saves in relief 30 appearances with the Golden Gophers. He struck out 55 and walked 15 in 41 innings.

8. SS Nate Fassnacht, George Washington University.
Fassnacht was the Atlantic 10’s Player of the Year, batting .372 with 11 home runs, 60 RBIs and a 1.108 OPS. Fassnacht knows the Philadelphia-area well. He grew up in nearby Lancaster County and attended Ephrata Area High School.

9. 1B Rudy Rott, Ohio University

Rott won Mid-American Conference Player of the Year honors for the second consecutive year. He also became Ohio’s all-time hits leader during the season, never hitting lower than .300 in any of his four years with the Bobcats. He hit .382 with 10 home runs, 47 RBIs, a .464 on-base percentage and a .618 slugging percentage.

10. 3B McCarthy Tatum, Fresno State
Tatum is a senior that batted .356 with 13 home runs, 77 RBIs and a 1.003 OPS. He led the Mountain West Conference in slugging percentage (.606). He hit for more home runs, RBIs and had a higher slugging percentage than Stott.